Wing Chun Lexicon – Page 11 – just another Wing Chun blog

Sifu Said …

Random notes taken over several years
During classes taught by Sifu Chow Hung-Yuen
Compiled and edited by Dan Lucas

Other styles tell you what to think. In Wing Chun we teach you how to think. There’s a big difference.

Open your eyes and you can see further. I can’t see it for you. I can only open the window; you have to do the looking. I say one, you say one. I say two, and you say two. That’s not the way to learn. I give you the basics, you have to make three yourself. Nothing was explained to us when I learned, we just learned by doing. After a while we learned for ourselves what worked and what didn’t. I learned, for instance, after struggling to resist for so long, that it doesn’t work to resist. So I gave it up and tried to let go instead.

In the beginning don’t try to learn too much at one time. If you eat too much, its bad for your digestion.

Instead of trying to exploit your opponent’s mistakes, it’s better in the beginning to see you’re not making any of your own. If your foundation is not solid, the higher the building the more dangerous it becomes. The same is true with the martial arts. If your basics are not good, the higher your level of skill the more critical it becomes. The better your foundation, the stronger it is, the higher you can build on it.

For other styles, contact is the end. For Wing Chun, contact is just the beginning. Chi Sao is training for sensitivity. After class you can do the Bong Sao by yourself a hundred times, but if you can’t use it in the right way, what good is it? If you do it right, once is enough. If you do it wrong, a hundred times won’t help.

When styles rely on strength, there’s a limit to strength. As you get older your strength naturally declines. Wing Chun relies on letting go, and there’s no limit to letting go. As you get older you can also improve. It’s not whether or not to use power, but how to use it. It’s not whether or not to spend money, but how to spend it. Make every penny count.

Wing Chun isn’t a hard style or a soft style, it’s both. I don’t resist force, or meet force with force and so it’s a soft style. But when there’s an opening I use all the force I have, and so it’s a hard style too. Greater strength is a natural advantage. It’s also a disadvantage if you can’t let go of it when you need to. Strong people naturally rely on their strength and are unwilling to let it go, and so have a hard time learning Wing Chun. Are you more powerful than a car? If a car comes at you, you don’t try to hold it back – you get out of the way. Your real enemy isn’t your opponent; it’s you. Your natural reaction is to tense up when attacked, so train to replace this natural reaction with new ones. If you compare power with your opponent, you’ll eventually find someone stronger than you. I don’t care how big or how strong you are because I don’t resist you. It doesn’t matter if it’s a car or a train, I just get out of the way. How can you hit me if you can’t find my center? If you touch a spinning ball it sends you off in one direction or another.

When you aim at me I can’t move your aim, but I can move your target. When you change your aim I move the target again. But I always aim at you. If we run a race and you’re faster than me I don’t have much chance of beating you. But if I choose the direction I’ll always have a headstart.

Redirecting force is like opening a door. First I have to know which way the door opens. I don’t want to push sideways if the door opens up and down. I try one direction, if it doesn’t work I try another. Keep moving, like flowing water. If I stop, I give you the chance to use your strength against me. Instead I redirect any strength you have by moving with it. Don’t start something, then wait till tomorrow to come back and finish it. Keep moving; take action. Don’t stop to think about your next move; it may be too late.

The secret isn’t in the technique, but in the situation. More techniques don’t make you a master, it’s how you apply them. Each situation differs and nothing stays the same for long. Learn the principles and how they apply to one technique, rather than a new technique for every change or situation.

Wing Chun theory is firmly based in Yin and Yang. This can mean turning power on or off in one arm, but more usually means one arm is Yin while the other is Yang. It’s like breathing in and out, you can’t do both at once. Yin and Yang doesn’t mean I attack either hard or soft. It means that in any situation you or I will be stronger or weaker, changing with the situation. I constantly test you to find weaknesses to exploit or strengths to avoid. If one hand is heavy and the other light, don’t fight with the heavy hand. Attack the light one instead. If there are two doors, one hard to push and one easy to push, why not go through the one that’s easy to open? Chinese philosophy is based on harmony and balance. When you are positive I am negative. When you become negative I switch to positive. I don’t mean that I think about it. It has to come naturally through the movements.

Magic is only tricks, not really magic. There’s nothing secret, no magic, in Wing Chun. You only have to learn the tricks. Like the old Chinese saying about picking up a rock and hitting yourself with it: for instance, nobody traps your hands against each other, you allow them to be trapped. You offer them to be trapped.

I don’t know how dumb the fish is, or how strong; I just throw out the bait and see if it takes it. Of course I shouldn’t go fishing unless I know I’m skillful enough to reel one in.

I don’t move unless I have to. And if I move, I move as little as possible. For instance a punch on center defends as well as attacks. I keep my elbows on center and attack on center to make it difficult for you to take or use the center, and force you to go the long way around. A circular attack like a roundhouse punch is just an attack, but is in no way a defense. And I don’t have to get in on every opening. Sometimes it’s better to let one go by to set up for another. Put together the right ingredients and you’ll make a fine supper. In other words, if I set you up in the right way, it’ll be easy to finish you off.

Either make the right move, or make the move that’s right for you. Sometimes just being in the right position isn’t enough. What really matters is pressure: the pressure you apply and the pressure applied against you. When you’re in the right position but apply pressure in the wrong direction, I can take advantage of it and your position won’t matter. Good contact means the right amount of pressure at the right spot going in the right direction. Wing Chun is not for display or for competition. A bystander can’t see it, but you and I can feel it. That’s why we can practice blindfolded or in the dark, because it’s something you have to feel and not see. With your eyes open and in bright daylight, practice as though blindfolded and depend on what you feel rather than what you see.

The worst thing for you is if I know what your next move will be. In chess if I know your next move and the move after that, how can you win? So in fighting I put you into a position where you have to respond in a certain way. Then, by sticking with you, I know where you’re going and what you’re doing. When I’m dealt a hand in poker, of course I know what’s in my hand. If I know what’s in your hand too, I have a much better chance of winning. You may still have a better hand than me but at least I have more options. When I have contact with you I can sense your movement and so have a better chance.

And always remember that it doesn’t matter how good you are. What matters is how good you can become

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Let’s Learn and Do Wing Chun the Easy Way

by Hung Y. Chow

This article is written for people who have heard about Wing Chun, and are curious as to what Wing Chun is about. There are many books and articles in the martial arts magazines talking about the principles and techniques of how the Wing Chun system works. But I haven’t seen anyone who can learn the art successfully through books. It has to be taught personally and passed through hand-to-hand contact, from one generation to the next. For example, when an untrained person looks at the Wing Chun first form (Siu-Lin-Tau), it would be extremely difficult to figure out how it works without step-by-step explanation, without interactive communication.

