Most accounts of Wing Chun's history in Foshan focus solely on their subject (Ip Man or, less frequently, Yuen Kay San) before moving on to post-WWII events. From the view of a cultural historian, this is a significant flaw because neither of these individuals was "typical" of the average Wing Chun practitioner, let alone a martial artist, during this period. This erroneous emphasis undermines our...
August 2022
Chi Sau is one of the factors that distinguishes Wing Chun. No other martial art has a training exercise that can teach highly high skill levels at the same rate. A pushing hands drill is used in Tai Chi and other styles (akin to Daan Chi Sau in Wing Chun). This exercise teaches a different skill by only using one hand or side at a time. Chi Sau is a unique exercise that makes us sensitive to our...
Modern folklore portrays Ip Man as a somewhat distant father whom his wife chastised for not being more involved with his children. The claim was perpetuated by a recent spate of vaguely biographical films (some of which benefited from the advice and input of his still-living family members). This incident suggests that there may be some truth to this portrayal. Pushing on a Wing Chun student to test...
Footwork in Wing Chun is easier to understand if we follow a few ground rules. Keeping it simple makes it easy to categorize and practice all possible variations and interpretations. This is not to say that these are the only paths we can take, but if we stick to these techniques, we should be able to handle most situations. They are taking a step forward to attack. This is first taught as a straight...
Modern folklore portrays Ip Man as a somewhat distant father whom his wife chastised for not being more involved with his children. The claim was perpetuated by a recent spate of vaguely biographical films (some of which benefited from the advice and input of his still-living family members). This incident suggests that there may be some truth to this portrayal. Pushing on a Wing Chun student to test...