page_title: Choy Li Fut
section_title: Characteristics
hierarchical_section_title: Choy Li Fut / Characteristics
caption_attribution_description: Nederlands: Sei Ping Ma, paardrijstand in Choy Li Fut
context_page_description: Choy Li Fut, also spelled Choy Lay Fut and Choy Lee Fut or Cai Li Fo is a Chinese martial art and wushu style, founded in 1836 by Chan Heung. Choy Li Fut was named to honor the Buddhist monk Choy Fook who taught him Choy Gar, and Li Yau-San who taught him Li Gar, plus his uncle Chan Yuen-Wu, who taught him Hung Kuen, and developed to honor the Buddha and the Shaolin roots of the system.
  The system combines the martial arts techniques from various Northern and Southern Chinese kung-fu systems; the powerful arm and hand techniques from the Shaolin animal forms from the South, combined with the extended, circular movements, twisting body, and agile footwork that characterizes Northern China's martial arts. It is considered an external style, combining soft and hard techniques, as well as incorporating a wide range of weapons as part of its curriculum. It contains a wide variety of techniques, including long and short range punches, kicks, sweeps and take downs, pressure point attacks, joint locks, and grappling. According to Bruce Lee:
  Choy Li Fut is the most effective system that I've seen for fighting more than one person.
context_section_description: Chan Heung 陳享 revised and refined all that he had learned from his teachers and with his disciples, established standardized hand and leg techniques.
  Choy Li Fut's hand techniques contain 10 elements 十訣: Kum 擒 slapping or pressing palm deflection, Na 拿 shooting arm bridge, Gwa 掛 back fist, So 掃 sweeping, Tsop 插 yin/yang knuckle strike, Pow 拋 upward power shot, Jong 撞 small upward power shot, Chaw 爪 claw, Bin 鞭 swinging power shot, Pei 劈 chopping, and Lui Yin 擂陰 yin/yang fist.  Choy Li Fut's leg techniques contain 6 elements: Chan 撐 bracing, Ding 釘 nailing, Liu Tat 撩踢 kicking, So 掃 sweeping, Jet 截 blocking, Au 勾 hooking, and Dan 彈 springing. There are 8 techniques of how the hand and leg techniques are applied. They are: Yin 陰 negative, Yang 陽 positive, Kong 剛 hard, Yau 柔 soft, Hui 虛 false, Shi 實 real, Tou 偷 stealing, and Lau 溜 sneaking.
  The stances of Choy Li Fut are similar in height to other martial arts styles, such as Hung Gar, but not as high as those of Wing Chun.  This allows the practitioner to move quickly during combat without sacrificing stability and power generation. What is unique to the Choy Li Fut style is sometimes termed "whipping", where the practitioner's upper torso twists to generate more power in executing hand and arm techniques.  In other martial art styles, the upper body is less dynamic, placing more emphasis in stability and generation of static power.  Other differences include how the practitioner's stance should be while facing their opponent. In the Hung Gar and Wing Chun styles, practitioners hold their torso perpendicular to an opponent, to allow the full use of both arms. In contrast, Choy Li Fut holds the torso at an angle to the opponent to reduce the target area exposed to him, and to allow the practitioner more reach.  Front stances in Choy Li Fut have the front bent leg angled in to protect the groin, while other martial arts systems have the front bent leg facing forward.
  During revolutionary battles between anti-Qing and government forces (1850–1877), whoever belonged to the Choy Li Fut system would identify themselves by crying out "yak" when striking with the palm, "wak" when thrusting with a tiger claw hand, "ha" when striking with the fist, "hok" when using a crane beak strike, and "dik" when kicking.  These sounds are unique to the Choy Li Fut system.
  Chan Heung 陳享 recorded his discoveries and knowledge onto paper for his future students to follow and eventually recorded over 250 forms and techniques.
  List of basic Choy li fut stance:
  1.Ding Ji Ma – Ding character stance, also called bow and arrow stance, or just simply bow stance
  2.Diu Ma – Suspended stance, also called cat stance
  3.Lok Quai Ma – Kneeling horse
  4.Quai Ma – Cripple stepping horse, also called cross-step
  5.Sei Ping Ma – Four level horse, also called square horse
  6.Sieh Ma – Slanted horse stance
  List of Choy li fut Major techniques:
  1.Chuin Nau – Anchor hand block
  2.Dot Chui – Smashing fist or horizontal back fist
  3.Fu Jow – Tiger Claw
  4.Gong Jeung – Uppercut palm strike
  5.Gwa Chui – Hanging fist or vertical back fist
  6.Kum Sau – Palm deflection
  7.Ping Tsop – Level fist
  8.Sow Chui – Sweeping or reaping fist
  9.Tsang Jeung – Pressing palm or palm strike
  10.Tsop Chui – Thrusting fist
caption: A Choy Li Fut stance