Wing Chun Grandmaster Wayne Yung - biography

- Wayne Yung graduated from Civil Engineering, majored in Structure and Applied Mechanics in Hong Kong Baptist University in 1983 and gained his Master in Computer Science in the Queen’s University of Belfast in Northern Ireland in 1987. - In 1987, he taught Computer Science full-time in Hong Kong Baptist University and part-time in the City University of Hong Kong. Now, he is working in the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology since 1990. - From 2009-2014, he was appointed to conduct a Kung Fu class for the co-MBA program of Hong Kong University and Science and Technology and New York University @ Stern once a year. - Wayne Yung is the consulting editor and writer of New Martial Hero magazine since 2008 and a writer on the “Health & Kung Fu Talk” Special topic in the newspaper AM730 in Hong Kong since 2014. - He learnt different Chinese martial arts, TaeKwonDo and Judo in his teenagers. In 1976 and 1977, he won the Hong Kong South China Athletic Association Open Hong Kong Tournaments 1st runner up and 2nd runner up respectively. Then he taught Judo and became a Judo referee until 1993, totally getting retired from Judo. - In 1978, he followed Grandmaster Law Chiu Wing to learn Snake Crane Wing Chun in closed door style till 2008. Since 2009, Snake Crane Wing Chun re-open to the public, and he is appointed by GM Law to be the president of the Snake Crane Wing Chun Martial Arts Association. In the same year, he established a Snake Crane Wing Chun martial art team for staff of Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. The team had been invited repeatedly to have open kung fu cultural exchanges and workshops for the foreigner HKUST students - Based on his educational background, in 1993, he spent 25 years to study and analysis all he learned the traditional Snake Crane Wing Chun, and developing a good easy modern way to teach. - In 2014, he published a paper on “Investigation on Some Forgotton Wing Chun Kuen History”which was recognized by the Foshan Wushu History Research Centre and Foshan Wing Chun Oral History Study group. - In 2017, he was invited by Sifu Salvador from Spain to present the Snake Crane Wing Chun history in their “International Wing Chun day”in Spain in March. - In 2012, he submitted Snake Crane Wing Chun to apply for the first published list of Hong Kong Intangible Cultural Asset Heritage in 2014. - In 2012, he was also appointed as the Wing Chun Advisor of a Kung Fu movie “亂世護寶- Troubled Treasures” to train the action directors and actors, and later Snake Crane Wing Chun contents and Kuen Kuits have been added to the movie by the scene writer. - President of Snake Crane Wing Chun Mun, Snake Crane Wing Chun Martial Arts Association, Snake Crane Wing Chun Athletic Association, Snake Crane Wing Chun Yung Kwok Wing Athletic Association. - Snake Crane Wing Chun Athletic Association is for international promotion of SCWC. Now, there are branches and representatives in Germany, France, India, Canada, Taiwan, Singapore, Costa Rica. 翁國榮師傅的歴 翁國榮師傅 - 翁國榮師傅於1983年畢業於香港浸會大學土木工程學系，主修結構與應用工程力學，並於1987年在北愛爾蘭貝爾法斯特女王大學獲得計算機科學碩士學位。 - 1987年，他在香港浸會大學全職教授計算機科學，並在香港城市大學兼職教授計算機工程。從1990年開始在香港科技大學工作至現在。 - 從2009年至2014年，他每年一次教授香港科技大學和紐約大學@Stern的MBA課程的功夫工作坊。 - 翁國榮師傅自2008年起擔任New Martial Hero雜誌的顧問編輯和撰稿人，並自2014年起擔任香港AM730報紙“武健講場”專題的撰稿人。 - 他在年青時習了不同的中國武術，跆拳道和柔道。 1976年和1977年，他分別獲得香港華南體育會香港公開柔道錦標賽亞軍和季軍。然後，他教授柔道，及成為柔道裁判，直到1993年完全從柔道退役。 - 1978年，他跟隨羅昭榮師傅，以閉門式學習蛇鶴詠春至2008年。自2009年起，蛇鶴詠春向公眾開放，成立蛇鶴詠春國術總會，並由其師任命為總裁。同年，在香港科技大學職員會成立了蛇鶴詠春武術隊。該隊曾多次被邀請為科大外國學生開設功夫文化交流和工作坊。 - 根據他的教育背景，1993年，他花了25年時間研和分析他所學習的傳統蛇鶴詠春，並把它整理成一種簡單易學的教學方法。 - 2014年，他發表了一篇用了超過20年研究的蛇鶴詠春歷史的論文「一段被遺忘的詠春拳歷史」，原來蛇鶴詠春是與太平天國火燒紅船有關的。 - 2017年，他受西班牙師傅 Salvador邀請，在3月份飛西班牙參加其“國際詠春日”，當中講述了所探究的蛇鶴詠春歷史。 - 2012年，他提交蛇鶴詠春資料申報香港非物質文化遺產，成功地於2014年列於首批香港非物質文化遺產名錄中。 - 2012年，他還被邀請作功夫電影“亂世護寶”的詠春顧問，以培訓動作導演和演員，後來蛇鶴詠春內容和拳訣更被編劇加到電影中。 - 現擔任蛇鶴詠春國術總會、蛇鶴詠春體育會及蛇鶴詠春翁國榮體育會會長。 - 蛇鶴詠春體育會作蛇鶴詠春的國際推廣官方機構。現在，德國、法國、英國、中國、印度、加拿大、台灣、新加坡及哥斯達黎加都有分支機構和代表。

