A Method to our Madness
Terence Niehoff, October 21st, 2007
“Wing Chun is a system, not a style. A system is a training method; a style is personal expression.” - Robert Chu.
When you ask someone, “what’s the first thing you will need to build a house?” they’ll typically reply with “a foundation.” And many martial artists, including Wing Chun Kuen practitioners and instructors, apply that analogy in their training. However, in my opinion, that by-passes two vital steps. Before starting work on a foundation, we first must have an idea of what we want — the final product we desire — and second, we need a plan to actualize that goal. This overall plan determines exactly what foundation we will need to support the house. Wing Chun Kuen , like a house, is engineered from the ground up so that all the “parts” best fit. Our ancestors were the architects of Wing Chun Kuen, and they’ve provided us a blueprint.
The Wing Chun Kuen faat (methods) is this blueprint; it describes our final product (our house) — how Wing Chun Kuen is actually applied in combat. They tell us what we are trying to do and how we are trying to do it. The “tools” of Wing Chun Kuen, its hand techniques (tan, bong, fook), footwork (bik ma, som gwok ma), etc., are means to execute or implement the faat. Without the faat, we’d have no organizing principle behind our movements or techniques.
Wing Chun Kuen has five faat as its core: dap (join or ride), jeet (cut-off or intercept), chum (sink or destroy structure), biu (dart or deliver weapons), and chi (stick). These methods are a significant part of the essence of Wing Chun Kuen. Some lineages, like Sum Nung’s, make these faat explicit in their teachings. Other lineages have different terms for similar concepts. And others imply these methods but don’t explicitly mention them.
Dap (join or ride) tells us that we first use our bridges (kiu) to join with our opponent (typicially, but not necessarily, with his bridges). Other systems don’t make this a priority. Boxing, for instance, seeks to hit the opponent, not join with him. Other combat systems have different ways as well. Wing Chun Kuen’s approach is not superior or better, but is the route it takes in combat. By first joining to the opponent with a bridge-hand, we are able to get more information about the opponent, his intentions, and his actions; we are able to control the opponent (to control someone, we must be in contact with them — and the connotation of “dap” is to have control, like when we ride a horse); and it slows and limits the opponent’s actions. In Wing Chun Kuen we put “safety first.”
Dap is also at the root of how Wing Chun Kuen expresses power. Typically, for example, we don’t exert force until after contact. Whereas some systems throw large arcing, powerful punches where the force is exerted early, in Wing Chun Kuen our fist touches the target first, then the body exerts force through it, similar to driving a nail with a hammer. We also don’t throw up blocks and hope that they’ll be validated by the opponent’s action; we touch first and use our sensitivity to adopt the appropriate bridge-hand. Dap encompasses many of Wing Chun Kuen’s concepts, including alignment, structure, connection, the power relationship, and moving from non-contact to contact.
Jeet, the second of the faat, tells us that immediately upon making contact with our opponent we should cut-off or forestall his ability to generate further offense. This can be accomplished in many ways: by out-flanking him, by jamming him, by breaking his structure, making him lose his balance, trapping, etc. One can think of a snowball perched atop a mountain ready to begin its roll downward. If it can be “cut-off” before it builds up momentum, it will be easy to deal with. Later, when it reaches the mountain’s base, it will destroy anything in its path. Jeet faat allows us to avoid having to deal with the opponent’s full power. And, it further slows the opponent’s reaction time. Much of the effectiveness of Wing Chun Kuen depends on this slowing of the opponent’s reaction time yet giving him the option to continuue. Many other arts don’t use this method. They may, for example, instead use evasion, like slipping or dodging, while hitting (as some forms of White Crane). These other methods may be effective in their own right, but we choose to steer a safe course. Jeet contains the Wing Chun Kuen concepts of timing and position.
