Build the Horse First

3 01 2013

One of the teaching philosophies used in Dean Chin’s Jow Ga is “Build the Horse First”.

Often in battle, the winner is not determined by who has the sharpest spear–but who has the strongest horse. The legs, in Kung Fu, are referred to as one’s “horse” because what gets the soldier around during skirmishes are his legs if he’s on foot–or his horse if he is on horseback. For those who fight atop horses, just as much training is given to the horse who carries the soldier as to the combat training of the soldier himself. The fighter who is able to outmaneuver his opponent will find combat and self-defense to be much easier and less risky. When one has developed his footwork to evade and opponent who cannot catch him, and to outrun an opponent who cannot escape him–fighting demands less energy and fewer chances of getting hurt from the combatant.

In Jow Ga training, you will learn to move efficiently and explosively before learning to strike an opponent; this is an indication of how important this oft-overlooked skill is. We accomplish by spending a large amount of time holding postures in our six basic stances:

  1. Sei Ping Ma – Four corners horse stance
  2. Jee Um Ma – Bow and Arrow stance
  3. Gum Gai Dok Lop Ma – Golden Rooster Standing on One Leg stance
  4. Kay Lun Ma – Cross Stance
  5. Breaking the Broom Stance
  6. Pak Tui – Drop Leg Stance

You will also learn and practice our “Stance Training Form”–a routine of attack and defensive footwork maneuvers. The first half of the routine teaches basic footwork and the second half combines hand attacks with that footwork and includes our famous “Wheel Punch Technique” which is the Jow Ga fighter’s first “super-technique”. (Super Technique refers to a powerful technique that is difficult for opponents to counter)

It takes about 6 to 9 months for students to properly learn Horse Training. During this time, you will find your upper body strength increase at least threefold. Your leg strength and flexibility will multiply itself at least four or five times. This is not an exaggeration.

Remember, our mission in Jow Ga is to build dominant fighters. This is an ambitious goal, and you will have to put a lot of energy towards meeting it. Building the horse is the first step towards achieving it.

Thank you for visiting DC Jow Ga Federation.


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Categories : Technique and Strategy

What Is a “Grandmaster”, Anyway?

3 01 2013

The term “Grandmaster” is today an overused and meaningless term.

Grandmaster used to mean one who taught your teacher, a form of saying “martial arts grandfather”. The term for one who creates a style is actually “Founder”, or in Chinese we say Si Jo. The title that the Si Jo was called by his students is simply “Sifu”, meaning “teacher”. Not lofty enough of a term for today’s egotistic martial arts teacher.

Today, we have the term used for anyone who claims more than a 5th degree black belt, which would make him a “senior teacher”, or Dai Sifu. Appropriately, the top three or four students of the Master might be referred to as their school’s Dai Sifu–but only to differentiate those students from his other students holding an instructor ranking in the system or school. However, those few students with that denotion would be called by their students, simply, Sifu. Yet most traditional teachers who have instructor level students do not give their students this title. Some would say that the school’s Master would be that school’s Dai Sifu, but again no one would call him that title either. What would that school’s master call himself? Sifu.

And what would his senior students be called? Want to take a guess?

Si Hing. This mean’s “older brother”. The same title a student with 6 months of training would call his classmate with 10 months of training. The same title a student with 3 years of training would call his classmate with 17 years of training. This morning I received a call from my junior classmate who joined Jow Ga Association in 1986. Guess what he calls me? Si Hing.

Why all of these optional titles that no one uses? Because in the Chinese martial arts, respect is often earned three ways:

  1. Stay in the arts long enough and/or simply be older,
  2. Move up in rank,
  3. Possess skill.

While a man can walk around and call himself a Grandmaster, and insist that the community calls him a Grandmaster, we must be careful not to confuse titles with respect. Some will be in awe of a man with a lofty title, an interesting story to tell, or longevity in the art–but again, some may not. Yet when a man is in your presence and everyone around him knows without a doubt that he could kill anyone within 6 feet of him with his bare hands–and no one could do a thing about it–there exists a very rare form of respect that all martial artists understand, and everyone agrees.

Martial artists who do not posses the third category of respect must rely on the first two. In other words, he must be called names and throw around his resume and qualifications in order to receive the kind of respect that is earned the traditional way: years of study, thousands upon thousands of hours of training, a multitude of opponents therefore proving his ability, and finally possessing the skill that even when he says, “just call me ‘teacher’”–everyone knows they are in the presence of a master.

And a grandmaster is only an old man with a title.

Thank you for visiting DC Jow Ga Federation.


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Categories : Kung Fu Philosophy

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