New book release

Dear friends it is my great pleasyre to present new book "WHITE CRANE, SECRETS OF INTERNAL POWER".

New book that reveals secretes of internal training without esoteric or religious terminology. Book was written in simple, clear and easy to understand manner based. All the processes involved in internal training were explained through modern physics, chemistry, biology and medical science. This is also the only book about Shaking Crane style ever written in English. Training approach and exercises presented in this book can be beneficial for internal martial arts practitioners, especially for Wing Chun practitioners.Book can be bought on Amazon

Stupid shit Wing Chun people say

Wing Chun is my primary art, which I have been practicing for more than 3 decades. Over the years I have heard many stupid, illogical, esoteric, weird and borderline schizophrenic explanation of the art. But there are few that are used frequently in order to hide incompetence of teachers and inefficiency of their styles. Number one is "My Art Is Too Deadly To Spar." Many people truly believe that Wing Chun hides secrets of how to kill people with bare hands. Some just say that to hide lack of real fighting training. In reality it is not easy to kill someone with bare hands, especially if that someone actively resists. It is possible of course, and it happens sometimes, usually by pure accident. If killing with bare hands is actually possible people wouldn’t bother to invent weapons of any kind. If the art is” too deadly to spar or fight” it is not worth anyone’s time or money, simple as that. My next favorite “Wing Chun Is Not Meant \For Sport, I can’t use many techniques because of the gloves and many efficient techniques are forbidden by rules , like eye gauge or kick in the balls." Simple truth about this is, if someone can’t compete, he can’t fight in real selfdefese situation. Hitting the eyes of the moving opponent with finger jab is almost impossible. Kick in the groins doesn’t really work that well on people full of adrenalin who have desire to hurt or kill you. About movement restriction caused by gloves, that is also pure crap, I can and I use all wing wing chun hands position with or without gloves, no real difference there. Third place is a claim that you don’t need muscles to generate power. Power will come from “internal” sources and lately there is claim that muscles are not needed for punching power because more power comes from tendons and ligaments. This is not only beyond stupid, but amount of people who believe in this things clearly show how bad education system is these days all over the world. Basic scientific truths, about basic physics and biology, which supposed to be taught at elementary school level got lost somewhere along the way. No further explanation is needed. Fourth place goes to "Your Technique Is Wrong ,(because it is slightly different than mine)”. This shows fundamental misunderstanding of the basic principles of the art and also shows some psychological issues. Paying too much attention to the smallest details like someone’s life depends on them is just stupid. Either Art can work, or not, few millimeters difference in hand position won’t make real difference in real fight. Of course, ‘’snake oil’’ sellers will insist on smallest details explaining how important they are and how that makes their style more efficient, original and better than all others. Fifth place goes to secret techniques which are nothing more than new choreographies of movements without any real value. Any efficient martial art is based in simple principles and proper training approach, there are no secrets there, no “higher level knowledge” ($$$$$). Either you can learn basics of fighting in 6 months or not, You can become proficient fighter in few years or not. The only secret is hard work and proper training. To conclude this article, if you hear something like this in your school, run , don't turn back, because it is complete waste of your time and money

Why Kung Fu has a shape we know today ? Part one

During Qing dynasty period teaching martial arts in China was based on  "close door"  system. Martial schools were extremely expensive and most schools was closed for outsiders even if they had enough money. Less than one percent of Chinese population at the time practiced some form of martial arts, mostly military and law enforcement personal as well as bodyguards, caravan security and bounty hunters. After Taiping rebellion and especially after Boxer rebellion martial arts in China significantly declined in number of practitioners and quality of training. The end of Qing dynasty brought enormous social and political changes and true golden age of Kung Fu started with establishment of the republic.

Newly formed Republic of China faced multiple challenges on every level of social, political, economical and all other possible aspects of life. New republic had to make an enormous jump from feudal society into a modern period.  While China fell into a period of chaos and constant infighting known as the Warlord Era (1916–1928) when control of the country was divided among former military cliques of the Beiyang Army and other regional factions, progressive intelligence sought new ways to push the country forward despite the hard political situation.