Whatever you do in Wing Chun, forms or sticky hand or working on the wooden dummy, if you do the movement right it should be easy. Once is enough and you should get results from the movement. Otherwise if you do it wrong it will be hard even if you do it a hundred times. It’s only wasting time and effort and won’t work very often. Certainly it won’t get the results you expected. That is simple and everybody knows it. The real question is, how do I know I am doing it right or wrong before it’s too late? Different Sifu learn differently, so they teach differently, even if only the minor details.

Let’s start from when you decide what style of martial art you want to learn. Remember you are in a shopping mode. If you want to protect yourself, carrying a concealed weapon may do a better job. Maybe not. First ask yourself why you want to learn Kung-Fu, or Karate. You have to find out what you are looking for. There is some homework you have to do to help you make up your mind. Sometimes your choice is based on the name of the art, or a recommendation by a friend. Does the white uniform with black belt or fancy athletic movements attract you? Eventually you may get some trophy from a tournament, or just real survival fighting skills. How much do you know about the principles and the philosophy? Are they something you can agree with, believe and follow through? Will it fit your personality? What is the strange culture you are going to get into? What is the background and quality of the instructor, etc? When you learn a martial art, you also learn its view of the principles of life, self control, discipline, confidence, etc.

You have to make a decision, “Is Wing Chun the right style worth learning?” I assume you have made up your mind to learn and practice Wing Chun, because you continue to read this. Let’s understand it and find the easy way to do it. Practicing Wing Chun should be relaxing and fun, otherwise you won’t fully enjoy and love it.

The Principle

We all should know that the Wing Chun system is based on the Yin-Yan theory, the permanent structure of the universe. The two extreme opposite elements coexist. Let’s make it simple to understand: in our daily lives we know we have day and night, cold and hot, life and death, male and female, etc. If we draw a line we can make a comparison between positive and negative, major and minor, strong and weak. Without a middle line how strong is strong, how weak is weak? Does 10 lbs of weight belong to heavy or light. It seems a debatable question, but it is not. If you look at it in another way, how much is 100 lbs, or just 1 lb., the answer will be simple and quick. As another example: when we breathe we inhale and exhale; if we only do it one way, how long will it last? If we understand from this point, we can concentrate on how to put the meaning of (Yin and Yan) into a practical way of doing positive and negative, major and minor, on and off, open and close, get in and get out, forward and backward, turning left and right, etc, and how it applies to the forms, the sticky hand, wooden dummy techniques, etc. There are many small details like balance, center line, sensitive feeling, movement, on and off power, relaxation and creating tension, etc. These are the main factors which make the system work well.

The Form

When we do any one of the Wing Chun forms, there are a few things we need to pay attention to. (I’m not going to describe the form movements here, because it would take thousands of words to explain the action, and would only confuse you). The following suggestions are important and, I hope, will help the Wing Chun participant take maximum advantage.

Body and Position

The purpose of the stance is to protect our invisible centerline between left and right, upper and lower. We must remember to keep our body’s center of gravity low and within our body limit, and to keep our body weight supported by our feet, with the major portion on the heel. The heel is used primarily to turn. Focus on the centerline. Always occupy the centerline. Remember, a straight line is the shortest distance between two points.

Turning is very simple, but it is the most important thing in the system. Without the ability to turn naturally, you can’t even claim you know Wing Chun. We use turning as a basic movement, or use it to move forward or backward (Wing Chun movements do not go straight forward or backward). As a matter of fact, when we do sticky hands, we need the turning to do the Bong Sao or Tan Sao. There is an old saying: “Square body, no Bong Sao”, which means that when the body is square to the opponent, you cannot roll your hand into the Bong or Tan position.

Power and Relaxation

We have to know when and how to use power. Most important is to try to create power from our mind, not from our muscles. That means we control our muscles, not the other way around. When we generate power in live form, live power can change or disappear and adjust accordingly. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t mean how strong or weak the force is–I mean whether the power is alive or dead. Have sensitivity in the hands to determine whether the incoming force is alive or dead, and respond accordingly. This means power is concentrated and passed to the target in certain directions. So when the hand meets incoming force, it allows a certain amount of tension and should respond in a fraction of a second. That is the purpose of the sticky hand exercise. Try to relax at all times. Pass incoming force instead of resisting it. It has nothing to do with soft or hard. For example, don’t waste time to stop and hold a speeding arrow coming at you, but rather do the turning and move yourself away as a target.

By now you might start getting some idea of, but don’t quite understand, the whole thing. That is a normal, expected situation. In the future, we will continue to discuss more details about Wing Chun at an advanced level. Be patient with yourself. Time and dedication will help you in doing a great art successfully.

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Eddie Chong – Training Notes

by Ray Van Raamsdonk

Notes from a visit to Eddie Chong in 1982

Leung Sheung was noted for his expertise at the Bil Jee.
The knees are in to stop the front kick. When you turn a kick is also stopped. Practice with a brick between your legs.
Practice with a tennis ball between your elbows.
The Bil Jee is the enemy of the Chain punch.
Practice the wrist hit on the sandbag. Practice the slanted kick on the dummy post.
Never have a high Bong sau otherwise a quick slapping leverage technique can be applied against the elbow.
Always Pak sau the elbow. Even against a very strong guy it works.
Do the Huen sau slow and with some tension to build up the forearm muscle. Don’t move the elbow too much.
Do the Chi sau but learn to charge in with it.
Don’t lean back in the stance.
Eddie does not do the low Wong Shun Leung Gan sau like Leung Ting’s version in section 6 of the first form. Wang Kiu’s version is the same as Eddie’s version in this part.
Practicing the double palm hit, Jut sau, double Huen sau, double low palm hit continuously on the wooden dummy is good for building up power.
The knife can beat the stick and the stick can beat the knife.
In chi sau, as soon as my attack started, I was countered with multiple hits. They were good at catching the timing early.
Eddie prefers the pressing flat palm over the pressing vertical palm. (Gum sau vs. Chum sau)
Never take the hand back. Never suck back your force. Always keep a forward force.
Against Eddie’s TaeKwonDo kicks (brown belt level) Kenneth Chung charged in and double palmed him into the wall every time no matter which type of kick he threw. Eddie said he had very fast kicks.
When grabbing the opponent’s hand, never use the thumb or else you can’t punch quickly enough.
Against the Judo throw, put the palm into the hip and you can’t be thrown.
Eddie’s group had a lot of experience against Hapkido, Karate and Aikido.
Eddie was good at the heavy arm of Wing Chun.
Don’t use the long hand in Wing Chun. Just use it for demonstrations. Wing Chun also has shortcuts.
If you can do the Huen sau a few thousand times, then you are pretty good.

