wengshunkuen
11-28-2004, 11:29 AM
Wudang Weng Shun Kuen- History and development
The WUDANG style of Weng Shun Kuen was unknown to general public
until recently, when Grandmaster Rien Bul opened public schools in
the Netherlands and Australia. He also started a much debated
website on wich he revealed knowledge that was regarded 'secret' by
other Sifu. It is a completely 'soft' style that contains NOT
ONE 'hard' technique, wich makes it attractive to people of small
build and aspecially women. Where does this miraculous style emerge
from? The following article tells all...
The southern Sil Lum temple
This story begins at the southern-Shaolin ( Sil Lum in Cantonese)
temple.
When one was addmitted as an apprentice fighting-monk in the Si Lum
temple one was first taught the 'hard' or 'external' forms. The
novice would start off with learning the Monkey-form. This form
would teach one how to be quick and nimble. Even though this form
does have its fighting-applications it is mostly a kind of
gymnastics to prepare one for the more advanced five animal-system.
It strenghtens the muscles and tendons and makes one supple.
Meanwhile the monks could observe if you were a hard worker or not
and test one's willpower and talent. The forms that followed would
gradually soften. The main philosofy behind this way of teaching was
that it was harder for the novice to understand the 'hard'
principles than the 'soft'.
The five animals
If one passed this ordeal successfully, one would start training in
the REAL Shaolin fist-fighting system; the five animal forms. Mainly
to get some experience with rough physical contact, one would first
be taught the Shaolin way of grappling (Chin-Na) by training the
Dragon-form and its applications.
The Dragon
The Dragon form consisted of Chin Na (seizing and holding)
techniques that depended on the use of the 'hard' muscular strength
Chinese martial artists call 'Li'. The form and the techniques it
teaches are mostly meant to make the apprentice tough. Its most
famous technique is no doubt the 'Dragon claw', a hand-position used
for seizing-and-holding purposes. The Dragon-form is Shaolin's least
technical form.
The Tiger
Next, one would learn the Tiger-form. In it one will recognise a
hand-position that looks much alike to the Dragon-claw. But here it
is called the Tiger-claw. The difference between both hand-positions
is to be found in its practical application. Whereas the Dragon-claw
merely grabs and holds the opponent's arm, the Tiger-claw uses a
ripping motion meant to tear the opponent's flesh. Previously, one
was taught some combat-experience through the Dragon form. Now the
Tiger was teaching the apprentice to fight with some more technique.
The Leopard
The third form a Shaolin apprentice would learn was called the
Leopard-form (sometimes called 'Panther'). By training in the Tiger-
form the apprentice had learned to fight with skill, instead of with
musclepower alone. The Leopard-form would gradually take away the
muscular strenght, replacing it with cunning and deceiving
techniques. One would learn how to completely depend on the skill
one had required from training.
The secrets of the 'Hall of Perpetual Springtime'
This is where the avarage Shaolin warrior-monk would end his
training. Only very carefully selected trustees would be taken to
the secret 'Hall of Perpetual Springtime' (Weng Shun tong). This was
a hidden place in the monestary only few knew about. Here the
apprentice would be taught the remaining two animal forms of the
Shaolin five animal fighting-system; The Snake and the Crane.
The Snake
The Snake-form was the first form that was totally devoid of the use
of muscular strength. Even though it was meant for offense and in
its nature highly agressive, it didn't have even as much as
one 'hard' (or 'external') technique. It would hurt an opponent by
merely touching his vurnerable pressure-points. The form was very
slippery and deceptive. It would 'slip' through the opponent's
defense and stick to his arms. How to accomplish this was one of
Shaolin's best kept secrets. Today, the techniques of this
fascinating form are still the offensive techniques used in Wudang
Weng Shun Kuen. It taught the practitioner "spirit" (Shen),
deceptiveness and intent. It isn't clear yet if this is also the
form from which the famous centerline-theory comes, but it is quite
probable.