Memories of western colonial actions and humiliation they brought to Chinese people as well as centuries of Mongolian suppression were still fresh and kung fu was seen as a perfect way for busting national pride and sense of self worth. Through Goushu academy as a government project Jing Wu association as government supported private project on state national level and many local associations kung fu was transformed and changed in so many ways. From purely fighting purposes during Qing dynasty, practice shifted toward health, philosophy, tradition and sometimes even religion. All this was used as a tool of political and mostly social influence.

Suddenly kung fu schools had hundreds and sometimes thousands of students, in some areas participation in kung fu training was mandatory for people who worked in government infrastructure. At this period, for the first time woman started massively to participate in martial training.  

National awakening in China started several decades before the actual establishment of the Republic and we can see significant social, political and cultural changes in the period from the beginning of Taiping rebellion to 1911. These changes couldn’t be stopped but they were suppressed by Qing government. After 1911, newly established republican government put a lot of effort to build new Chinese identity based in nationalism.

This is the period when kung fu finally got the shape it has today. Suddenly, combat effectiveness was the main focus of training. Kung fu schools that belonged to big government owned or funded associations were used more like education (or more precisely re-education) centers than martial arts training facilities.  

At this period most “traditional” kung fu styles had been invented or at least got their final shape in a sense of techniques and forms. Great transformation of old fighting systems occurred at this time. While old styles were actually weapon fighting styles with little to none empty hands techniques, obsolete weapons completely lost any significance in the modern warfare of the 20st century, new forms of the old styles put all the emphasis on hand to hand fighting. Some styles transitioned from old to new way training better than others. Some styles simply kept the old weapon forms  now done without weapons and just tried to find some kind of practical application for those movements and positions in hand to hand combat. Other styles kept the basic foundation and principles of fighting but created new forms, better suited for eppty hand fighting. 

This also a period when kung fu was introduced to Taoist philosophy and practices for the first time. This was sole effort of one man, Sun Lu Tang who had knowledge and skills in both, martial arts and Taoism, and most importantly he had enough political power to push his agenda and connect Chinese martial arts to ancient practices of Taoism. He was at the right place at the right time and his work changed the shape of kung fu completely for the generations to come. Introducing Taoism to kung fu also shaped developmental path of what we today know “internal’ styles. The term “internal” was also Sun Lu Tang’s invention. Today we have styles that completely lost martial aspect and they cannot be separated from Taoism because everything that is done is explained through Taoist theories and the end goal of practice is not fighting but something completely different and unrelated to fighting.

Republican government needed to boost national pride and that need brought new “histories” and also new “legends” and “myths”. Shaolin became what it is today during republican period. Same thing goes with Wudang. Shaolin was never a place of research and development of martial arts and kung fu as we know it today for the first time was practiced in Shaolin in 1990’s. Wudang was introduced to so called internal styles in 1920’s by the delegation of Goushu academy, never before any kind of empty hand fighting was practiced in Wudang. All the “oral” histories about legendary founders of almost every style in China had been invented during this period of time. All these histories basically tell the same story, an old master, who had to fight for justice went through a period of immense hardship and developed almost god like skills. After the master defeated all his enemies he passed the art to the next generation of students who had just a little less power than their teacher. Truth is, government need these stories to push their political and social agenda and to give more credibility to these stories, fictional characters got connected to real and very important places like Wudang and Shaolin, which were not only the most important religious sites but also held a lot of political influence. While Wudang and Shaolin are located on the north of China, southern provinces, Fujian and Guangdong didn’t have any place of such significance. To resolve that problem and give people of the south something they can build a sense of unity and nationality a story about Southern Shaolin was invented. Today more than 90% of all southern kung fu styles trace their origin to Southern Shaolin, a place that never existed.

This is also the time when kung fu “culture” was born. At this period martial arts novels were published in astonishing numbers and they were extremely popular, also first martial arts movies were made at this time. Through this pulp fiction novels, government promoted “traditional” culture and values which became the social foundation of kung fu school and it is still alive today.

Also for the first time, practices that were never part of kung fu were included in curriculums. Parts of traditional medicine like making different kind of remedies and also parts of acupuncture as well as in some rare cases meditation and Taoist magic were included.

White Crane practice benefits

 

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hite Crane is possibly the oldest martial style that exist in a form that traditional martial arts are recognized today and it shaped development of almost all other martial styles from Fujian and Guangdong provinces and heavily influenced development of northern martial arts. White Crane has traditionally been practiced for multiple purposes, including self-defense, mindful nurturing of well-being, and fitness enhancement. For hundreds of years the Chinese have enjoyed many benefits that White Crane is believed to offer. Today, people of all ages and backgrounds from around the world are discovering what the Chinese have known for a very long time: that long-term sustained practice of Zonghequan leads to positive changes in physical and mental well-being.

