Chicago Seminar Sept. 2011
WING-CHUN KUEN
What is Wing-Chun? Wing-Chun History
EMPTY HAND FORMS
WEAPON FORMS
CHI-SAO / CHI-GERK
KUEN KUIT
LINKS
Warrior is an ordinary man who lives in permanent state of mindfulness.Murat Kaplan
Quit living on assumptions and you will become happier. Murat Kaplan
Suspicious mind conjures its own demons.Anonymous
Stop living on assumptions and be much happier and more peaceful.Murat Kaplan
Martial arts do not tolerate weakness in any kind. You should train hard to cultivate a strong heart, a strong mind and a powerful body.Anonymous
The more brute force a Wing-Chun practitioner uses, the more unrefined the art within.Murat Kaplan
Martial Arts are not for violence or correcting others; they are for peace and correcting your own mind and soul.Martial Arts Saying
If you give a damage to your partner during a combat training, it is not your skill; it is your great weakness.Anonymous
Learning the techniques without developing the skills will never bring any accomplishment.Wing Chun saying
Persistent attacks will surely gain you entry. Staying on the defensive too long will surely get you into trouble. Wing-Chun saying
Pass on the tradition. Preserve the Chinese art and rules of conduct.From `Wing-Chun Rules of Conduct`
Destroying the opponent`s center line will control his bridge. Wing Chun saying
To be able under all circumstances to practice five things constitutes perfect virtue; these five things are gravity, generosity of soul, sincerity, earnestness and kindness.Confucius
Develop a good foundation for advanced techniques." From `Wing-Chun Kuen Kuit`

Wing-Chun History


History of Wing-Chun Kuen

Wing-Chun Kuen has its origin from the Siu Lam temple, Fu-Kien of Kwang Tung Province, southern China. Legend has that Yim Wing Chun’s father; Mr. Yim Yee earned his living by selling bean curd in a place near Mountain Kau-Lin. Because of the “Overthrow Ching, Restore Ming” slogan, the Buddhist abbess Ng Mui had to live her life on the run. Yim Wing Chun was forced to marry a local warlord. On one occasion, Ng Mui traveled by the village and overheard the crying voice from the young girl Yim Wing Chun in the middle of the night. After learning what was happening to Yim’s family, Ng Mui was angry with the fact that such young girl being forced against her own will. She then decided to teach Yim Wing Chun the effective fighting techniques that she had developed after escaping from Sil Lum massacre. After practicing with Ng Mui for a short period of time, Yim Wing Chun was able to defeat the local warlord and free herself from the forced-marriage.

Ng Mui continuedto travel the road ahead, hoping to recruit more followers to practice martial arts, in order to one day overthrow the Ching Government. Before leaving Fu Kien, she taught the young girl Yim all the fighting techniques that she developed by studying the fighting movements between a snake and a crane. With the help of Buddhist abbess Ng Mui, Wing Chun developed her own martial arts technique. When Wing Chun requested to give the name of this new martial arts system, Ng Mui suggested using her name. Thereafter, Wing-Chun Kuen was formally named.

After her marriage, Yim Wing Chun taught Wing-Chun style to her husband, Leung Bok Chau. This was the time that Wing-Chun Kuen was formally passed on to others. Since Leung Bok Chau had a close friendship with Leung Lan Kwei, Wong Wah Bo and Leung Yee Tai, he exchanged the Wing-Chun techniques with them for the Luk Dim Bun Kwan. Later, Leung Bok Chau traveled with his friends. During the journey, they studied Wing-Chun Kuen by heart and become totally familiarized with this technique with a short period of time. From then onward, Luk Dim Bun Kwan was also included in the Wing-Chun system as one of the weapon forms. Therefore, Leung Lan Kwei, Wong Wah Bo and Leung Yee Tai could be treated as Yim Wing Chun’s grand students.

When Wong Wa Bo retired at age sixty, he lived at Ching Wan street of Fai Chi town in Fat Shan. A famous herbal doctor, Leung Jan, also lived on that street. Owing to his good reputation, Fat Shan people always referred him as “Jan Sin Shin” (Jan the god). Wong Wah Bo always visited Jan Sin Shin at his free time and later, Wong taught Jan Sin Shin the Wing-Chun fighting system.

Though Jan Sin Shin had practiced martial arts before, he still was not satisfied. When he started practicing Wing Chun, he found the theories he wanted; bodywork and handwork were so good that he devoted himself wholeheartedly in studying Wing-Chun. With his effort, Wing-Chun Kuen became famous in the Ling Nam province in the late Ching Dynasty. As Jan Tien Shin was too busy with his herbal clinic, only three persons could attain high level of proficiency from Jan Tien Shin. They were Chan Wah Shun and his two sons Leung Chun and Leung Bik.

Chan Wah Shun earned his living by working at a money exchange store in Fat Shan and went by the name “Ja Chin Wah” or “Wah Money Changer”. Because of his business, he always had a chance to interact with Jan Sin Shin at his shop. Chan Wah was later admitted as one of Jan Sin Shin’s disciples. After the death of Jan Sin Shin, in deep respect and appreciation for his Sifu, Chan opened a school at Lin Fa Tei Main Street, to pass on the the art of Wing-Chun that was taught to him.

Unlike other popular styles in Fat Shan at that time, Wing-Chun Kuen demanded that its practitioners undergo long-term training and dedication. Learning Chinese martial arts became a lifestyle, a fashion, and popular during this period of time. Most disciples were usually from rich families; therefore, Chan Wah could not teach many students at one time. Wing-Chun thereof was known as “Sin-ye Kuen” at that time and could not be well promoted.

Chan Wah had only a handful of disciples, including Ng Chung So, Ho Ho Lui, Lui Yu Jai, Yip Man, and Chan Yu Kam (Chan Wah’s son). However, the only person who really promoted Wing-Chun was Yip Man. Because of poor health, Yip Man followed Chan Wah Shun at the age of seven. Yip Man was a brilliant and hard working boy. Not only Chan taught him personally, Ng Chung So practiced Chi Sao with him all the time. Ng also guided Yip in mastering the system after the death of Chan Wah Shun.

At the age of Fifteen, Yip Man went to Hong Kong to pursue academic studies at St. Stephen’s College in Stanley (Hong Kong was a British colony). On one occasion, he was introduced to Leung Bik, the son of Leung Jan (Sifu of Chan Wah Shun). Yip Man followed Leung Bik to further advance his Wing-Chun.

Shortly after that, Yip Man went back to Fat Shan and made friends with many martial artists of different styles. His story on sponsoring the competition of Wan Tai Ngau had made him well known in Fat Shan. After the Second World War, Yip Man left Fat Shan and joined the military force. His achievement included the winning battle in Sha Tong, and the capture of a serious criminal, Law Cho, at San Bun Restaurant on Kung Ching Road. The later incident was widely mentioned by others. After the Communists took over China, he migrated to Hong Kong in 1949. With the help of his friend Lee Man Hang, Yip Man earned his living by teaching Wing-Chun at the Kowloon Restaurant Association on Da Nam Street in Kowloon, later he moved the school to Hoi Tan Street, Lee Tak Street, Lee Cheng Uk, Tai Wong Temple on Queen’s Road. During his life of dedicating to Wing-Chun, he had improved, promoted, and made Wing-Chun famous not only in Hong Kong but everywhere in the world.