Relevancy of Titles

[BennyMeng]

What are the meanings behind the titles of Grand Master, Master, and Sifu?

In the Chinese martial arts community the students always address their teacher as Sifu. Only when the martial arts came to the West did people begin to make a distinction between levels of instructor and use the titles of Instructor, Master, and Grand Master. Unfortunately the titles have been used and abused due to economic reasons and ego for qualifications and now tend to be divorced from the original intent behind the meaning of the terms.

One of my students told me of an experience he had witnessed during a promotional test. The "Masters" of the organization promoted students on the spot and skipped ranks from first to fifth degree black belt. The masters had "self promoted" themselves until they had all arrived at 10th degree black belts and the most senior of them had the rank which was considered to be the highest honor above Sa Bom Nim, he was "NIM". Sa Bon Nim literally means instructor in Korean martial art systems and is generally 1st to 4th Degree Black Belt. Within a school, all associate instructors are properly called Sa Bom Nim. There is another title, Kwan Jang Nim, meaning Master or Head Instructor of a school which is 5th Degree Black Belts or higher. In Korean, "Nim" simply means "Sir." The student who told me the story is at the advanced level of understanding and cannot be satisfied with the abusive use of titles.

In some organizations the Masters self promote themselves, and some even sell advanced ranks. I can relate to how they use these titles in order to sell themselves to the public, because the public has begun to expect such titles. In business I use the title of Master for public communications rather than the title of Sifu. This is the most superficial way to use these titles. The superficial use of titles is at the public awareness level.

1) Superficial - This is the first layer. On the superficial layer, titles are used to relate to the public’s expectation of instructors.
- Sifu are full instructors.
- Masters are instructors that have students at the Sifu level.
- Grand Masters are instructors that have students at the Master level.

Within the martial arts family the titles are used to identify family relationships, they denote the hierarchy within the family. A Grand Master is someone that has produced a master, and a Master is someone that has produced a Sifu. Even this definition is not at the deepest level.

2) Relationships within given system - this is the second layer. On this level, titles denote relative placement within a martial arts family.


The important thing is what it means to the practitioners of the martial way.

3) Practitioner - this is the true focus. When you are Sifu, you are teaching the Way but you are also learning the Way. A Sifu is someone further along the path but still learning, advanced enough to teach on his own. Even within our family, most instructors have not finished the HFY system - we are still learning and teaching in the system.

This is the important distinction between Sifu and Master: as you get closer to Master level, not only are you teaching the Way but you are also living the Way. If you cannot apply your martial art learning in your life, you'll always be a Sifu but not a Master in the true sense of the word. A true Master is not defined by the clothes he wears but by the life he lives. When you live your teaching in all areas of your life with experience in the whole system, you're at the Master level.

Grand Masters, in the true sense, exist as an expression of the System. In a spiritual sense, they are enlightened. Their very being is the Way. This is not an easy level to achieve and in a real sense are not that common.

In Chinese martial arts, there are no special titles for Master or Grand Master - there is only layering in experience and teaching. The title of Bun Jyun exists for practitioners that are inheritors of the system with both knowledge and experience, living their life as an expression of the Way. Grand Master Gee is Bun Jyun of the Hung Fa Yi system.

Grand Master Gee did an informal workshop in New York this past weekend and I'll have a report on it soon. Among the participants was my Sihing in the Moy Yat family and a highly skilled martial artist in his own right, Sifu Miguel Hernandez. Sifu Miguel was intrigued by the Hung Fa Yi system and totally impressed with Grand Master Gee after the experience of the weekend. This was due to the fact that Grand Master Gee is not only the inheritor of the system, he can express the art physically, philosophically, in strategy and tactics and also in his daily life. Through conversations, Sifu Miguel recognized right away the quality of the man. It wasn’t anything that Grand Master Gee specifically said to promote himself – it was due to the simple fact that Grand Master Gee is who he is – a living example of the art of Hung Fa Yi Wing Chun. The art is Grand Master Gee and Grand Master Gee is the art.

I can share and relate to the same experience as Sifu Miguel when I first met Grand Master Gee as well as Grand Master Hoffmann. It will be very interesting when these two successors meet.

[Op108wc]

Both Sifu Miguel and Sifu Meng know how to get at the anatomy of character. On seeing Master Garrett Gee they understand him and judge his inmost nature. Thus, knowing how to appreciate DA MASTER is one of the greatest gifts imho.



El



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Sifu Miguel was intrigued by the Hung Fa Yi system and totally impressed with Grand Master Gee after the experience of the weekend. This was due to the fact that Grand Master Gee is not only the inheritor of the system, he can express the art physically, philosophically, in strategy and tactics and also in his daily life. Through conversations, Sifu Miguel recognized right away the quality of the man. It wasn’t anything that Grand Master Gee specifically said to promote himself – it was due to the simple fact that Grand Master Gee is who he is – a living example of the art of Hung Fa Yi Wing Chun. The art is Grand Master Gee and Grand Master Gee is the art.
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[BennyMeng]

Bun Jyun is a technical term, coming from the Buddhist culture. In a technical sense, Yat Chum Daai Si is the Bun Jyun of Hung Fa Yi Wing Chun. Due to HFY having moved out of the Shaolin Temple and into the anti-Qing revolutionary culture, the Buddhist roots of the HFY was also influenced by other cultures in China, creating a unique branch.

Bun Jyun is a term used within the Buddhist community. A monk can use many methods to teach the Dharma. As the monk becomes famous for his success, his methods would be cataloged as a faat. Today, there are over 84,000 faat – ways of attaining enlightenment, just within the temples of Shaolin. HFY is extension of the faat. Yat Chum Daai Si is the point of origin for HFY. He is the Bun Jyun for HFY. After Yat Chum Daai Si’s generation, the faat (the system) passed to Cheung Ng. Cheung Ng was not a Buddhist Monk so his proper title is Si Jyun. Each Grand Master after Cheung Ng is also called Si Jyun as a proper title.