Self-defense: The essence of the traditional martial arts is self-defense. With regular and diligent practice you will develop practical skills that you may need to use to defend yourself one day in an extreme situation. As unlikely as this potential situation might be in this day and age, surely it’s preferable to be able to protect yourself and your loved ones than face the alternative consequences. There are hundreds of martial arts available today but all of them may not be a good choice. At the time of its creation White Crane was something revolutionary new. It brought new concepts of using human body, training approach weapon usage and fighting principles. It was so advanced that influenced directly or indirectly development of almost all martial arts in Southern provinces of China. In almost every single style at least some White Crane influences are quite obvious. White Crane was first style that focused on “internal” training, relying on universal physical characteristic of the human body which allowed everyone to learn it and become a good fighter. Instead of brute physical strength which is not easy to develop, and which decreasing due to ageing process, White Crane focuses on internal alignment and training which makes people better and stronger over time regardless of their age. In general, martial arts before White Crane required rigorous and extremely hard training process and many people simply could not practice martial arts because their physical deficiencies. White Crane revolutionized training approach and martial training became available and possible to everyone. Saying that White Crane is the best martial art today would not be correct, but it certainly was at the time when it was created and even today is the best and for some people the only option for self-defense training. White Crane does contain a lot techniques that are designed to be practical in almost every situation, it combines foot techniques, hand techniques, joint lock techniques and weapons training. White Crane Kung Fu is a complete self-defense system that uses hands, feet, knees, elbows, shoulders and hips in its arsenal of striking techniques. The style is renowned, however, for its rapid hand techniques, short and low kicks strikes executed in conjunction with grabs and effective pressure point attacks, mixed with close quarter trapping and control methods. When mixed with punches, elbows and knees up close they can be devastating. The kicks tend to be low hence don't require any stretching, are fast (direct) and with shoes on can be painful.  White Crane Kung Fu combines defense and attack and uses both soft and hard power. It also emphasizes firm, extremely fast yet evasive footwork. It stresses empty-hand as well as weapons training, two-person sets, self-defense drills and free-sparring. The style's fierce pressure point attacks combined with rapid footwork and a no-nonsense approach make it a particularly effective, complete, and beautiful martial art. White Crane is not focused on out-muscling the opponent but on protecting yourself by redirecting or diffusing the opponent’s energy. The art is based on the main principle of following the opponent. Instead of attacking, White Crane practitioners closely mirror the moves of the aggressor, effectively diffusing their energy. The system eliminates unnecessary moves making it an effective combat system even for cramped spaces. The economy of movement is stressed upon to generate maximum force with minimum effort. Apart from being practical and adaptable, White Crane is especially effective in combat against stronger opponents because it is a combat system based on tactile reflexes. Instead of physical strength or speed, the focuses more on body structure, alacrity and practice. 

Physical Health benefits: Literary millions of people practice traditional martial arts for the health reasons. Heath benefits of traditional martial arts, physical as well as psychological are scientifically proven facts. Even more, a lot of people in fairly old age actively exercise on daily basis. White Crane can be practice as low impact activity and puts minimal stress on muscles and joints, making it generally safe for all ages and fitness levels. In fact, because it is a low-impact exercise, it may be especially suitable if you're an older adult who otherwise may not exercise. In China, it is believed that White Crane can delay aging and prolong life, increase flexibility, strengthen muscles and tendons, and aid in the treatment of heart disease, high blood pressure, arthritis, digestive disorders, skin diseases, depression, cancer, and many other illnesses. Unfortunately, there hasn't been a good deal of scientific evidence to support all these claims. On the other hand numerous studies have shown that traditional martial arts improve muscular strength, flexibility, fitness, improve immunity, relieve pain and improve quality of life. Muscle strength is important for supporting and protecting joints and is essential for normal physical function. Flexibility exercises enable people to move more easily, and facilitate circulation of body fluid and blood, which enhance healing. Fitness is important for overall functioning of the heart, lungs, and muscles. In addition to these components, White Crane movements emphasize weight transference to improve balance and prevent falls. A growing body of carefully conducted research is building a compelling case for White Crane and other internal arts as an adjunct to standard medical treatment for the prevention and rehabilitation of many conditions commonly associated with age. An adjunct therapy is one that's used together with primary medical treatments, either to address a disease itself or its primary symptoms, or, more generally, to improve a patient's functioning and quality of life. Some research suggest that White Crane practice enhance quality of sleep, can help with chronic spine and joint problems, improve symptoms of congestive heart failure. The focus on proper breathing techniques makes White Crane incredibly beneficial for sufferers of asthma. Proper breathing with slow movement of White Crane forms help regulate high blood pressure and helps with some forms of heart diseases. White Crane practice also enhances and maintain the fine motor movements. At the end, unlike many other sports or physical activities, martial arts, especially internal styles can be practice by people with physical disabilities. This is extremely important for many people with disabilities because their overall health situation and quality of life can be significantly improved.

