Beggers Art

[lausan]

Does anyone have any info on begger stlye?I think it is a fairly rare southern style,possibly of Hakka origin.

Cheers Lausan

[reneritchie]

I've heard of Hut Yee Sao (Beggar's Hand), which was supposedly the name given to the highly variable martial arts picked up and practiced by the vagabonds. They would, again supposedly, pick up techniques from many different systems, stuff from highwayman, bodyguards, and all sorts of places. I have no idea if there's any major Hakka element, though in old stories they do seem to come off with that flavor (hollow chest, pheonix-eye fist, etc.)

Rgds,

RR

[mantis-1]

In our fighting stance in southern mantis (Chow gar)the hand positions are often reffered to as beggars hands as the palms are up and looks like begging for money ???

[joy chaudhuri]

If memory serves, didnt Canzoneri(sp?) write an article with pics on beggar's kung fu in an issue of Kungfu a couple of years ago? It could be available(I have not tried) on the mag. site.

[reneritchie]

Joy,

Yes, at least he (Sal) mentioned on the old Kung Fu list that he was working on one at the time. Be nice to see if its up somewhere.

Rgds,

RR

[phoenix-eye]

Rene

You mention hollow chest and phoenix eye fist as being related to or common in Hakka styles. Could you expand a bit?

You can probably tell by my name that I have a fascination with PE techniques and am interested as to why hakka styles might favour these?

Is Chuka (Ph.Eye Fist) style a Hakka origin style?

This whole Hakka thing has got me a bit confused. I know the styles are descendent from Hakka clans but what are the defining technical features of a Hakka style?

"We had a thing to settle so I did him"
Tamai, 43, was quoted by Police as saying.

[FIRE HAWK]

Terry Brown - The Company of Maisters of Defence, London (UK)
Former soldier Terry Brown is a highly experienced martial arts who has been training in Fong Yang kung fu (the Beggars Art) for twenty-nine years and is the UK chief instructor for this style. He also holds a black belt 2nd Dan in Fong Yang Khong Chang (Singaporean karate) and has served in the following posts: Honorary Secretary of the British Kung Fu Council; General Secretary of the European Kung Fu Union; Martial Arts Commission of Great Britian Delegate; Sports Council Representative (South East England); and Senior Referee.

http://www.aemma.org/misc/news/wma2000/bios.htm

[FIRE HAWK]

There is a book on Beggars style called Shaolin Tiger Boxing ,i have this book and it goes into the history of the style and shows two forms Tiger form and a Lohan form.

[Abstract]

is this what you're talking about? something like this?

http://www.wle.com//products/b280.html

or nah?

-------------------------
In mildness is the strength of steel

[FIRE HAWK]

Scroll down to Shaolin tiger Boxing book at this link. http://www.bltsupplies.com/ssalemai.html

[Yum Cha]

Speaking of Hakka and Hakka styles, could Beggers style be related to Wanders or Gypsy style?

Aren't the Hakka the wandering folk of China?

Having never seen the styles, I'm only asking from a logical point of view...

[FIRE HAWK]

Fong Yang kung fu is a Chinese Martial Art, which originated in the prefecture of Fong Yang situated in An-Wei province in Central China. The style is known to the Chinese themselves as the 'Beggar Art' – this is because it used to be the custom of villagers to tour the surrounding provinces giving kung fu displays and dispensing medical treatments in return for food and money, hence they were given the nickname; Beggar of kung fu. The people of Fong Yang always announced their arrival by the noisy but melodious beating of their "Flower Drums".
As for the style itself, it is a composite one, that is to say it contains several styles within itself. For example it combines the hands of Pek Hok with the legs of Tai Chor. This is the Chinese way of saying it combines the Northern and Southern schools of kung fu. Fong Yang also merged very successfully the hard and soft systems and this can be seen very clearly in a large number of the self-defense moves that are taught to students. Over and above these two main aspects of Fong Yang is woven an amazingly colorful and fascinating mixture of Forms (kata) incorporating such diverse animals and philosophies as the following: -

• Fierce Tiger Coming Down The Mountain
• Poisonous Snake Spitting Out Pearl
• Eagles Claw South Of The River
• Single Phoenix Facing The Sun
• A Thousand Pound South Of The River
• Tai Chi Fairy Coming Down The Mountain
• Manchurian Below Fist
• Son And Mother Sword

The above are just a few of the 80 forms taught in Fong Yang kung fu.


