The Roots of Wah Lum

A Journey of Discovery
by Bruce Cohen

It has long been a tradition in Wah Lum that each August a pilgrimage is made to China. It involves training, competing in local tournaments and cultural events as well as a good dose of sightseeing and taking in the exotic splendor that is China. This year however, the trip had a different focus. This year Wah Lum Grandmaster Chan Pui, along with his whole family (Simo Suzy Chan and daughters Mimi and Tina), led the largest group ever, 53 strong, on a special journey, a journey in search of the roots of Wah Lum Kung Fu.

The trip began on Aug 23, 2001 with the group, comprised of Wah Lum students and sifus from around the country, departing for Beijing from Orlando, FL. The trip would begin in the northern part of China and work its way south to end in Hong Kong almost as though it was traveling the old Silk Road as Wah Lum's founder Master Lee Kwan Shan did at the turn of the century.

Lee Kwan Shan Fifth Generation Successor of the Northern Praying Mantis System 1888-1948 Lee Kwan Shan was the originator of the Wah Lum System. His real name is Yuk Tong, meaning "Jade Mountain." He learned the Northern Praying Mantis System from Ching Yeung, the Abbot of the Wah Lum Temple in Shangtung Province in China. He took in young Pui Chan as his last disciple of the system.

Chan Wan Ching Sixth Generation Successor of the Northern Praying Mantis System Deceased - August 1975 Mr. Chan Wan Ching was Master P. Chan's older Kung Fu brother, who continued to teach him the Wah Lum System after Lee Kwan Shan died. He was the first president of the Hong Kong Wah Lum Kung Fu Association.

The trip began with a week and a half immersion into the culture of the country into whose soil the seeds of the Wah Lum System was sown. It was time to go to Shajing, the birthplace of Chan Pui and the town in which he grew up and began his martial arts career. First there was a visit to the Chan village, a small town now within Shajing, and the house in which Chan Pui grew up. The house has been taken over by his older brother, who still lives in Shjing, and turned into a memorial to the famous family.

The group also visited the Wah Lum Temple. Inside the temple there are 500 golden Buddhas, one of them being Marco Polo, and another Dat Mo. The famed Italian explorer visited the original temple on his journey through China and the legendary Buddhist cleric stopped there before traveling north to Shaolin. Wah Lum was actually the first temple Dat Mo visited when he visited China.

A pilgrimage was then made to Master Lee's grave and homage was paid to the legend of Old China that gave this group their martial heritage. At the site the group met with Chan King Yueng and Alice Chan, the sister and daughter of Chan Wan Ching, Chan Pui's Sihing and Grandmaster of the Wah Lum system until his death in 1975. The two women still keep up the gravesite to the revered Master Lee.

The team put on a demonstration in the Chan Village town square to reconnect themselves with their roots as well as to return the spirit of the Wah Lum system to its native soil and show the people there that the transplanted tree has grown strong in foreign soil. The village band came out and performed at a welcoming show in honor of the group's visit. As is tradition in China a massive banquet of suckling pig was held in Shajing in honor of the visit of the Chan family to their village.

Part of the purpose for this trip was to gather information on the early days of the Wah Lum system and the exploits of its early masters so that a complete history can be compiled. Much of this was accomplished but it may take several more trips to get the complete story. The preservation and proliferation of this system and its rich history is the challenge that the system's current Grandmaster has undertaken and, as he has proven so often before, the challenge will be met.

Written by Bruce Cohen for KUNGFUMAGAZINE.COM

Print Friendly Version of This Article