Mental Health: General mental well being of White Crane practice involves areas of life such as feelings of satisfaction, optimism, self-esteem, having some control over one’s life, having a purpose in life and a sense of belonging and support. Evidence of the effectiveness of martial arts in producing effective, cognitive and behavioral benefits has come from a number of studies. Improvements in self-esteem a more positive response to physical challenge, autonomy, emotional stability and assertiveness and reductions in anxiety and depression have all been associated with martial arts training. Also White Crane practice shows a reduction in stress. Breathing, movement, and mental concentration required of individuals who practice White Crane may be just the distraction someone needs from hectic lifestyle. The mind-body connection is one that deserves special attention, as it has been reported that breathing coordinated with body movement and eye-hand coordination promote calmness, it is creative and physically active way to improve how people mentally and physically respond to stress. Traditional martial arts were and still are a subject of various research studies which cover vast of array of topics. One of the things shown in those studies is a positive effect of traditional martial arts on decrease of aggressiveness, violence prevention and overall positive effect on other forms of antisocial behavior. Even more, traditional martial arts are used as a therapeutic method to improve overall social and cognitive skill of kids with different kinds of social and cognitive developmental problems. Self-discipline is a challenge for everyone. The surprising thing about Kung Fu is that help people to achieve self-mastery by disciplining their bodies and minds in the quest for enlightenment. Kung Fu truly is an art form, and can adapt to your changing needs and abilities over time. Many people begin their practice in childhood and continue throughout their lives into their 70’s, 80’s and beyond. Low self-esteem takes a toll on mental health. Physical activity, particularly martial arts, helps raise a person’s self-esteem. Building strength of mind and spirit also start to build confidence. This type of confidence is particularly helpful when it comes to martial arts and depression. Through martial arts, people discover that they are capable of so much more than they thought they were – physically and mentally. This mindset will carry people over to other aspects of life, and they often find themselves taking on new challenges and conquering new obstacles. 

Fitness benefits: White Crane offers a wide variety of exercises that are excellent for fitness! White Crane is a high-aerobic activity that utilizes virtually every muscle group in your body and provides a full-body workout that targets improvements in cardiovascular capabilities, muscular toning, and stamina. White Crane is not just a fighting art but also helps practitioners to rapidly transform the whole body. During a high-intensity class, practitioner is constantly moving. Through the training, heart rate will be raised significantly, which means that calories burn will be increased in the process. One of the most significant benefits of White Crane is the effect it has on cardiovascular system. Training works on major muscle groups of the human body. The practice will improve heart rate as well as increase oxygen intake. The most distinct and beneficial aspect of consistent training in any martial arts style is its effect on coordination and muscular communication. As practitioner grows in experience, more and more movements and techniques will require and develop greater general coordination as well as hand-eye coordination. Research has demonstrated that by practicing martial arts, practitioners not only significantly improve their reflexes in the specific martial activity but also during daily activities, such as driving. By participating in White Crane,  tone and the amount of muscle mass of the entire body can be increased. White Crane develop a healthy, strong and powerful body. Training not only increases muscle, but it also builds functional strength, power, and muscular endurance in a way few other training methods do. Since White Crane provides a full-body workout, it will naturally increase overall stamina and endurance. Practicing lots and lots of repetition will help increase endurance of the whole body and will also improve breathing capabilities. Increasing stamina is essential for a healthy lifestyle as it can help lower the heart rate, blood pressure and help burn fat. Generally, a White Crane class includes about 15 to 20 minutes of warming and stretching exercises before every session.  Stretching, kicking and other movements will help to increase muscle and joint flexibility so that practitioner can do various postures, exercises and movements better over time. Agility is a fundamental attribute to any martial art. Through the practice of various exercises, practitioner will develop the ability to move quickly in several directions. Proper execution of any White Crane techniques can't be done without balance. Balance and mobility are undoubtedly two fundamental attributes that White Crane movements depend on. Training forms, single movements, push hands, as well as sparring are a great way to develop balance and mobility. The better sense of balance becomes, the more in tune with his body practitioner will be, and the more effective he or she will become. 

Spiritual benefits: As people learn Kung Fu they find that the practice is more than just kicking and punching.  For many people the true value in studying the martial arts lies not in the learning of the technique or system itself, but in the acquisition of particular internal qualities that are developed through the learning process. The physical exercises are the concrete examples of abstract philosophical principles. Footwork systems teach the student about the qualities of energy, ebb and flow, and both creative and destructive potential. Handwork patterns teach the student about balance, dynamics and the intuition of natural spirit. The actions of blocking, deflecting, striking, breaking and throwing all contain concepts that can be applied to the human spirit. As people progress through an art they learn the basics, the principles, the forms, the exercises, the applications, but all of these are really a study of oneself. It is the person who is doing the movements, and in time it may become much more than something practitioner “just” do. The understanding gained from long term practice becomes part of who practitioner is.