The Crane
The last of the five animals in the Shaolin-system was the elusive
Crane. Whenever a Crane is being attacked, it stays calmly in its
place. If the adversary tries to get around it, it just shifts in
its same spot, turning aound its own axis, continually facing its
opponent. No matter how much an opponent moves or how threatening or
big its gestures are; the crane never gets excited. It stay's calm
and centered, just observing what is coming. Like the Crane itself,
a Crane-form practitioner would not waste energy on unneccessary
movement. He would wait for the opponent to start an attack,
standing still in his own spot. The Crane-stylist would meet the
attack head-on and re-direct it away from himself, nullifying the
danger. To this end a Man Sao or Bong Sao, typical Crane-techniques,
would be applied. The Crane was Shaolin's most advanced form and
also its biggest secret.
Over time the combination of these last two forms would develop into
a style that would eventually become known as Weng Shun Kuen. Two
versions of the predecessor to this style would reach the red
junks, a meltingpot that gave birth to two different versions of
the style; Sil Lum Kuen, that was to become Sil Lum Weng Chun Kuen,
and Wudang Quan (also the forerunner of Tai Ji Quan), that became
Wudang Weng Shun Kuen (Mo Dong/Wu Tang Yong Chun Quan).
From Sil Lum to Wudang Shan
The Shaolin temple is said to have been burned down on several
occasions. Each time monks would escape and spread their knowledge
all over China. On one of these occasions one monk, or maybe even a
few of them, sought refuge in the Daoist temple on Wudang mountain.
In legend this was, of course, the fabled Chan Shang Feng. Anyway,
they taught the Snake and Crane forms to the Wudang monks. For some
reason they taught the soft styles immediately, without teaching the
Dragon- Tiger- and Leopard-forms previously, as had always been the
practice before. It is no coincedence that both the genesis-stories
of Tai Ji Quan (a well known Wudang style) and Weng Shun Kuen speak
of a person observing a fight between a snake and a Crane and
creating their particular style by imitating the movements of both
animals. Through the centuries the Kung Fu practised in the Wudang
temple aquired its own distinctive Daoist flavour. Wudang Kung Fu
became known for it's softness, wich was little understood by
outsiders. To this day, Wudang styles are schrouded by a sort of
mystical veil.
The hated Qing (Manchu) dynasty
The last emperial dynasty to rule China was called the Qing. The Han
majority of the time weren't very happy about being ruled by the
Manchu minority. They did all they could to bring down the Qing and
restore the rule of the Ming dynasty that preceded it. The monks
from both the Shaolin temples and the Wudang temple weren't very
fond of the Manchu government either. They taught their knowledge of
warfare to rebels who were out to overthrow this government.
Many rebels hid aboard the so called 'Red Junks'. These boats, that
were recogniseable by their red colour travelled from city to city
on rivers and canals. They were floating theaters where Chinese
opera were performed. The arrival of an opera troupe was quite an
event that attrackted all kinds of people engaging in commercial
activeties. There were merchants, quaks, thieves, fortunetellers and
of course, prostitutes.
Those prostitutes mostly worked on so called "flower boats". Many
times the flowerboat-girls also hated the Manchu and worked with the
red junk rebels. And sometimes, when a Qing official would visit
such a girl, a rebel would be hiding in a closet.
When the official had dismissed his bodyguards so he could be alone
with the prostitute, the assasin would suddenly kill the
unsuspecting victim. In other cases the rebels would ambush people
they wanted out of the way in the narrow alleys of the Cantonese
cities. The movements of their newly devised style would be modified
to take up very little space. They specialised in making this
narrowness of both boats and alleys work in their advatage. To this
end a style of fighting was created that suited the rebels' needs.
The techniques were designed to finish off an opponent in the
shortest possible time. They called their style Weng Shun Kuen
(Everlasting Springtime Fist).
The junks became a breeding-ground where new martial arts were
developed. A lot of rebels had been training in the martial arts
previous to boarding the opera junks. Some of them were taught
the 'secret styles from the Weng Shun training hall' (Snake and
Crane) by the monks from the southern-Sil Lum monastary.
Others were probably practitioners of the Wudang version of the
snake and crane system.
The newly formed anti-Manchu styles all had the name Weng Shun Kuen
(Perpetual Spring Fist/style) attached to their names so there could
be no mistake about their intentions; to overthrow the Qing and
return the Ming. There was a.o. a 'Hung Weng Shun Kuen' (Red
Perpetual Spring Fist/style), a 'Weng Shun Bak Hok Kuen' or 'Bak Hok
Weng Shun Kuen' (White Crane Perpetual Spring Fist/style) and also
a 'Wudang Weng Shun Kuen'(Wu Tang Yong Shun Quan, Perpetual Spring
Fist/style from Wudang).
