Out of all the Chinese kung fu styles wing chun has been the most popularized, principally thanks to the face it was the style that was immortalized by the legendary Bruce Lee. It was designed for simpleness, economy of moment and for all body shapes, types with no discrimination. Legend has it that it is a composite of many traditional self-defense skills that derived their styles from the key animal forms. The brazenly elaborate showy more-exaggerated movements made way for direct precision striking and economy of movement -to make your strike. Effectively wing jaw was intended to kill.
That is the reason why out of the entire system there are largely three open hand forms- 2 weapon forms and of course the wooden dummy sequence. With a special mention to the chisau sticking hands coaching (an individual favourite of mind)
There are plenty of adaptations of how these forms are spelled and related, so I will go by what I was taught.
1st form is the Sl lim tau or small idea form. This is the basic foundation of the system. The beauty and design of the wing chun training system is that it terribly basic and not at all visually impressive as a demonstration like you see in the kung fu flicks "
However as a student each move learned opens up another door of probabilities as the system slowly finds its strategies. The simple principle such as the centre line theory vs the central line idea. The right stance & posture, the distribution of weight and also having the correct energy in your legs and arms. And most of all timing.
That is why the Sil Lim tau form is often called the soft or internal version of wing concentration of the form instead of brute strength -which is one of not the core philosophies of the the wing Inside this form all the offensive & defensive principles are taught. From the positioning of the hands for where ideas like fut sao, garn sao are introduced. This is a part of the armory which will remain with you through your wing following form is Pal Kill- or bridging the opening form. This is the subsequent form which incorporates larger movements and introduces coordination into the system, Here's where another ideas is further explored. The idea of 2 hand independent co-ordination. Where both hands are used independent of each other in their movement. Sounds confusing-? Well it can be. Think along the line of a concurrent defensive & attacking strike and you start to learn how effective Wing buddy kill and that's also one of the keys to the wing ideas are planted in the original stages and then grown and incorporated into the system as you progress. In essence they are all systems brought from one single concept or idea (therefore the name title idea form-Sil Lim Tau Form).
The final most advance form is Bill Jee. Or Finger striking form. This is easily the hardest and difficult form as it incorporates larger degree of discipline and is much more dynamic in its movement and requires a certain amount of conditioning. Indeed any wing complete this form with a feeling of control and force that should do it justice ..rather than following the steps and movements do the form it requires precision, and Target for its success..
The root of this form was to supply fatal strikes to opponents. For advanced students trying to master this form can be taken much further. It could be a system all itself.
Legend has it it was infrequently taught in older times, however in our westernized culture where we need it all and now--it has made its way to the mainstream, m Much to the chagrin of the old Chinese teachers.
There is a lot to assimilate about the wing hardly a quick overview, however it's a great journey that can take a whole life to master. For me the key attraction and what I am getting out of this system are the coaching methods. They're fun and so easy to learn. However the largest revelation to come out of Wing discovered , was that there where varied styles of wing modified. The tale behind how this came about is as intriguing and as old as China itself and its ramifications massive --especially as it relates your Wing Chun training.
That is the reason why out of the entire system there are largely three open hand forms- 2 weapon forms and of course the wooden dummy sequence. With a special mention to the chisau sticking hands coaching (an individual favourite of mind)
There are plenty of adaptations of how these forms are spelled and related, so I will go by what I was taught.
1st form is the Sl lim tau or small idea form. This is the basic foundation of the system. The beauty and design of the wing chun training system is that it terribly basic and not at all visually impressive as a demonstration like you see in the kung fu flicks "
However as a student each move learned opens up another door of probabilities as the system slowly finds its strategies. The simple principle such as the centre line theory vs the central line idea. The right stance & posture, the distribution of weight and also having the correct energy in your legs and arms. And most of all timing.
That is why the Sil Lim tau form is often called the soft or internal version of wing concentration of the form instead of brute strength -which is one of not the core philosophies of the the wing Inside this form all the offensive & defensive principles are taught. From the positioning of the hands for where ideas like fut sao, garn sao are introduced. This is a part of the armory which will remain with you through your wing following form is Pal Kill- or bridging the opening form. This is the subsequent form which incorporates larger movements and introduces coordination into the system, Here's where another ideas is further explored. The idea of 2 hand independent co-ordination. Where both hands are used independent of each other in their movement. Sounds confusing-? Well it can be. Think along the line of a concurrent defensive & attacking strike and you start to learn how effective Wing buddy kill and that's also one of the keys to the wing ideas are planted in the original stages and then grown and incorporated into the system as you progress. In essence they are all systems brought from one single concept or idea (therefore the name title idea form-Sil Lim Tau Form).
The final most advance form is Bill Jee. Or Finger striking form. This is easily the hardest and difficult form as it incorporates larger degree of discipline and is much more dynamic in its movement and requires a certain amount of conditioning. Indeed any wing complete this form with a feeling of control and force that should do it justice ..rather than following the steps and movements do the form it requires precision, and Target for its success..
The root of this form was to supply fatal strikes to opponents. For advanced students trying to master this form can be taken much further. It could be a system all itself.
Legend has it it was infrequently taught in older times, however in our westernized culture where we need it all and now--it has made its way to the mainstream, m Much to the chagrin of the old Chinese teachers.
There is a lot to assimilate about the wing hardly a quick overview, however it's a great journey that can take a whole life to master. For me the key attraction and what I am getting out of this system are the coaching methods. They're fun and so easy to learn. However the largest revelation to come out of Wing discovered , was that there where varied styles of wing modified. The tale behind how this came about is as intriguing and as old as China itself and its ramifications massive --especially as it relates your Wing Chun training.
About the Author:
George kane first begun Wing chun training in the early 90's and straight away saw this sort of fighting as the final fighting systems for amateurs and seasoned martial arts enthusiasts. You can read more about his wing chun kung fu exploits at his popular blog