Against my left hand grabbing his right arm, Eddie applied the Bil Jee elbow. Against a straight punch, he applied the Tok sau to send me backwards. Against the Chum and punch he applied the Bil sau to trap both hands. Against the shoulder attack he applied the horizontal Chum Kiu elbow. Against my attempt to grab his fingers, he let me do it and then punched me with the other hand. Against a cross wrist grab. Eddie applied a simultaneous Tan sau and punch. Against my Tai Chi wrist and elbow control maneuver, Eddie just turned the elbow in and I was countered. Everything had very simple solutions. Against my front kick, Eddie circled his foot and kicked my support leg.

Eddie had nice controlled counters to my various attack attempts. The club was very friendly and treated other Wing Chun people like they are part of the same family. In 1990 I visited again and they were very friendly again. All of Kenneth Chung’s line treated me in a respectful friendly manner. To me this reflects well on the teachers.

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The Centerline Theory of Wing Chun (technical notes)

by Ray Van Raamsdonk

The shortest distance between two points is a straight line.
If you are face to face with an opponent, the shortest distance to the opponent is a straight-line path from your center to the opponent’s center.
If you put your palm toward your opponent’s vertical axis you occupy the center line. Two physical objects can’t occupy the center at the same space at the same time. So if one person occupies the centerline the other person doesn’t. If a straight-line punch comes toward your face and you stick your hand in the center then that punch will be deflected away from the centerline.
There is a vertical centerline which runs parallel to the vertical central axis of the body. There is also a horizontal centerline which runs from your vertical centerline to the opponent’s vertical centerline (if you are facing your opponent).
In Wing Chun we try to always face our opponent’s central axis. We don’t let the opponent get to our side. This is called proper facing. In a fight we can’t always maintain this facing, so then we are in recovery mode to get back to that way of facing.
When face to face with arms in contact, we have a saying that noone takes our arms off the centerline. If you point towards the opponent’s central axis and they push or deflect your hand (arm) away from the centerline, then you are in recovery mode and return back to the centerline just like when pushing on a springy twig or pushing on a ball floating in water.
When an opponent’s arms drift off the centerline, they have a structural weakness in their defense. A hole is created and they’ll be hit because a straight-line attack will come in so fast there won’t be enough time to recover from such a mistake. If the opponent’s arm disengages, we hit straight forward, along the shortest distance path, since that would be our best chance against an opponent with a slight timing advantage from moving first.
When you have a perfect center position, as taught in sticking hands, it’s difficult for an opponent to penetrate this position with any kind of attack.
If an opponent disengages to do a circular hit, he’ll be hit first with a straight-line hit.
If an opponent tries to grab, he’ll cross himself and be trapped.
If an opponent uses brute strength to break down the center, he’ll be stiff and can be pushed, pulled, jerked or easily unbalanced. The other option is that the opponent’s strength will encounter emptiness from your relaxed, soft feeling. Or when their hard force comes we pivot or shift so the hard force is redirected. The opponent will face the wrong way and we will point at their central axis.
If an opponent attempts to kick, this attempt can be felt in the hands and a pushing/pulling force or stepping in will unbalance them. (Note: however, Kenneth Chung showed how he can kick with no signals given.)
If an opponent retreats we chase in such a way that arm contact is maintained. Once in contact it’s difficult to shake off a person with good sticking skills without destroying your own good center position.
In sticking hands/rolling hands we try to detect when the opponent has deviated from the centerline position. As soon as this deviation occurs we hit. When an opponent’s centerline position is good, we may try to destroy that good position with a variety of pushing, pulling, jerking tactics, but these create defects in our own defense which can be taken advantage of. A beginner is too slow to react and can’t accurately sense centerline mistakes, so anything works against them.
Some Wing Chun people try to blast their way through the center, which works well against an inferior opponent. Against an advanced opponent he will either be counter-blasted, if the opponent is stronger, or more ideally will encounter sudden emptiness and be hit.
Since we are human, mistakes are made, so we lose because of thousands of kinds of mistakes. Mistakes include:
- unstable stance
- off center to the left
- off center to the right
- hands too high
- hands too low
- hands too stiff
- hands too soft
- not sensitive
- slow reactions
- contact between the arms too loose
These mistakes and hundreds more are studied so they can be countered instantly.
When two people are in double-arm contact, nearly everything can be defended by maintaining a good stance and smothering the opponent’s attacks by sticking to their arms. However, when the opponent goes off the centerline we don’t stick, but attack in a straight line or else we’ll be open to attack. The idea is not to stick with and chase arms wherever they may go.
The first form of Wing Chun teaches ideal positioning. The positions taught in the first form are mathematical ideal positions or structures, when you are face to face with an opponent. Since we are all built differently, we can only approach these ideal concepts and have to compensate in other ways if we can’t physically apply the math concept. E.g. if you aren’t flexible enough to keep the elbows on the centers you can compensate by being more sensitive with the hands or forearms, or by shifting more.
When our force limits have been exceeded then body shifting is used to redirect the force. So ideally, we either stay put, shift (turn) or step forward. In reality we sometimes have to back up or even duck. The second form of Wing Chun teaches the mechanics required to coordinate the hands with the feet. This means we learn when to turn or advance depending on what we feel.
In real fighting nothing is ideal. Our good mathematical centerline positions may be totally destroyed. An opponent may have our elbow pushed off to the side, or grabbed us or have us bent over, or pinned us to a wall, or there’s not one opponent to face but several. In this case your perfect center-facing position against a single opponent has been lost and you are therefore in recovery mode to regain a good position. The third form of Wing Chun teaches how to regain the centerline or how to get back into a good position as taught in the first and second forms or dummy forms. Because of this it makes no sense to learn the third form of Wing Chun before having mastered the others. How will you know what position to recover to if you don’t understand the subject of positions and structures?
The wooden dummy is a device which forces you to have correct position because the arms of the dummy are in fixed locations. So the wooden dummy is like a teacher who forces you to have correct angles. The wooden dummy is used for secondary reasons to enhance speed, power and to condition the arms. It also doesn’t make much sense to study the dummy before having learned the first form, because you won’t understand what a correct position is. And the wooden dummy movements can’t be applied without an understanding and adeptness in sticking hands skills.
In Wing Chun we try to gain a correct position based on centerline concepts. From hundreds of hours of rolling hands (Poon sau) practice we can detect when an opponent’s position is off. We must be relaxed and sensitive to detect these things, then we must have the timing to attack with speed and power.
When close range skills are mastered there is no fear of arm contact with an opponent. After that, total concentration can be given to how to make contact with the opponent. This involves the study of structure and entry methods, and most of all, timing. The second form of Wing Chun, the wooden dummy and free style sparring teach how to enter properly so the sticking hands skills of Wing Chun can be applied.
From a few simple concepts, such as “the shortest distance between two points is a straight-line” and the concept of economy, quite an elaborate art has evolved.
Someone knowing the ideas behind Wing Chun can create counter-concepts just as in Chess, where some players occupy the center and others try to destroy it from the flanks. This is part of the fun, to outwit each other. However, once in contact there is not much room for error, not much time to change from this move to that move.
Many if not all of the center control theories of chess also apply to Wing Chun. Fencing does not use the concept of placing something in the center or they will get beat fast (another discussion). Some other Chinese styles think like fencing people and tend to sweep attacks aside from one corner of the four quadrants instead of from the center position. Using two arms instead of having one fencing foil changes the rules of the game.

