Lama (martial art)

While today the martial arts known as Lama Pai, Tibetan White Crane, and Hop Gar exist as relatively distinct lineages and/or organizations, all originated with a single figure known as Sing Lung who arrived in Guangdong Province during the Qing Dynasty and taught a martial art then known as "Lion's Roar" (獅子吼). This article will attempt to explain the history of the tradition as a whole, the current differences between the lineages and organizations, and also their common traits.

There has been a debate among martial art historians for some time as to whether or not Lion's Roar and its offspring, are in fact "Tibetan" martial arts. This argument is based primarily on two logical observations. First and foremost, the martial arts that exist in what is modern Tibet in most respects do not resemble the school as preserved in China. Some of the long swinging motions are present but in general Tibetan martial arts are much closer to Indian traditions. While some of this apparent disparity is due to Chinese influences in the last hundred years, it is indeed a valid point.

The second consideration, directly related to the first, is the fact that they in many ways resemble systems that are associated with northern China. The long range swinging motions (but not those small circle techniques which are very much a specialization of the "Tibetan" tradition) of Lama Pai can be found in systems such as Pek Gwa Myuhn. Many of the kicking techniques also resemble northern systems.

Fortunately, this debate can be put to rest quite quickly if one examines more closely the history of Lion's Roar. Ah Dat-Ta, the founder of Lion's Roar, is described as both ethnically Chinese (i.e. Han) and as living in what is now the province of Qinghai, situated in north western China, next to modern day Tibet. There is also reason to believe Sing Lung, the Buddhist monk who brought Lion's Roar to Guangdong, was raised and trained in Qinghai. To understand the significance of this one has to know a little about the history of the region.

Qinghai has only recently been considered "Chinese". For many generations, the province has been inhabited by Tibetans, Mongolians, Manchurians and a wide variety of minorities. Thus, Lion's Roar represented the vast tradition of Western Chinese martial arts. It represented the martial arts practiced in Tibet but also the martial arts practiced in Qinghai, Outer Mongolia, inner Mongolia, Sichuan, Yunnan, and Xinjiang provinces. It represented the martial arts of Tibetans, Mongolians, Manchurians, Ethnic Han Chinese and a wide variety of minorities.

The original Lion's Roar system is attributed to a monk named Ah Dat-Ta (阿達陀), also sometimes known as the "Dai Dat Lama". Ah Dat-Ta was born in 1426 and was a member of a nomadic tribe that traveled throughout Tibet and Qinghai. He was an active young man who practiced horsemanship, wrestling (Shuai-Jiao) and a special type of joint-locking (seizing and controlling skill). After being ordained as a monk in Tibet, he also learned a martial art that was apparently Indian in origin.

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Wikipedia