Religious practice: Belief in a supreme being plays an important role in the life of most human beings. Religious beliefs have even been shown to promote good health in the faithful. In the martial arts, religion has an important role in the historical development of many arts, and it continues to dictate the ways in which many students think and act during practice sessions. More than a few Western students have converted to an Eastern religion simply because their martial art grew from that spiritual tradition. White Crane specifically is a part of some specific brunches of Taoism and some followers of Buddhism also train White Crane as a part of their religious practice.

Social benefits: There are many social benefits that can be achieved through practice of White Crane Kung Fu and traditional martial arts in general, especially when we talk about developing social skills in children. One of the things on which martial arts in general have in general is increase of empathy, even when we talk about the most brutal ways of training. Martial arts might seem like an individual activity but that is not actually true. To train martial arts practitioner will always need a group of reliable teammates that not only train and spar with him but motivate and cheer each other on as well. This will develop necessary skills to work in group. Through long and hard training process practitioner will be become aware of all the obstacles someone can meet during training and will learn to recognize when training partners or teammates meet same obstacles. Hence, practitioner will be able to understand their frustrations and spur them on during bad days, while also celebrating their victories alongside his own. This increased empathy will then enable practitioner to be a better friend to other friends outside the gym as well. It was noted before that martial training increase production of dopamine and endorphin, which make people happier. If people are constantly stressed out and in a bad mood, then they might appear unapproachable to others! When people release these feel-good chemicals in their brain, they not only they are turning bad day around but also boosting energy levels. Hence, they will radiate positive energy and other people will enjoy their company much more. Students show respect to each other, their instructor, and even to their school upon joining each class session. Sometimes it’s a simple bow, in other styles it’s a salute of some kind. The gesture encompasses several messages: gratitude, for the learning the student receives, and respect, an acknowledgement of the other person’s abilities. Regardless of the ritual, almost all martial arts teach students to value age, rank, expertise, and experience. Martial arts practice helps people to connect to others who share same interests and values and expand social circles.

One of the most important aspects when it comes to the healthy development of child’s personality is socializing, a process that can be essential during adolescence and arguably throughout one’s life. Martial arts practice help kids interact with other children belonging to their age group and through such an interaction they can shape friendships and relationships that directly help them expand their circle of friends, a thing that many children can have problems doing especially if they have a rather shy personality. In addition they help them develop a healthy sportsmanship, a quality that transcends blind competition and teaches them to respect the people that they interact with, something crucial in order to become a healthy member of any society. Intense physical training also promotes self-discipline and acute focus on given tasks, ensuring that during their more mature years they will manage to retain control even in dire situations and cope through difficulties in terms of studying, workload and personal crises.

Cultural benefits: The culture and history behind a martial art is one of the things that makes it unique and each has an advantage that should be known and highly regarded by individuals practicing the art. Students of martial arts should have pride in their style and preference of art and taking the time to learn history and culture will strengthen the student as well as connect them to the values that each discipline is built upon. Students who take time to reflect of the core values of the art they practice will be much more successful in our global society. White Crane had enormous influence on development of martial arts not only in China but also in Korea, Japan and Vietnam. Knowing the specific culture of White Crane style helps people to better understand other styles as well. One of the most important aspects of White Crane practice is that the style became international long time ago. Our world is filled with amazing, diverse people and cultures. White Crane helps all those people to connect and know each other. There is constant cultural exchange not only between Chinese and non-Chinese practitioners but also among various different cultures on all continents. Sharing common interest in martial arts people from all over the world interact with each other which  is one of the ideal ways of learning and understanding other people’s cultures. The advantage of attending international seminars and traveling to other places to learn and practice White Crane is that practitioners meet people from different countries and races. Not only do they learn about their culture, but you also teach them your culture. Being exposed to different cultures helps people to embrace and appreciate others that are different from them. Learn about other people and their different cultures breaks down stereotypes. Language is not the only player in communication. Culture can have effects on many different areas. Culture can affect speaking style, including speed, figurative language, details and more. It can also affect body language and gestures. Interacting with people from different cultures helps people to develop extraordinary communication skills. Meeting new people, learning about their customs and way of life, hearing their stories enriches everyone’s life and gives precious new experiences and memories. Lots of problems can arise from misunderstandings, especially because we live in a multicultural world. By learning and understanding different cultures helps to understand why people do things the way they do. When someone identify with other people, that person sympathize with their situation. This facilitates understanding and prevents misunderstandings. Learning about diverse cultures helps people to realize that there are numerous approaches to life. Many times, interacting with people from different cultures helps people to view life from a different perspective. When they learn about different cultures, they establish new ways of thinking and approaching and solving problems.