These are just a few quick thoughts which are in no way a complete or hole-proof theory. Another topic not discussed is the location of hitting targets along the vertical center line. Also, in fact, there are many lines of balance which are used, as explained above, even during sweeping, off balancing and while ground fighting. Different Wing Chun lines may have different viewpoints on this subject. Tai Chi is also a center searching art, but the mechanics are not the same and probably conflict with Wing Chun theories.

We would view Tai Chi as violating some of our principles but we say that the Tai Chi system probably has ways to compensate for what we consider a weakness. From the Tai Chi point of view the elbows in the center do not seem like a good idea, but we have ways to compensate for this weakness perceived by the Tai Chi practitioner.

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Emin Boztepe – Training Notes 1

by Ray Van Raamsdonk

Here are my thoughts on Emin:

I first heard of Emin Boztepe when he had an encounter with Grandmaster William Cheung in Germany in the late 1980’s. I was studying Wing Chun under Dr. G.K. Khoe, a student of Wang Kiu. At the time I didn’t think too much about Emin except that he was just a wrestler kind of a guy who took William to the ground and that was that.

Many years went by and during those years I continued to study Wing Chun and learn from different masters. I am familiar with many branches of the Wing Chun family. One day I read a note on the Internet which said how skillful Emin Boztepe was. This sparked my interest because the note put him at a level where he could handle very high ranking people of different arts. In my own mind Wing Chun was good but somehow I always wondered whether it can really handle those super fast kicks from the other styles like you are taught in class or whether they would just be too fast. We were told that the Wing Chun people do very well in tournaments in Europe but we have never seen such tournaments and so it was just talk to most club members. Some of our members eventually in fact switched arts and went back to other styles because they lacked confidence in Wing Chun. They knew it was good in the close range but did not trust it at all in the distance fighting.

So, I contacted Emin Boztepe to ask if he could give a seminar on Wing Tsun in Canada. Emin was quite nice on the phone and said that he would come. This was last year. But at the same time we were considering someone else for a seminar and couldn’t decide as a club who to get. Usually our members want to go to no more than one seminar per year. So we didn’t get Emin Boztepe. This year (1994) we decided to get Emin to see what he was all about. In a short sentence, we were SHOCKED at how good he was. Everything I had read about him was true. He was like that mysterious stranger who comes into town in the movies and when the stranger leaves, the town is never the same again. At the seminar we had mostly Wing Chun people attend but there were also people from Karate, TaeKwonDo, Hapkido, Aikido, some Kung Fu style and Escrima. On the first day Emin blew everyone’s mind with his awesome demonstrations of Wing Tsun. To Emin we were all beginners. He could do it all: grappling, kicking, punching, escaping from joint locks, and handling wrestling. He showed us simple things relating to hitting and footwork but then demonstrated how this simple stuff could defeat anything anyone could throw at him. Emin’s movements were swift, accurate and graceful. When I first talked to Emin I said, “Your stuff may be great because you train six hours a day and are rough and tough, but what good will that do for our smaller female members?” Emin responded by saying that he trained more women than anyone else and they are all good. I still had my doubts. When I saw Emin in action, he defeated people not at all by relying on brute strength. He was a very superior technician and used a very soft springy touch. He showed how the little person can apply the art against stronger opponents. There was not one person in the room who was not convinced of his skill.

Further than that, Emin was a superb teacher. We have female members who are professional top notch teachers themselves and who consider most males just “Bruty.” They have hardly ever said any kind words about any teacher. But both of them said they hope to be able to teach like Emin someday. Emin was very meticulous in being able to pinpoint the finest of details. He could explain why it is done that way. He could break everything down into very logical steps. By the way, I am not on Emin’s payroll and am not a part of his organization. I am trying to honestly report what I saw.

I thought before, that Emin would do a lot of weights and therefore he wouldn’t have that relaxed sensitive touch that we have, but I was wrong. He could react to the smallest of forces and offered little resistance to work with. He was incredibly fast. He was a master of technique. Not once did he rely on techniques other than pure Wing Tsun technique. (Note: Wing Tsun is still pronounced Wing Chun but Leung Ting’s organization wants to distinguish their art from the art of other Wing Chun families). His footwork was very impressive.

The second day of the seminar was spent on applying the knowledge from the first day to kicking attacks of any kind. Emin does not care if they are Thai boxing kicks, Karate kicks, TaeKwonDo kicks or Hapkido kicks. He handled them all. He always just goes in towards your center. The footwork is phenomenal. At one point he asked one of the smallest female members to come up to the front to face a second degree black belt in Hapkido. He asked the Hapkido guy to throw very fast roundhouse kicks to her head then by giving her a push, just at the right moment, demonstrated to her that it was only timing and proper footwork to get inside this kind of kick. After you see Emin you have no more doubts about handling kicks. But as Emin said, there is no magic, no mystery, it is just hard work once he shows you what to do. Emin always picks on the most skillful, largest or best people to demonstrate on. Then in a relaxed way neutralizes anything they do. Emin does not care what art you do or what ranking you have in your art.

