The tao of wing chun book has anyone read it?

[SOD-WC]

Hi all,
Recently really started to learn more about WC. Has anyone here read the book "The tao of Wing chun" by danny xuan and john little? Want to get your thoughts before i drop some money and time reading it.
thanks in advance!!!

 

[DanT]

I've read it. I personally didn't like it. I found "The Wing Chun Compendium" by Sifu Wayne Belonoha to be a much better book.

 

[SOD-WC]

I've read it. I personally didn't like it. I found "The Wing Chun Compendium" by Sifu Wayne Belonoha to be a much better book.

thanks dan, ill go and buy that one instead

 

[KPM]

I have it but haven't read it yet. I also have Belonoha's books. But the "Tao" book is history and background while Belonoha's books are curriculum and technique. To me they seem like two very different things and not comparable.

 

[SOD-WC]

I have it but haven't read it yet. I also have Belonoha's books. But the "Tao" book is history and background while Belonoha's books are curriculum and technique. To me they seem like two very different things and not comparable.

thanks.... while we are at it are there any other material thatsbworth getting my hands on?
the internet has so much but requires lots of searching and going through lots of forum post.

 

[ShortBridge]

Depends on what you are hoping to learn from them.

I am a Wing Chun sifu. Top 3 on my student's reading list are:

Strong On Defense by Sanford Strong
Meditations on Violence by Rory Miller
The Gift of Fear by Gavin de Becker

For Wing Chun, I recommend "Complete Wing Chun" by Rene Richie and friends

I have multiple copies and loan them all out, but also encourage owning copies because they are worth annotating and circling back to.

I think the Compendium books are really well done and professionally produced. There are a few chapters and verses that I have issues with, but mostly they are good reference materials. You're not going to learn Wing Chun from them, though and I discourage them to students starting out, but see value in them down the road, especially if you're a Moy Yat student.

That's just me, though. Everyone has opinions.

 

[Juany118]

Hi all,
Recently really started to learn more about WC. Has anyone here read the book "The tao of Wing chun" by danny xuan and john little? Want to get your thoughts before i drop some money and time reading it.
thanks in advance!!!

I agree with KPM. I have read it and I liked it but knew what it was about. It was about the history, philosophy and over all methodology of Wing Chun. It is basically something the enthusiast would read broaden their understanding beyond simple practice of the art and perhaps seeing a different view of Wing Chun. I found it a very good read tbh but I am a fan of history and philosophy so when he does a chapter showing connections between Wing Chun and the Art of War in Chapter 7, I was happy

 

[SOD-WC]

thanks all, yeah i get it that you cant learn WC from books (unless u r some MA superstar) I'll be reading the books when im not training to fill my time, its that or watch youtube of random stuff till 3 am at dont wven know how i got to that topic.

 

[yak sao]

The problem you're going to run into with just about any book on WC is it will be lineage specific. In other words, they will show things from their lineage's perspective, which may or may not be the way you're being taught.

As for the book itself, I liked it. It's a good overall look at WC with some good insights and good history.
As an aside, many MA books are very cheaply made, this one is very well made.

 

[SOD-WC]

The problem you're going to run into with just about any book on WC is it will be lineage specific. In other words, they will show things from their lineage's perspective, which may or may not be the way you're being taught.

As for the book itself, I liked it. It's a good overall look at WC with some good insights and good history.
As an aside, many MA books are very cheaply made, this one is very well made.

i dont want to start a lineage war. but im assuming the basics would be similar. its WC after all and there is only so much difference u can have before it becomea another system

 

[Parky]

Danny Xuan is an online friend of mine. I have corresponded with him quite regularly for 15 years. He's a great guy and quite knowledgeable. His lineage comes thru Wong Shun Leung, Moy Yat, and Lok Yiu. He has a pretty deep and broad understanding of WC. I would recommend his book.