Besides using our bridge(s) to join with our opponent and cutting-off his ability to continue with offensive action, we will chum — destroy his body-structure, disrupting his power-base and equilibrium. This is also accomplished any number of ways but involves misaligning the opponent’s structure, his horse, body and/or bridges, to place our opponent in a “weakened” state (he may be able to lift 200 lbs over his head if he is set, but if he’s misaligned he will be effectively much weaker). When our opponent is misaligned, he will be forced to attempt to adjust or regain his structure before continuing with any offensive action. In other words, he will be relatively helpless — unable to mount an effective offense or defense, unable to use his power, and fighting to regain his balance. In contrast, if instead we attempted to just rush in and “pound” the opponent with a flurry of attacks while he is set, he may be able to absorb our attacks, launch some himself, or otherwise resist us — and we’d be taking quite a chance. Chum faat embodies the kuen kuit’s advice of “getting twice the results with half the effort.” Chum includes the concepts of crowding and controlling the opponent’s jung sum (center of gravity).
Then, once our opponent is in this “weakened” state, we biu — deliver our focused, follow-up attacks. Biu (dart) implies that the force delivered is concentrated (as in throwing a dart) and accurate. This is in accord with Wing Chun Kuen’s kuen kuit, mo luen da (no random strikes), which advices us not to just throw out a flurry and hope it overwhelms our opponent. That approach is inefficient, it wastes effort, energy, and time. By directing our focused attack against the jung sum of an already weakened opponent, the effectiveness of our offensive delivery is magnified. One focused punch against someone whose structure is broken will be many times more effective than against someone whose structure is intact. Biu also includes the Wing Chun Kuen concepts of chasing (joie) and attacking the opponent’s weak points (for example, point-hitting).
Finally, if our opponent is able to stop our progress or resist us, we remain in contact (chi) and use our sensitivity to adjust — that is, we continue on (flow) using whatever the opponent has done to his disadvantage with the faat informing our actions. Chi involves transitional movements, that is intermediate movements designed to keep one in combat and moving toward the defeat of the opponent. They can take the form of leading, guiding, deflecting, sticking, etc.
Of course, this is a very simplifed description of Wing Chun Kuen’s approach, but it does paint the general picture. While these methods delineate Wing Chun Kuen’s approach toward combat, they aren’t really stages (although some call them that) in the sense that each must be taken and completed before beginning the next. They can, and often are, overlapping or simultaneous. In fact, good Wing Chun Kuen can be measured by whether we destroy our opponent’s structure on contact. And, they are interdependent and inter-related as Wing Chun Kuen is an organic whole.
There are situations, however, where Wing Chun Kuen practitioners sometimes won’t follow these methods in combat. For example, if we are larger, more poweful, and faster than our opponent, we might use what has been labelled “big man” Wing Chun Kuen and just overwhelm our opponent with these attributes. Or, if our skill level greatly surpasses that of the opponent, we may overwhelm him with these superior skills. In each instance, we are able to get away with not adhering to the faat since we have a marked advantage over our opponent in some way that permits us to take this calculated risk. The limitations to this approach are readily apparent when these “advantages” aren’t present (when we meet a bigger man or get older, for example).
Once we are acquinted with the Wing Chun Kuen faat (and its approach toward combat) and know what goal we are seeking with our training, we can then understand the direction of our training (its plan) rather than “training in the dark.” They will provide a framework or context for the student. Should we have a “different idea” than these faat — a different approach toward combat — it will naturally develop a different foundation for a different house. For example, if I take “big man” Wing Chun Kuen as my everyday model, then I’ll probably concentrate on weightlifting (for bulk and muscular strength), speed drills, etc. so as to develop the elements of that approach.
The notion that the faat guides our training is implied by Rene Ritchie in his excellent (plug, plug!) book, “Yuen Kay-San Wing Chun Kuen.” He organizes the chapters of his book around this logical sequence: after an opening chapter on history, the next chapter, “Fundamentals,” includes an introduction to and discussion of the faat, and only after the faat are introduced does the book proceed on to chapter on body structure (see below for why), then the forms, the drills, and the rest of the system..