The Seven Sisters

The Seven Sisters is the collective name given to the Seven Plum Blossom sets taught in Fong Yang kung fu. The Plum Blossom sets are the ones from which all of the Blossom Finger techniques are taken. These techniques are extremely dangerous and a person who has trained in this art for a number of years can simply kill an opponent with one finger. Fortunately however it is an exceedingly difficult art to master, for apart from the need to strengthen ones fingers to an incredible degree, one also needs an extensive knowledge of human anatomy and Chinese medical theory. This safely prevents the knowledge from falling into the wrong hands since only a student who had stayed with his or her Master for many years would be entrusted with the knowledge.

Chin Na

Chin Na is the art of seizing. The literal meaning is 'seize' (chin) and 'control' (na). From this it can be seen that it is the art of applying holds, locks and throws. Chin Na is not a separate art; it is a component part of many Chinese arts. However, it is true to say that Fong Yang has more Chin Na in it than most Chinese styles. As a matter of interest there is a strong school of thought that the Japanese art of Ju Jitsu is a direct descendent of Chin Na having been exported to Japan in feudal times.

The Manchurian Stick

The Manchurian walking is another deadly weapon for which Fong Yang is renowned among the Chinese martial arts. The name as its name implies was the weapon of a fighting originating in Manchurian. Taught to Fong Yang master generations ago, the 'stick' is now a Fong Yang trademark.

posted 06-07-01 12:33 AM

[FIRE HAWK]

I think Hakka style Gypsy style Beggers style and Wanderers style are all the same style in the book Shaolin Tiger Boxing it says that Wanderers style and Beggers style are the same style.And it is known that Cheung Lai Cheun practiced the Lee style or Li gar style and that this Lee or Li gar style is called Gypsy style that Cheung Lai Cheun practiced under sifu Lam Shek.Now what is strange is in a magazine article on the Lee or Li Gar style that i read they called the Lee or Li Gar style Wanderers style.It would seem that these styles are the same just different branches it says in the Shaolin Tiger Boxing book that the Beggers and Wanderers would travel all around picking up styles and techniques from around China according to the book they have northern and southern stuff in there style.

[FIRE HAWK]

The Origins of Ling Gar Tzai Kune Do

Sifu Lyn explains that while Ling Gar is most definitely a southern style its origins are in the north. The family records begin with General Ling Fahong (a direct descendent of Sifu Lyn), a renowned fighter and physician who journeyed from the north and established the family in southern China around 1368 AD. The Ling family was well established in the Beijing area, nobles in the court of the first emperor of the Ming Dynasty, Yong Le. At the time the family was quite wealthy and powerful and already famous for their martial arts skills.



Lyn family home in Jamaica. Center-grandfather, Ling Xian where the Lyn name began. Right (back)-Xian's brother. Left (back)-Uncle Ling Geek Yong. Left (front)-Uncle Egbert. Right (front)-Uncle Jimmin. An interesting cross reference for this can be found in the classic, "Skills of the Vagabonds" by Wing Chun grandmaster and noted historian, Dr. Leung Ting. He writes that the Hakka ancestors (as mentioned earlier, the Ling family is Hakka) were nobility in the Ming Dynasty who went south after the overthrow of the government and emperor Yong Le. Their journeys took them through the provinces and cities of Wei Chow, Chaio Chow, Shan Tao and Fukien with the result that the Kung Fu styles prevailing there are very similar to and strongly influenced by Hakka systems (of which Ling Gar is the oldest and most famous). Leung Ting mentions numerous well-known and influential styles of definite Hakka origin, i.e. Wing Chun (see "Wing Tsun Kuen", the author's comprehensive Wing Chun reference), Ninjitsu (known as Fa-Shu or Yin-Sen-Shu), Southern Praying Mantis, Snake and White Crane to name a few. Having extensively studied many Kung Fu systems including Wing Chun, Sifu Lyn acknowledges that many southern styles seem to have been very strongly influenced by Ling Gar. Numerous weapons (i.e. the iron bars/sai and the chai, precursor of the Butterfly Sword so common in southern Kung Fu being the most famous) and weapon styles (for staff, spear and sword) are also known to have originated with the Hakka.