 

[yak sao]

i dont want to start a lineage war. but im assuming the basics would be similar. its WC after all and there is only so much difference u can have before it becomea another system

New here aren't you

Yeah, it's all the same except for forms, stance, footwork, terminology and concepts.
Is the stance 50/50, 60/40, 90/10, 100/0?
Is the pivot on the ball of the foot, the heels, the middle of the foot?
Soft and springy or harder and more forceful? Internal vs external........

What it comes down to is how your lineage does it, and how your si-fu teaches you. The debate over who is right and who is wrong will never be settled....especially here.

But again, a good book, just don't let it muddy the waters for you.

 

[geezer]

Yak, isn't it funny that there are probably as many ways to approach boxing as WC/WT/VT. In-fighters, out-fighters, sluggers, counterpunchers ...some working from a relatively upright stance, others from a deep crouch, yet different kinds of boxers never accuse each other of not practicing the correct style. As to what's right or wrong, all you gottta do is look their record.

If different branches of WC/VT developed a way of testing their art, they might find out that very different branches can produce effective fighters, and we might be less obsessive about theoretical differences. So, for example, instead of endless arguing, LFJ and KPM look at the record to see how their style's fighters were doing. Then again, even with a mountain of stats, sports-fans do love to argue.

 

[SOD-WC]

New here aren't you

Yeah, it's all the same except for forms, stance, footwork, terminology and concepts.
Is the stance 50/50, 60/40, 90/10, 100/0?
Is the pivot on the ball of the foot, the heels, the middle of the foot?
Soft and springy or harder and more forceful? Internal vs external........

What it comes down to is how your lineage does it, and how your si-fu teaches you. The debate over who is right and who is wrong will never be settled....especially here.

But again, a good book, just don't let it muddy the waters for you.

lol made me kind of regret asking about how different one system can be . no wonder its so hard to learn wc online, im guess the teachers themselves usually dont say the lineage they are from until asked. So r u saying if i EVER change schools im going to start from the beginning

 

[SOD-WC]

Yak, isn't it funny that there are probably as many ways to approach boxing as WC/WT/VT. In-fighters, out-fighters, sluggers, counterpunchers ...some working from a relatively upright stance, others from a deep crouch, yet different kinds of boxers never accuse each other of not practicing the correct style. As to what's right or wrong, all you gottta do is look their record.

If different branches of WC/VT developed a way of testing their art, they might find out that very different branches can produce effective fighters, and we might be less obsessive about theoretical differences. So, for example, instead of endless arguing, LFJ and KPM look at the record to see how their style's fighters were doing. Then again, even with a mountain of stats, sports-fans do love to argue.

best way to try out WC is at the local pub right? spill a drink on the biggest guy there and its training time. .

 

[geezer]

lol made me kind of regret asking about how different one system can be . no wonder its so hard to learn wc online, im guess the teachers themselves usually dont say the lineage they are from until asked. So r u saying if i EVER change schools im going to start from the beginning

At some schools, that's exactly what they do. It doesn't matter if you have 15 years in with another group. You start right at the bottom.

 

[geezer]

best way to try out WC is at the local pub right? spill a drink on the biggest guy there and its training time. .

Just watch this first:

 

[SOD-WC]

Just watch this first:

20 mins into it lol i love this guy, he really doesnt mess around!!! maybe i should quit WC and use improvised fighting techniques from this video, everything is a weapon.
Are you hinting fighting big drunk guys are not the same as fighting a MA bloke.

 

[geezer]

20 mins into it lol i love this guy, he really doesnt mess around!!! maybe i should quit WC and use improvised fighting techniques from this video, everything is a weapon.
Are you hinting fighting big drunk guys are not the same as fighting a MA bloke.

Dunno. How about big, drunk MA guys?

...Just came across the video and thought it too funny to leave out!

 

[ShortBridge]

No offense intended to Bas Rutten and I am not suggesting that he isn't credible, but I find it interesting that this video has been posted in a Wing Chun forum for a full day and none of the usual voices of discontent have any issues with the compliant attacker.

A Wing Chun video making similar claims (or not) that featured this level of acting and cooperation would have been ripped to shreds by now.