Hung Kuen

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Hung Kuen (洪拳) or Hung Gar Kuen (洪 家 拳; Hung Gar Kung Fu ) or Hung Gar (洪 家) is an ancient southern Chinese martial art , the roots of which are said to be in the Shaolin temple.

history

According to the origin legend, the herb dealer Hung Hei Guan combined the Shaolin tiger techniques ( Fok Fu Kuen ) and the crane techniques ( Bak Hok Kuen ), which he learned from his wife, and developed the Hung Gar Kung Fu from them . Hung Hei Guan's wife, Fong Wing Chun, was an excellent crane boxer. She had acquired her knowledge from Fong Sei Yuk (a training partner of Hung Hei Guan and also a student from Shaolin). Fong Sei Yuk and Fong Wing Chun were related to each other. That is why the Hung Gar Kuen is also known as the Tiger Crane Box (Fu Hok Pai). Due to the characteristic techniques of the tiger and the crane , this style is based on the concept of yin and yang ( yam and yeung ), which has also fundamentally shaped Chinese thinking.

Animal styles

Hung Gar Kuen contains a total of five animal styles, which also earned him the name five animal boxes :

  • Tiger (Huxingquan) stands for strengthening the joints and bones .
  • Kranich (Hequan) Flexibility and development of the tendons .
  • Leopard (Baoquan) stands for speed as well as for the movement of muscles and strength.
  • Snake (Shequan) promotes breathing and vitality in humans.
  • Dragon (Longquan) stands for mental strength and concentration

elements

Hung Gar also contains the Five Elements (Wu Xing / Ng Xing) and Ba Gua . The massive arm techniques and the solid and strong positions are also representative of the Hung style. The twelve arm techniques are called bridge hands ( Kiu Sao ):

  • hard ( gong )
  • gently ( Yau )
  • press ( Bik )
  • direct ( Jik )
  • split ( fan )
  • stabilize ( thing )
  • short ( Chuen )
  • upwards ( Tai )
  • flow ( Lau )
  • send ( wan )
  • control ( Jai )
  • connect ( ting )

Other principles or concepts are:

  • Chi Sao (sticky hands)
  • Toi Sao (pushing hands)

Hung Gar Kung Fu also teaches the use of various weapons in the later course of the training. Including, for example, a long stick, spear, butterfly knife, saber, sword, sai fork, donfa, halberd, monk's spade, crescent sickle, tiger fork and more.

This style is not only considered a martial art, but also a system for keeping the body healthy. The movements and breathing exercises that are taught in the various forms strengthen the entire body and improve health into old age.

One of the most famous representatives of the style was Wong Fei Hung .

family tree

A famous Hung Gar line is as follows:

such as

  • Wong Fei Hung
  • Wong Sai Wing
  • Wong Yuk
  • Huynh Lu Yang

and also

  • Wong Fei Hung
  • Lam Sai Wing
  • Chan Hon Chung
  • Kong Pui Wai

Another famous line is:

  • Wong Fei Hung
  • Lam Sai Wing
  • Lam Cho
  • Lam Chun Fai
Lam Sai Wing students, including Chiu Kau and his wife Shiu Ying

A well-known grandmaster is Chiu Kau (1895–1995). After the Second World War, he ran a total of four schools in Hong Kong and one diet practice. And this at a time when challenges were still common. Chiu Kau drove vicious, mafia-like clans and gangs out of his neighborhood and was called the hero of the street. He was known by the Red Chinese government and was invited to major tournaments several times. He won the Chinese national championship twice, the last time when he was almost 70 years old. With this victory, South Chinese Kung Fu was officially included in the Modern Wushu program as Nan Quan or Nam Kuen. A certificate personally signed by Mao Tse Tong still attests to this event today.

Today's head of style is Grand Master Chiu Chi Ling, son of Chiu Kau. He is the president of the Chiu Chi Ling Hung Gar Kung Fu Association, the umbrella organization of many Kung Fu schools in various countries. His official style successor is Sifu Martin Sewer from Switzerland, as Chiu Chi Ling told in an interview with Alfredo Tucci.

Main forms

Fu Hok Seung Ying Kuen - Tiger-Crane Shape The tiger-crane shape combines the hard, straightforward techniques of the tiger with the soft techniques of the crane. This form, which is often seen as the "figurehead" of Hung Gar, shows the student the Ying-Yang principle, which is essential not only for learning martial arts, but also for Far Eastern philosophy and way of life.

Gung Ji Kuen / Fok Fu Kuen - The Tiger Taming Form The Gung Ji is one of the oldest forms of Hung Gar, the origins of which can be traced back to the Shaolin Temple. This form is characterized by deep stances (especially the horse stance), strong arm techniques and the bridge hand techniques.

Ng Ying Kuen - 5-animal form

Ng Hang Kuen - 5 elements form

Sap Ying Kuen - Ng Ying Kuen + Ng Hang Kuen = 10-part form The Sap Ying Kuen is a combination of the two forms Ng Ying Kuen and Ng Hang Kuen. It contains both the five animals of Hung Gar (tiger, crane, leopard, snake, dragon) and the five elements from the Chinese element theory. (Fire, water, metal, wood, earth) Through this form the five animals are connected with the five elements.

Tit Sin Kuen - Iron Wire Form / Iron Thread Form The Tit Sin Kuen is the highest form of Hung Gar. By training this form, the practitioner's Qi is developed. In addition to various stands and hand techniques, it also contains Qi Gong movements. The practitioner should become hard as iron through training, but at the same time soft as a thread.

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Biography Grand Master Dr. Martin Sewer. Retrieved February 22, 2018 .
  2. ↑ Chiu Chi Ling: “The Interview” on YouTube , accessed on February 22, 2018.