HOME: TRADITION: ARTICLES: FRANK YEE ON HUNG GA

1. Master Yee, can you tell us a little of your background? (where & when you were born, etc.)

I was born in Hong Kong, July 28, 1951. I practiced Hung Ga Kung Fu for some 43 years, but also found the time to learn Bak Sil Lum, Choy Lee Fut & Tai Chi. But I am a strong believer in specialization, which is why Hung Ga Kung Fu has been the focus of my life all this time.

2. At what age did you start learning martial arts? And was Hung Ga the first style you learned?

My introduction into martial arts began at the age of 6 with the Hung Ga style.

3. Who was your Hung Ga teacher and how did you come to study from him?

My Sifu was Master Yuen Ling sucessor to Grand Master Tang Fung (Wong Fei Hung's close disciple). My father, Yee Yin, was also a Hung Ga practitioner. Because of his training and relationship in the style I was brought to and accepted as a disciple by my Sifu. When I entered the room, there were about 30 other people in the class, Sifu asked me, "Why are you here? This training is too difficult for you. You are too weak and you won't be able to take it. You should go home." I responded, "I don't care how hard it is. I am going to do it. I know I can take it." And so my training began. My Sifu lit incense and we sat in a horse stance. Day after day we sat in a horse and at the end of 30 days, there was only a couple of us left.

4. Can you talk a little bit about your Sifu?

Master Yuen Ling was a quiet but strong man. He was born in Gwong Dong Province China. He learned Village Hung style from Sifu Luk Fung Sei and also learned Dog Boxing from Sifu Gum Yuen Dang. In the early forties he met Grand Master Tang Fung while he was working at the fish market association in Hong Kong. Grandmaster Tang admired his being a hard and honest worker also the honor he expressed to his style. He learned from Grand Master Tang Fung until the latter's death. Whereupon he took over Tang's teaching and security position at the Sau Kay Won fish market (where Lam Sai Wing also taught). He also maintained a school at 73 Dong Dai St., which became famous for winning the Cheurng Pao contest. My Sifu died of throat cancer in 1968.

5. Can you give us a brief historical background on Hung Ga?

First I would like to say that there are 3 main styles of Hung Ga. The first is called Sui Lum Temple Hung Ga. Some famous practitioners of this style where Tit Kiu Sam, Ngam Yiu Ding, Ngam Dim Hung. The second style was called Hung Moon (Hung Door). The revolutionaries who fought against the Ching government practiced this style. The third was founded by Hung Hei Gune during the 1700's and was systematized by Wong Fei Hung. This is the style most commonly seen today. A little known fact is that present day Hung Ga has relationships with all three methods. Wong Fei Hung was a member of the Hung Moon association thus having learned their Kung Fu. He also learned the Iron Wire form from Tit Kiu Sam of the Sui Lum Temple Hung Ga lineage. Then combined the knowledge of Tiger Crane Techniques obtained from Luk Ah Choy and his father, thus creating the version seen today.

6. Traditionally, Hung, Lau, Mok, Choy and Lee have been regarded as the five major schools of Chinese martial arts. Can you give us some information regarding differential characteristics of these five methods?

The styles you mentioned are the famous five family styles of southern China. The Hung style, founded by Hung Hei Gune is known for its 1,000-lb. Horse stance, iron fist and forearms, body connection, power generation and the use of sound to bring up the Chi, thus summoning different types of power. The twelve bridges are also a major component of the style at the higher levels as well as the five animals & five elements. The style shows a strong dominance in the use of Tiger techniques, as seen at the advance level when learning Hung Ga's 18 methods of Cum Na Sao. Lau Ga is a style that is very popular in Gwong Dung province in the cities of Yum Jow, Leuih Jow, Lin Jow and Go Jow. The style is said to have been created by Lau Sang (some believe Lau Ching San) from Ha Say Fu village. The important characteristics of the style are very flexible footwork (quick in & out), good at both offense & defense and in using the short hand bridge & horse stance. Jumping moves as well as Cat stance & sliding stance movement specializes in 4 corners & 8 directional fighting. The hand techniques resemble that of Hung Ga, but the body & stance usage is different. Choy Ga, founded by Fu Kien Sil Lum monk Choy Fook, is popular in Gwan Dung province in the cities of Toi San and Sun Wui. This style is well known for its low solid stances & big open & close of hand movements. They're also very good at long range striking & use a lot of straight arms techniques like Choy Lee Fut. Lee Ga was created by Sil Lum temple monk, Lee Sik Hoi but it was Lee Yao San who taught the art to the public thus gaining fame to the style (some believe the founder to be either Lee Ba San or Lee Ying). This style in Gwong Dung province in the cities of Jeung San, Jyu Hoi and Wui Jow. This style uses a wide stance with wide flexible movements and has many long fist movements like Hung Ga's five elements. Specialties are Ping Choy (facing punch), Chop Choy (piercing fist), good kicking and jumping skills (moving in & out). Practitioners spend a lot of time practicing Poon Kiu (kind of circling bridge to block away strikes), another unique characteristic is that they lean their body away from their opponent. Mok Ga has a history about 200 yrs. And was founded by a Sil Lum monk name unknown and was made famous by Mok Ching Giu. It is popular in the Gwan Dung cities of Hoi Fung, Gwai Sing and Don Gun. This style was spread to these cities being passed only to members of the Mok family lineage. Today it is most popular in Dan Gun city. This style is good at the use of the elbow techniques and flexible stances such as sliding stance, jumping stance, falling & recovery techniques, inch power and deceptive kicking skills. Their hand bridge is like that of Hung Ga where the elbow is never straight. They have a very good offense and defense.