Weng Shun Kuen or Wing Chun Kuen?
Please note that the name Weng Shun Kuen, meaning everlasting spring
fist, is the original name of the original system. This is the name
the anti-Qing rebellion used for the style they devised to overthrow
the government. Because it was dangerous to admit that one
practised 'Everlasting Springtime Fist' under Manchu rule, because
of its obvious revolutionairy meaning, some practitioners of the
time changed the way of writing their style's name from
(Everlasting Spring) to (Springtime Song) -Fist.
Bruce Lee
It is only because moviestar Bruce Lee happened to study with a Sifu
of a lineage that had changed their name that the general public
heard of the latter version first. In fact, when Lee's Sifu, Yip
Kai Man, first came to Hong Kong, there was already an established
Weng Shun Kuen school in Hong Kong (Chu Chong Man lineage). Yip sent
a carpenter over to Chu's school in secrecy to measure their dummy
and copy it.
Actually, on mainland China most lineages are still calling
themselves Weng Shun Kuen. But most of them have been hiding or are
still hiding because they were outlawed by the Chinese Communist
government until recently. Now, some of the mailand versions are
stepping in the spotlight as well. The most well known are '(Sil
Lum) Chi Sim Weng Shun Kuen', 'Chan Yiu Min Weng Shun Kuen', '(Sil
Lum) Pan Nam Weng Shun Kuen' and 'Wudang Weng Shun Kuen'.
The birth of Tiger/Crane Hung Gar Kuen
When the rebellion became obsolete some of the styles felt there was
no need for themselves to call their style Weng Shun Kuen anymore
and dropped the name. They became known as Hung Kuen, Bak Hok Kuen,
etc. For instance,one legend speaks of a Tiger-stylist meeting a
female Crane-practitioner by the name of Fong Weng Shun. They mixed
the hard and offensive techniques of the Tiger style with the soft
and defensive techniques of the Crane style. This supposedly became
what is now widely known as Tiger/Crane Hung Gar Kuen. In reality
Hung Gar Kuen, also known simply as Hung Kuen, is one of the former
Weng Shun Kuen styles that dropped part of its name.
Modern Wudang Weng Shun Kuen
The 'Wudang' version held its name in high esteem to honour its
roots. It still has its own distinctive Daoist flavour. One easily
recognizes the philosophies and principles of Lao Tzu's 'Tao Teh
Tjing', Sun Tzu's 'Art of War' and the Tai Ji Quan classics in the
style. Until recent the style was almost always taught one on one.
This is why it has changed little over the centuries and why it is
almost excactly the same as it was trained by the monks of Wudang
Shan. In mainland China Weng Shun Kuen is also known as 'southern
Tai Ji Quan'. There are many observeable similarities in the hand-
techniques of both TaiJi Quan and Wudang Weng Shun Kuen. The biggest
difference between both styles is in the footwork. This version of
the art was transferred trough Fong Shil Ching, Hon Wah Sheun and
Lin Yi (Lam Yee) to the current Grandmaster Rien Bul. Even in China
the style is still quite small. This is due to the fact that it
hasn't been taught publicly until recent times. It is just now that
the style is taught to non-Chinese for the first time. The only
schools where one can go to learn authentic Wudang Weng Shun Kuen
are in the Netherlands and Australia.
The style
Wudang Weng Shun Kuen is a so called "internal" (neija) or "soft"
style of traditional Chinese Kung Fu. This means that no muscular
force is used to deflect an oncoming attack. Instead a fluent
movement is used to direct an opponent's force back to him to defeat
him. This is how a person of lesser strenth is able to defeat an
attacker of larger, stronger build.
It is a conceptual style rather than a technical one. This means it
is more important for the practitioner to understand its underlying
concepts and principles than the individual techniques.
The motto of the style is "Safety above all else". The practitioner
is taught to position himself outside of the opponent's reach and to
disable him from that safe position. Wudang Weng Shun Kuen uses only
simple, natural movements. That is why it can be learned by anyone.
The solutions it presents are simple, practical and effective and
therefore applicable by one and all.
