Glossary
- Samadhi
- A meditative experience that is indicative of a specific stage of “enlightenment.”
- Samurai
- The warrior knights of ancient Japan who became the classic role models of the Japanese martial arts. Their most distinguishing characteristics were the top-knot hair style, and the wearing of two swords, which they were expert at using.
- San chin
- A martial art stance where one foot is in front of and the other behind the torso, with both feet curved inward to some degree and facing each other. A commonly used stance to develop power breathing in several styles of karate and Southern Shaolin schools.
- San Ti
- The primary internal power development technique of hsing-i. San Ti is done standing still and holding a specific static arm posture.
- Savate
- A French martial art that combines kicking and Western boxing.
- Seventy-two leg techniques
- A series of ba gua martial art techniques concerned with kicks, leg-locks, and footwork procedures.
- Sha chi (sha qi)
- Chi that kills upon contact.
- Shang pan gung fu
- Martial art techniques that derive their skill and development from the power of the upper body rather than from the legs.
- Shansi hsing-i
- Original form of hsing-i that came from the northwestern Chinese province of Shansi.
- Shao Twei (shao tui)
- A Northern Praying Mantis leg cut, ankle sweep, or kick aimed at the calf or Achilles tendon.
- Shaolin gung fu (sil lum in Cantonese)
- The Shaolin monastery is the legendary (but not the historic) birthplace of the martial arts in China. Shaolin is synonymous with the external martial arts. The higher levels of Shaolin have chi gung practices but as a general rule, the development of physical strength and aggression is emphasized over cultivation of chi.
- Shiatsu
- A Japanese massage method based on the principles of traditional Chinese medicine. Shiatsu uses the fingers to press acupuncture points for therapeutic effect.
- Shorin Ryu
- See Karate.
- Shotokan
- See Karate.
- Shuai jiao (shwei jiao, shuai chiao)
- Chinese wrestling.
- Shun shr jang (shun shi zhang, shun shi chang)
- Smooth palm changes. A palm change in ba gua that involves a mixing of yin and yang energies as opposed to being purely yang or yin. The generic phrase for any palm change in ba gua besides the Single and Double Palm Changes.
- Silat
- See Penchat.
- Single Palm Change
- Also known as dan huan zhang, tan huan chang. The most fundamental technique in ba gua. The Single Palm Change is a microcosm of the whole system based on the first (heaven) trigram of the I Ching.
- Sixteen-part nei gung system
- See Nei gung
- Sixty-four hexagrams
- Sixty-four basic energetic changes of the I Ching.
- Snake
- A Southern Shaolin style.
- Soft martial arts
- Those fighting arts whose defensive techniques are based upon not opposing force with force but rather upon yielding and redirecting an opponent’s force. Soft martial art strikes have no outward appearance of force but are devastatingly powerful, being based on chi and subtle body mechanics. Soft martial arts can be external or internal. Even the most ardent “hard” martial art system will have some soft techniques.
- Southern Praying Mantis
- The external/internal Southern branch of Praying Mantis that uses arm-touching practices extensively and has more internal chi work than the Northern branch.
- Southern Shaolin (nan Shaolin, nan quan/chuan)
- A style of fighting known for movements that can be done in a small space, the classical example being on a boat. Southern Shaolin styles are characterized by short, close-in, tight arm movements, low kicks, and short, tight footwork.
- Staff (or pole)
- A primary non-cutting weapon of Chinese martial arts that is usually made of wood, but can be made of metal. Its length varies from four to nine feet, with a length of five to six feet being the most commonly used.
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