[BennyMeng]

Coming back from Brazil and focused on trying to grow the family, one thing I recognize is that we must attract the right people. People that have certain virtues would be good for the growth of the family. If we grow just for the sake of growing, we will attract the all kinds of people, including the wrong kinds.

For our future health, we must focus on the quality of the Master Club (Disciples). We must focus on the quality of the Master Club and what the Master Club represents. Grandmaster Gee is the system; we are his disciples. Before talking about growing and expanding, we must know ourselves. Are we mindful of our own personal development? This is the tradition of righteousness, the Yi, in Hung Fa Yi.

General Kwan demonstrates the characteristics of a good Disciple:

Kwan Yu was born a commoner, over 1’700 years ago, at the end of the Han Dynasty, completely unaware of the fact that he was destined for greatness. His first action that brought him notice was when he came to the rescue of one of his neighbors, who had been victimized by government officials who were, at that time, very corrupt.

Kwan was physically an extremely noticeable man, being very large and powerful and having a distinct, red face. He was considered quite a formidable adversary. As the word of his action against the government spread, his peers began to consider him a local hero, and the continued to respect him as he continued his assistance to those who were helplessly being exploited. His quest was to uphold justice as well as create peace and order among his people. He gained a threatening reputation among the government officials who searched for him ceaselessly as their hatred for him grew.

The Emperor did not miss note of the deeds of Kwan, much to the upset of the angry government officials. The Emperor was an honorable man and called upon Kwan to help him destroy the wickedness and treason that was rampant within the infrastructure of the Imperial palace, as well as the government and the army. Kwan was very successful in the removal of the objectionable issues faced by the Emperor, and Kwan was then appointed the lucrative position of General.

General Kwan led the Emperor’s Army, known for his strength, and particularly for his military genius. He always stood up for justice and displayed honorable mercy to those who were defenseless opponents. He was revered for his wisdom, his honesty and his compassion.

Today he is still revered as a true legend, known and studied for his high standards and virtues. He is even recognized today as the Patron God of Chinese Martial Arts. Paintings, statues and other likenesses of General Kwan can be found in almost every traditional Shaolin kung fu school. Many government offices, police stations and post offices also display images of General Kwan, for his symbolic representation of righteousness, loyalty, humbleness and justice.

His virtues have withstood the test of time and have traveled down to us throughout the ages. The most commonly recognized of these virtues is: knowledge. This is because knowledge is the only true knowledge, and the understanding of knowledge is the only true application of power.

General Kwan’s virtues include:
- humility
- rightousness
- decisiveness
- mercy
- loyalty
- justice

The Master Club – individually, as well as a group - needs to have sincere effort working towards these virtues within our organization. Without these virtues, the rest of our goals are just dreams. Without developing virtue, we will eventually get caught up in the human world of emotion, jealousies, greed and resentment.

“Intention must be correct first. You cannot have selfish desires. You have to have the ability to see above and beyond your own personal needs and wants. You also have to be able to change your thinking. “ Chango Noaks

Chango mentions right intent. This is one of the most important areas. The leader of our organization is not doing this for financial motives as a primary driver. That view is too narrow. There is nothing wrong with being financially stable that that is far removed from the reasons for becoming a disciple in HFY. Financially successful is only a by-product of one’s correct intent.

I never met Ip Man. One time Grand Master Gee was discussing Ip Man with me and shared one example of Ip Man’s virtue. Ip Man expressed the seed for greatness at the beginning of his kung fu journey when Chun Wah Shun demanded 300 taels of silver (enough to buy a house). Ip Man didn’t show any discouragement – he went about making it a reality. How Ip Man acted showed his determination and character. When he became famous years later, he could have demanded much $$$… yet when Bruce Lee offered to buy a house for Ip Man in exchange for permission to record the forms, Ip Man refused. Ip Man taught because he loved the art; his kung fu was not for sale.

Money, business and having attitude of buying the system are not the right intents for becoming a disciple.

“You have to show that you are dedicated. You can’t expect that you come in and get accepted right away. You have to put in hard work and sweat, sometimes blood, and not expect that just because you can put X amount of $$$ down you’re entitled to something. Through time and effort, the Sifu and Sihingdai can get a measure of your true intent. Also, demonstrating your dedication through training gives you time and experience to judge for yourself if you have the long-term dedication needed to help preserve the system.” – Stephen Rudnicki

[passing_through]

The key element to being a Disciple, to me, is action. I agree with Chango that the intention must be correct – but that intention must be acted upon as Stephen noted. Meaning to help or wanting to participate doesn’t get much accomplished. The old adage of “what have you done for me lately” really applies for Disciples. How do you recognize Disciples when you meet them? It is in the way they act – not a title that is given. You don’t become a Disciple and then start to work – you should already have been active within the family first. I think of it as the difference between chasing technique and focusing on principle. Just because you have a technique does not automatically guarantee that you have an understanding of the principle. The word Disciple implies a devoted allegiance to the teachings of one chosen as a master. In what we study, the “devoted allegiance” must be demonstrated through our actions – both on and off the training floor. We talk about balance, knowing our proper place and time, “walking the walk”… but does that attitude carry over into our daily lives? Disciples have to make this transition between training and life a priority. When it comes down to it, Disciples have to have dedicated action. We have to make our commitments to kung fu a priority in our lives, not a secondary aspect of our lives.

Sincerely,
Jeremy R.