 

Morality and ethics: Considering the morality issue in Chinese martial art, it mainly embodies profound philosophy, a sense of human life as well as social values. This Chinese martial arts  emphasizes traditions, experience and rational knowledge. The idea of morality and ethics is not only an integral part of martial arts culture but actually one of the most important building blocks of many styles, especially of White Crane Kung Fu.  While morality and ethics is a universal thing across cultures, it is often overlooked in actual application. Wude is simply defined as “martial ethics”, or “martial morality” or “martial virtue”, and as its name suggest, is the idea of ethics and morality in the practice of martial arts. Wude teaches one how to become an upstanding and moral person. It is the criteria on how students are judged by their masters, and whether or not they are deemed worthy to be taught. Wude is formally divided into two categories; morality of deed, and morality of mind.  Morality of deed is defined as those ethics and morals which are directly applied to real life environments, such as interactions with other people and relationships, and morality of mind is defined by those traits developed inside oneself. Morality of deed includes: Humility, Respect, Righteousness, Trust, and Loyalty. Morality of mind is consisted of: Will, Endurance, Perseverance, Patience, and Courage.

Authority in Kung Fu (Wing Chun)

What I am going to discuss in this article may upset some people.  Recently in one of many Wing Chun online groups a debate about the real fighting skills arose. Certain master and lineage he belongs to was brought to the discussion and I pointed out that master, according to his own statement, never had a fight in his life, never practiced for fighting and his style is designed for everything else except fighting. Regardless of the fact that I just quoted the ”master” mentioned above, that I presented his own words, several of his followers asked me where my authority comes from? Authority to quote something that was publically said?!  Authority to have my own opinion?!  Seems that I need authority to even participate in an open debate if I have opinion that is different from the opinion of other participants. But the real question is, where does any kind of authority in Chinese Martial Arts come from?

World of kung fu is dominated or at least people pretend that it is dominated by old Confucian family system. Individuals were embedded in a network of relationships based on formality, hierarchy, social roles, and obligations. In traditional family compliance with formal norms of behavior is expected. Everyone had to accept the hierarchy and duties of the Confucian family, and whoever refused to do so was considered an outsider, an outcast, despised by his parents and relatives for not fulfilling their obligations. What is expected of every family member is compliance with ancient norms.

In traditional Confucian family as well as in Kung Fu family, authority does not come from any form of real competence. Amount of knowledge or skill is completely unimportant, what is important is inherited place in particular social network, being a family or kung fu school\style. In traditional Confucian family older person always have higher place in the social hierarchy and his opinion is always more important and have more value than the younger person. Family member will always have higher place than the outsider. Place of Kung Fu style grandmaster will be inherited by the eldest son, not by the best fighter, person with highest level of skills and knowledge (that is one of the reasons why there are so many self-proclaimed grandmasters). It doesn’t matter if the person has any real skills or knowledge, if his father is a founder of the style, he will be next head of the style even if he doesn’t have any skills at all, and he will be respected never the less.

That is the reason why there are so many grandmasters and masters who projects their authority to their subordinates which comes from their place in social hierarchy, not from the real skill or knowledge. Sadly this hierarchy and authority was accepted on West as well without any question and that is a consequence of the fact that majority of people interested in Kung Fu on West share certain psychological features,but that is a subject for another article. 

Taoyin (Daoyin) vs Qigong

Taoyin is ancient Taoist practice believed that first time appeared before 2000B.C. The term “Tao Yin” was first used in Chuang Tzu: Chapter 15 Rigid and Arrogant. During the Qin and Han Dynasties (221 BC–220 AD) further progress in Taoyin exercise was made. The Sui and Tang Dynasties (581 AD–907 AD) witnessed the further advancements of Taoyin practice and had great influence on later generations.

