Sifu John Chow
A Brief History of Learning Tai
Chi Chuan
1) Started
preliminary martial arts training at age of 6 under father,
Henry Chow Fook
On.
2)
At age of 9, started formal training in the internal soft aspect
of the secret
martial art of my family art, Tai Tzu Chuan,
which was created by our
famous ancestor, Chow Guan Yin (pinyin - Zhao
Guan Yin).
This art is totally different from the
usual Tai Tzu Chuan in public existence
which is a hard external Shaolin
system.
Internal Tai Tzu Chuan emphasizes the 13
Postures training and is an
ancestral art of Tai Chi Chuan. It
is usually passed down secretly along the
family line.
(Refer to documentation on arts that Chen
Style Tai Chi was derived from)
(Refer to Peter Lim’s web pages on
origins of Tai Chi Chuan)
(Refer to Grandmaster Zhao’s article
from Chi Kung magazine)
(Tai Chi Chuan was originally referred to as the 13 Postures Boxing and
Cotton Fist)
Was taught Combat
Applications as well as Pushing Hands.
As Tai Tzu Chuan is an ancestral art
of Tai Chi Chuan, the techniques are
very similar to Tai Chi Chuan.
Weapons training given because my
father believed this is an effective
shortcut in skill acquisition.
Special training given in the use of the
machette.
3) At the age of 14 years of age, Yang
Style Tai Chi Chuan in the non profit
Tai Chi Chuan Association for Physical Culture
which was under the patronage
of Grandmmaster
Lu Tung Pau. (where Jiang Yong Gui was also an instructor)
Also studied Wu Style Tai Chi
Chuan under Master Loh Kam
Choon
at this time.
Also spent a short
while studying under Wong Li Sung.
This enabled me to synchronize the secret family
tradition with its popular
public offsprings, and
allowed me to interact with the public.
4) Picked up bits and pieces of information after coming to
including Chen Style Tai Chi Chuan, eg.
From Grandmaster Chen Xiao Wang the head of the
Chen Style.
From Grandmaster Chok Seng Kam (student of Grandmaster
Yap Siu Ting
of Cheng Man Ching lineage) of
From Grandmaster Cheng Tin Hung of Wutan Style of Tai Chi, a derivation
of Wu Style Tai
Chi Chuan.
From Lau Kim Hong, Wan Kean Chew, Ho Ah
San of
From Gao Yun Wu, Guo Zheng Fen, Lin Guan Zheng of
On the overall, the early learning
period were responsible for my understanding and skills.
Of these
later influences,
Grandmaster Chok, whose nickname in
is
“Tiger of Penang”, had the
most influence me the most because of his fighting abilities. The latest major influences were Lau Kim Hong
and Wan Kean Chew who were very proficient in combat applications.
In all, I have great
respect for the Cheng Man Ching lineage in
of Yap Siu Ting in
This
lineage, which
will always have a special veneration in my heart, was truly tried
and
tested in the rough period of the 1960s and 1970s, being challenged so often,
and
issuing its own challenges as well.
Because of the violent history it was forced to undergo,
it has
slight differences to the Cheng Man Ching tradition
in
Note:-
Any martial
arts master from
I would
have grave doubts about any Malaysian master who does not.
As a prime
example, I was
really shocked, terribly shocked, very very shocked
to meet a young 25 year old “Professor” of TCM (having studied only
2 years in
By the way, Nigel Sutton has
paid the proper tributes and credits to the above 3 names in his
articles
in his websites. Please refer. If anybody has any doubts about the
authenticity or ability
of the
Malaysia Cheng Man Cheng lineage, please
read carefully first before shooting off the mouth.
Click here to go to Kalis
Ilustrisimo (Arnis/Escrima) webpage
Click here to go to the Tao of
Tai Chi Chuan Institute webpage