Sifu Wayne Yung is a Hong Kong martial artist, researcher, and teacher of Snake Crane Wing Chun. He is a disciple of Sifu Law Chiu Wing (羅昭榮) and has played an important role in bringing Snake Crane Wing Chun into public view.
I deliberately avoid titles such as “Grandmaster,” “Gatekeeper,” and similar grandiose titles that are often used in Chinese martial arts. Wayne himself places little importance on titles. He is, quite simply, a Sifu—a teacher.
In my personal experience, he is one of the most knowledgeable Wing Chun practitioners I have encountered, particularly in his understanding of the principles and structure of his own system.
Wayne Yung studied several Chinese martial arts as well as Taekwondo and Judo during his youth. He competed successfully in Judo in Hong Kong during the 1970s and later taught Judo and worked as a referee before eventually retiring from the art.
In 1978, he became a disciple of Sifu Law Chiu Wing and began studying Snake Crane Wing Chun. At the time, the system was taught privately rather than through a public martial arts school.
Wayne also has an academic and technical background outside martial arts. He studied Civil Engineering, specializing in structures and applied mechanics, and later completed postgraduate studies in Computer Science.
The following interview discusses his martial arts background, his teacher, the traditional discipleship system, the Bai Si ceremony, and the eventual decision to teach Snake Crane Wing Chun publicly.
Editor’s note: This is an interview and therefore an important primary source for understanding Wayne Yung’s own experiences and the traditions transmitted within Snake Crane Wing Chun. Statements concerning the distant historical origins of the lineage should be understood as lineage tradition unless independently supported by historical evidence.
Beginning the Journey
VZ: You were already an accomplished martial artist before beginning Wing Chun training, yet eventually you left the other arts behind and concentrated on Snake Crane Wing Chun. What was the reason for that? Not many people are prepared to leave behind what they have already achieved and begin again.
WY: In my teens, like many other young people at the time, I was influenced by Bruce Lee. I loved martial arts very much. However, I did not really know which martial art I wanted to practice.
It was a period of searching and discovery.
I studied Judo, Hung Kuen, Northern Chinese styles, Tai Chi, and other martial arts in order to discover which one suited me best.
Eventually, in 1978, I began studying Snake Crane Wing Chun.
Because Snake Crane Wing Chun was taught privately at that time, and because I loved fighting when I was young, Judo provided a good outlet for that part of my personality.
I competed many times and enjoyed Judo competition. It satisfied my desire to fight, but allowed me to do so in an honorable way through official competition rather than fighting in the street.
Later, as my understanding of Snake Crane Wing Chun developed, I became increasingly devoted to it. Eventually I gave up the other martial arts and finally left Judo as well.
Competition and Street Fighting
VZ: You said that competition allowed you to fight in an honorable way rather than fighting in the street. What exactly do you mean by that?
WY: Exactly what I said.
When you fight in competition, you do not need to have hatred or bad feelings toward your opponent. It is simply a comparison of skill, preparation, and determination.
If you win, you should win with honor while respecting your martial art, your teacher, and your opponent.
Street fighting is different.
Generally, you fight in the street for one of two reasons. Either you are fighting because you must protect yourself, or you are the person who started the violence. Being the attacker is the worst reason to fight.
I have known people who deliberately searched for opportunities to fight in the street and later became proud of what they had done. That was never my attitude.
I had my own experiences with fighting. Hong Kong was not always the safest place, particularly during my youth, but I do not talk much about those experiences.
That is not the example I want to give to my children or to my disciples, whom I also regard as members of my family.
I survived some dangerous situations, and my experience with Snake Crane Wing Chun influenced the way I later taught the art.
But talking constantly about street fights—or worse, bragging about them—is not what I want to represent.
I want to provide a positive example for the martial arts community.
Meeting Sifu Law Chiu Wing
VZ: How did you find your Snake Crane Wing Chun teacher, considering that he did not teach publicly and did not operate a martial arts school?
WY: In 1978, shortly before I finished secondary school, the wife of a worker who lived at my school knew that I was crazy about martial arts and that I was frequently getting injured because I practiced so much.