In the afternoon Emin taught the common ways that wresting, grappling or jujitsu people take you down to the ground. Once we were moderately familiar with these techniques we were shown how to counter these attacks. Again the counters relied on workable techniques even for smaller people. Some of these things I had never seen before. Everyone enjoyed it. When I first heard that he taught wrestling and how to counter it with Wing Tsun, it didn’t sound very appealing to me but it was fun, and effective.

On the third day Emin split the class into those with Wing Chun background and those with none. Those with Wing Chun background did Chi sau. Before we started he said that we knew nothing about Chi sau. This sounded quite arrogant to me since he knew nothing about what we knew. But once he crossed hands with us we couldn’t help but agree. He was very subtle, very light, very sensitive. It was not possible to find his center. His hand and foot coordination was very good. Even though he does not hurt you, he is one of the most scary individuals you would ever want to face. Emin’s corrections, explanations and demonstrations of Chi sau were very good. In all honesty I would say that I have felt one or two others in the Wing Chun world who also have exceptional skill (Dr. Khoe and Kenneth Chung) but Emin had a real systematic way to pass on his skills. I would say he has the most organized system for teaching. During the course of the seminar Emin would answer all questions with theory and impressive demonstrations. He demonstrated multiple opponent defense, defense against stick and defense against knife. He demonstrated both how to use the knife and how to defend against it but he said realistically, forget it. The odds are heavily against you no matter who you are. A question came up about Bruce Lee’s one inch punch. Emin said, “That’s nothing,” and proceeded to demonstrate on the largest member who weighed 240 pounds. Emin’s soft looking punch, sent him one foot up and four feet back to land on top of some desk. However, in reality, he said, the effect will be quite different because you will drop on the spot.

For any Wing Chun practitioners who have doubts about their art or who think they are already the best, you have seen nothing until you have seen Emin. I would highly recommend Emin to anyone who has any doubtful ideas about Wing Chun. I remember reading some literature that Wing Chun was just a primitive system of combat which anyone can learn in two years and that’s it. In fact many people do learn Wing Chun that quickly and then move on to newer more exciting looking arts. Wing Chun or Emin’s Wing Tsun is the most effective thing I have seen to date. You read this in the literature all the time about everyone’s art and think, “Oh, sure!” Not all the people who attended will join Emin’s organization but ALL who attended agree that he was the best they have seen. We felt that we were seeing a Bruce Lee in the making at the height of his career. Emin does not claim to be the best, but no one can think of anyone better. Emin has not learned the complete Wing Tsun system yet but what he has learned he has learned completely. He can execute everything he has learned. Many of us have learned everything but can’t realistically execute anything.

No one we have ever had before for a seminar has had such an emotional effect on our club members. If fighting effectiveness is what you are after then you will seriously start to doubt the things you are practicing now. A lot of the Wing Chun arguments on the Internet newsgroups would not exist if those people met Emin in person. Emin is a tough taskmaster but is sharp with wit and humor. Not everyone will like him but none can deny his skill. Emin is very strict on what type of individuals he teaches. It is a good thing, and you will know what I mean when you see his art. In Germany many clubs have switched over and remained loyal to Emin once they had seen his art. He was declared fighter of the year in Germany in 1988. Now I can see why.

In the early days the Wing Chun clan in Hong Kong had many good fighters. I think since Emin the Wing Chun clan will have to reevaluate the way they train their art. There are of course other good Wing Chun fighters around but unfortunately the ones I have seen have not got a training system which can handle today’s very complex modern fighter. WT and WC have conflicting principles. Wing Chun usually refers to Yip Man’s earlier art and WT is the later art which has been modernized to handle today’s type of fighters. The Germans have done a lot of their own research in this area. I expect it will still evolve, especially if WT and some top WC representatives meet. I think we are just about to see a new crop of Wing Tsun / Wing Chun fighters come from Europe who will revolutionize our view of what is Wing Chun. In the 1980’s I produced a Wing Chun newsletter called Wing Chun Viewpoint that I was very proud of. This newsletter went around the Wing Chun world. My teacher’s teacher Wang Kiu always said that most written things on Wing Chun are rubbish. After all these years I can see now what he means. I still think the information was still good and valuable in a very general sense but realize talking is quite easy. Really knowing what you are talking about and being able to perform what you are talking about is another matter altogether

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Siu Nim Tau- The little idea Form

by Phil Bradley

Introduction

The first form of the Wing Chun system is called Siu Nim Tau. Meaning Little Idea, this form demonstrates basic but efficient concepts that provide a logical method. Regardless of the style, all Wing Tsun/Wing Chun/Ving Tsun methods will generally begin their teachings with the Siu Nim Tau.

Whereas many arts focus on an application, Wing Chun focuses on the concept of that application. A concept can adjust and respond to ever-changing situations, while focusing only on the application itself can see it defeated.

All Wing Chun empty-hand forms are taught in three sections to make for easier learning. For the Siu Nim Tau, however, its three sections have a specific purpose and stress a unique function:

Section 1 teaches the correct bio-mechanics of arm movement and leg strength.
Section 2 teaches how to develop relaxed power.
Section 3 combines these elements in order to “release” that power.

Some will train the Siu Nim Tau as internal while others will train it as external. We train Wing un solely from the mindset of fighting (what many denote as external). Elements of internal training will result, such as relaxation and smooth breathing, but we do not focus on the internal aspects as some others do.

Instead, our primary focus lies in the relaxed, physical aspects of response and engagement, learning to overcome an opponent swiftly and efficiently. Internal elements result over time, but they are not our primary concern; defeating the opponent as quickly as possible is the primary goal, and utilizing the concepts found in the Siu Nim Tau begins that process.

The interesting thing about Wing Tsun is that you will find many variations. The families, lineages, and styles have particular ways to train, as well as specific modes of that training in order to cultivate what they feel are the essential elements to their preferred methods. Some are more effective than others, but on the whole, you will usually find more similarities than differences.

Section 1

Section 1 begins by learning how to lower one’s center of gravity from the chest to the waist. Called Hoi Ma, or Opening the Stance, this basic but primary element is one of the reasons we can take an opponent head-on. Should too much force be encountered and we are overpowered by brute strength, the structure itself allows us to “borrow” that force and re-direct or deflect it.