As our first method is dap, our training should begin with learning how to effectively join our bridge(s) with an opponent. Implied within dap (joining) is the notion of bai jung (assuming structure). Whenever we make contact with an opponent, we need to have balance, root, the ability to generate power, etc. — in other words, body-structure (san ying). If we don’t have good body-structure and are off-balance when we join with our opponent, he will most likely be able control us through our bridge-arms. The first step in our training is then to develop our stationary body-structure in the Yee Jee Kim Yeung Ma (YJKYM) to enable us to connect to our opponent. Then, after becoming proficient in standing structure, we train moving structure, with turns and steps. We also need to develop our bridge-arms (kiu sao): the tools of Wing Chun Kuen - the bong, tan, fook, etc. to actually make contact with the opponent. And, we must learn to link and unlink our bridges to our body-structure, first stationary and then moving structure, so as to transfer and receive force through them.
Our forms, as one would expect, follow this progression. The Siu Nim Tao (or Siu Lien Tao in non-Yip Man lineages) trains the stationary body-structure, the bridges, and connecting these bridges to the stationary (though not static) body-structure. The Chum Kiu trains the moving body-structure, and connecting these bridges to that. Similarly, we first focus our drills to develop our body-structure, our bridges, and the connection between them — first stationary, then moving.
To develop these things, it is not enough to just learn their “form.” My sifu, Robert Chu, has as his motto, “let application be your sifu.” It splendidly describes the approach he takes toward training his students. Often, we merely learn the “forms” of things - the external appearance - without understanding what exactly that form is meant for, what it does, and how it does it. You can show me a tan sao from Siu Nim Tao, for example, and I can mimic your external movement but I can’t copy your intention (yee), your trained force (ging), your feeling, how to link it to body-structure, etc. so my tan sao is dead, just an empty shell without its own life. However, if you show me a tan sao, then have me learn to actually use (apply) it so that I can find the intention, the ging, the feeling, how to connect it to my body-structure, etc. necessary to make it work, then I have a truly functional tan sao — I understand how it works, why it works, when it works. Now my tan sao isn’t just “form,” but its form reflects my understanding of its function. I’ll then put this tan sao into my Siu Nim Tao, along with the intention, the ging, the feeling, connection, etc. so that when I practice my Siu Nim Tao I’ll actually be performing a tan sao and not just some lifeless movement.
The same can and should be done with everything else. Is your YJKYM functional? Can you receive and issue force from it? Chu sifu has developed numerous structure tests to help his students develop body structure. This is his most basic test (test #1) for the YJKYM: while standing in YJKYM with hands at your sides (just like in the basic Siu Nim Tao position), have your partner place his open palm on your sternum and put a strong, steady pressure on you as if he’s trying to push you backward. When you take the test can you stand and feel rooted or do you feel yourself falling backwards? If you are not strong and rooted, then you may have the “form” of YJKYM but not the function, including how to adjust and equalize the pressure with your pelvis (kua), quadriceps, and buttocks. For many people taking this test, it only requires two fingers and a little pressure to unbalance them. This exercise helps the student find that the mechanics of the body can be properly linked so that with a minimum of effort, YJKYM can be a viable and strong stance and not just some “training stance.”
Most people train their drills, Pak Sao, Lop Da, Dan Chi Sao, and start Chi Sao, from the YJKYM. It is the base and root stance of all Wing Chun Kuen. But if the mechanics of it aren’t taught properly or aren’t understood by the practitioner, how can the rest of the mechanics of Wing Chun Kuen be understood and properly applied? Many Wing Chun Kuen practitioners have “good hands” but have nothing but localized muscle behind them. When we row a boat, we can use just arm muscles to row or we can use the whole body. A functional YJKYM allows us to use our whole body to power our bridge-arms. Then these drills are not just hand drills, but also whole-body power drills. It is important that the Wing Chun Kuen student go through the system point by point in this manner, testing each point to verify that he grasps the underlying function of the point and can apply it freely.
