Wing Chun Kung Fu

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Legend has it that a one armed Shaolin nun called Ng Mu watched a snake fighting with a crane and was so inspired that she developed a style of fighting that was so devastating that even with her disability she was able to defeat all challengers. The art was then passed on to the Shaolin novice Yim Wing Chun who developed the style further and gave it the name Wing Chun, meaning beautiful springtime. 

The actual history of the art is more debatable than the legend which was probably exaggerated by the media in Southern China and Hong Kong. There is little doubt that Wing Chun originated from the Shaolin temples and probably was at one time practiced by Ng Mu and Yim Wing Chun, but like most martial arts evolution is what shaped it into the art that is practiced today.

There are hundreds of martial art styles, some evolved through jousting with rules of etiquette others from ancient battlefields where soldiers jumped in the air kicking their enemies from horses. There are those that have developed into arts that can only be used in the theatre or for display purposes. The environment where the art evolved is also important in shaping its appearance today (try high kicking in the rain!).

Wing Chun developed in the alleys of Foshan, China and then in Hong Kong where it became the primary art of the sinister Triad gangsters. Because of its practicality Wing Chun was also used by thief takers, it was through a Foshan Police chief (Yip Man) that the art gained its fame. When Yip Man moved to Hong Kong he fought many challengers (often blindfolded) and was never defeated. Yip Man taught many of today’s masters as well as the legendary Bruce Lee.

Wing Chun is a pure street art that is practical and extremely fast (the world’s fastest recorded punches by William Chung, a Yip Man student). In Wing Chun anything goes and the phrase "losing is okay as long as you look good" is not in the vocabulary, this is why it is now the most widely practiced kung fu style in the world.

© Brian Lee 2000