Wing Chun Kung-Fu Volume 3. Joseph Wayne Smith, Dr.

      Introduction

      This is the third and final book in my complete guide to Wing Chun kung-fu. The broad aim of this project has been to present a concise, systematic, and scientific analysis of the Wing Chun system, which although condensed will be informative not only to Wing Chun practitioners, but to other martial artists as well. To do this has involved deconstructing the system and breaking through the curtain of secrecy, mysticism, and controversy surrounding the art. As I pointed out in the introduction to volume two of this series, there is often great vagueness about why Wing Chun skills are as they are, and why techniques do or do not work. There is even less room in traditional martial arts for scientific and logical criticism of techniques or experimentation. This has led some martial artists to abandon classical systems altogether and adopt eclectic freestyle systems. However, apart from some outstanding freestyle contributions, typically devised for advanced martial artists, the baby is often tossed out with the bath water, leaving one with the silt of often incongruous techniques and contradictory approaches that lack functional harmony. This three-volume treatise has dealt with this philosophical problem of the martial arts by advocating a middle way—to think about a traditional martial art such as Wing Chun kung-fu in a non-classical way. Accordingly, certain core historical and cultural aspects of the art have been retained, but in order to be scientifically oriented, there must be room for modifications in the light of experience.

      Volume one in this series, Basic Forms and Principles, gave a comprehensive analysis of the building blocks of the Wing Chun system, namely the three forms—Sit Lum Tao, Chum Kil, and Bil Jee. That book defined terms, outlined the meaning of specific body movements, and summarized the key principles of Wing Chun kung-fu. The second volume, Fighting and Grappling, studied Wing Chun strategy or logistics, explaining how to fight using the Wing Chun empty-hand and foot techniques in realistic combat situations. This involved a study of the fighting skills of Wing Chun, including sticky-hands, sticky-legs, chin-na, and the poison-touch theory of vital strikes to the weak points of human anatomy (dar mak). In this book I discuss, and photographically illustrate the wooden-dummy form and its combat applications, as well as the butterfly knives and the six-and-a-half pole form. Attempting to outline both the wooden-dummy form and its applications as well as the Wing Chun butterfly knives in one volume is a tall order. Consequently this book, following the trend set by the previous two volumes, has no padding but attempts to get down to the meat of the matter. Because the books have been written in a progressive and systematic fashion, it is hoped that the student will purchase all three volumes in this series. However, a detailed glossary has been included explaining important terms used in the previous two volumes.

      In my previous books I spent considerable time in textual discussion dealing with martial-art controversies to clean-up conceptual messes and confusions. This book builds upon that foundation. The chapter discussions are briefer because there are fewer controversies regarding the Wing Chun weapons. Differences between the Wing Chun styles in this respect are largely differences in the organization of the forms or katas, rather than in the assembled techniques. Again, my concern is to present a clear and logical outline of the relevance of the moves from the forms and their combat applications. I attempt to present in this volume Wing Chun weapons forms that are sensible and rational. As the reader will see, my presentation is completely consistent with the Wing Chun philosophy adopted in my previous books. The Wing Chun weapons are an extension of the empty-hand forms, not radically different forms haphazardly welded onto the Wing Chun system. Therefore both the empty-hand forms and the weapons forms must constitute an organic unity; a coherent and functional whole, the parts of which fit naturally together and mutually interact and support