She gave me my future Sifu’s business card and suggested that I visit him to learn about bone setting.
Soon afterward, I went to visit him.
We talked about my martial arts experience and training. I remember the way Sifu looked at me. At one point he began reading my palm.
After some time, he told me that it might be best for me to follow him and learn Snake Crane Wing Chun.
He explained the rules of the system and asked me to think carefully about his offer.
After about a month of consideration, I returned and began learning from him in September 1978.
Two months later, in November 1978, we performed the formal discipleship ceremony in his apartment.
A Small Circle of Disciples
VZ: How many students did your teacher have over the years?
WY: Not many.
According to my knowledge, in the late 1960s there were Chan Wing Jin and Li Yuen.
During the 1970s there were Mr. Yuen Chi Choy and Chan Kwok Keung.
In the 1980s there was Sammy Ho.
During the 1990s there were Mr. Yeung Chi Cheong and David Yuen Man Kong.
Later there were Mr. Mok Wei Keung and Mr. Lam Kwok Ming.
Altogether, my Sifu accepted only a relatively small number of disciples.
Generally speaking, he might accept only one or two people during a period of ten years.
He did not teach openly, so the people he accepted were disciples rather than students in the modern commercial-school sense.
Editor’s note: The names and numbers above are presented according to Wayne Yung’s recollection and lineage records. They should therefore be understood as information from within the Snake Crane Wing Chun tradition rather than as an independently reconstructed census of Law Chiu Wing’s students.
Disciples Rather Than Students
VZ: You said that your teacher accepted disciples rather than ordinary students. Why?
WY: My teacher was very traditional and strictly followed the rules of the system.
One of those rules was that Snake Crane Wing Chun should not be openly taught to the public.
Traditionally, the relationship between a martial arts teacher and disciple could be much closer than the relationship between an instructor and a paying student in a modern martial arts school.
The organization of many traditional Chinese martial arts schools also reflected the structure and terminology of the Chinese family.
That is why even today we use terms that refer to martial arts brothers, uncles, and other family relationships.
My teacher also taught his disciples separately.
Until relatively recently, many of us did not even know all the other disciples.
In earlier years we rarely met each other, and when we did, there might be only two or three of us together rather than everybody meeting at the same place.
What Kind of Teacher Was Law Chiu Wing?
VZ: What else can you tell us about your teacher?
WY: Not very much about his private life.
My teacher kept his private life private and rarely talked about himself.
But I can give you one example of the kind of person he was.
On the day when I was formally accepted as his disciple, I was still a student and did not have enough money for the traditional red envelope.
My teacher opened his own wallet, put money into the envelope, and gave it to me so that I could complete the ritual and then formally present the envelope back to him.
The Traditional Bai Si Ceremony
VZ: Can you describe what the traditional Bai Si ceremony looked like when you became a disciple?
WY: Yes.
My Sifu selected a particular date that was considered suitable for the discipleship ceremony according to the traditional Chinese calendar, the Tong Sing (通勝).
He invited one of our senior Sihings to attend as a witness.
On that day, Sifu brought out the ancestral tablets. These included wooden tablets representing earlier family ancestors. There was also an image bearing the Chinese character for Buddha, 佛.
On the table were three types of meat traditionally used in the ceremony: chicken, duck, and pork.
When everything was prepared, Sifu instructed us to prepare a red envelope and a yellow envelope.
The red envelope was connected with the Bai Si ceremony and the relationship with the Sifu. My name would then be entered into the succession record.
The yellow envelope was intended for the ancestors, informing them that a new disciple was formally entering the Snake Crane Wing Chun family.
A traditional red packet was also prepared for the Sifu.
The ceremony began with the senior Sihing reciting the rules of the school and asking us to agree to follow them.
Afterward, the yellow envelope was burned as an offering to the ancestors.
We then knelt and offered tea to Sifu together with the red envelope.
When Sifu accepted the envelope and drank the tea, this signified that he had formally accepted us as disciples.
After the ceremony was completed, the food that had been prepared was eaten together.
Editor’s note: Ritual practices vary considerably between Chinese martial arts families, regions, generations, and individual teachers. This description records the particular Bai Si (拜師) ceremony remembered by Wayne Yung within the Snake Crane Wing Chun tradition. It should not be interpreted as a universal form of Chinese martial arts discipleship.