When engaging force with your own force, the stronger of the two opponents has a better chance of success because the odds are more in their favor. Therefore, in order to overcome that, borrowing their force allows us to quickly change angles, respond faster, attack the exposed areas, and keeps it efficient without thinking about what to do.

Drills & Applications

A variety of drills can be created exclusively from section 1. To illustrate a bit about what the Siu-Nim-Tau teaches us, let’s explore a few drills that begins the foundation of Wing Tsun.

Punching

There are three primary punches in Wing Cun, with Yat Chi Chung Kuen, or Character “Sun” Thrusting punch (commonly called the Straightline punch), being the most prevalent. If you close your hand to make a vertical fist, and then look at the front of it in a mirror, it resembles the Chinese character for “sun”.

Wing Chun punching differs from other arts in that instead of striking with a horizontal fist and using the first two knuckles, we use a vertical fist and strike with the bottom three knuckles. If you place your arm to your side, make a fist, and then raise the arm to the front, you will see that the bottom three knuckles are in alignment with the arm. Upon impact, the entire arm acts like a shock absorber.

This is why Wing Chun punching can inflict so much damage to the opponent, and it is also why the punch can be so fast from such a short distance. It is biomechanically the correct way a punch should be enacted.

Tan Da, Fook Da and Gaun Da

Three of the first movements are the easiest to learn. These actions address defense against straight punches, hook punches, and low punches.

Tan Da

Tan Dar, or Palm Up-arm with simultaneous attack, is mostly for straight punches. Note, however, that many practitioners use Tan Da for hook punches, too. Personally I don’t subscribe to that concept since the elbow is slightly inward vs. outward, and you need the elbow outward in order to handle the force of a real hook, as well see in Foo Da.

Fook Da

Fook Da, or Bridge On-arm with simultaneous attack, is quite adept at defending against hook punches. It is not just a block, though; instead, it slices into the attack so that it doesn’t take the full brunt of force. In this way, you don’t take the entire force on your arm. It is vey similar with Lan Da.

Gaun Da

Gaun Da, or Splitting Block-arm with simultaneous attack, is like axe splitting wood, hence the name. Wing Chun does not have blocks; instead, our “blocks” are either attacks or they slice through the attack so that we counter-attack while defending.

Lead-arm Defense Drill

After learning the first section of Siu Nim Tau and exploring the variety of concepts, we can take these movements and blend them together to create our own drills/scenarios as necessary. This teaches us not to be stagnant or always training the same drills over and over without change.

To begin this process, we work what is called the Lead-arm Defense Drill. This drill is just one of many variations that frees us up by changing from side-to-side while simultaneously working the arms. We also learn more control of the lower body and how to pivot ourselves in order to borrow the force of the attacker.

Pak Sau Drill

An excellent real-world drill that you can work with your training partner right now is called the Pak Sau drill. This drill teaches coordination, learning to make contact, feeling what that pressure is about, and how to better protect your centerline. It also puts into motion the concept of working both hands at the same time so that you can enact simultaneous attack and defense.

The Pak Sau drill is very important to Wing Chun, our entire fighting curriculum begins with it. From driving in, down, around, adding kicks, elbows, knees, and any other action you can think, Pak Sau easily and quickly transitions to effective and efficient counter-attacks.

Concepts & Theories

Wing Chun is concept-based vs. application-based, meaning that the movements themselves can only take you so far. They are excellent movements, for certain; however, they are still only mechanical actions. What really makes Wing Chun so effective is how and why the movements are applied.

For example, think about how many martial arts are in existence. Now, think about how many ways the human body can move. With the hundreds of systems and styles in the world, a person can still only do so many things.

When someone trains only for applications, what happens if they meet up with an opponent who is trained in movements that the defender did not train to respond to yet? If they follow a set pattern or routine in their daily training, then any deviation from that routine can be cause for defeat.

Wing Chun does not follow this premise; instead, the system applies concept – not movement – to the equation. Concepts such as learning about the centerline, straightline, and vertical midline are essential to what we do. Understanding how the body responds to incoming force allows us to borrow that force and use it our advantage.

In combination, the centerline and straightline principles increase your reactions so much that our responses can become extremely fast. However, there is no mystery there. It is nothing more than simple body mechanics.

The vertical midline separates the left and right halves of the body so that we can analyze what limbs would be appropriate for various attacks. This is assisted by working the Six Gates principle, in which the body is broken down into six separate areas. For example, gates 1 and 2 are for the right and left sides of the head, gates 3 and 4 cover the right and left sides of the trunk, and gates 5 and 6 cover the right and left sides of the lower body. With these areas being analyzed, we can quickly see what limbs would be more efficient to address any kind of attack we might encounter.

The Siu-Nim-Tau is unique to the rest of Wing Tsun in that while all forms are learned in sections for easier learning, the Siu-Nim-Tau’s sections each have a distinct purpose:

Section 1 – Section 1 teaches the correct biomechanics of arm and hand positions, as well as strengthening the lower body. The structure of the stance from the ground to the top of the head is learned, and we take this structure to reinforce our upper body mechanics.
Section 2 – Section 2 teaches us how to develop relaxed force. Anyone can release force, but releasing the proper force is what this section focuses on. Here we learn about relaxing our actions in order to remove the stiffness and tension that goes with fighting, as well as how to develop a relaxed whipping type of force.
Section 3 – Section 3 combines all of the lessons learned in sections 1 and 2, and teaches how to unite these concepts into a workable, efficient explosion into our target.

Like all things Wing Tsun, though, not everyone trains the sections in that manner. Some apply different associations to it, such as learning double movements, focusing on gaining the inside line, etc.

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Augustine Fong- short bio

by Curtis James

Augustine Fong was born on the island of Macao, off the coast of southern China. Since his early childhood, he has had a special interest in the Chinese martial arts. In 1960, he was fortunate enough to begin training in a traditional gung fu style. His instructor was the honorable Wing Chun master, Ho Kam Ming. Master Ho, a top student of the late grand master Yip Man, had, at that time, introduced the style to the Macao area. Augustine Fong, without a second thought, became one of his first students.

By 1964, master Ho’s school had grown considerably. The school had gained a reputation, so good, in fact, that a famous gung-fu school from Hong Kong decided to send a formal challenge. Challenges, back then, were very serious business. The challenging school, in this case, had also obtained an impressive name and reputation. It was undersood that they had fought and won over a hundred contests in this manner, and as a result, defeated a number of top schools in Hong Kong. Accepting the written challenge, master Ho decided that Fong would fight the match. Fong was master Ho’s best student and toughest fighter. On the appointed day, the challenger appeared along with his instructor and ten fellow students.

