VO HOC CO TRUYEN - TINH HIA VO DAO [vietnamese]
THE ANCIENT MARTIAL ART - THE SPIRITUAL TREASURY OF A WARRIOR`S WAY [english]
The family martial art school «The Ancient Martial Art - The Spiritual Treasury of a Warrior`s Way» is the source, which nourishes our interest in the Vietnamese culture. This Tradition has appeared in Ukraine due to Master Chan Chung Zung who has been following the Martial Art`s Way for more than forty years, making himself stronger and healthier and continuously accumulating experience and perfecting his School.
During 4000 years of the history of Vietnam the ancient masters accumulated from generation to generation the invaluable legacy of martial arts. In district Namdinh the family of Master Chan Chung Zung was known by having knowledge of Vietnamese national medicine traditions and rare martial arts family style. The grandfather of the Master, Patriarch of this family tradition, Chan Van Tho, disinterestedly treated his fellow-villagers and other people from nearby settlements with the help of herbs and Khi Kong-therapy (in Chinese qigong-therapy).
In 1960, at the age of 7, future Master received the first lesson of family martial art from his grandfather. During the trainings he showed special patience and diligence. Having seen that the grandfather began to bring him up as the Keeper of the Family School.
After five years of training, Chan Van Tho evaluated success his grandson had made and decided to expand horizons of his knowledge in the sphere of martial arts and sent him to the close relatives - Nguien Suan My and Kam Van for studying. The style was related to family school, but had essential differences. It was the classical school of Southern Shaolin (Thieu Lam) which included the techniques of canonical five animals.
In 1968 Chan Chung Zung was offered to have common trainings and to exchange experience with Masters My Minh and Minh Tuan who practised styles The Vo Binh Dinh and The Vo Thai Nguen (national Vietnamese martial arts schools of provinces Dak Lac and Binh Dinh). The acquaintance with these styles has brought to young Master not only new skills, but what is more important, new ideas.
The received skills helped Master Zung a lot at the following stage of his life - service in The Intelligence Departament during military operations of 1971-1976 on the territory of Laos and Southern Vietnam. Before long, he became the instructor of hand-to-hand fight, that helped him to extend his knowledge of all applied aspects during the training of The Special Purpose Departament. At the same time Master Zung began studying the Vietnamese branch of The Wing Chun School, which is the original system of closed combat based on «clinging to the opponent».
After war, in 1976, he leaves for the Soviet Union to study, where since 1980 he has taught and popularized the Vietnamese martial art. However keeping his plans of creating his own school in a secret, Master limited his teaching activity by the style «Southern Shaolin», which was taught till 1990 on the territory of Ukraine, Belorussia and Russia.
In 1990 the Hanoi Association of Martial Arts gave Chan Chung Zung a rank «The Head Master of Southern Shaolin School». In the same year the Master Chan Chung Zung created his own school, which was named Vo Hoc Co Truyen - Tinh Hoa Vo Dao («The Ancient Martial Art • The Spiritual Treasure of a Warrior`s Way»).
«The Ancient Martial Art - The Spiritual Treasure of a Warrior`s Way» is a family school keeping ancient traditions and the legacy of Vietnamese Masters. The fact that Vietnamese people are not tall and do not weigh much has caused prevalence of a close distance, short and dangerous attacks, principles of «force saving» and using the opponent`s force against him, attacks aiming at vital points.
The big arsenal of health-improving and fighting complexes represents harmonious and deliberate technique. Each aspect of school technique has the external structure and internal contents. All movements have logical completeness. Movements should be performed with open heart and belief in the power of Good. Studying and analyzing technique, the follower should find realization of the law of harmony in each combination and movement. Then all internal and external forces will increase incredibly. Having become purified by nature forces, a warrior, who realized self-naturalness, is invulnerable.
The school is based on 7 main practical principles:
1. Principle of the Law of Harmony in Nature;
2. Principle of counter movement;
3. Principle of a maximum close distance;
4. Principle «Soft against Hard»;
5. Principle of short impulse attack at different levels;
6. Principle of step-by-step force transmission;
7. Principle of simultaneous protection and attack.
For developing necessary qualities and realization of these principles the structure of School consists of:
1. General technique (Ky Thuat Tong Hop).
2. Weapons using technique (Ky Thuat Su Dung Binh Khi).
3. Breathing method Khi Cong.
Each section is divided in some subsections. But at the same time all components are inseparably linked in a united, harmonious and deliberate technique.
«The Ancient Martial Art - The Spiritual Treasure of a Warrior`s Way» combines Spiritual, Health Improving and Fighting aspects. The Spiritual development forms in the follower striving for Harmony with all things in the Universe. Comprehending the Law of Harmony, he becomes an integral part of Nature, in which all is in Balance. It is realized with the help of constant trainings of spirit and body, long-term vital testing, constant concentration when deciding the set problems - both the most simple and extraordinarily difficult.
«The Ancient Martial Art - The Spiritual Treasure of a Warrior`s Way» is the School of all life leading the follower to Harmony, giving him healthy and active life. The life of such a person will always find reflection in serving and helping the weak and needy. Developing himself and going up to the new steps of development, the follower shows the Way others with his own example. This person has a happy destiny, despite all the difficulties, wherefore it is of other quality. It carries harmony and is an example of Great Serving, that as a matter of fact is the Exploit. Such a person throws light on the Way and testifies to Force of Good as a guiding star.
We sincerely thank all those who together with us look after the tree of our School in the name of development of an eternally renewing martial art of Vietnam - an integral part of East and world as a whole.
avn-mail@ukr.net