Why Simplify the Bai Si Ceremony?
VZ: Today you use a simplified Bai Si ceremony. Why did you change it?
WY: Ritual is important from the point of view of tradition, but perhaps not in the way many people imagine.
The purpose of the ritual is to mark a moment of commitment and bonding—the moment when someone becomes part of the Snake Crane Wing Chun family, or Mun.
That is the real meaning of Bai Si.
Without that meaning, it does not matter how elaborate the ritual is. Performing a ceremony mechanically does not give it meaning.
I changed and simplified certain parts of the ceremony so that it would be appropriate for people from different cultural and religious backgrounds.
In this way, we can preserve the essential Snake Crane Wing Chun tradition while avoiding unnecessary conflicts with the personal beliefs or traditions of our students.
Today Snake Crane Wing Chun has disciples from different parts of the world, and they have performed Bai Si.
The tradition remains alive, which is important to us, but the art is now open to everyone.
Opening Snake Crane Wing Chun to the Public
VZ: Why and how did you decide to “open the door” and begin teaching Snake Crane Wing Chun publicly?
WY: In 2008, my Sifu spoke to me about his age and the fact that he had no son who would succeed him in the art. His three daughters were not interested in learning Snake Crane Wing Chun.
I was concerned that the art might disappear with his generation, so I encouraged him to allow it to be taught publicly.
According to the history transmitted within our lineage, Snake Crane Wing Chun had remained private because of political circumstances connected with the Qing period, the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, the Red Boats, and the Fine Jade Hall.
But those historical circumstances had disappeared.
The Qing dynasty had ended long ago. The Republic of China moved its government to Taiwan in 1949, and the People's Republic of China was established on the mainland.
Traditional Chinese culture and martial arts also went through major disruption during the Cultural Revolution.
Whatever reasons might once have existed for secrecy, they no longer applied.
I believed Snake Crane Wing Chun should therefore be opened to the public so that the art could survive.
Eventually my Sifu agreed.
He publicly announced his retirement and transferred responsibility for Snake Crane Wing Chun matters to the next generation.
On 8 January 2009, he appointed me president of the Snake Crane Wing Chun Mun and passed the martial flag to me, giving me responsibility for helping lead the system into the wider world.
Editor’s note: The connection between Snake Crane Wing Chun, the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, Red Boat performers, the Fine Jade Hall, and anti-Qing political activity forms part of the historical tradition transmitted within the lineage. These subjects intersect with broader and often disputed theories concerning Wing Chun's origins. They should therefore be distinguished from events for which contemporary documentary evidence is available. The fact that a tradition has been transmitted through a lineage is evidence that the tradition exists; it does not by itself establish that every historical detail within that tradition occurred exactly as described.
The Future of Snake Crane Wing Chun
VZ: How do you see the future of Snake Crane Wing Chun?
WY: I think the future of Snake Crane Wing Chun will be bright.
Many experienced Wing Chun practitioners have shown interest in the art, and a number of schools and groups have appeared in different countries.
People from different parts of the world have shown an interest in coming to learn Snake Crane Wing Chun and eventually bringing what they have learned back to their own countries.
I hope that the art will continue to develop while preserving the principles and traditions that were passed down to us.
Closing Note
This interview should primarily be understood for what it is: the testimony of a practitioner describing his own martial arts life, his relationship with his teacher, and the traditions transmitted to him.
There is an important distinction between personal testimony and historical verification.
Wayne Yung is a direct source for questions such as how he met his teacher, how he trained, how his Bai Si ceremony was conducted, what Law Chiu Wing told him, and why he participated in opening Snake Crane Wing Chun to the public.
More distant claims concerning the origins of Wing Chun, Qing-era political organizations, the Red Boats, or the Taiping period require a different standard of evidence.
Preserving a tradition does not require presenting every inherited story as established historical fact.
On the contrary, separating what was experienced, what was transmitted, and what can independently be demonstrated allows us to preserve the tradition more accurately.
Vladimir Zlatic
The Martial Custodian