Out of courtesy, the challenger’s sifu was appointed the referee. The match was to consist of three rounds, with the only rule being you could not step out of the fighting area. During the fight, Fong dominated his opponent. In the second round, he became very aggressive, driving the challenger into a mok jeong (wooden dummy). In the third and final round, Fong continued his advantage, chasing and punching his opponent into a wall. Reeling off the wall, the challenger fell into a well-timed punch and was knocked unconscious. Without a word, his sifu and si dai picked him up and carried him out. Master Ho’s school, through Fong’s victory, had upheld its reputation. Fong, because of the encounter, became quite well known throughout Hong Kong and Macao. In Macao he is still known as Wing Chun’s “Gum-Pai Da-Sau,” or “Golden Ribbon Boxer.”

Following this incident, many new students, hearing of the school’s reputation, decided to enroll. To help with the increasing number of students, Fong was asked to assist master Ho in teaching. This was quite an honor for the young Fong. But instead of passing on the good news to his family, he chose to keep it to himself. His mother, during this time, was a very strict woman. Her opinion of the arts was not altogether high. She felt that skill in gung fu would only get one into trouble. So, instead of worrying his mother, Fong had decided from the beginning, to keep his skill a secret. And did he ever! For thirteen years, his mother never new that he was practicing the art of Wing Chun!

During this period, sifu Fong began studying under the Chinese herbalist, sifu Wong Bing Gong. Sifu Wong had learned his art from a monk and was well known for his healing ability. During World War II, he used his knowledge to cure a great many people. Sifu Wong taught Fong how to use “Dit Da” massage to heal broken bones and to treat bruises, strains, and sprains. Sifu Wong also taught him how to prepare herbs, and their medicinal remedies, all of which was valuable knowledge for a practitioner of the martial art.

In 1967, due to civil disturbances in Macao, Augustine Fong moved to Kowloon, Hong Kong. There, his instructor, master Ho, opened a Wing Chun school, where Fong practiced and taught for two years. Then, in 1969, following his father’s footsteps, sifu Fong immigrated to America. Moving to Nogales, Arizona, and then settling in Tucson, sifu Fong soon began to teach and promote the Wing Chun style. In Tucson, he accepted a position teaching self-defense for the city. The program worked out so well, that in 1973, prompted by his students and friends, he opened his own school. This was the first public Wing Chun school in the southwestern United States!

Today, with over twenty years of experience in the art, sifu Fong is considered to be among the top Wing Chun masters in the world. Not only is he a highly qualified Wing Chun instructor, but he is also well-versed in a wide variety of weapons. Wing Chun itself, has two weapons forms: the Six and 1/2 Point Long Staff and the Bot Jaam Do (Butterfly Knives). Besides these two weapons, sifu Fong is also highly skilled in the use of the Kuan Do, Three Sectional Staff, Spear, Half Moon, and Tiger Fork, to name a few. Sifu Fong, following Chinese tradition, also performs the southern Lion Dance which he learned from sifu Chan Gin Man. Sifu Chan, who lives in Kowloon, Hong Kong, teaches the Hung Sing Choi Lee Fut style of lion dance.

Sifu Fong has given martial arts demonstrations and performed lion dances throughout Arizona and Sonora, Mexico. He has organized two Martial Arts Exhibitions in Tucson, both very successful. Sifu Fong has appeared on numerous local television shows, as well as in articles published by “Inside Kung Fu” and “Black Belt” magazines. Currently, he operates a school in Tucson and an affiliated school in Phoenix, Arizona.

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A brief history of Yuen Kay Shan Wing Chun Kuen

by Rene Ritchie

Many of the early masters of Wing Chun Kuen were Guangdongese opera performers and Hung Suen (Red Junk) men. Among them were Wong Wah Bo, Leung Yee Tei, and “Dai Fa Min” Kam. Wong Wah Bo and Leung Yee Tei went on to teach the highly skilled Dr. Leung Jan (known as “King of the Boxers”), and “Dai Fa Min” Kam passed along his knowledge to a man named Fok Bo Chuen.

At the turn of the century in Foshan, Guangdong, there lived a wealthy merchant named Yuen Chung Ming. Yuen Chung Ming’s fifth son, Yuen Kay Shan, was an energetic and intelligent youth who loved practicing the martial arts. Yuen Chung Ming, sparing no expense in order to provide his son with an opportunity to nurture his talent, engaged Fok Bo Chuen to teach Yuen Kay Shan the skills of Wing Chun Kuen. Yuen Kay Shan studied for many years and learned all Fok Bo Chuen had to teach including the Kuen (Fist Forms), the Jong (Dummies), the Gwun (Pole), the Dao (Knives), and the Biu (Darts). He also succeeded in developing the Dit Sa Cheung (Iron Sand Palm). Through constant hard work and determination, Yuen Kay Shan eventually went on to surpass even his teacher in skill.

A relative of Yuen Kay Shan had, at one time, been in a position of considerable power in Sichuan province. One day, having reason to pay his relative a courtesy call, Yuen Kay Shan was introduced to the famous Bo Tao (marshal), Fung Siu Ching, who was renowned for his remarkable Wing Chun Kuen skills. Fung Siu Ching was quite old at the time and was in the process of ending his career, yet Yuen Kay Shan approached him, seeking additional instruction. Fung Siu Ching, noting Yuen Kay Shan’s sincere interest, decided to delay his retirement and to accept Yuen Kay Shan as his student. After a short time, however, it became apparent to Fung Siu Ching that Yuen Kay Shan’s foundation was solid and that his skills were already quite advanced. He realized that there was, in truth, little he could do to improve upon them. Nevertheless, the two practiced Chi Sao (Sticking Arms) together and Fung Siu Ching taught Yuen Kay Shan new methods for expressing power.

Following Fung Siu Ching’s tutelage, Yuen Kay Shan spent time studying the scientific principles of Wing Chun Kuen. Blending together and linking all the knowledge he had acquired, he developed a complete understanding of Wing Chun Kuen and went on to create an extraordinary set of theories encompassing its forms and functions.

