Master Yip Ching of Wing Chun system

Grandmaster Yip Man had two sons, Yip Chun and Yip Ching. We all know Master Yip Chun, his high level Wing Chun skill, his gentle attitude and healthy body. However do you know his brother, Yip Ching, is also a very honest and sincere gentleman who also possesses a very high level of Wing Chun skill?

Yip Ching was born in China and like many others he had some bad experiences during China’s Cultural Revolution. During the Cultural Revolution he worked on a farm (everybody had to) and so he has experienced a lot of hard work in many difficult situations. His father, Yip Man, left China for Hong Kong where he began to teach his Wing Chun Kuen and left his two sons to finish their education and to work. However, Master Yip Ching never forgot his Wing Chun training, even though practice of any traditional Chinese skill was banned during the Cultural Revolution, including Wing Chun Kuen. To get round this he would stay up late at night to practise his forms right up until the day he left for Hong Kong with his brother. Once they reached Hong Kong they continued their Wing Chun studies. (more…)

Intrinsic Nourishing Exercises

These exercises will calm the mind and sympathetic nervous system, stimulate the internal organs and restore your balance. They can improve the condition of those with problems such as high blood pressure, heart disease, insomnia and neurasthenia (a problem concerning the nervous system).

Massage
1. Rub the hands together until they feel hot.
2. Massage the Tai Yeung points with the hands, rotating nine times first in an anti-clockwise direction, then in an clockwise direction. (fig .i)
3. Interlock your fingers together (fig.ii) and hold the back of your neck. Move your head back a little and massage the neck by moving the hands left to right. Repeat nine to eighteen times. (more…)

Exercises for the Organs of the Head

The organs on the head are referred to in Traditional Chinese Medicine as the seven apertures or openings. Namely the nostrils, eyes, ears (each with two openings) and the mouth which includes the lips, teeth, tongue, and pharynx. These are important organs to ones life and looks, and the Chinese people have since ancient times evolved ways to keep them fit and to prevent diseases as well as to maintain good looks. Detailed descriptions can found in the Nei Jing, and the Yellow Emperor’s Manual of Internal Medicine, which is the oldest extant Chinese medical book written some two thousand years ago.

Following are some simple ways to keep these organs in good condition.

1. The Nose.
The nose governs respiration. Through the nostrils filthy air is exhaled and fresh air inhaled. It is the common belief that the nostrils should be big enough; for example, a horse with big nostrils has staying power and does not gasp for breath galloping a short distance. This is because the big nostrils facilitate the inhaling of air. The same is true of human beings. Another point is that the nostrils should face downward to avoid taking in dirt directly. (more…)

Learning Taiji Pushing Hands Techniques (Video)

Two excellent videos of Taiji Pushing Hands techniques by master Roberto Sharpe.

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Miraculous Meditation of Zeng Chao Sheng

When you talk of health exercises, most of the time you will only consider movements. However, if you follow the principle of yin and yang then stillness should also be good for your health, i. e. meditation. It is not easy to find masters of meditation who can prove how beneficial it is but when you do find them, you will be amazed…

Two years ago, I went to Foshan, China, with my Wing Chun Sifu Yip Chun. He is originally from Foshan, and since China has be come more open many people are able to go back to their home villages to visit their families and friends, and renew their childhood memories.

For me personally, it was good to go with my Sifu to find out more about the source of Wing Chun and its culture.

During the trip we went to see many of his friends. Then on one occasion Yip Chun asked one of them about an old colleague of his named Zeng Chao Sheng.

The first thing he said was “Why did Zeng Chao Sheng die?”. His friend was very surprised and so was I. You never asked why someone had died unless you really hated them.

However, the friend replied, “What? Why do you say that? Zeng Chao Sheng isn’t dead!”. Now it was my Sifu, Yip Chun, who was surprised. All of us were now confused, so Yip Chun explained.

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The Properties of Five Elements

Wood
Liver, Gall Bladder, Green, Shouting, Anger, Deer, Sour, Rancid, Spring, Tendon, Eye, Life, East, Birth, 3, 8

Fire
Heart, Small Intestine, Red/Orange, Laughing, Joy, Bird, Bitter, Scorched, Summer, Pulse, Tongue, Gas, South, Growth, 2, 7

Earth
Spleen, Stomach, Yellow/Brown, Singing/Talking, Over thinking, Monkey, Sweet, Fragrant, Long Summer, Muscle, Mouth, Compound, Centre, Conversation, 5, 10

Metal
Lung, Large Intestine, White/Gold, Weeping, Sorrow, Tiger, Spicy, Rotten, Autumn, Skin & Hair, Nose, Solid, West, Gathering, 4, 9

Water
Kidney, Urinary Bladder, Blue/Black, Groaning, Fear, Bear, Salty, Putrid, Winter, Bone, Ear, Liquid, North, Storage, 1, 6