Some historians maintain that the reason for the north's preference of leg maneuvers over hand techniques can be boiled down the the northern terrain or climate. The northern countryside has large expanses of plains. It's climate is harsh, but there is room to move. In the more densely populated south, with it's tropical climate, Kung-Fu practisioners were forced to confine their practise to smaller areas - more often than not, boats or barges, requiring solid stances for maintaining balance and stability.

Much of the Kung-Fu of the south was perpetuated by actors and operatic stars whose roles required proficiency in the martial arts. Stage actors were divided into three main categories: those who could act; those who specialized in Kung-Fu techniques; and those who could both act and perform the intricate Kung-Fu maneuvers. These actors, most of whom travelled by boat, depicted stories of war heroes of China's turbulent past and were responsible for perpetuating much of what we know to be Kung-Fu.

The north's preference for kicks, others say, can be attributed to regional adherence to religious ideals which also influenced the art of Kung-Fu. Northern Chinese religious tendencies leaned toward Buddhist teachings which, as legends have it, were shaped by the patriarch of Chan Buddhism. They centered around external, muscular training designed to remedy the Shaolin monks deteriorating condition (caused by remaining in static meditative postures). In the south, however, religious tendencies leaned toward the Taoist philosophies. There was formed a distinct division between the northern, physically oriented Kung-Fu (and kicking techniques) and the southern, intellectually oriented training. Active, strenuous exercise was incompatible with the philosophical principles of the Taoist tenets in many ways.

Still some other historians, such as William C.C. Hu (ranking among the most respected Kung-Fu historians writing in the english language today) suggest the whole "Nan-Chuan, Pei-Tui" idea may be nothing than "an oft-repeated melodic ditty" maintained by popular byt unsubstantiated beliefs, somehow entwined with another popular saying, "Nan-Ch'uan Pei-Ma", which refers to the boats in the south and horses in the north. And there is an impressive array of material to back up Hu's suggestion, for many southern stylists were well known for their kicks. Mok-Cheng-Chia, for instance, founded one of the basic systems of southern boxing (Mok-Gar) primarily on the kicking techniques for which he was famous. Wong-Fei-Hong of the Hung-Fa school (immortalized by Kwan-Tak-Hing in his movie-screen portrayals) was famous for his no-shadow kick, reputedly so fast it was invisible. By the same token, many northern stylists became famous for their exemplary hand maneuvers. On the whole, however, I am of the opinion that the old sayings about kicks in the north holds true, for it refers to the type kicking taught and the way in which the kicks were intended to be used. It was not intended to mean that there were no kicks in the south or no hands in the north.

Kicks of southern stylists reflect a conservative attitude toward their use. Kicks are directed, for the most part, to the lower-gate (legs, knees, groin, etc.), while kicks of the north, decidedly more energetic in nature, are more often than not at the mid and upper-gate of the body. Southern stylists don't usually perform the complex jump-kicks or flamboyant spinning wheel-kicks seen in northern systems. The techniques of formal Karate suggests it's northern Kung-Fu origin. The high, kicking maneuvers of Taw-Kwon-Do also point to such a beginning, for although Tae-Kwon-Do is a fairly modern art-form (developed and christened by Choi-Hong-Hai) it is based on much older martial systems (Kwan-Pup, Tang-Soo-Do, etc), which are of essentially northern Kung-Fu origin. Okinawan Karate, too, has long been understood to have been a direct descendant of norhtern Kung-Fu, the characters for Kara and Te originally meaning "ohina-hand" until being changed by the Japanese after the art's inception to that country to mean "empty-hand".

Regardless of where kicking originated, which style has the most, or highest, or best, one thing is certain: Using one's feet as well as one's hands is an essential part of Eastern martial systems. If you're going to learn Kung-Fu, Karate or Tae-Kwon-Do, you're going to have to learn about them. And if you're going to have to learn about them, this book will be an asset.