While today the martial arts known as Lama Pai, Tibetan White Crane, and Hop Gar exist as relatively distinct lineages and/or organizations, all originated with a single figure known as Sing Lung who arrived inGuangdong Province during the Qing Dynasty and taught a martial art then known as “Lion’s Roar” (獅子吼). This article will attempt to explain the history of the tradition as a whole, the current differences between the lineages and organizations, and also their common traits.
Tibetan or Chinese martial art?
There has been a debate among martial art historians for some time as to whether or not Lion’s Roar and its offspring, are in fact “Tibetan” martial arts. This argument is based primarily on two logical observations. First and foremost, the martial arts that exist in what is modern Tibet in most respects do not resemble the school as preserved in China[citation needed]. Some of the long swinging motions are present but in general Tibetan martial arts are much closer to Indian traditions[citation needed]. While some of this apparent disparity is due to Chinese influences in the last hundred years, it is indeed a valid point.
The second consideration, directly related to the first, is the fact that they in many ways resemble systems that are associated with northern China. The long range swinging motions (but not those small circle techniques which are very much a specialization of the “Tibetan” tradition) of Lama Pai can be found in systems such as Pek Gwa Myuhn. Many of the kicking techniques also resemble northern systems.
Fortunately, this debate can be put to rest quite quickly if one examines more closely the history of Lion’s Roar. Ah Dat-Ta, the founder of Lion’s Roar, is described as both ethnically Chinese (i.e. Han) and as living in what is now the province of Qinghai, situated in north western China, next to modern day Tibet. There is also reason to believe Sing Lung, the Buddhist monk who brought Lion’s Roar to Guangdong, was raised and trained in Qinghai.[1] To understand the significance of this one has to know a little about the history of the region.
Qinghai has only recently been considered “Chinese”[citation needed]. For many generations, the province has been inhabited by Tibetans, Mongolians, Manchurians and a wide variety of minorities. Thus, Lion’s Roar represented the vast tradition of Western Chinese martial arts. It represented the martial arts practiced in Tibet but also the martial arts practiced in Qinghai, Outer Mongolia, inner Mongolia, Sichuan, Yunnan, and Xinjiang provinces. It represented the martial arts of Tibetans, Mongolians, Manchurians, Ethnic Han Chinese and a wide variety of minorities.
The origin of Lion’s Roar martial art
The original Lion’s Roar system is attributed to a monk named Ah Dat-Ta (阿達陀), also sometimes known as the “Dai Dat Lama”. Ah Dat-Ta was born in 1426 and was a member of a nomadic tribe that traveled throughout Tibet and Qinghai. He was an active young man who practiced horsemanship, wrestling (Shuai-Jiao) and a special type of joint-locking (seizing and controlling skill). After being ordained as a monk in Tibet, he also learned a martial art that was apparently Indian in origin.[2][3]
For several years Ah Dat-Ta retreated to the mountains to live in seclusion, studying Buddhist texts and practicing meditation. He also hoped to improve his martial art skill. One day Ah Dat-Ta’s meditation was disturbed by a loud sound. He left the cave he had been meditating in to investigate and found an ape trying to capture a crane. He was astonished. Despite the ape’s great size and strength, the crane eluded the great swings and pecked at soft, vital points. Ah Dat-Ta was inspired to create a new martial art.
Ah Dat-Ta created a system that mimicked the deft evasion and vital point striking of the white crane and the ape’s powerful swings and grabbing techniques. It was based upon the number eight, an important number in Chinese cosmology and numerology. The fundamental fighting theory was known as the “eight character true essence”. The “eight character true essence” can be roughly translated as “strike the place that has a pulse, never a place that has no pulse, and stretch the arms out while keeping the body away.”[3][4][5]
The system consisted of 8 fist strikes, 8 palm strikes, 8 elbow strikes, 8 finger strikes, 8 kicking techniques, 8 seizing (clawing) techniques, 8 stances and 8 stepping patterns.[3]
Based on a line found in the sutra known as “The Lantern Passing Record”, this new system was called Lion’s Roar (獅子吼). According to this sutra, upon the birth of the Buddha, he stood up, pointed the finger of one hand to the sky, the finger of the other hand to the earth and roared like a lion to announce he had arrived. Lion’s Roar was considered the Tibetan Lamas’ special gift, directly from Buddha.”[2][4][5]
Oral history maintains that, in the late Ming Dynasty (1368–1644), Lion’s Roar spread to Northern China and incorporated the techniques of the martial arts there, explaining its Northern Chinese characteristics.
