Ngo Cho
Kun became popular in China’s Fukien province because it was constructed
by Chua Giok Beng of five of the most famous styles of the area: Grand
Ancestor Boxing (Tai Chu Chuan), Lohan Chuan (Shaolin Boxing), Tat Chun
(Da Mo’s Iron Body Method), Pe Ho Chuan (White Crane Fist) and Kao Kun
Chuan (Monkey Boxing). Each style brought something different to the new
art of Five Ancestor Fist. Tai Cho Kun specializes in chang chuan
(long fist boxing); lohan kun specializes in whipping strikes; kao kun
specializes in agile legwork; peho kun specializes in clever techniques.
By integrating the essence of these styles, Chua Giok Beng crafted Ngo
Cho Kun, which became a distinctive style in its own right.
There are
roughly 200 individual techniques in ngo cho kun, each with unique uses
and combined applications. These techniques are learned through the
practice of empty-hand forms known as kun-toh. The forms
increase in length, difficulty and diversity as training progresses and
advances are made through the system. Proficiency in ngo cho kun is
gauged in part by the number of forms that a practitioner understands and can correctly
perform. Correct delivery of the ordered movements consists of proper
body positioning and mechanics, smooth transitions from one technique to
another, with proper expression of power, timing, and precision in each
moment.
Empty-hand forms are the nucleus of ngo
cho kun. The transmission of the system itself is embedded in their
movement sequences. As one progresses through the ranks of the art, they
will see many of the same techniques repeated over and over again. To
outsiders, this makes it seem as if there are only a handful of
techniques in ngo cho kun and that the forms are excessive in number.
This is not actually the case, as certain techniques are grouped with
others in different offensive and defensive ways, with different
footwork and varying timings. Yes, certain techniques are found in
abundance within the 44 emoty-hand forms, illustrating their
significance to the system as a whole. Moreover, it is these
“repetitive” techniques that not only “bind” the system, but give ngo
cho kun its distinct “flavor.”
Each form in whole is not to be thought of
as one long fight sequence against one or multiple opponents. The
individual techniques that comprise the forms are sometimes performed in
such a way for the student to practice their specific motions. At other
times they are trained in combinations as attacking or counterattacking
movements. The techniques are linked or grouped together according to
mini sets of combinations. These combinations or linked techniques are
identified by the timing of the forms. Where cadence starts and breaks,
the combinations begin and end. When one knows the correct timing of the
forms, they can know the correct number of individual techniques that
are grouped into a mini set or combination sequence. The forms then
begin to make sense in pragmatic and practical ways.
As students begin their training they are
taught the gross movements of the forms, which they practice until they
are ready for the specifics. Specifics include the application of proper
strength, power, tension, release, speed, timing and breath cycles. The
movements and combinations of the forms are repeated ad nauseam, but
their actual use or application against an opponent is only understood
by training in the qi kun structure tests, developing the five parts
power, understanding the four movement concepts, then through the
two-person forms and applications training where specific combinations
are taught in specific combative scenarios.
Although the world is filled with
thousands of traditional martial arts, many are believed to have “lost”
their authentic applications. This is the case, many believe, because
the founding fathers and subsequent generations of head masters had
obscured their real use by “hiding” the movements within the forms.
This, it is said, was done so convert onlookers from other systems could
not “steal” their deadly secrets. Of course, over time, the hiding was
done so well that not even the head masters knew what techniques were
for what application! This is not the case with five ancestor fist.
If we look to the forms of ngo cho kun as
an inheritance, as a record of the physical martial ways of one specific
fighting art, then the reason for so many forms becomes apparent. Chua
Giok Beng, the art’s founder, did a diligent job of categorizing the
techniques of his art, and of setting out their combinations and
applications for future generations of practitioners to not have to
“discover their meaning.” In fact, if we take kung-fu forms as a whole,
those found within the five ancestor fist tradition are among the most
accessible for immediate use. The movements are clean, the combinations
clear, the techniques make sense and require no special or “secret”
knowledge to apply. Indeed, the quantity of forms, each pulling
techniques from past forms while introducing new techniques and movement
concepts in measured ways, serve this end well.
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