Written and copyrighted 2004 by GM Rien Bul
The WUDANG style of Weng Shun Kuen was unknown to general public
until recently, when Grandmaster Rien Bul opened public schools in
the Netherlands and Australia. He also started a much debated
website on wich he revealed knowledge that was regarded 'secret' by
other Sifu. It is a completely 'soft' style that contains NOT
ONE 'hard' technique, wich makes it attractive to people of small
build and aspecially women. Where does this miraculous style emerge
from? The following article tells all...
The southern Sil Lum temple
This story begins at the southern-Shaolin ( Sil Lum in Cantonese)
temple.
When one was addmitted as an apprentice fighting-monk in the Si Lum
temple one was first taught the 'hard' or 'external' forms. The
novice would start off with learning the Monkey-form. This form
would teach one how to be quick and nimble. Even though this form
does have its fighting-applications it is mostly a kind of
gymnastics to prepare one for the more advanced five animal-system.
It strenghtens the muscles and tendons and makes one supple.
Meanwhile the monks could observe if you were a hard worker or not
and test one's willpower and talent. The forms that followed would
gradually soften. The main philosofy behind this way of teaching was
that it was harder for the novice to understand the 'hard'
principles than the 'soft'.
The five animals
If one passed this ordeal successfully, one would start training in
the REAL Shaolin fist-fighting system; the five animal forms. Mainly
to get some experience with rough physical contact, one would first
be taught the Shaolin way of grappling (Chin-Na) by training the
Dragon-form and its applications.
The Dragon
The Dragon form consisted of Chin Na (seizing and holding)
techniques that depended on the use of the 'hard' muscular strength
Chinese martial artists call 'Li'. The form and the techniques it
teaches are mostly meant to make the apprentice tough. Its most
famous technique is no doubt the 'Dragon claw', a hand-position used
for seizing-and-holding purposes. The Dragon-form is Shaolin's least
technical form.
The Tiger
Next, one would learn the Tiger-form. In it one will recognise a
hand-position that looks much alike to the Dragon-claw. But here it
is called the Tiger-claw. The difference between both hand-positions
is to be found in its practical application. Whereas the Dragon-claw
merely grabs and holds the opponent's arm, the Tiger-claw uses a
ripping motion meant to tear the opponent's flesh. Previously, one
was taught some combat-experience through the Dragon form. Now the
Tiger was teaching the apprentice to fight with some more technique.
The Leopard
The third form a Shaolin apprentice would learn was called the
Leopard-form (sometimes called 'Panther'). By training in the Tiger-
form the apprentice had learned to fight with skill, instead of with
musclepower alone. The Leopard-form would gradually take away the
muscular strenght, replacing it with cunning and deceiving
techniques. One would learn how to completely depend on the skill
one had required from training.
The secrets of the 'Hall of Perpetual Springtime'
This is where the avarage Shaolin warrior-monk would end his
training. Only very carefully selected trustees would be taken to
the secret 'Hall of Perpetual Springtime' (Weng Shun tong). This was
a hidden place in the monestary only few knew about. Here the
apprentice would be taught the remaining two animal forms of the
Shaolin five animal fighting-system; The Snake and the Crane.
The Snake
The Snake-form was the first form that was totally devoid of the use
of muscular strength. Even though it was meant for offense and in
its nature highly agressive, it didn't have even as much as
one 'hard' (or 'external') technique. It would hurt an opponent by
merely touching his vurnerable pressure-points. The form was very
slippery and deceptive. It would 'slip' through the opponent's
defense and stick to his arms. How to accomplish this was one of
Shaolin's best kept secrets. Today, the techniques of this
fascinating form are still the offensive techniques used in Wudang
Weng Shun Kuen. It taught the practitioner "spirit" (Shen),
deceptiveness and intent. It isn't clear yet if this is also the
form from which the famous centerline-theory comes, but it is quite
probable.