Sing Lung
Depending upon the lineage, the figure known as Sing Lung is rendered in Chinese characters as either “Sage Dragon” (聖龍) or “Star Dragon” (星龍). From a Buddhist point of view, the “Sage Dragon” (聖龍) makes more logical sense and the use of the character for “star” (星) can easily be explained by the long established tradition of “white characters” in Chinese society, i.e. the use of a simpler character with the same phonetic sound.[6] Sing Lung also has an alias as Gam Ngau “Golden Hook” Leih Wu-Ji (Li Hu Ji) (金钩李胡子).[4]
A number of legends regarding Sing Lung’s exploits exist. Sing Lung first arrived in China at O-Mei Shan in Szechuan province. During his time there he became quite famous for his skill. Upon arrival on the Pearl River, Sing Lung was challenged by a pirate known as Cheung Po-Jai. Cheung was famous for robbing corrupt Qing Dynasty officials. After having defeated Cheung, Sing Lung accepted him as a student.[4][5]
For a time, Sing Lung also taught Leung Kwan, known as “Tit Kiu Sam” (鐵橋三) or “Iron Bridge #3”. “Tit Kiu Sam” is best known for his influences on the Southern Shaolin Hung Ga system and was also involved in revolutionary activities[7]
Late in his life Sing Lung arrived in Guangdong Province, Southern China at the Ching Yun Jih “Blessed Cloud Monastery” (庆云寺) near the “Ding Wu” Mountain in 1865.[2][4][8]
It was during this period of time that Sing Lung taught Chan Yam (陳蔭), Chou Heung-Yuen (周香遠), and Chu Chi-Yu (朱子堯). Chan Yam and Chou Heung-Yuen both died relatively young and apparently had few, if any, students worth noting. Chu Chi-Yu accepted only a few disciples and generally kept what he had learned concealed from the general public. Among his students were Chu Cheung, Lei Seung-Dong, and Chiu Dihk. These students continued to guard what they had learned very closely and only accept a few disciples. Chu Chi-Yu apparently also taught Nhg Siu-Chung for a period of time.
The two most important students from this time period are known as Wong Yan-Lam and Wong Lam-Hoi.[2][9]Again, depending upon the tradition, the story has somewhat different variations. Among those lines descended from Wong Yan-Lam, it is said that originally Wong Lam-Hoi was Wong Yan-Lam’s student. In those lines descended from Wong Lam-Hoi (principally Pak Hok Pai / Tibetan White Crane) he is described as a relative equal.
Wong Yan-Lam
Wong Yan Lam
Wong Yan Lam was the son of a Shaolin Kung-Fu master known as Wong Ping. Wong Ping was something of a local legend, known as “the bronze foot”, and was fond of demonstrating his kung-fu in public. Because of this he came to the attention of Sing Lung. One day Sing Lung came down from the mountain and had an opportunity to observe Wong Ping’s kung-fu. He was impressed by Wong Ping’s skill and tried to tell him so but because Sing Lung’s Chinese was not very good there was a misunderstanding. Wong Ping attacked Sing Luhng with a powerful leg sweep but the Tibetan monk utilized a technique known as “GAM GONG HONG LUHNG”. He leapt up into the air and landed on the leg, breaking Wong Ping’s knee.[8]
When the misunderstanding was corrected Sing Lung offered to heal the leg using special Tibetan medical techniques and the two became friends. Wong Ping was so impressed by Sing Lung that he asked the old monk to teach his son. Wong Yan-Lam studied for many years and achieved considerable skill under the direction of Sing Lung. In addition to Lama Pai, Wong Yan Lam also learned the Lo Han Myuhn (Boddhisattva division) and Gam Gong Myuhn (Diamond division) internal methods and the Tibetan medical techniques.[6]
Upon the death of his teacher, Wong Yan-Lam left Guangdong and worked for many years as an armed escort in Shan Xi province. During this period Wong Yan-Lam met and exchanged techniques with a great number of martial artists. Wong Yan-Lam also became involved in the revolutionary movement pledged to overthrow the Manchurians. Because of the numerous goods deeds attributed to him during his lifetime, Wong Yan-Lam earned the nickname of “Haap” (Knight or Hero).[2][4][8][10]
After many years, Wong Yan-Lam grew homesick and decided to return to Guangdong. He also decided that he finally wanted to accept students and teach Lama Pai. Upon arriving in Guangdong, he erected a large wooden stage and announced that he would accept any challenger to prove the effectiveness of Lama Pai. For the next 18 days, 150 of the area’s best fighters were punched, kicked, thrown or strangled into submission.[2][8][11] According to David Chin, “Either the challenger was maimed or killed. Wong never let one challenger leave his school without injury. He was a master of using the technique of cruelty.”[11]
It was an unprecedented display of fighting ability and as a result Wong Yan-Lam was subsequently ranked number one among the Ten Tigers of Guangdong and considered the best fighter in southern China.[10]
One of his fellow Tigers was Wong Kei-Ying, father of the famous Wong Fei-Hung. Father and son, both masters of Hung Kuen, exchanged knowledge with other martial artists, including Wong Yan-Lam. According to Lama Pai oral history, Wong Fei-Hung learned from Wong Yan-Lam the long arm techniques found in the Tiger Crane Paired Form Fist and the Five Element techniques found in the Five Animal Five Element Fist in return for the Five Animal techniques found in the Small Five Animal Fist of Yan-Lam and his descendants. By contrast, “village” styles of Hung Kuen do not show signs of influence from Lama Pai/Hop Gar/Tibetan White Crane and are more characteristic of Southern Chinese martial arts.
