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Shao Lin Kung Fu • Shao Lin In General • Northern & Southern Shao Lin • Hand Sign & Salutation • Stances & Postures • Shao Lin Fist • Shao Lin Foot & Leg • Open Hand & Arm • Hardening Your Anatomical Weapons • Toughening Your Hands, Fists, Forearms • Toughening Your Feet, Knees, Legs Shao Lin Styles • Bai He Quan (White Crane) • Fu Hu Lo Han Quan • Lo Han Zheng Shen Zhang Shao Lin Application • Qing Na Fighting Technique	Toughening Your Hands, Fists, Forearms Sand Pan Method This is a traditional Shao Lin method with which it is possible to develop the so-called Shao Lin iron palm (Tie Sha Zhang). Since this method is very unpleasant and destroys the nerves of the hands, it is not popular with modern exponents. Sand is placed in a large, moderately deep, broad-rimmed iron frying pan and warmed over a fire. The pan is then set firmly on a solid base. The trainee who chooses to use this method does so on a daily basis for a period of from three to four months. Perform the exercise as follows: Assume a level-house stance (Phing Ma) close to the sand-filled iron pan (the thighs need not be held parallel to the ground). Make a substantial number of actions with one hand at a time, such as thrusting the fingers of the hand into the sand, chopping the knife-edge of the hand down against the sand, punching the sand with different fist formations, or slapping the open palm or the back of the hand down onto the sand. You may use both hands in unison to dig into and lift sand in repetitive sifting actions with the palms or the backs of your hands. As your hands become harder and tougher, increase the temperature of the sand you use. Also increase the coarseness of the sand, until finally you can use pebbles and small stones. After training, apply medicine to the parts of your hands that have been thrust against the sand, pebbles, or stones. Stone-Block Method Another of the traditional Shao Lin toughening methods used to train the hands, fists and forearms makes use of a solid cylindrical block of granite or of some equally hard stone. This method is more popular with modern exponents of Shao Lin than the method just described; it is far less unpleasant than the pan method. The stone-block method, however, is a more gradual one and it must be carried out for a long period of time, possibly several years. The stone used in this method must be securely set a top some suitable base. Toughen yourself as follows each time your train: Assume any basic stance and deliver your hand, fist, or forearm in the manner of your choice. Use light tapping actions at first, gradually increasing the force of the actions as the parts of your anatomy that strike the stone become durable and tough. Force applied is more important than speed of delivery. Strike the stone a substantial number of times with each part of your anatomy that you want to toughen in this manner. Immediately after training, apply medicine to those parts of your that have been exposed to the shock of impact against the stone. Sandbag Method Perhaps the most popular and most appropriate of Shao Lin toughening methods centers on the use of the sandbag. The hands, fists, forearms, elbows, and other parts of the body are quickly made durable by the use of the sandbag. The most important use of the sandbag in connection with this kind of Shao Lin training is that which leads to the development of the Shao Lin iron palm (Tie Sha Zhang). Hands and fists that have been trained in this manner become amazingly durable without a deadening of the nerves of the hands. All sandbag training should follow several stages. In the first three of these stages you should assume a level-horse stance (Phing Ma) for the hand-hardening actions and a triangle-horse stance (Shan Jiao Ma) for those of the fist, forearm, and elbow. Use the sandbag toughening exercises at every training session, performing them in the following manner: Stage 1 (first month) Slap, punch, or strike a ten-inch sandbag that has been filled with ordinary fine-grained sand. Do this 500 times slowly and lightly with each hand or arm. Apply medicine after each session. Stage 2 (second month) Proceed exactly as you did in Stage 1, but use a fourteen-inch sandbag that has been filled with coarse-grained sand. Stage 3 (third month) Proceed as you did in Stages 1 and 2, but use a Sixteen-inch sandbag that has been filled with glass marbles. Stage 4 (fourth month) sit on the ground before a large, smooth-surfaced marble or granite slab and slap, punch, or strike it with various parts of your anatomy (hands, fists, forearms, elbows) 500 times. Immediately after training, apply medicine to the body parts toughened in this manner. Hand breaking technique