Wushu Salute

[@Eyes-of-Horus]

I studied with Grandmaster Ark Wong. He said that the salute he is demonstrating at 1:50 is the Monks fighting salute. The Monks non-fighting salute is the hands in the prayer posture.

[@Avenging_Archer]

I study Ng Ga Kuen as well, thank you for that tidbit! I heard from Douglas Wong that wearing your sash hanging at the middle meant you were a a master and invited others to challenge you. He said GM Ark Wong made his students wear their sash down the middle in order to force them to be better through the challenges. Greetings!

[@joelorenz4528]

Nice. Was waiting for this one to go along with your curriculum.

[@AndrewPlitt]

+Joe Lorenz Sorry it took so long to finally get it posted. I hope it helps. :)

[@joelorenz4528]

+Andrew Plitt I forgive you. : P

[@delarcilla4821]

Yes this is useful these days of COVID!👍👍👍

[@ordinarymatt]

thanks

[@michaelogara2571]

Great video all ways wanted to know that info thanks so much for sharing info

[@AndrewPlitt]

Glad it was helpful!

[@michaelogara2571]

Hi Andrew. Thanks again, I have given your video to lots of people like myself it's great to know it properly well done, Andrew

[@carolynfields8488]

Excellent instruction.

[@AndrewPlitt]

I am glad to hear that you enjoyed this video. Thank you for taking the time to write a comment to let me know. Stay safe and healthy.

[@lianching1149]

good

[@buendia781]

Thank u

[@AndrewPlitt]

You're more than welcome. :)

[@ruki4585]

Great Video 🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰🤗🤗🤗

[@AndrewPlitt]

I am glad to hear that you liked it.

[@Drag0nR1der]

Who else in the West started doing this in 2020 in place of a handshake?

[@AndrewPlitt]

I have not.....but that is an excellent idea... 🤔

[@delarcilla4821]

Your audio is rather not clear. Thank you

[@heli_the_fujoshi]

What do I say when I do it?

[@AndrewPlitt]

There is no specific thing that one is required to say when using this salute. While I was training in China we used this salute at the end of class. We would line up facing our master and we would say, "Xie xie, Shifu." (thank you, master) while using this salute to thank our master for sharing his knowledge with us. If you are training somewhere where they require a specific phrase to be said while using this salute, just stick with that. It is really just dependent on the situation in which you are using the salute. I hope that answers your question. Stay safe and healthy!

[@TaijiquanSG]

👍🙏

[@RandelOland901-ATT]

Tell me about the variation that where the left hand is resting on/covering the fist, rather than being straight.

[@AndrewPlitt]

+Randel Oland 901-ATT My understanding is that it represents the same symbolism, but is a variation in form. My shifu's have always required this salute because they said it is clean, sharp, professional, and shows proper respect to those who you are saluting. Other versions in which the left hand wraps down over the right hand are not wrong, but were not acceptable to my instructors because they saw those versions as sloppy. I personally appreciate the variations that exist in salutes, but out of respect for my trachers this is the version I taught to my students when I was teaching.

[@AndrewPlitt]

My understanding is that the other variation where the left hand closes on top of the right hand signifies the same thing, but my masters always required my to use the version that is taught in this video because they said it is a sharper, more professional, and more respectful way of saluting. Their sentiment toward the other variation was that it is not wrong, but it is sloppy. I have not researched other variations further and I think it is more important to salute the way your instructor asks you to, out of respect, rather than to hold too tightly to one type of salute over another. The whole point of a salute is to show your good will, respect, and gratitude toward others. Because there are many ways to convey those feelings, the actual form of the salute is less important than the conveyance of those feelings.

[@Eyes-of-Horus]

What Grandmaster Ark Wong said is that the left hand covering the right fist is the standard Shao-lin salute when it is done about a foot or so from the body with the elbows spread out. It is also the standard greeting in Chinese when closer to the body.

[@LeriObba]

Wushu?

[@AndrewPlitt]

+Virginia I'm not sure if you're asking why I used the term "wushu" or what wushu means. ha ha I'll just tell what wushu means and if that doesn't clarify anything let me know and I'll try again. ;) Wushu literally means wu=martial shu=skill/art. It is a term that can be used for any Chinese martial art, from the showy performance arts to the traditional fighting skills. In America, in particular, and possibly other western countries, we tend to associate the term wushu with only the showy performance based competition routines and the term gongfu (Kung fu) with the traditional fighting arts. However, in China, in my experience, this distinction does not exist. The term gongfu refers to any skill that is developed through dedicated hard work over a long period of time. Whereas the term wushu is specific to the skills developed in martial art training. I hope that answered your question. :) I wish you all the best.

[@LeriObba]

Andrew Plitt www.shaolin.org/answers/sp-issues/wushu-1.html

[@AndrewPlitt]

+Virginia ha ha yes, I'm aware of that perspective and it's true that the term Kung Fu is generally used to refer to martial art skills, rather than other skills, but in my experience in China and in my discussions with masters, the term Kung Fu does not refer more or less to martial arts than the term wushu. That, of course, is not to say that no one in China sees a difference between the terms, but (again, in my experience) it's not as common there as it is in western countries. Which is something Wong Shifu even mentioned, saying, "The trend has been so established that today when the term "wushu" is used, especially in the West, it is conceptualized as a demonstrative sport,..." And, while I agree that there are people who see it that way, I disagree with his conclusion that in practical application wushu only refers to competitive sport, because there are also plenty of people who do not see it that way. It is more a matter of perspective and I respect his perspective (and I always leave room for the possibility that I am wrong), but I also respect other perspectives and I tend to lean toward the perspective that I have learned and observed. I believe that the more perspectives a person is exposed to, the better they will be able to understand a subject. So I appreciate you posting this link which will allow anyone visiting this video to be exposed to another perspective. However, I really don't see this as being a subject that is as important as people try to make it. If someone wants to call Chinese martial arts wushu, cool. If they want to call them kung fu, cool. I would rather spend time training than trying to convince people that my point of view, and the terminology that I prefer, is the only correct perspective. Thank you for taking the time to share your perspective with me. I wish you all the best in your training. :)

[@LeriObba]

Andrew Plitt Well the perspective of My Tai Si Gung who fled China's cultural revolution and oppression is that the term is poisoned beyond repair.

[@AndrewPlitt]

+Virginia I see. Well I certainly mean no disrespect to your Tai Si Gung nor his experiences. Thank you for sharing.