Who invented wing chun

Ng Mui, the Shaolin nun who developed the system, realized that most of the techniques in Shaolin kung fu were useless for a small woman to use against a larger, stronger man. She also realized that a woman could not match a man's stamina in a long fight.

With this in mind, she developed a system of fighting that enabled a smaller, weaker person such as herself to destroy a bigger, stronger person within a few seconds. Wing Chun immediately became famous in Southern China, and its name quickly spread throughout Asia. Almost three hundred years later, as Asian martial arts began to spread to the West, Wing Chun became famous in America. Its popularity continues to grow as increasing numbers of students are drawn by its simplicity and effectiveness.

Wing Chun is different from many of today's popular styles, such as karate, tae kwon do, and Shaolin kung fu. While these styles block first and then attack, a Wing Chun student will defend and attack simultaneously. Wing Chun students also do not draw back before striking; instead, they strike from any position. This method both increases the speed and eliminates the telegraphing of the strike.

In this way, in the time it takes a karate student to throw one or two punches, a Wing Chun student will throw at least nine. While most other styles rely on windup to generate striking force, Wing Chun uses the structure of the entire body to create power in a small space. Wing Chun's famous "one-inch punch" is a testament to its striking power. Because proper positioning will overcome sheer strength, much of a Wing Chun student's time is spent training his or her body to move precisely and efficiently.

Wing Chun uses chi sao sticking hands training to develop this precision and economy of motion. Note about history: The history of Wing Chun has been passed down through word of mouth over many generations. Often, this type of storytelling results in many different versions of the story appearing over time. It was there she met Yim Yee and his daughter Wing Chun from whom she often bought bean curd on her way home from the market.

He tried to force Wing Chun to marry him, and his continuous threats became a source of worry to her and her father. Ng Mui learned of this and took pity on Wing Chun. She agreed to teach Wing Chun fighting techniques so she could protect herself. She trained night and day, until she mastered the techniques. Then she challenged the bully to a fight and beat him. Ng Mui later traveled around the country, but before she left she told Wing Chun to strictly honor the Kung Fu traditions, to develop her Kung Fu after her marriage, and to help the people working to overthrow the Manchu government and restore the Ming Dynasty.

He in turn passed these techniques on to Leung Lan Kwai. Together they shared and improved their techniques, and thus the Six-and-a-half-point Long Pole was incorporated into Wing Chun Kung Fu. Leung Jan grasped the innermost secrets of Wing Chun, attaining the highest level of proficiency. Many Kung Fu masters came to challenge him, but all were defeated. For the simple purpose of establishing context, let's just go with the most popular version of the Wing Chun story.

During the reign of Emperor Jiaqing , Kung Fu masters who opposed the Qing Dynasty were hunted down and murdered. One master of Shaolin Kung Fu was Yim Yee, who fled from Quanzhou in Fujian province to take refuge with his family in Liancheng, living as a tofu merchant.

Before they could be married, however, Yim Wing Chun caught the eye of a local warlord. She rebuffed his advances until he made a startling offer: he would rescind his marriage proposal if she could beat him in a fight. Yim Wing Chun agreed, and her father negotiated for training time. The warlord gave her until the following spring to prepare for the fight, and to become his bride. News of Yim Wing Chun's predicament spread throughout the small village, and soon she was approached by an older woman whom she had befriended at the tofu shop.

The woman revealed that her name was Ng Mui and that she was one of the Shaolin Five Elders who had managed to escape the burning of the temple. She knew that the tiny, young Wing Chun was no match for the fierce warlord, but she had a plan. Ng Mui had been using her time in seclusion to synthesize a new fighting system out of the Snake and Crane styles of Shaolin Kung Fu to better suit a woman or other fighter who did not have the advantage of size and strength.

She began to train Wing Chun in this new style, concentrating only on the essential elements that could be absorbed in a few months instead of a few years. By the time the warlord returned the following spring, Yim Wing Chun was ready.

In front of the entire village, she demonstrated a type of Kung Fu that had never been seen before. She used the warlord's mass and strength against him, flowing around his attempts to strike or grab her.

Despite a weight difference of nearly a hundred pounds, she threw her entire bodyweight into specific targets that broke the warlord's balance and left him vulnerable to repeated strikes. When the warlord crumpled unconscious at Wing Chun's feet, a roar went up from the crowd.

Yim Wing Chun was able to marry her true love, Leung Bok Chau, and true to the custom of that time, passed on her Kung Fu knowledge to him. Since many of the villagers had witnessed the power of this new style, Yim Wing Chun and her husband established a secret school to teach those who wanted to learn. Once more they began to teach, but this time the new style had a name: Wing Chun Kung Fu.

The oral histories say that the art of Wing Chun was passed first to Leung Lan Kwai, who took over the school in Zhaoqing. One of the skilled performers was Leung Yee Tei.

It turns out that the cook was really the abbot of the ruined Shaolin temple, Chi Shin, who had fled at the same time as Ng Mui and was hiding in disguise. It was Chi Shin that incorporated the techniques of the Six and a Half Point Pole into Wing Chun, and together the three men tested, refined and codified the art into distinct forms and drills. It is said that Leung Jan grasped the innermost secrets of Wing Chun and was able to attain the highest level of proficiency.