This way of letting “application be your sifu” begins with understanding the applied function and those things implied in that application. To understand why we do these things — why are the toes turned inward in YJKYM, why do they sometimes grip the floor and othertimes not, why are the knees pinched in, why is the weight on K1 (kidney one accupunture point) — we must look at its function (application). Though the instructor guides the student toward a personal understanding, function can only be found by oneself through application. We don’t just want to parrot our sifu — that is practicing Wing Chun Kuen in the dark; in letting “application be your sifu” we don’t just accept what someone tells us, but judge it for ouselves through experience.
Jeet takes those same elements previously learned with the dap method — body-structure, tools, and the linking/unlinking of the two — and uses them to intercept the opponent actions and cut-off his ability to generate offense. This is done though applied timing and position. These aspects, although contained to a degree in the sets, can’t be trained from forms or solo training but require actual application with a partner. The wing chun drills, like Pak Sao, Lop Sao, and Chi Sao, are at this stage of training refocused to concentrate on the timing and postitional aspects of Wing Chun Kuen.
Timing and position are interrelated concepts, almost like two sides of the same coin, within the jeet faat. The centerline (jong sien or ji ng sien)principle, for example, which if often considered concerned mainly with position has corresponding timing implications. For example, by facing the opponent squarely (so that I can use both hands equally) I maximize the speed of my offensive and defensive actions. If my opponent is not facing me (because I’ve outflanked him) and must turn to defend or attack, his actions are relatively slower. By controlling or capturing the centerline (the mutual line, the line between my opponent and me), I also increase the relative speed of my actions and slow that of my opponent. If my opponent has control over the centerline, then I break it (por jung) to take away his timing advantage. Changing the centerline, while sometimes necessary, is obviously slower with respect to the timing of attacks or defense. Wing Chun Kuen’s most essential kuen kuit, liu lao hoi soong, lut sao jik chong (stay/receive as he comes, escort him as he goes, rush in on loss of contact), goes to the heart of the timing/position relationship.
Like the dap faat, the Wing Chun Kuen forms encompass these aspects: the Siu Nim Tao teaches us how to face and control the centerline and the CK teaches us how to break and change the centerline.
Besides this connection between the centerline relationship and timing, Wing Chun Kuen also recognizes that there are various timings involved in performing a movement. One of the most significant principles of Wing Chun Kuen is that of change: everything must change and is constantly changing. The Wing Chun Kuen practitioner having grasped this basic principle, can then guide or anticipate his opponent’s inevitable change. The only way to anticipate change is to know what the present stage an action is and to know beforehand the subsequent stages it must move through. For example, to move through a swinging door, before I take a step I need to know: 1) the position of the door; 2) how the door’s position is going to change (the direction it’s swinging); and 3) the rate of change (its speed).
Chu sifu has identified the five stages of any movement: preparation, development, extension, retraction, and response check. In the Siu Nim Tao’s opening punch sequence, the jik chung chuie, one brings his hand to the center of the chest (preparation), thrusts it forward (development), straightens it (extension/completion), then after a huen sao (in Yip Man lineages) retracts it (withdrawal), to the chambered postion and pauses (response check) before beginning the next motion. Although this is stylized in the form, it is valid for every action. Preparation is the mental or physical action taken prior to initiating an action. Development is the when the action has begun but not yet reached its full blossum. Extension is that moment when the act reaches it “goal.” Withdrawal is the retraction or change of direction or intent. Response check is that moment when one pauses, however slight, to make an assessment.