Wong Lam-Hoi
After the death of Sing Lung, Wong Lam-Hoi remained in Guangdong. As a teacher, Wong Lam-Hoi’s abilities were well respected by all and many students flocked to his school to learn his methods. In fact,Wong Lam-Hoi was already well established by the time Wong Yan-Lam returned to Guangdong. Wong Lam-Hoi accepted many disciples during his years in Guangdong including Nhg Siu-Chan, Nhg Shi-Kai, Nhg Keng-Wen, Lei Shing-Kon, Dong Di-Wen, Nhg Gam-Tin, Cheng Tit-Wu, Leung Chi-Hoi, Lo Chiu-Kit, Chung Chan-Yung and Dang Ho. Despite this, he is still primarily known for his senior student, Nhg Siu-Chung. Nhg Siu-Chung founded the White Crane style (Pak Hok Pai) which stressed the “flying crane hands” and “continuous kicking” of the Lama Pai curriculum.[6] Nhg Siu-Chung was an extremely skilled fighter and is often remembered for defeating Wong Siu-Jou, the foremost member of the northern five tigers group.
Hop Gar or White Crane (Pak Hok Pai)?
The Lion’s Roar system, now most often referred to as Lama Pai (the system of Lamas), suffered because it was a foreign method[citation needed]. The Republic period was a time of extreme nationalism and few instructors wanted to claim to be teaching a foreign system, especially one the Qing royal guard had practiced. For this reason, Wong Yan-Lam’s number one disciple, Wong Hon-Wing, adopted the name Hop Gar / Haap Ga (Knight Family Style) based upon his teacher’s nickname and the recommendation of Dr. Sun Yat-Sen. However, most of Wong Lam-Hoi’s students did not accept this new name. They simply refused to give more credit to their Si-Baahk (elder uncle) than to their own teacher. In response, Nhg Siu-Chung established the White Crane style (Pak Hok Pai).
Hop Gar
Wong Hon-Wing was for a very long time considered Master Wong Yan-Lam’s number one student and was his sole official representative. It was Wong Hon-Wing who began using the name Haap Ga Kyuhn based upon his teacher’s nickname and the recommendation of Dr. Sun Yat-Sen. As Wong Yan-Lam grew older, he also gave Wong Hon-Wing more and more responsibility for running the schools. Eventually, Wong Yan-Lam announced that he had retired and returned to his native village.[8]
In the period immediately following, Wong Hon-Wing opened several more schools exclusively under his own name and developed quite a reputation among the southern martial arts community. Haap Ga Kyuhn became generally associated with Wong Hon-Wing’s own version of the style. However, Wong Yan-Lam’s retirement was short lived and soon other students, many of them former students of Wong Hon-Wing, were accepted as disciples. There are numerous stories concerning the reasons for this shift and Wong Hon-Wing’s subsequent loss of position. In Hong Kong, it is said there was a dispute over the royalties Wong Han-Wing was supposed to pay his teacher. In Malaysia, it is said that many of Wong Hon-Wing’s students had complained to Wong Yan-Lam that their teacher was not passing on his skills. In San Francisco, more than a few teachers from several traditions hold that the old teacher had simply refused to step aside and let his student make a name for himself. There is probably some truth to all these stories. What is important to realize is that for whatever reason other students were accepted by Wong Yan-Lam and taught the advanced skills.[6]
Nhg Yim-Ming (also known in the United States as Harry Ng) also used the Haap Ga name adopted by Wong Hon-Wong and spread the art by teaching it to the Air Force. However, in 1950 Nhg Yim-Ming visited his family in San Francisco and decided to stay. There he taught a number of students including Chin Dai-Wei (David Chin), Jack Hoey and Tony Galvin.[11] Of all the later disciples of Wong Yan-Lam, Nhg Yim-Ming is the most respected and his skills were beyond question. In fact, Nhg Yim-Ming’s skills may very well have surpassed those of Wong Hon-Wing.
Lei Ying-Chuen was originally one of Wong Hon-Wing’s most senior disciples and helped him administer many of his schools. It was for this very reason that he had direct access to Wong Yan-Lam. Lei Ying-Chuen was the first disciple of Wong Hon-Wing to be accepted as a disciple by Wong Yan-Lam and he opened his own school, using the Haap Ga name, in Si-Gwan, Guangdong almost immediately upon his acceptance. While Lei Ying-Chuen’s skills were not in question, many are critical of his fickleness and lack of loyalty.
Wong Lun (AKA Wong Geng Choh) studied Hung Kune with his father for 5 years and then followed a student of Tit Kiu Sam for a further 6 years.[12] He then met Wong Yan Lum and became his disciple. Wong Lun’s student Deng Gum To popularized the Hop Gar system throughout southern China and wrote several books.
(From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lama_(martial_art))