While Yuen Kay Shan was quite well known in Foshan, he kept his knowledge of Wing Chun Kuen as private as possible. He used his skills only to defend himself and for practice. In fact, since Yuen Kay Shan was fairly wealthy, he did little with his time but practice his Wing Chun Kuen. Content, he neither sought out nor accepted any students for most of his life. Yuen Kay Shan would, however, from time to time drop by a local restaurant to take tea. At the restaurant worked a man named Cheung Bo who taught Wing Chun Kuen to a small group of fellow staff members. Cheung Bo was a large and powerful man and his Wing Chun Kuen was quite unique in structure. Chueng Bo found it difficult to keep his elbows closed (as was the method of many other Wing Chun Kuen practitioners) and instead used open arms, compensating for them with rapid and powerful stance changes. Furthermore, Cheung Bo’s Wing Chun Kuen was based on a number of short, ordered Sic (Forms) and not the more commonly practiced Three Fist Forms.

One of Cheung Bo’s students at the time was a hard working young boy named Sum Nung, whose family had recently returned to China from South America. Yuen Kay Shan, after dining at the restaurant, would sometimes remain behind and watch the staff practice their Wing Chun Kuen. While observing, he would stay quiet and never comment or criticize, but over time he grew to admire the dedication of the young boy and eventually asked Cheung Bo if he could take over Sum Nung’s instruction. Cheung Bo, knowing and respecting the quality of Yuen Kay Shan’s Wing Chun Kuen, happily agreed and soon introduced Sum Nung to Yuen Kay Shan. Sum Nung was hesitant at first, as the elderly and slender Yuen Kay Shan was a stark contrast to the young and powerful Cheung Bo. Soon, however, Sum Nung became his student and eventually his treasured disciple.

Over the years, Yuen Kay Shan and Sum Nung spent much time together, constantly practicing Wing Chun Kuen and contemplating and exploring its theories and techniques. Under Yuen Kay Shan’s guidance, Sum Nung continued to refine and polish his Wing Chun Kuen, developing an intelligent and practical synthesis, as simple and efficient as it was well-rounded and effective. With Yuen Kay Shan’s passing, shortly after the establishment of the People’s Republic of China, Sum Nung named the style Yuen Kay Shan Wing Chun Kuen, in honor and memory of his teacher.

Sum Nung went on to train as a muscle and bone doctor and eventually moved to the city of Guangzhou, introducing Wing Chun Kuen and the teachings of Yuen Kay Shan to the region. In Guangzhou Dr. Sum Nung taught Yuen Kay Shan Wing Chun Kuen privately, not wanting to attract too much attention. Among his students was a man named Ngo Lui Kay (Ao Lei Qi in the Beijing dialect). Although born in Hong Kong, Ngo Lui Kay went to university near Beijing to study communications and, after travelling China and Korea as a both a teacher and an engineer, he settled down in Guangzhou. Ngo Lui Kay was drawn to Wing Chun Kuen by its practicality and its usefulness and in the mid 1960s he began training under Dr. Sum Nung. Ngo Lui Kay followed Dr. Sum Nung and practiced constantly for more than a decade and a half, devoting himself to the development of his Yuen Kay Shan Wing Chun Kuen skills.

In the early 1980’s, with the help of his uncle, Ngo Lui Kay moved his family to Canada. For a long time in Canada, Ngo Lui Kay kept his knowledge of Yuen Kay Shan Wing Chun Kuen very quiet and accepted no students, preferring to invest his time in his business, working hard and trying to secure a future for his family. Thankfully, in 1990 when his business grew more solid and he had some time to spare, he started to teach a small and tightly knit group of formal students. In honor of, and respect for his ancestors, Ngo Lui Kay is determined to share his knowledge and to help preserve the art of Yuen Kay Shan Wing Chun Kuen.

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Sunny Tang – short bio

A native of Hong Kong and a second generation disciple of the famed grandmaster of Wing Chun, Yip Man (Bruce Lee’s Master). In 1969 Sifu Dunn Wah first established his Wing Chun Kung Fu school in Midland, England.

In 1971, he emigrated to Canada and left his most advanced student in charge of his British school. This student was Mario Reho. Since his arrival in Canada, two Wing Chun Kung Fu Academies have been established in Toronto. Since then Sifu Dunn Wah has become very active in the Chinese community. He is a director as well as life president of the Chinese Chamber of Commerce Inc. (East Toronto). Sifu Dunn Wah is also a director and vice-president of the Tang’s Fraternity Inc. of Ontario.

Some of his earlier students of his Canadian Wing chun schools have now established their own schools. These students include Paul Stiles, Ebenezer Shum, Tony Ng, Chris Hader and Darren Smith all of Ontario, and Joland Leung of British Columbia.

Sifu Dunn Wah is well on his way to becoming one of the mainstays of the development of Wing Chun Kung Fu in Canada.

source: “Pah Chum Do of Wing Chun” by Dunn Wah, Toronto: Champion Enterprises, 1984.

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Samuel Kwok – short bio

Master Kwok was born in Hong Kong the son of a Church Minister, his interest in the martial arts started at an early age from watching performers at a local bazaar and over the coming years he studied several different styles, always with a deep interest in the technical side, analysing each for their practicality.

It was not until he came to England that he was introduced to Wing Chun. He studied with five Chinese Masters over the years, but as he became more proficient Samuel Kwok noticed variations in the techniques, so it was that Master Kwok decided to return to Hong Kong and go to the ultimate source of Wing Chun, to the Great Grandmaster’s son Yip Chun.

For the next few years Master Kwok had private tuition from Yip Chun, learning the pure and undiluted style. After gaining Master level in Wing Chun and opening a school in Hong Kong he left his Master, Yip Chun, but not before he promised to teach only the pure style of Wing Chun, a promise which Yip Chun made to his father Yip Man before his death, a vow which Yip Chun has strictly observed since that sad day.

Master Kwok became an important figure in the Hong Kong Kung Fu society, with his students, competing and demonstrating at major tournaments representing the Yip Man Martial Arts Association, and it was in Hong Kong that he met Bruce Li, the actor, becoming fast friends and training together regularly.

Since his return to Britain, Master Kwok has continued to teach Wing Chun, at first only privately, then after many requests he organised open schools, which have flourished, and now with new clubs opening all the time covering most of England, and plans to spread more throughout the world, the Samuel Kwok Martial Arts Association can only help to maintain the name of Wing Chun and the pure form of the art in the years to come and protect it from the changes that occur through instructors with an incomplete knowledge of the system, who use the name of Wing Chun to mislead students and to promote themselves to the detriment of the style, and with no regard for those who had preceded them, as you should always think of the source of the water which you are drinking.

source: “The Path to Wing Chun” by Samuel Kwok. London: Paul H. Crompton, 1984.