Inside Ling home in Sun Li Long Village
showing Ling Xian and his 1st wife
After leaving the north, the Hakka (which literally means "Guest Tribe" in Chinese) became nomads, farmers and fisherman. "The Hakka were very insular, clannish and close-knit, the villages small and nomadic. The square village with the moat and levels of defense that became so common in medieval Europe was first used by the Hakka", explains Sifu Lyn. The isolated and nomadic lifestyle also made knowledge of medicine and the healing arts essential. Beginning with Ling Fahong, many members of the Ling family became as famous for being physicians and healers as for their martial arts skills.

Ling Family house in Sun Li Long village in Shenzen China. Center-Great Grandmother, Left-Ling Geek Yong's 2 sons (front) and wife (back). Right (center and back)-Abak's 5 children and wife.
Lyn: "The smallest child is Yin Shi, the cousin who almost took my eye out. When I 1st went to Sun Li Long in '91 it still looked like it came straight out of an old Chinese movie. It hadn't been modernized at all. When my cousin and I went back in '96 the village was gone except for the outlying walls and the 6 clustered houses of the Ling family home.
Sifu Lyn's family eventually settled in Sun Li Long Village in Shenzhen (known as the "Gateway to Hong Kong") though there are large contingents in Canton, Nanning and interestingly, still in the north in Beijing. Family records going back 6 generations (over 400 years) show that they never migrated north again and until relatively recently, within the past 2 generations, there had been no formal contact between the northern and southern Ling families.

This raises the question of whether a northern style of Ling Gar still exists or if the family style might have migrated back. Sifu Lyn responds, "There most probably was a northern Ling Gar but it adapted very quickly, by necessity, when it came south. Whether or not it continued is hard to say. It's said that at one time there were over 300 styles (of Kung Fu in China) of which maybe only 80 remain. Family styles were passed father to son and could easily die out if a generation was skipped. My grandfather was a pacifist, for instance, who wanted nothing to do with martial arts but he had 7 brothers. Contact with the northern family has been very recent and they no longer practiced...but it isn't known (whether northern Ling Gar still exists). The family records don't indicate it (Ling Gar) may have migrated back north but it's possible. Shaolin Temple in Hunan province is considered northern but the famous 5 animal style (developed there in the 1800's) is all (based on) southern styles. This suggests that styles from the south may have migrated north."

Left to right: sifu Lyn's father, brother David, sifu Lyn and uncle Anthony.
Lyn: "My uncle was a typical southern Ling, 5' nothing. He had a bad reaction to anesthesia 1 time in the hospital. Mostly unconscious it took 7 orderlies to finally restrain him. He was tossing them around like rag dolls. A pretty graphic illustration of "inner strength".
Ling Gar and its distinguished family shares much of its history with China's. Two notable examples would be General Ling RiLin, one of the only Chinese to defeat the British during the Boxer Rebellion and Ling Geek Yong. Geek Yong trained and led a guerrilla resistance strike force in Shenzhen during the Japanese invasion of China in World War II. Many military analysts credit this strong resistance as a major factor preventing the Japanese capture of Shenzhen (a very strategic and essential supply route) which contributed significantly to the collapse of the invasion. (Most historians consider the failed invasion of China one key reason Japan lost the war.)

