Grandmaster Ip Chun advising a student

Traditions & Ethics

Most martial arts have at their core a philosophy on which their techniques are based. This philosophy can guide the student to understand their system and by following the principles of the philosophy to move beyond set patterns and techniques they have learnt. It can provide the student with the ability to deal with new and different situations that may not have been specifically covered in their training.

Wing Chun is no different. The techniques in Wing Chun are relatively few and simple but the idea and philosophy that directs their use is constant throughout. This is the beauty of the system. By keeping the techniques of the system simple and concise, it allows the theory to show through more clearly and be easily understood. The physical system of Wing Chun deals with understanding force. How to receive it, redirect it, to deliver it, all as economically as possible. It teaches you how to avoid and engage your opponent whilst maintaining a safe and advantageous position yourself: all in as few techniques as possible. This it allows the student to quickly grow within the system and make it his or her own. The philosophy of Wing Chun acts as a guide to the application of the techniques and your growth within the system. The philosophy of Wing Chun is based on the Confucian text 'The Doctrine Of The Mean'.

It is not to say that it is necessary for you to study this work in order to practice Wing Chun, as the philosophy is already incorporated within the way the system is taught. It is also not necessary to change your daily life to incorporate this philosophy. Wing Chun is a complete system for you to use as you wish to take from it what you want and leave the rest to those that are interested. However, for those that are interested, looking into the Doctrine Of The Mean can allow us to see at the core of the system and maybe understand our training on a different level.
The Doctrine Of The Mean is available from many sources. A couple of such sources are http://classics.mit.edu/confucius/doctmean.html or within the book Wing Chun Martial Arts: Principles and Techniques By Yip Chun and Danny Conner.

Wing Chun has also what is known as Wing Chun poetry or Kuen Kuit. Whereas the Doctrine Of tHe Mean may seem a little abstract in its application within Wing Chun, the Kuen Kuit are a series of short concise sentences which convey a core principle of the Wing Chun system. One of the most important of these, which describes the Wing Chun's approach to combat is "Retain what comes in, send off what retreats. Rush in on loss of contact". Again, Wing Chun Kuen Kuit can be found from many sources, one such source is http://www.wingchun.org/txt/misc/kuenkuit.html

For anyone interested in finding more information on Wing Chun, the web sites www.wingchunkuen.com and www.wingchun.org provide information sources from many different lineages of the Wing Chun system.

During our training certain traditions are observed which mainly centre on ensuring that we respect our instructor, training ground, seniors, and training partners.

Different styles of martial arts may have different ways of showing their respect but the idea is the same. The sign we use for respect is the right clenched fist placed in a left open palm presented at chest level. The right clenched fist represents the sun and the left open palm the moon encompassing the idea of Yin and Yang and therefore balance.

Historically, as well as showing respects, the hand gesture had relevance within the Red Junk Opera where many great martial art masters hid themselves and worked to overthrow the current Qing Dynasty. The Red Junk Opera is important within the the story of Wing Chun, as it is the place where the masters responsible for the system hid during the 1800's and it is here that Wing Chun emerges from the myth and legend to a more reliable account of its history. During this period the hand gesture represented the previous Ming Dynasty and was used by the rebels to recognise each other and referred to a time before the Manchu's had taken hold of their country and established the current Qing Dynasty. So by using this gesture of respect to our current training partners we are also acknowledging those who have gone before us and on whose shoulders we now stand.

The sign of respect should be used on:

1) Entering and leaving the training room (kwoon).

2) As acknowledgment to the teacher (Sifu) or a senior (Sihing).

3)And on joining or leaving the training partners.

This last point is especially important as our training partner is allowing himself/herself to be practiced on and on trusting us not to abuse this trust. Therefore by paying our respect to our training partners we are thanking them for the opportunity they have provided us to develop our skill and also apologise for any accidental knocks and to show that no harm was intended.

Written by

Darren Titmas February 2005

Politics or Not Politics (as close to laymen terms as possible)

Politics is a sore subject, which seems to be most noticeable in Wing Chun. You only have to log into some Wing Chun web sites and find them stating that they don't involve themselves in ‘Politics'. Too many beginners thinking of taking up Wing Chun would probably be quite confused by this subject. After all, a beginner might ask what does politics have to do with Wing Chun or any martial arts for that matter? They might even ask if there is a voting day for it???

Politics in this case has nothing to do with any government policies, but refer to issues brought up in discussion or on topics usually referring to disagreements on how to do things. It is often unproductive. However, politics can be good too in a sense to adhere to protocol (a way of doing things) in martial arts, such as remembering the source of what you are learning or to give respect and gratitude to where your knowledge came from.

Consider the following situation: You have learnt your kung fu from your Sifu and fellow colleagues and one day your capabilities come to exceed theirs. Does that mean you now outrank your Sifu and those around you? Does that mean your Wing Chun is better than that of your Sifu? Or do you still show your respect and gratitude to them for helping you to get to this stage? The logical answer would be the latter. However, human beings are individuals and some will answer that although this person started to learn from his Sifu, he got better because of his hard work and why should he thank him when he paid for his tuition anyway? Now we have a scenario where politics may well creep in.

Now you can start to understand why so many Associations state that they do not involve themselves in 'politics'. Let me just say something and maybe you can take time to have a good think about it. Take a look at the difference between Asian (clubs based in Asia) and Western (clubs based in the West) web sites. Do you notice that the Asian Web Sites very rarely state anything about politics? I believe now I have wetted your appetite for more insight. All right let's move on and think about a major factor.

