Choy Lee Fut (蔡李佛) is one of the most widely practiced traditional Wushu styles in the world. It is a very dynamic and distinctive system that stresses speed, power, and agility. Technically, is very well-balanced comprising of a great variety of attack and defense actions, quick footwork, and swift waist movements to generate efficient power. It also incorporates a full spectrum of traditonal weapons, that come in all shapes and sizes, from common warfare implements and farming tools all the way to instruments of great beauty and originality. In this article, we will examine the Nine Dragon Trident or Gao Lung Cha (九龍叉), with the help of Master Lane Louie (雷偉良), Director of the Choy Lee Fut Pennant Hills School in New South Wales, Australia, and formerly trained in Chan Family Choy Lee Fut for over 30 years.
Records of Warfare
In 1838, Lam Jak-cheui (林則徐 1785-1850) was appointed imperial commissioner under the Qing government and went to Guangdong to try to help stop the opium trade. Upon his arrival, he inspected the coastal defense and found groups of folk martial artists that worked primarily to defend against bandits. Among them, a contingent from Sanwui (新會) led by the founder of the Choy Lee Fut, Chan Heung (陳享 1806-1875), had great recognition. When the First Opium War (1839-1842) started between China and Britain, Lam recruited Chan Heung as an instructor for a coastal militia known as Soei Yung (水勇), composed of civilians as well as members from various martial arts groups, which were mostly underground given the bans by the Qing government since 1727.
Because of his extensive martial arts foundation, Chan Heung was very well suited for this task. He already founded Choy Lee Fut in 1836 and was said to introduce to the Soei Yungthe unique weapon he had invented, the Nine Dragon Trident, to enhance their coastal defense capabilities. As the conflict developed, Gwaan Tin-pui (關天培 1781-1841) and other generals led Qing armies to resist against the British forces, and Soei Yung members fought along with no access to firearms. It is said that the Nine Dragon Trident was crucial to take the rifles out of many foreigners’ hands and incapacitate them. But unfortunately, the Qing soldiers and accompanying militias were greatly outnumbered and overpowered, eventually ending in cruel defeats.
Nevertheless, these collaborations may have played an important role later, when folk martial arts were released back to the open in Guangdong. Upon the ending of the First Opium War, Chan Heung and the remaining disciples regrouped and launched a movement to develop and spread Choy Lee Fut across the entire southern region of China. Next, the Taiping Rebellion (1850-1864) broke up in Guangxi, and Chan Heung joined Leader Shek Tat-hoi (石達開1831-1863) as an instructor to prepare civilian forces again, except this time, to fight against the Qing. The Nine Dragon Trident was said to be useful in response to the long spear squadron of the Qing soldiers during various campaigns. Yet, the Qing reconquest was inevitable, and the last Taiping army was completely dismantled by government forces in 1871. Chan Heung and others became wanted by the Qing, forced to flee the region for many years.
Nine Dragons of Steel
The Nine Dragon Trident was named by Chan Heung based on its peculiar construction. It is a long pole ending in a spearhead affixed with a crescent-shaped hilt – giving the appearance of a trident, which symbolizes the first dragon. In addition, various hooks installed along the shaft represent the other eight dragons. The first four consist of two curved hooks emanating from the top of a vertical blade, the other four are single hooks emanating from the bottom. Each set of vertical blades is connected to the main shaft by a horizontal parallel blade in the shape of a cross. The first pair of hooks located in the same plane as the crescent-shaped hilt, whereas the second pair of hooks located below the first pair of hooks at ninety degrees to both the first pair of hooks and the crescent-shaped hilt.
Although the few remaining original pieces were all lost, most likely melted in small blast furnaces during the Great Leap Forward campaign (1958-1961),the Nine Dragon Trident’s characteristics and routine movements were recorded in the Chan Family manuscripts and kept within the Chan Family for generations. Grandmaster Chen Yongfa (陳永發), who is the patrilineal descendant of the founder and considered the current ‘keeper’ or Jeung Mun Yan (掌門人) of his family style, decided to start teaching it to a selected group of masters over the years, including Master Louie Lane, who was part of the first group of inner chamber disciples of Grandmaster Chan in Australia.