Sometimes we hear of persons in Wing Chun Kuen using “adopted” terminology for our interceptions like “parry,” “deflection,” or even “block.” The terms and language we use reflect our thinking, after all words are merely symbols for our ideas. In Wing Chun Kuen we don’t want to parry, deflect, or block the snowball; we want to jeet, “cut it off” — prevent its transition or development to its next stage (growing larger or more powerful). Similarly, we also hear of timings discussed in “beats” — 1/2 beats, 3/4 beats, etc, where the “beat” is the time taken for a complete movement. A jab, for instance, would involve two beats, the first completed at full extension, the second completed at full retraction. While this terminology can be expressive, it is not natural to view actions in terms of beats. When we try and enter the swinging door, we don’t think of “beats.” Instead, we look for or try to anticipate a certain stage or position of the swing (movement) — when the door is open — and base our actions (how quickly we move, when we move, how we move) on that.
Along these lines, in Wing Chun Kuen when we intercept (jeet) an opponent’s movement, we base our actions — what we do, when we do it, how quickly we do it — on the particular stage of the opponent’s movement when we intercept it. Wing Chun Kuen’s kuen kuit tells us that our actions “depends on conditions.” These “conditions” include the stage of a movement, its rate of change, and its force. If we catch the swinging door just as it’s starting to swing (preparation), it will have little momentum (power) behind it so we’ll be able to stop it and push through. We will want to avoid trying to push the door mid-swing (development) where it’s momentum (power) is at a maximum; instead we may pull the door open, and use it’s momentum to our advantage. But if we intercept the door as it begins to swing back (withdrawal/retraction), then we can escort it (hoi soong) with a push. It is the same when our bridge-arms are in contact with the opponent: we can feel the stage of its motion, the power driving it, and the rate of change of the movment and base our subsequent action on those factors.
We also hear of such notions of “broken rhythm,” “half-beats,” “cadence,” etc. with regard to timing considerations. These too are a foreign approach to Wing Chun Kuen. Our Wing Chun Kuen ancestors advise us that “after one or two moves the opponent should be unable to continue.” In other words, we ideally should break our opponent’s structure on contact, making it impossible for him to continue. Thus there will be no rhythm (since rhythm involves more than one “beat”), no cadence, etc. One analogy that illustrates Wing Chun Kuen’s method is that of the Old West gunfight: two gunfighters stand facing each other then draw their weapons and fire. There is no rhythm or cadence in that situation — one move and it should be over. If it’s not, then the gunfighter is looking at problems. The same applies in combative applications of Wing Chun Kuen; the opponent attacks and I intercept it, breaking his structure, then finishing him quickly. There is no back-and-forth. It is not a boxing match or a fencing bout.
Many Wing Chun Kuen drills are performed routinely at the extension/completion stage. For example, when doing the lop sao drill typically the punch reaches full-power and meets a fully formed bong sao, the wu sao ‘lops’ the opponent’s punching hand, and the lop sao cycle is repeated . This is so that both partners can practice the movments and that the drill can continue. By doing it this way, the participants can focus on their structure, their co-ordination, etc. However, at the jeet stage of training, the focus changes to “interrupt” the drill, to play with the various timings (stages). For example, I may intercept my opponent’s punch at the preparation stage with my bong sao instead of allowing him to extend it. Or, we may play with positional changes to explore how they effect the timings. There are too many variations to cover in this short article. As we perform our drills, we must keep in mind that we are not performing those “techniques” necessarily in the way they will be applied in combat.
Chum faat is concerned with connecting to and destroying the opponent’s center (jung sum). The second of Yip Man’s forms, Chum Kiu, is translated as “bridge seeking” (other lineages’s use the chum for sinking/destroying) and some may think this refers to the making of arm-to-arm contact. However, since dap is our first method, bridge contact is already presumed. The “bridge” we are seeking in Chum Kiu is not the opponent’s arm, but a connection with the opponent’s center. Only by controlling it, can we then control the opponent. Chi sao is the principal drill for developing these aspects. Through chi sao, the Wing Chun Kuen practitioner learns to connect, control, and manipulate the opponent’s center through his bridges.
