A martial art originating from the Shaolin Temples in China. There is a broad distinction into northern and southern styles.

The Shaolin martial arts have their roots in the 18 Hands of Lo Han style taught by Bodhidharma to the monks at the Chinese Shaolin temple circa 520 AD. During the Sui period, approximately forty years or so after the death of Bodhidharma, it is told that brigands assaulted the Shaolin monestary on a number of occasions. A monk of the temple, with reference only as the "begging monk", during the last siege of the temple by the brigands attacked several of the outlaws with an array of aggressive hand and foot techniques, killing some and driving the remaining attackers away. The other monks where so inspired by the display of this single priest that they requested tutelage in this martial style as a means of protection. In later scripts this fighting art was recorded as Ch'uan Fa.

Several decades after the fight of the begging monk, a master of Ch'uan Fa called Ch'ueh Taun Shang-jen was said to have rediscovered the original Shih Pa Lo Han Sho which had been lost for many years. Ch'ueh over a period of time integrated his art of Ch'uan Fa with that of Lo Han increasing the total number of techniques from the original eighteen to total of seventy-two. For several years after this period Ch'ueh traveled the country side of China promoting his art in several grueling fighting matches until he came upon a man named Li in the province of Shensi. Li, a master of Ch'uan Fa as well as other martial ways traveled and trained with Ch'ueh for some time developing the curriculum of Ch'uan Fa to form a total of one-hundred and seventy techniques. Furthermore, they categorized these techniques into five distinctive groups distinguished by various animals who instinctive reactions best reflected the movements of this new Ch'uan Fa. Upon there return to the Shaolin temple of which both Li and Ch'ueh belonged they presented to the other monks, wu xing quan, the five animal form (tiger, snake, crane, leopard and dragon).