The Origins Of 7 Stars Praying Mantis

MASTER WANG YONG SHENG AND THE ORIGINS OF 7 STARS PRAYING MANTIS
Written and presented by Master Paul Drummond

The third generation Qi Xing Master Wang Yong Sheng who was also known as Wang Rong
sheng and Wang Yong Chun was the shifu who was the first person to call the style 7 stars
praying mantis .
Wang Yong sheng was born in the Fushan , Shandong Province , China into a wealthy family .
he was trained in two systems of kung fu namely Di Dang Quan ( ground Rolling boxing ) and
Chang Chuan ( longfist ) and this is the style that he taught in his school in Fushan having
studied it under Li Yu Chun .
Wang had opened the school which was called Wu Guan martial academy at the age of 23 and
it is thought that it was at this venue that he met Li San Jian who he fought a duel with due to
remarks made about his martial standard having successfully won a national championship
around this time . The story is a famous one in Qi Xing Tang Lang circles and later Wang
became a student of Li san Jian who was called Li Kuai Shou or ' Fast Hands Li ' .
Wang Yong Sheng became very famous and took the civil service examination to attain the
title of 'third degree graduate of martial arts ' . He was also a military instructor or Ke Wu Ju
as he held a teaching post for the military which was very prestigious .
Wang Yong Sheng was also the first master in the 7 stars praying mantis lineage to hold the
title of Tang Lang Wang or 'Mantis king'. He is considered to be the father of the 7 stars
praying mantis style that we know today . He is credited with adding into the system the
boxing sets Cha Chui & Shi Lu Beng Da as well as others . He was friends with the Tai Ji Mei
Hua Tang Lang Master Hao Lian Ru and it is thought that they exchanged Knowledge on Tang
Lang . Due to this , it is generally accepted that Wang Yong Sheng developed the art to a
higher level and made several important contributions to it during his life .
Hao Lian Ru had six sons and they all became famous Mantis boxers and subsequent
generations of Wang Yong Shengs family trained with the Hao family .
Due to his wealth , it is thought by many that Wang Yong Sheng only taught one student . This
is not the case however , as he taught Wang Jie (his son ) , Huang Kai , wang Yun Fu and of
course Fan Xu Dong .
The name 7 stars praying mantis has conjured up many theories over the years as to the
meaning or the reason behind its origins . Some people say that the actual mantis insect which
was initially studied by the founder Wang Lang had seven star shaped marks on its back and
so the style is called 7 Stars Praying Mantis. This is of course folklore. Another entertaining
story relates that Wang Lang would tell his followers that they could be as far apart as the
seven stars in the sky and yet the would still be united under the same cause which was of
course to destroy the Qing regime.
It's stirring stuff but the facts are the name 7 stars Praying Mantis was not used at any time
during it's history until the emergence of Wang Yong Sheng.
The naming of the style Qi Xing or 7 Stars Praying Mantis by Wang Yong Sheng was mainly
down to three reasons. Firstly, he wanted the style to be identified from other two main
branches of Tang Lang namely Mei Hua Tang Lang ( plumb blossom) and Lui He Tang Lang (six
conformities). This was for simple classification purposes. The term 7 Stars were used however
for a much more important reason which involved a technical connection between the actual 7
stars in the sky and the use of the combat principles which were the very core of the system.
Wang Yong Sheng had a family sign which was called Di Kui Tang. In the 7 star constellation
or the "big dipper", the most important star is called "Kui". This, along with the following
explanation is the reason for the system to be called Qi Xing Tang Lang.
The "big dipper" in Ursa Major { in western astronomy or Din Kong in Chinese or the North
dipper} containes seven stars of which four make up the head while the three remaining stars
represent the handle of the dipper. Because of this, certain Masters in China sometimes use
the term "Upper case stars" and "Lower case stars" which relate directly to the four upper
body star points and the three lower body star points. However, even when they are described
in this way it does not mean that they are used seperately from one another as it is vitally
important that all of the points involved correlate with each other to be used to maximum
effect.
The use of the seven star points advocate the co-ordination and harmony of seven parts of the
human body. They are the head, shoulder, elbow, fist, hip, knee and foot. These are known as
the"Seven Cosmos Points". In order to be able to peform th 7 Stars Praying Mantis techniques
correctly, itwas important to link and merge these seven body areas so that the techniques
