The Mantis Fist is a martial arts technique that imitates the movements of a mantis. The mantis is a carnivorous insect with two large serrated forearms held high in front of the chest. When hunting for food, it can quickly and accurately snatch its prey and deal a decisive blow.

The way the mantis fights offered great inspiration to ancient martial artists for their creation of the Mantis Fist. The Mantis Fist is divided into the Northern and Southern styles. The Southern style was created by Zhou Yanan during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), and the Northern style was formed by Wang Lang from the Jimo county of Shandong Province during the late Ming and early Qing dynasties. Wang Lang had had a liking for martial arts since his childhood. He was ever trained in the Shaolin Temple. He was perchance inspired by a scene of a mantis catching a cicada. After careful observation, he summed up the mantis skills of Gou (hook), Lou (hug), Cai (pluck), Gua (hang), Diao (trick), Nian (stick) and Pi (chop), and created the Northern-style Mantis Fist. This style was so widely practiced in north China that it gradually developed various schools after a long period of time. Some of these schools include the Qi Xing (Seven Stars) Mantis (also known as the Luo Han Mantis), Mei Hua (Plum Flower) Mantis (also known as the “Tai Chi Mantis”), and the Liu He (Six Harmonies) Mantis (also known as the Ma Hou Mantis).

The Mantis Fist is well-organized in its drill work. All moves are well and skillfully interconnected, with short-range and long-range techniques alternated to achieve powerful aggression. When delivering the power, the body and arms will shake in such a way as to induce a fierce and fast attack, characterized by such properties that both the soft and tough forces are coordinated and the tough moves are strong but not stiff, while the soft ones are supple but not sloppy.