There is an error in presuming that Taoyin is or was equal in method and objectives as the current, collective topic of Qigong. Qigong is of recent nomenclature and collects a body of knowledge not extending as far back and being equivalent to Tao yin. Many people believe that Taoyin is a forerunner of Qigong and that is true but only to certain extent. The only truth is that large portion of Taoyin practice was absorbed into Qigong practice but with different goals and altered way of practice. Many wrongly use words Qigong and Taoyin as synonymies. In China Taoyin is defined as the ancient health practice and that opinion spread to the West and it is widely supported by western Qigong teachers, but this definition is inaccurate and incomplete. While both practices deal with health and Taoyin influenced greatly later practice of Qigong there is a significant difference between these two. Qigong, as it was explained before was created in early 1950’s as a therapeutic method which supposed to fill the gap in the health care created by civil war and lack of real medical doctors. Whine Taoyin does preserve health and can be used for the same purposes as Qigong, and both practices have foundation in Taoism, there is a significant difference. Taoyin literally means guiding and leading. Tao refers to the fact that physical movements are guided by the strength of the mind and in turn stimulate the internal flow of Qi within the body. Yin means that with the aid of physical movements, Qi can reach the extremities of the body. On basic level Taoyin exercises generally to emphasize the clearing of the tissue channels to open and invigorate the body. The mind is directed to the extremities and even a distance outside the body. Breathing also tends to be slightly more vigorous than in Qigong. Taoyin exercises are often more complex with precise body mechanics to open and stretch. As such, it is more demanding and strenuous than Qigong. Through physical movements, practicing Taoyin exercise can create the harmony of Qi and blood in the body, thus achieving the purpose of preventing disease, improving health and accelerating the recovery of limb function. Taoyin exercise involves breathing, massaging through stretching and twisting arms and legs, particular set of precisely executed movements and mental focus which act together to direct the flow of Qi. In this sense Taoyin and Qigong are quite similar, but similarities stop here. Main and only focus of Qigong is physical health, nothing beyond that. Some teachers on the west and in recent years in China are trying to promote Qigong as a spiritual practice but that is certainly not true and Qigong was not originally created for any spiritual and religious purposes. On the other hand Taoyin focuses on the body as the main vehicle of the attainment, health is necessary in order to start transformation that leads to self-realization and perfection. The body in Taoyin is an integral part of body-mind-cosmos continuum and can’t be viewed separately or independently from this continuum. In the very foundation of this continuum is Tao , the unconditional and unknowable source and guiding principle of all reality. Although Tao is beyond human perception and understanding it manifests its self actively in natural world though rhythmical processes and changes. Qi is concrete aspect of Tao, the material energy of the universe, the basic building material of everything that exists, it animates life, gives shape to the mater and manifests as functional power. Qi is the base of human life, the quality and flow of Qi determine the state of the body. Health manifests as balance and harmony of Qi flow which can be moderated and regulated. The state of harmonious flow of Qi which manifests through health is called Zhengqi Life is accumulation of Qi, death is dispersal of it. Qi can be accumulated through breathing, food, emotional and social interaction, sex. Qi can also be lost through all these activities if not done properly. The opposite of health is xieqi or pathogenic Qi which occur when harmonious flow of Qi in the body is disrupted and no longer support life and causes decline of health. When xieqi becomes dominant it turns the body against its self and depletes the body resources. This means that person is no longer in harmony with himself and with the world. Qi manifests its self through two opposites Yin and Yang which interact and change through five phases (Wuxing). The purpose of Taoyin is to create perfect harmony among these various forces and processes. Taoyin in conjunction with other Taoist’s practices aims to develop perfect persons who have identified their life rhythms so completely with the rhythm of the forces of nature that they have become indistinguishable from them and share their immortality and infinity, which is above the cycle of ordinary life and death. At the beginner’s stage practitioners gain good health and over time as they become more proficient in their practice, they regain youth vitality and prolong their lives. In higher stages of practice, with the transformation of the practitioner the practice of Taoyin transforms as well and changes into deep meditation practice (word meditation is used in absence of better term, Taoist’s meditative states are different from Buddhist or Hinduist meditation practices). Practitioner reaches higher level of awareness and oneness with the Tao.  

There are many “ancient” martial arts today that teach Qigong as a part of their curriculum, most of them claim that Qigong part is as “ancient’ as their art. Some style undergone extreme changes, like Tai Chi Chuan and Bagua and in recent times completely new styles were formed like Liu He Ba Fa to completely incorporate “Qigong” in their forms and complete practice. These styles don’t look anything like same styles 100 years ago. It is obvious that no styles could have Qigong part simply because Qigong simply didn’t exist until early 1950’s. On the other hand there are very few styles that incorporate Taoyin in their practice and there is a style which is completely based in Taoyin, that style is Zonghe Quan, Vibrating Crane. All White Crane styles find basic foundation in Taoyin tradition. ‘’Three battles” form or San Jin is a complete Taoyin exercise. When we talk about Zonghe Quan it is more than obvious that complete style is an elaborate system of Taoyin created to be used for fighting purposes as well as for personal development and growth. San Jin form of Zonghe Quan is incredible, multilevel training exercise. On purely physical level this form teaches proper body mechanics, body structure, proper ways to generate force, proper footwork, etc. On intellectual level forms contains basic principles and strategies of the system and from those principles and strategies additional forms and drills were derived. On spiritual level, persistent practice of San Jin form will bring different effects upon different practitioners. 

One ohter style has a foundation in Taoyin. Sanke Crane Wing Chun first form , much like Zonghe San Jin form is an elaborate, multy level exercise that among onter things incoroporates Taoyin , or more precisely, Taoyin was further developed to serve the martial purpose on purely phisical and also intelectual level. Whether Snake Crane Wing Chun was originally made this way or it was developed in the direction of using Taoyin as a foundation later will remain a mystery but it is the only Wing Chun style that is based in this ancient practie.

 As we can see Taoyin and Qigong are not synonimes and these terms define two distinct and very different practices