Bak Mei

[Professor Diet Butcher]

Seems like threads about obscure traditional Chinese martial arts are in vogue at the moment. So I'ma make one about Bak Mei (White Eyebrow), which is named after a Shaolin monk of the same name. Best known in pop culture as the old kung fu master in Kill Bill.



In some accounts, Bak Mei was a traitor to the Shaolin temple, and was banished from the temple. He developed his style in order to seek revenge against the other monks who banished him. The style made its way to Hong Kong in the 20th century and is practiced predominantly in the Hakka (northerners who migrated to the south) communities.

History:



It's a close range style similar to Wing Chun with its short linear strikes and low kicks. But it also contains many Aikido-like wrist/elbow locks and takedowns. I see it being more applicable to self-defense than competitive fighting.

[Edge Guerrero]

Seems like threads about obscure traditional Chinese martial arts are in vogue at the moment. So I'ma make one about Bak Mei (White Eyebrow), which is named after a Shaolin monk of the same name. Best known in pop culture as the old kung fu master in Kill Bill.

- We call him master Pai Mei here.



In some accounts, Bak Mei was a traitor to the Shaolin temple, and was banished from the temple. He developed his style in order to seek revenge against the other monks who banished him. The style made its way to Hong Kong in the 20th century and is practiced predominantly in the Hakka (northerners who migrated to the south) communities.

History:

It's a close range style similar to Wing Chun with its short linear strikes and low kicks. But it also contains many Aikido-like wrist/elbow locks and takedowns. I see it being more applicable to self-defense than competitive fighting.

- Are there competitors from that style? Like in Sanda for example.
Did you ever used it?

- Cool thread.

[Professor Diet Butcher]

- Are there competitors from that style? Like in Sanda for example.
Did you ever used it?

I have no idea man... I searched for competition footage but came up short. It's not a widely practiced style and doesn't focus on competition.

The closest I came to using it was messing around in the locker room after gym class, my classmate tried to bulldoze me and I side stepped, tripped and slammed him against the lockers, lol... I must have been about 15 at the time.

The "oblique" kick, as Rogan likes to call it, is one of the main kicks of the style. Had used it effectively in sparring before, more of a stop-hit type of move, followed by a front kick.

[Edge Guerrero]

- Are there competitors from that style? Like in Sanda for example.
Did you ever used it?

I have no idea man... I searched for competition footage but came up short. It's not a widely practiced style and doesn't focus on competition.

The closest I came to using it was messing around in the locker room after gym class, my classmate tried to bulldoze me and I side stepped, tripped and slammed him against the lockers, lol... I must have been about 15 at the time.

The "oblique" kick, as Rogan likes to call it, is one of the main kicks of the style. Had used it effectively in sparring before, more of a stop-hit type of move, followed by a front kick.

- Love that kick, is used in karatê too, maybe Pakmei has influenced karatê?



How manny time you spend learning that style?

[Masato]

In Kill Bill and the old Kung Fu flicks he was called Pai Mei, not Bak Mei

The dude who played Pai Mei in Kill Bill used to fight that character in old movies like Fist of the White Lotus, etc



Grumpy son of a bitch who was a real badass. Weak in the groin:



The fact that Tarantino brought the character back for the Kill Bill movies was awesome. Same as the Hattori Hanzo cameo.

[Luigi]

Ya I think Pai Mei is a variant Romanization that happened to sound more mysterious to the Western ear.

Cool thread. I used to date a Hakka girl, thankfully she never used the 5 point exploding heart technique on me. I feel like this thread needs those classic Pai Mei beard gifs:

[Masato]

Yeah love me some Pai Mei, new or old:

[Professor Diet Butcher]

Ya I think Pai Mei is a variant Romanization that happened to sound more mysterious to the Western ear.

Yup. Pai, I think is the Mandarin pronounciation for the same word (white). Bak is Cantonese. And Pak is Hakka. So confuse huh :? ?

[Professor Diet Butcher]

- Love that kick, is used in karatê too, maybe Pakmei has influenced karatê?



How manny time you spend learning that style?

More like this... (hmm.. apparently oblique kick is a JKD term?)



I haven't done it for long... from age 13 - 17 maybe? That is nothing. It wasn't like I was going to class and learning something new every class. I was doing the same basic stuff every time for YEARS, lol... thats how it was with my pops. :|

[Professor Diet Butcher]

Yeah love me some Pai Mei, new or old:

Holy shit! I don't think I've seen this. Must find and watch!