7. What does Hung Ga basic training consist of?

Lots of foundation training such as, stances, punches, connection training such as the 12 bridges and lots of Dah Saam Sing (3 star hitting exercise) to toughen forearms.

8. The Tiger & Crane and the Iron Wire forms, are two of the major sets of Hung Ga. Please share with us the importance of these two sets and what is gained from their practice.

The Tiger & Crane form was created by Wong Fei Hung using the elements of the 3 existing Hung styles. At the time of its formulation it was considered the most complete set in southern China, also the most popular. It combines Tit Kiu Sam's horse stance & hand bridge from the Iron Wire form with Wong's hand techniques from the Hung Moon assoc. and the Tiger & Crane movements of Hung Hei Gune. This is why the form has a heavy & solid horse stance, solid hand bridge and a lot of sinking of the Chi known as connection. It also has an emphasis on the hard & soft power. Important methods of the form are: 1. Ng Hang Kuen- 5 element fist. 2. Bat Ma Bo- 8 horse stances. 3. Fu Ying- tiger shape, consisting of 12 specific tiger techniques. 4. Hok Ying- crane shape, consisting of 8 specific crane techniques. 5. Bat Man Da- the 8 strong techniques. 6. Sup Juet Sao- 10 killing hands. The importance of the Iron Wire form is in the building of the body's connection. It teaches you how to use extreme hard & extreme soft power, how to create energy using the Chi, five sound theory, 12 bridges body connection, 5 organs and the 5 elements theory. All of these must be used together, if you attempt to separate them or don't understand a specific part then you don't know what you are doing. This is why you need a qualified, high level instructor in the style to guide you so that you may gain the form's treasures.

9. What are some of the other Hung Ga forms which are considered important in the Hung Ga style?

All the 4 forms in Hung Ga are important. It is a step by step process. We start training with the Gung Ji Fuk Fu Kuen, which introduces the basics of stance, bridges, power and breath. The important thing to know is that each form is good for a certain level. For example, Iron Wire form can produce tremendous benefits to the practitioner but it can not be taught on the 1st day, because essential skills to unlock the form have not been developed. Just as in school, you are not taught to create stories in writing form. First you must learn your ABC's then go on to form sounds, words, sentences, paragraphs, etc.

10. Hung Ga contains many weapon sets. Which, if any weapon is regarded as the primary one?

The primary weapons of Hung Ga are the long pole, for long distances fighting and the saber for short distance fighting. Each of these weapons requires the practitioner to have a very strong foundation in order to properly execute the techniques. Also just as in school the ABC's are taught The weapons have their basics. For example the Single end pole teaches us the 6 ½ points of not only the pole itself but of all single ended weapons, these basics are 1. Huen- circle 2. Gawt 3. Boot- clear 4. But- pull 5. Tan- spring 6.Tieu- Pick up/lift ½ - Dim- dart/poke . As we know Hung Ga's biggest asset is the training of the foundation. Therefor, these two weapons most exemplify the fighting spirit of Hung Ga.

11. What is the progression of training for students in your school?

When a student begins there is a strong emphasis on foundation training and body conditioning. Training consists of stance work, forms & applications, Chi Gung, Lion Dancing, weapons, free fighting and philosophy. It is important to teach carefully so that each student understands what and why he is doing certain things. As a teacher you should not yell at a student if he doesn't understand. You must be patient to find a way to help him realize what he is doing and always give him a chance.

12. What training advice can you offer to our readers?

Well, my advice is to stick to what you are doing for a long time in the same style. Anything you do you must have patience until you have a complete understanding. It's not just learning the forms, because any Chinese martial art has a long history. It's not created by one generation, it has the experience of many. Some even have a thousand years of history. So you as a practitioner are just carrying on the knowledge and this does not depend on how smart you are. You should pass the knowledge and add your experience. A lot of people jump around learning the skin of many styles but then at the end they don't know anything. A lot of people know the word traditional but they don't understand its meaning. They think if they learn from a real Sifu, it makes them automatically traditional. Most of the Sifu's who succeed are traditional, because they would not succeed if they did not stick to what they were doing. Traditional means, stick to what you are doing. Some people work real hard for a short time then after a couple of years they feel they did not learn everything and leave. These people feel they can get it from somewhere else. They do this all their life and at the end they have learned nothing. Some people train, never caring how long or hard they must work, they just keep going. These people are built on honor and how much they respect their Sifu. If your Sifu finds out you don't respect him or have a heart for the style, they are not going to teach you the real thing. The student has to earn the knowledge of the style, also the Sifu has to earn the respect with his knowledge. This is called balance. If one side is not balanced it is not going to work. Most of the time the students don't have the patience to gain the knowledge of the highest level.