Ironically, Ling Geek Yong's father was Ling Xian, the same pacifist grandfather mentioned above, who came to America (and eventually settled in Jamaica). Ling Xian had 5 sons, 2 who grew up in China and 3 born later in Jamaica by a second wife (who use the family name Lyn instead of Ling. This included Sifu Lyn's father). Sifu Lyn grew up continually hearing stories from his father about his famous uncle, Geek Yong (who unfortunately died in a car accident before he and his young nephew could ever meet). His father seldom spoke about his oldest brother in China, however, Ling Sung Go. He actually barely knew him. Geek Yong had gone to live with the family in Jamaica but Ling Sung Go had remained in China.

Lyn and son Edward (23rd generation)
Ling Sung Go, Abak (which means uncle in Chinese) as he is lovingly referred to throughout the Lyn/Ling family, was the grandmaster of Ling Gar, a grandmaster of Tai Chi Ch'uan and QiGong. It was Abak that taught Sifu Lyn "family style". Although Abak passed away in September of '95 Sifu Lyn still regards him as the grandmaster of Ling Gar Tzai Kune Do. "Abak's teacher had only 1 student, Abak, who had a half a student (jokingly), me. When I was young I would always say to Abak that when I got older I would be faster and stronger (then he was) and be able to beat him. He would reply that he would also be older, wiser and more experienced so it wouldn't make any difference. He was right. Abak died at 88 and he was grandmaster (of Ling Gar, Tai Chi Ch'uan and QiGong) almost 9 decades. Maybe in 30 or 40 years we'll see what happens, if the system would even need another grandmaster."

http://www.wingsing.com/OriginsLGTKD.htm

[FIRE HAWK]

Khong Chang is also called "Chinese Karate".
Khong Chang is the daughter art of Fong Yang, which is itself a mixture of Northern and Southern arts. There are no distinct difference between the 2, except for certain innovations in kicks and katas.

The art of Fong Yang originated in the Ann Kway district of Fukien Province of China; at Kang Lam Kway Bay San. It was know as the beggar's art form then. This was so as the practitioners were required to go out and sell their art, performing feats and acrobatics, just like circus troupes, once every three years.


The man who headed Fong Yang is the late Tan Siew Cheng. He was introduced to the martial arts when he was twelve. Though his father, Tan Ban Hiat, was a master of the art of Fong Yang, Siew Cheng acquired very little knowledge from him. It was through a lady that Tan first really got acquainted with Fong Yang Art.

That lady, Lee Beet Neo, was a firm believer in testing the patience of a disciple. Tan was taught nothing at first. He was told only to run and jump.

After almost a year, Tan left Lee and continued to study Fong Yang under another master, Chan Kiat Seng. The latter was older than him by half a century. Through Chan, Tan acquired and mastered the skills of Fong Yang. Altogether, he spent ten years with his master.


Tan migrated to Singapore in 1938, when he was 23 years of age. He became the assistant to the Chief Instructor of the now defunct Chinese Pugilistic Association, Goh Leong Hui. However, this was to be of a very short duration. The Japanese Occupation Forces dissolved the Association.

With the closure of the Association, Tan sought new premises to teach his art. He found it at Silat Road and resumed his teaching. At the same time he took lessons in Judo under two Japanese masters. They were Furuta and Herei. He was with them for nearly three years.


After the Liberation, Tan transferred his classes to Sims Avenue. He had only a handful of followers and remained so until 1951. He initialized the Fong Yang Athletic Association.

With the introduction of Tae Kwon Do to Singapore, Tan foresaw the tremendous appeal it has. Being very progressive in approach, Tan deleted many of the obsolete training methods of Kung Fu. He innovated and introduced new aspects of training, stressing much on free sparring. He experimented and perfected new techniques. He had in store about 80 sets of patterns, which he had acquired from his master Chan Kiat Seng.

By incorporating the best techniques from them, he evolved new set of patterns.

He renamed this revised version of his art Khong Chang.

posted 06-07-01 12:52 AM

[Shaolin Master]

There is Hakka Lei Ga and other Lei Ga.
It is just a family name. Many styles with the same name.