The Elbows In Mantis

Hat Yi Sao

If one was judge a Mantis Player one criteria to use would be the position of the elbows. In Hakka Mantis, the hands in attack and defence are always held in front of the body. The rationale is simple, better to engage the opponent at a distance rather than allow him to close and risk injury. It is common in China, to observe the practitioner from behind to see if the elbows are visible. With a good Mantis practitioner, the elbows cannot be seen from behind.

Mantis is fundamentally different to Karate in the positioning of the elbow before punching. In karate, the elbow is chambered behind the body as the closed fist is held on the hip. In contrast, with Mantis, the elbows are held approximately at one fist distant from the body. This is in conjunction with other key points of Mantis posture: rounded back, shoulders positioned forward and inwards and a concave chest. The punch drives from the elbow with just a forward motion: to maximize speed and reduce anticipation by the opponent. Increased power is generated up through the legs from the ground and the timing of the footwork.

In Hat Yi Sao (beggar’s hand) stance: the arms generate a triangle: with the apex of the triangle close to the body formed by the elbows. This along with a rotation of the forearms induces an elastic tension body which gives added power to striking coming simply from the body structure and a spiralling motion.