when executed were performed with balance, focus and explosive power. As with the actual
star constellation, the seven points had to be aligned when applied in the order to give the
style its unique technical facility. This symbolic representation of seven techniques, methods,
objectives, principles, keywords or essentials is applied to all stances and footwork employed
in the style and not only to the Qi Xing Shi{7 Star stance} and the techniques which are used
with it as thought to be the case by many who practice the 7 Stars Praying Mantis style. In
fact, it is the use of the stances when combined with the seven body components including all
that lies between them which allows the Qi Xing boxer to respond so quickly when requires to
do so if suddenly attacked.
It has been suggested by some historians that the 7 Star points theory was borrowed from a
shaolin family boxing system and this is the reason that it is absent from other Northern
Praying Mantis Kung Fu systems body posturetheories. In fact, the system of Praying Mantis
which was passed down by Wang Lang aklready used this principle although at this early stage
in its history, the style was known as Northern Praying Mantis and then "Arhat Mantis boxing"
in Laoshan as it was practised by Buddhist Monks. The term "Arhat Mantis" is misleading to
say the least and it was used to describe the style by outsiders. It is very wrong for people to
use this term term today as it was used at the time before the divisions occurred in the style
which seperated it into three main branches. The name 7 Stars Praying Mantis was not used
until the time of Wang Wong Sheng.
Although it is true that a Shaolin family boxing system used the 7 point principle, the Praying
Mantis style had been passed down up to this time without any Henan Shaolin Temple
influence by Wang Lang and successive Masters.
Henan Shaolin Temple influences only surfaced in the 7 stars praying mantis style after the
time that the Temple was under threat by the Manchus and was later destroyed during the
Kangxi period { 1669-1723} . This led to the Shaolin system being spread throughout the
Provinces . As no documented evidence exists which can prove that Wang Lang studied at
shaolin or even went there during his lifetime plus the fact that the first three sets which he
taught are not representative of Shaolin , it is fair to say that the 7 star points principle was
developed independently from other systems including Shaolin which may have used similar
body posture theories .
Wang Lang created Beng Bu , Lan Jie & Ba Zhou boxing sets which we now call San da Mu
Quan or the three major maternal forms . They all contain a rich variety of techniques and
each set has its unique skills . Beng Bu is noted for its crushing steps which gives the set its
name and its use of the Shier Zi Jue or 12 character keywords theories . Lan Jie involves
compact boxing skills with several claw applications while Ba zhou is a powerful set which
advocates the linking of the eight hard points in the body which relate the name of 8 elbows
although different lineages of Qi Xing Tang Lang have variable differencies in relaying the
technical concepts involved in this particular form .These sets are accepted as being the three
most original created by Wang Lang although it is fair to say that the six route sets of Zhai Yao
are just as old . Following sets to be included into the system of Qi Xing tang lang were Shi Ba
sao , Duo Gang , Rau ling and Bu Chan etc .
7 stars praying mantis has made the 7 star points principle a basis for its use of combat
techniques but the 7 star constellation is also prominent in Chinese mythology and religion
which is the reason for it being used in Shaolin family boxing systems . it has also become a
symbol which is used as a design on the handles of certain weapons such as the straight sword
or Jen .
Wang Yong Shengs contribution to the 7 stars praying mantis style was monumental . He gave
the style its name and identity but much more important than this , he added to the system
depth and unique character . Most other Northern Praying Mantis styles are derived from Mei
Hua Tang Lang such as Tai Ji Mei Hua , Tai Ji Tang Lang , Bi Men Tang Lang , Ba Bo Tang Lang
etc and have different characteristics than Qi Xing Tang Lang.
Originally all northern praying mantis systems are derived from the samr core and it was only
after a few generations that they split into three main branches or styles . Although it cannot
be claimed that 7 stars praying mantis style is the oldest of all tang lang branches , it is
however , the most original in character and could have been the first to branch out and create
a seperate identity for itself .

That was a passage from my shifus book he is presently writing on the 7 star praying mantis
boxing system that was intrusted to him by his shifu , the late Grandmaster Mo Lam . I hope
you find it interesting and useful .