Wing Chun Kuen recognizes that it is power, or more accurately a power transfer or relationship, that connects our center with the opponent’s center. This power flows through our bridges. The bridge can thus be viewed as a power line that joins the Wing Chun Kuen practitioner and his opponent (hence why dap is our first method). Wing Chun Kuen uses this power line to determine the direction and intent of an attack while maintaining the integrity of one’s own structure. Moreover, by using this connection, we are able to break the opponent’s balance and control his movement. If we think of chi sao as merely a drill to develop “tactile reflexes” of our arms, we are missing the much larger picture.
Through chi sao we first learn to receive his power in such a way that it strengthens our balance, root, and structure. This is accomplished by shunting the opponent’s power through our structure and into the ground (refer to structure test #1 above). By doing this, we make the opponent dependent upon us for his balance. Once this is accomplished, we then learn to return our opponent’s power to him in various ways to disrupt his balance. These two things, destroying our opponent’s center and strengthening ours, are always going on when we receive an attack. This is a natural result of a power-to-power or center-to-center connection. Just touching bridge-arms (dap) with the opponent, however, doesn’t allow us to create this link to his center — a power relationship must be established; if this connection is weak (little power transferred) then we can’t link to his center. In that situation we need to issue some power to make a connection. This is the nature of the power relationship. And chi sao permits us to feel the intent, direction, and intensity of the opponent’s force through our bridge-arms.
Within the drill, either partner can catch the other’s center, thus Wing Chun Kuen recognizes and trains various neutralization methods for this situation.
Timing and position also are related to the power relationship: if I change my position relative to the opponent, it will change both the timing and the power transfer relationship. For example, when an opponent tries to punch my chest and I intercept (jeet) it as he begins his movement (jeet on preparation), it will jam his power before it develops. If I step away from him as he punches, I can avoid the focus of his blow. Through chi sao we must learn to move to the right position at the right time so that we control the power relationship.
Biu encompasses the concept or principle of applying our focused force against the weakness of our opponent. However strong our opponent, there is always one line that is weak. By directing our power or redirecting our opponent’s power into that line we maximize our offense or defense. Should our opponent move or try to adjust to our attack, then we “chase” (joie) this weak line, and not just chase his arms. At this stage of training, we refine our “delivery system” to make it more focused, more efficient. This includes striking the opponent’s weak points, and developing weapons for that purpose (like the pheonix-eye fist, ginger fist, etc.). Earlier in our training we will have learned how different weapons (fist, palm, finger, etc.) have different characteristics; it is essential that we understand when, where, and why each is used (as opposed to another weapon).
Finally, since sometimes our methods don’t meet with immediate success or we’ve had the tables turned on us, we need to have the skills to “stick” (chi) to the opponent (maintain dap) and continue on toward our goal of defeating our opponent. Our Wing Chun Kuen ancestor’s advised us to “explore changes while sticking with a partner” for this reason. We begin training in this area with the mun (asking) concept of Wing Chun Kuen, where the opponent tells us how to defeat him in that instant. There are numerous concepts within this faat. Chu sifu has organized his “14 Mental Methods of Chi Sao” to systematically pass on the various conceptual methods or strategies (and not techniques or drills) and clarify this very complex area of Wing Chun Kuen. This ties into the neutralization methods mentioned above.
The faat do not represent distinct or separate stages of training; often there is considerable overlap. Development in one faat will by its very nature, effect other faat. However, the focus of our training will typically proceed along the lines outlined above. Body-structure must be developed first so that we can join to our opponent. Weapon development will be useless if we don’t first develop our power and learn to express it through our bridges. Sticking and learning to adjust to our opponent will similarly be useless unless we have the means to end the encounter.
In summary, the faat are like an architect’s blueprint, providing the overall plan for how our house will look when finished. Using this as our guide, we can get the most out of our training. If we don’t follow this guide, we may find ourselves wasting time (digging the foundation in the wrong place) or, in the worst case, building a flawed or different house.
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