With regards to this weapon, Master Louie states, “Chan Heung’s Nine Dragon Trident is considered to be ‘The King of Weapons’ within the Choy Lee Fut fraternity due to its uniqueness, rareness, and the methods used in its applications. The original model was made of steel, over two meters (6.5ft) in length and weighed 90 catties (approx.120 pounds).” Upon review of this information, one can infer that this recorded weight may refer to the heavier versions of the weapon, perhaps used for training purposes or exhibitions of strength. The actual pole arm used for battle might have been much lighter. In more recent times, the Sanwui Choy Lee Fut Ancestral Association (新會蔡李佛始祖拳會) has recreated a version that weighs around 20 pounds and still is extremely hard to maneuver by untrained individuals.
Privileged Access And Strict Learning Process
“First, you must consider that authentic and qualified sources are very scarce,” Master Louie comments, “When Chan Heung formulated the Choy Lee Fut system most of the manuscripts were written in a scholastic Chinese poetry or verse with the true meanings hidden. Therefore, even if a layman was able to acquire copies of the manuscripts, they may not necessarily be able to interpret or decode the manuscripts. Apart from the poems themselves, there are supplementary notes, held usually by each Jeung Mun Yan, to allow the manuscripts’ proper interpretation. In our case, Grandmaster Chen learned directly from both his father and grandfather since he was 4 years old. So, we can be sure the complete body of theoretical and practical knowledge was conveniently deposited in him.”
“Then, important training prerequisites come into place,” Master Louie points out, “Once a practitioner has reached a level where they are considered capable, worthy, and qualified to learn the Nine Dragon Trident, and on the proviso that they can find someone knowledgeable, capable, as well as willing to teach them, they need to have spent a long time drilling with basic and intermediate weapons such as the Double-Headed Staff (雙頭棍), the Nine-Ring Saber (九環刀), the Tiger Fork (虎叉),the Spring and Autumn Halberd (春秋大刀), and others. These are the building blocks that will enable them to develop the necessary body methods such as utilizing the waist, hips, stances, shoulders, and wrists to maximize power generation and ensure the control required to wield the Nine Dragon Trident with proficiency.”
Due to the great overall mass of this weapon, stances and footwork play an important role in the preparation of the students. Master Louie agrees, “The lower limbs are required to be strong, move forward and backward freely, and change quickly to achieve the purpose of steady footwork and agile body methods. These are achieved with the practice of the first two fundamental barehand forms of Choy Lee Fut: Ng Lun Ma (五輪馬 Five Wheel Horse) and Ng Lun Chui (五輪搥 Five Wheel Fist). The stances used with the Nine Dragon Trident such as Sei Ping Ma (四平馬 Horse Stance), Gwai Ma (拐馬 Crossed-Legged Horse Stance), Diu Ma (吊馬 Cat Stance), Ding Ji Ma (丁字馬 Bow Stance), and a few others are all present in them. Please note these routines are not only for beginners, well-trained practitioners still need to recite them day and night!”
A Versatile Weapon, A Wealth of Techniques
Master Louie closes, “The reason the Nine Dragon Trident was such a formidable weapon was the fact that it could be used to counter, trap, and neutralize the opponent and/or their weapons, as well as to thrust, crush, or cut to render them helpless. The techniques developed by the founder do not include any ‘flowery’ or big swinging movements, lending itself well to groups as well as to solo fighters. Rotating the weapon with the wrists while advancing or retreating, using the stepping pattern of Jau Sarng Ma (走生馬 Running Wild Horse), allows the dragons/hooks to act like a set of propeller blades, deflecting, trapping, or slashing at every available opportunity.”
The amount of knowledge within traditional Wushu is unfathomable and Master Lane Louie is determined to preserve it, “Although these types of traditional practices such as Martial Arts, Qigong, Lion Dance, Chinese Medicine, Ethical Codes, and others are still appreciated and learned around the world, some may argue that they may no longer be useful or practical in modern society. While there is limited surviving documentation and limited resources, it is tremendously important that we act now to ensure that this great body of accumulated martial culture is not lost. Let each one of us take action in every way we can!”