The Crane
The last of the five animals in the Shaolin-system was the elusive
Crane. Whenever a Crane is being attacked, it stays calmly in its
place. If the adversary tries to get around it, it just shifts in
its same spot, turning aound its own axis, continually facing its
opponent. No matter how much an opponent moves or how threatening or
big its gestures are; the crane never gets excited. It stay's calm
and centered, just observing what is coming. Like the Crane itself,
a Crane-form practitioner would not waste energy on unneccessary
movement. He would wait for the opponent to start an attack,
standing still in his own spot. The Crane-stylist would meet the
attack head-on and re-direct it away from himself, nullifying the
danger. To this end a Man Sao or Bong Sao, typical Crane-techniques,
would be applied. The Crane was Shaolin's most advanced form and
also its biggest secret.
Over time the combination of these last two forms would develop into
a style that would eventually become known as Weng Shun Kuen. Two
versions of the predecessor to this style would reach the red
junks, a meltingpot that gave birth to two different versions of
the style; Sil Lum Kuen, that was to become Sil Lum Weng Chun Kuen,
and Wudang Quan (also the forerunner of Tai Ji Quan), that became
Wudang Weng Shun Kuen (Mo Dong/Wu Tang Yong Chun Quan).
From Sil Lum to Wudang Shan
The Shaolin temple is said to have been burned down on several
occasions. Each time monks would escape and spread their knowledge
all over China. On one of these occasions one monk, or maybe even a
few of them, sought refuge in the Daoist temple on Wudang mountain.
In legend this was, of course, the fabled Chan Shang Feng. Anyway,
they taught the Snake and Crane forms to the Wudang monks. For some
reason they taught the soft styles immediately, without teaching the
Dragon- Tiger- and Leopard-forms previously, as had always been the
practice before. It is no coincedence that both the genesis-stories
of Tai Ji Quan (a well known Wudang style) and Weng Shun Kuen speak
of a person observing a fight between a snake and a Crane and
creating their particular style by imitating the movements of both
animals. Through the centuries the Kung Fu practised in the Wudang
temple aquired its own distinctive Daoist flavour. Wudang Kung Fu
became known for it's softness, wich was little understood by
outsiders. To this day, Wudang styles are schrouded by a sort of
mystical veil.
The hated Qing (Manchu) dynasty
The last emperial dynasty to rule China was called the Qing. The Han
majority of the time weren't very happy about being ruled by the
Manchu minority. They did all they could to bring down the Qing and
restore the rule of the Ming dynasty that preceded it. The monks
from both the Shaolin temples and the Wudang temple weren't very
fond of the Manchu government either. They taught their knowledge of
warfare to rebels who were out to overthrow this government.
Many rebels hid aboard the so called 'Red Junks'. These boats, that
were recogniseable by their red colour travelled from city to city
on rivers and canals. They were floating theaters where Chinese
opera were performed. The arrival of an opera troupe was quite an
event that attrackted all kinds of people engaging in commercial
activeties. There were merchants, quaks, thieves, fortunetellers and
of course, prostitutes.
Those prostitutes mostly worked on so called "flower boats". Many
times the flowerboat-girls also hated the Manchu and worked with the
red junk rebels. And sometimes, when a Qing official would visit
such a girl, a rebel would be hiding in a closet.
When the official had dismissed his bodyguards so he could be alone
with the prostitute, the assasin would suddenly kill the
unsuspecting victim. In other cases the rebels would ambush people
they wanted out of the way in the narrow alleys of the Cantonese
cities. The movements of their newly devised style would be modified
to take up very little space. They specialised in making this
narrowness of both boats and alleys work in their advatage. To this
end a style of fighting was created that suited the rebels' needs.
The techniques were designed to finish off an opponent in the
shortest possible time. They called their style Weng Shun Kuen
(Everlasting Springtime Fist).
The junks became a breeding-ground where new martial arts were
developed. A lot of rebels had been training in the martial arts
previous to boarding the opera junks. Some of them were taught
the 'secret styles from the Weng Shun training hall' (Snake and
Crane) by the monks from the southern-Sil Lum monastary.
Others were probably practitioners of the Wudang version of the
snake and crane system.
The newly formed anti-Manchu styles all had the name Weng Shun Kuen
(Perpetual Spring Fist/style) attached to their names so there could
be no mistake about their intentions; to overthrow the Qing and
return the Ming. There was a.o. a 'Hung Weng Shun Kuen' (Red
Perpetual Spring Fist/style), a 'Weng Shun Bak Hok Kuen' or 'Bak Hok
Weng Shun Kuen' (White Crane Perpetual Spring Fist/style) and also
a 'Wudang Weng Shun Kuen'(Wu Tang Yong Shun Quan, Perpetual Spring
Fist/style from Wudang).
