China has one of the longest histories of continuously recorded martial arts tradition of any society in the world, and with hundreds of styles probably the most varied. Over the past two to four thousand years, many distinctive styles have been developed, each with its own techniques and movements. There are also common themes to the different styles, which are often classified by "families" (家, jiā), "sects" (派, pai) or "schools" (門, men) of martial art styles. There are styles that mimic movements from animals and others that gather inspiration from various philosophies and legends. Some styles put most of their focus into the harnessing of one's own Qi energy, while others concentrate solely on competition and exhibition. Each style offers a different approach to the common problems of self-defense, health and self-cultivation.

Chinese martial arts can be split into various categories to differentiate them: For example, external (外家拳) and internal (内家拳) Chinese martial arts can also be categorized by location, as in northern (北拳) and southern (南拳) as well, referring to what part of China the styles originated from, separated by the Yangtze River (Chang Jiang); Chinese martial arts may even be classified according to their province or city. The main perceived difference about northern and southern styles is that the northern styles tend to emphasize fast and powerful kicks, high jumps and generally fluid and rapid movement, while the southern styles (which are the styles that are practiced at our temple) focus more on strong arm and hand techniques, and stable, immovable stances and fast footwork. These basics are a vital part of the training, as a student cannot progress to the more advanced stages without them; without strong and flexible muscles including the management of the concept of one's Qi and proper body mechanics, many movements of Chinese martial arts are simply impossible to perform correctly. The beginning stages of training may involve a series of simple movements that are performed repeatedly over and over; examples include stretching, stance work, rudimentary conditioning, introduction to one of the five animals, meditation and basic kicking and punching techniques.

Five Animal Fist

• Tiger

• Leopard

• Crane

• Snake

• Dragon

Other Styles

• Wing Chun

• Lohan / Long Fist

• Hung Gar

• Choy Li Fut

• Pa Kua Chang

• Drunken

• Fut Gar

• Kam Na Sao

• Praying Mantis

• Monkey

• White Eyebrow

• Buddha Hand

• Tai Chi Chaun

• Tai Chi Sword