At our recent North Carolina seminar, I was relating how Wing Chun teaches the curriculum in a specific order because the forms are progressive. To that, one of the participants asked a great question: “What is the order of things taught in Wing Chun?”
And that got me thinking that there are still quite a few out there that do not really know the “why’s” behind why we train like we do.
So in a nutshell, here is Wing Chun’s curriculum and the “why’s” behind why it is trained like it is. Although I have previously described some of this, it is always good to reiterate it to those new to the art (as well as to those who simply have never been told).
Everything begins with Siu-Nim-Tau (visit AWCAOnline’s Siu-Nim-Tau section). Meaning “Little-Idea” form, this stage begins with teaching us the mechanics of the art. For example, creating the stance used, learning arm placement, and how to breathe. It is here that we learn the basics of all-things Wing Chun and how those basics will be expanded on in the coming lessons.
However, it is also here that a lot of people do not pay the appropriate amount of attention to. For example, someone new to Wing Chun will see the wooden dummy and think, “If the dummy is the most advanced empty-hand area of the art, and since I can buy a dummy and some books/videos, then I will bypass all the middle ground and go right to that!”
What they do not realize is that the wooden dummy is the culmination of what came before it. You need thorough comprehension and mastery of everything in its proper order in order for the next stage to be useful. Otherwise you have nothing but a mish-mash of actions that mean nothing.
In fact, without approaching it in that light, Wing Chun’s actions can actually set you up for defeat vs. making you a competent fighter. It is akin to running before you know how to walk.
After the Siu-Nim-Tau comes the Chum-Kiu (visit AWCAOnline’s Chum-Kiu section). Meaning “Arm-Seeking” form, this form takes us from a point of basic offense and defense to one of tactically seeking out the opponent, thereby taking the fight “to” him vs. waiting for him to come to us.
If you know you are going to have to fight, then there is no sense in waiting. The longer you wait, the more dangerous it becomes. So if you know you are on, then go.
Chum-Kiu teaches us how to drive straight into an opponent, seeking out the weakest parts of their defense to attack through. It is also here where we learn body torguing, the use of elbows and kicks, and also trapping and pinning.
During the Chum-Kiu, we engage in a side curriculum called Chi-sau (visit AWCAOnline’s Chi-sau section). Meaning “Sticking-hands”, a Wing Chun practitioner learns to contact an opponent’s arms. Once that contact is made, he/she learns how to use that force to dictate their own responses.
In real fights, you rarely have time to actually react like you think you will, much less the time to think about “what” to do before you do it. Chi-sau takes the guess work out of the equation by teaching us to respond solely to what we feel, thereby removing the need to think about anything.
The next stage of training is called Biu-Tze (visit AWCAOnline’s Biu-Tze section). Meaning “Thrusting-Fingers” form, this stage is geared exclusively for the scenario that your life is in peril and you need to literally fight to keep your life. Due to its nature, it is reserved exclusively for those that have already demonstrated an extremely strong and positive moral character.
The final empty-hand stage is called Muk-Yan-Chong (visit AWCAOnline’s Muk-Yan-Chong section). This is the wooden dummy, and while it “does” include many actions from all previous forms, you will also find a host of new concepts and actions to take your skills further than you might have thought possible.
The entire concept of the wooden dummy is to unite the upper and lower bodies for forming a more complete union. Along the way we learn to work new concepts, develop short-range “bursting” power, and other elements essential to Wing Chun, but the overall concept is to make your body a complete unit vs. just a collection of parts.
The weapons are in a class by themselves so we will not go into that here. Suffice it to say that a practitioner will spend years and years on just the empty-hand system without really needing to learn the weapons, although the weapons “do” contribute to more advanced empty-hand concepts.
But in a nutshell, that is Wing Chun. It is a progressive method that continuously builds on what came before it, and the start or “foundation” if you will is the Siu-Nim-Tau. Without a solid, competent Siu-Nim-Tau skill set, everything following it will be mediocre at best.
So my advice? Spend time at the Siu-Nim-Tau and learn what it means. Become a proficient, true master of what the Siu-Nim-Tau teaches and you will not be disappointed.