Weng Shun Kuen or Wing Chun Kuen?
Please note that the name Weng Shun Kuen, meaning everlasting spring
fist, is the original name of the original system. This is the name
the anti-Qing rebellion used for the style they devised to overthrow
the government. Because it was dangerous to admit that one
practised 'Everlasting Springtime Fist' under Manchu rule, because
of its obvious revolutionairy meaning, some practitioners of the
time changed the way of writing their style's name from
(Everlasting Spring) to (Springtime Song) -Fist.
Bruce Lee
It is only because moviestar Bruce Lee happened to study with a Sifu
of a lineage that had changed their name that the general public
heard of the latter version first. In fact, when Lee's Sifu, Yip
Kai Man, first came to Hong Kong, there was already an established
Weng Shun Kuen school in Hong Kong (Chu Chong Man lineage). Yip sent
a carpenter over to Chu's school in secrecy to measure their dummy
and copy it.
Actually, on mainland China most lineages are still calling
themselves Weng Shun Kuen. But most of them have been hiding or are
still hiding because they were outlawed by the Chinese Communist
government until recently. Now, some of the mailand versions are
stepping in the spotlight as well. The most well known are '(Sil
Lum) Chi Sim Weng Shun Kuen', 'Chan Yiu Min Weng Shun Kuen', '(Sil
Lum) Pan Nam Weng Shun Kuen' and 'Wudang Weng Shun Kuen'.
The birth of Tiger/Crane Hung Gar Kuen
When the rebellion became obsolete some of the styles felt there was
no need for themselves to call their style Weng Shun Kuen anymore
and dropped the name. They became known as Hung Kuen, Bak Hok Kuen,
etc. For instance,one legend speaks of a Tiger-stylist meeting a
female Crane-practitioner by the name of Fong Weng Shun. They mixed
the hard and offensive techniques of the Tiger style with the soft
and defensive techniques of the Crane style. This supposedly became
what is now widely known as Tiger/Crane Hung Gar Kuen. In reality
Hung Gar Kuen, also known simply as Hung Kuen, is one of the former
Weng Shun Kuen styles that dropped part of its name.
Modern Wudang Weng Shun Kuen
The 'Wudang' version held its name in high esteem to honour its
roots. It still has its own distinctive Daoist flavour. One easily
recognizes the philosophies and principles of Lao Tzu's 'Tao Teh
Tjing', Sun Tzu's 'Art of War' and the Tai Ji Quan classics in the
style. Until recent the style was almost always taught one on one.
This is why it has changed little over the centuries and why it is
almost excactly the same as it was trained by the monks of Wudang
Shan. In mainland China Weng Shun Kuen is also known as 'southern
Tai Ji Quan'. There are many observeable similarities in the hand-
techniques of both TaiJi Quan and Wudang Weng Shun Kuen. The biggest
difference between both styles is in the footwork. This version of
the art was transferred trough Fong Shil Ching, Hon Wah Sheun and
Lin Yi (Lam Yee) to the current Grandmaster Rien Bul. Even in China
the style is still quite small. This is due to the fact that it
hasn't been taught publicly until recent times. It is just now that
the style is taught to non-Chinese for the first time. The only
schools where one can go to learn authentic Wudang Weng Shun Kuen
are in the Netherlands and Australia.
The style
Wudang Weng Shun Kuen is a so called "internal" (neija) or "soft"
style of traditional Chinese Kung Fu. This means that no muscular
force is used to deflect an oncoming attack. Instead a fluent
movement is used to direct an opponent's force back to him to defeat
him. This is how a person of lesser strenth is able to defeat an
attacker of larger, stronger build.
It is a conceptual style rather than a technical one. This means it
is more important for the practitioner to understand its underlying
concepts and principles than the individual techniques.
The motto of the style is "Safety above all else". The practitioner
is taught to position himself outside of the opponent's reach and to
disable him from that safe position. Wudang Weng Shun Kuen uses only
simple, natural movements. That is why it can be learned by anyone.
The solutions it presents are simple, practical and effective and
therefore applicable by one and all.
Written and copyrighted 2004 by GM Rien Bul