CHUAN NA QUAN, a kind of the pugilistic art, was developed by master Sha Da Chuan from the town of Nantong. All movements of this kind of the pugilistic art were taken from the style TAI JI YUAN GONG; the oldest and respected specialist in it was master Wang Yue Qun, a fellow-townsman of Sha Da Chuan. During several decades this style was formed through reflection, training and practical experience. It is complicated enough, sometimes sequences of movements are unpredictable, therefore, it is difficult to understand the essence without a prior grounding. The book contains 30 of the most effective methods from CHUAN NA and few techniques from the section SHAN DIAN SHOW (“Arms like lightning”) of the style TAI JI YUAN GONG. We tried to shift the grain from chaff and show all that is the most valuable. All in all, fifty-five position are available, each of them is shown on a photo and supplied with detailed explanations on the execution of movements, movement directions, etc. I think writing books on martial arts requires the utmost exactness, briefness and clarity, so the reader could catch all nuances of movements and their combat employment at once. I always tried to proceed from actual situation, take into account practical training experience and compile a book on that base. Quintessence and innermost gist of this martial art are given in the book. The book includes actual movements, methods and techniques and does not contain idle talk and methods unfit for practical use. As this kind of QUAN SHU (“pugilistic art”) is passed down to outsiders very seldom, there are only few people who know it. Being anxious that with time this style can be entirely lost, I recorded everything I knew from my tutors, wrote on paper my opinions based on personal experience and compiled this book for future generations. Click picture (top left) to download for free trial or to buy!.

HERITAGE OF THE SOUTHERN SHAOLIN. According to tradition the style SHE ZU QUAN came into existence in the Fujian province (South-East China) in the beginning of the 18th century. The founder of the style is considered Tie Zhu, one of several monks who survived complete devastation of the Southern Shaolin monastery by emperor Yongzheng’s troops. After long wandering Tie Zhu settled down in the village of Jindouyang. The village was situated in a remote mountain region in the North-East of the Fujian province where since long time the small nationality SHE lived. In time Tie Zhu opened a school to teach local inhabitants. Later the style was spread among the people of SHE and received the present name. SHE, one of small peoples in South-East China, inhabit mountain region at the junction of provinces Fujian, Zhejiang, Jiangxi, Guangdong. During long time the SHE people led isolated life. Contacts of SHEs with the outside world were limited very much until the middle of the 20th century. SHE ZU QUAN, always being a closed style, was passed down from generation to generation at family schools. The people of SHE used SHE ZU QUAN for protection of their homes and crops, they shared secrets of the mastery very seldom and hid them from strangers. Thanks to such isolation over almost three hundred years combat technique of the style and training methods did not undergo substantial changes, they preserve precious heritage of the Southern Shaolin School practically without any changes until now. Besides the theoretical base of the style, combat methods and techniques the book presents many little known but very effective exercises for developing quickness, hardness and strength. Those three qualities are basic for the whole Southern Shaolin School, they are called “three jewels” in SHE ZU QUAN. In addition, original exercises for developing eyesight, balance, response time, etc. are available in the book. Click picture (top left) for FREE DOWNLOAD TRIAL or to buy!

This book makes subject area of our web-site somewhat wider. However, the way of martial arts is extremely wide and sometimes it is useful to have a look from a new point of view at what you do and what you have achieved in the end. As the proverb says, “The learner of WU SHU has three precious things: the breadth (of knowledge) is precious, the essence is precious, but the most precious is understanding.” But without first two precious things you can not acquire the third, the most precious thing. Therefore, besides understanding “the essence” of your school you have to be in possession of the breadth of knowledge. As a saying goes, “If there are no breadth and essence, it is hard to read the hieroglyph “understanding”; if there are breadth and essence, the hieroglyph “understanding” becomes apparent by itself.” If you know only your school and style, it is like the proverb says: “Who has seen little is amazed by many things.” The system of knife combat presented in the book was used for training of soldiers from reconnaissance/sabotage units of the Soviet Army. Special Forces of the MAIN INTELLIGENCE DEPARTMENT of the General Staff of the Russian (former Soviet) Army (or, in an abbreviated form, "Spetsnaz GRU") are intended for conducting secret combat operations at the rear of the enemy. Missions carried out by SPETSNAZ troops determine special character and basic lines of SPETSNAZ COMBAT training. "The main mission of a Spetsnaz fighter in a Close Combat is to destroy the enemy with any available means as quickly as possible despite their arms and superior number...". The fighter himself should not be seriously affected, otherwise he could jeopardize the achievement of a fighting mission by his reconnaissance/sabotage team. That's why the combat training of a fighter from the Spetsnaz is aimed at gaining a flawless proficiency in many types of fire arms and cold steel and traditionally a combat knife is of special importance among them. The basic peculiarity of a knife combat is that it is the combat of short duration. After fighters have approached a striking distance, the result of a fight is at stake within fractions of a second; one or two exact lunges and you win or perish. That's why the main requirement to a fighter from the Spetsnaz at the initial training stage in knife-combat technique is flawless acquiring of basic methods up to the automatic level: one has no time to ponder in a fight! In spite of the fact that the translation is not irreproachable in some cases (the book has been translated from Russian by the author himself) all methods and techniques are explained in a very clear and understandable way. Besides, over two hundred photos are an excellent illustration to the text. The book serves as a training aid and it is designed for instructors in hand-to-hand combat of the Special Forces and for those who are interested in self-defense with knife. Click picture for more information, a FREE TRIAL DOWNLOAD, or to buy!