The main point is cultural difference and it plays a very big role. Let's take a look at this simple example, but please understand that this example is taken in the view of a majority. In Asia children are brought up to be family orientated, the child is thankful to the parents for giving them life and as the child grows up, will try to return such a gift by looking after them when they are old. In the West I have met so many people who believe that the parents have brought them into this world and therefore the parents are responsible for the child for any length of time. When the parents grow old it is then the government’s responsibility to look after them in the form of an old people's home. Now this is a hard subject but one that remains to be quite real. Therefore with this kind of difference you will get a lot of people who do not understand the Chinese culture and visit Hong Kong and train in different styles and with different teachers. This person will not think that they have done anything wrong because they have paid for their time under each teacher. However, the majority of Chinese will not dream of cross training with different Sifus, even within the same style. That is not to say it’s impossible to train with other instructors in the same style, however, out of respect, a student will seek permission from their own Sifu first.

I believe that there are two major factors, which cause arguments of politics.
1) Cultural difference where the understanding of martial spirit is included.
2) Artistic development where difference of understandings are found in one organisation to the next.

Let's take a look at point 1).
I have already touched it slightly above, but let me expand a little.
When a Chinese person takes on a martial art and has decided to call the teacher Si-Fu, they may well go through a recognition tea ceremony, but this person must first understand what the title stands for. Si means to teach, guide, and to lead. Fu is often referred to as Father, or a person of great skill and so someone of importance. So when the student (disciple) calls their teacher Si-Fu, they are not merely saying a title or a name, but also with it a feeling (spirit) of great respect and humbleness. So you can see, learning Kung Fu starts from learning the name. It is unimaginable for a student (disciple) to call their teacher anything else. From this first stage of learning the disciple will carry this discipline to their physical training. The physical training will also involve the training of the mind (dedication, focus, and discipline), and the spirit or feeling from the heart (honour, humbleness, loyalty, courage, and patience). Also you will understand why people will call a martial art teacher who is not their teacher, for example, Si-Fu Wong. This is to show respect to somebody by using the word Sifu before his or her name. Although this teacher may not be their Sifu, it is a way of acknowledging the skill of the person they are addressing.
So maybe now you can start to understand where politics will start to creep in for example when a person comes in and asks to be taught, but doesn’t want to learn the cultural side of the system. They want to call you by your name, or even worse by calling you 'mate'.
The teacher might say, 'you must call me, Sifu with the proper respect'.
The potential student might say, 'Hey I respect you. But why shouldn't I call you by your first name?'
Then the teacher replies, 'You are entering a Chinese Martial Art and that you must learn the traditions and etiquette that comes with it'
The potential student answers, 'But this is England'
Now the potential student could argue that the teacher is just being political.
If you are a teacher reading this example I believe you understand exactly what I mean.

Point 2) (please be patient with me on this one).
To me the art of Wing Chun is not a style that is literally set in stone. It will make allowances for people of all shapes and sizes. How I understand Wing Chun at the moment is that it has no rigid form, but merely a theory grown from just a simple idea. Sure at the beginning we will receive a guideline as to how to programme our muscles to form shapes, how to use our feet for movement and positioning. It is understandable that anyone at the beginning of their training will be tense (over use of muscle contraction) as they will feel more 'in control' of themselves, but this doesn't mean they will be like this forever. In time they will learn that they can harness their strength (energy) and use only what is needed at the time (Gong Lik - Control of energy through time and experience).
So where am I going with this?
Different individuals will be at different levels of training in their lives and so understandings will be different. Also due to your own personal body shape the use of technical shapes and energies may differ too. Also a teacher's way of teaching can be different to suit the student they are teaching in order to bring the best out from them. As long as the basic principles of Wing Chun theory are being followed, there can be no real argument as to whether somebody’s Wing Chun is right or wrong.
So, for example, with the argument of saying that a person is too strength based one should ask in what way? If he still manages to win over his opponent's defences with strength then no he is not too strength based. If on the other hand the opponent can easily read his movements because tension has slowed his movements and the opponent easily defeats him then yes, he is too tense. The conclusion is that if you can overpower your opponent with strength, then why not? It really depends on what you can get away with at the time.
Now one of the main political arguments is, 'His Wing Chun is too hard' or 'His Wing Chun is too soft'.
Just remember it's just different and a matter of personal preference.

What I would consider as being political

I am a member of a big organisation and I play a roll as being an instructor. So being an instructor I take on responsibilities bestowed on me by my Sifu, which are often 'behind the scenes' such as following the regulations of the organisation, giving my input to discussions on questions raised, and also voting for the chairman etc. These are political mechanics, which we as instructors try to put in place to uphold the good name of the organisation, keep the running of the organisation running smoothly, and to keep our students aware of what is going on. If you look at it this way, us instructors work in a similar way to MPs representing their constituency. There is also a 'cabinet' in place in Hong Kong who makes the regulations e.g. the new Wing Chun Ip Chun Instructor Certification. Now students must understand that the goings on in the background does in fact affect them in one way or another, but we all try to do everything as smoothly as possible.
Hopefully now you would understand when some clubs state that they don't involve themselves in politics is in fact what they are saying is that they will not get involved in giving opinions of other clubs or instructors, but only concentrate on their own clubs and on you the student, member, or disciple.

Written by Sifu Kwok Cheung 4/05