Wah lum Kung fu

[SaMantis]

Hi judi_aidoka,

You don't test for ranks per se at WL, but there are levels that you test for with a specific set of requirements for each. Like yu shan says, there are no colored sashes, everyone wears a black sash. IME this fosters respect for each other because you never know from just looking at a person how skilled/unskilled he is. As far as the specifics of the testing, when you sign up you receive a student handbook that explains a lot of that (and includes some test questions that you'll have to answer at various levels).

The lion dancing is an inherent part of many CMA schools. Very much a tradition. I encourage you to check out lion dancing at Chinese New Year even if you don't join Wah Lum, it's a very demanding skill.

Iron palm is a specific training technique that takes a lot of time and dedication. Sifus will usually select a student who has demonstrated that he has the dedication it takes to undergo the training. Of course, you can mention to the sifu that you are interested in learning iron palm. But in any traditional system you may train for quite awhile (years) before the sifu decides you're ready for iron palm.

[Judo_iaidoka]

Yea i signed up for classes, Ive taken one already learnt i-bay to horse stance to sow, It was a little uncomfortable but first classes always are especially if your already stressed out from work prior, felt better after the class though.

[Judo_iaidoka]

One last thing I thought of, if jut sow is a southern praying mantis style and the main axis so to speak of wah lum and tam tui is I assume only a small part of wah lum, why is wah lum considered a northern style?

[mantid1]

"Jut Sow" is a northern mantis system. Tan Tui is considered northern. This makes Wah Lum Northern Mantis.

[YuanZhideDiZhen]

As far as learning the basics and getting a good foundation wah lum is a good place to go: it's one of the reason's chan's school system is so successful. you will get a knowledge base vastly superior than most of the smaller schools.

wah lum is the bread-n-butter school of cma without a doubt. many of the forms i perform they do also, they just don't do them the same way.

[Frogman]

Welcome to Wah Lum and NPM. Sifu Harry Lo is a top WL Sifu, he has an awesome school and demo team. I wish you good luck in your training.

RibHit
fm

[Brad]

One last thing I thought of, if jut sow is a southern praying mantis style and the main axis so to speak of wah lum and tam tui is I assume only a small part of wah lum, why is wah lum considered a northern style?

I think a lot of outsiders consider Wah Lum to be a north/south combo style. I remember awhile ago someone mentioned the villiage where Wah Lum was popular also had a strong southern style presence (Mok Gar I think?). Not sure if he actually knew what he was talking about though or if this was just some unsubstantiated pet theory.

[shuaichiao]

I think a lot of outsiders consider Wah Lum to be a north/south combo style. I remember awhile ago someone mentioned the villiage where Wah Lum was popular also had a strong southern style presence (Mok Gar I think?). Not sure if he actually knew what he was talking about though or if this was just some unsubstantiated pet theory.

That's true. There is mok gar, hung fut and a few other styles mixed in. I think when I studied Wah Lum my sifu told me there were like 18 different styles that made up Wah Lum. I know many of thier weapons forms are southern influenced.

[Brad]

Anyway, as an outsider in a city with a strong Wah Lum presence, Wah Lum is an excellent school for developing strong basics (stances, strong kicks & punches, and overall athleticism). It's the sort of place I'd defenitely recomend for beginers.

Northern/Southern descriptions don't allways tell you much about a style, so my advice is to not get all caught up in that part... Wah Lum is Wah Lum

[Judge Pen]

I've heard Wah Lum described as more of a southern Longfist heavily influenced by northern mantis. Mok Gar was Pui Chan's family's style, no?

[YuanZhideDiZhen]

I'm pretty sure wah lum is the style of his decendants. and i thought his entire ma experience was with Iyip: he was there for some fourty years....

Iyip's full recipe is not limited to this:
Mih Men/Mih Hua, Shaoi Jiao, and Fen Shen as the three primaries
Ji Yaw, Bor Yuan, Tzeuy, Tong Bei, Hong, drunken, and mantis as flavourings
with a heavy dose of wing chun and choy li fut.

out of which Chan utilized the mantis flavoured combined elements of the above styles with a healthy dose of wing chun.

there has been some arguement elsewhere about Mok Gar being utilized as the stylistic fore runner to wing chun when observed with iron thread.

[shuaichiao]

Mok gar was the mok families family style, but yes that was what the chan family was practising before Lee Kwan Shun brought Wah Lum to thier village. There are only a handful of actual Wah Lum forms. They are jut sow tong long hands mixed with tam tui legs. The rest of the forms they have were adapted to wah lum from the various styles that were practised in and around thier village. I've never heard of Iyip before.

[SaMantis]

I'm pretty sure wah lum is the style of his decendants. and i thought his entire ma experience was with Iyip: he was there for some fourty years....

Iyip's full recipe is not limited to this:
Mih Men/Mih Hua, Shaoi Jiao, and Fen Shen as the three primaries
Ji Yaw, Bor Yuan, Tzeuy, Tong Bei, Hong, drunken, and mantis as flavourings
with a heavy dose of wing chun and choy li fut.

out of which Chan utilized the mantis flavoured combined elements of the above styles with a healthy dose of wing chun.

there has been some arguement elsewhere about Mok Gar being utilized as the stylistic fore runner to wing chun when observed with iron thread.

Hi, you had commented on this earlier in a thread in the Southern forum -- can't find the thread now to link to it. At any rate, I think you're thinking of the wrong Master Chan.

The etymology of the ginormous amount of forms listed in the WL handbook is indeed interesting, you find out a lot from your sifu as you learn them (and um, it's the best way to get a correct lead on where that form came from).

Oh and, welcome to Wah Lum, judo_iaidoka!

BTW, at the beginning don't worry about the history of every move in a form, just concentrate on getting them right.

[YuanZhideDiZhen]

The etymology of the ginormous amount of forms listed in the WL handbook is indeed interesting, you find out a lot from your sifu as you learn them (and um, it's the best way to get a correct lead on where that form came from).

.

they have a handbook?
i was looking at a page in taiwan. the school is reputedly just one or two generations from Iyip's CLF from before the big fight.

[mantid1]

Yuan

I think you are talking about a Choy Li Fut "Chan" not the one discussed here.
You have to remember that there are many people with the family name Chan .

Have a good day