| SIFU MOY 29 |
| A U B U R N , N E W Y O R K |
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Moy Yat Ving Tsun Kung Fu
A BRIEF HISTORY Ving Tsun Kung Fu was named after it’s founder, Yim Ving Tsun, who was born in a small town in entral China nearly 400 years ago. She studied Kung Fu with a nun. Ng Mui, who was one of the top martial artists of that time. Ving Tsun proceeded to revise and refine what she had learned until finally she had a distillation that was amazingly economical as well as extremely effective. She taught the system to her husband, Leung Pok-Toa, who was an actor. Together they taught Ving Tsun to a carefully chosen few whole they were traveling throughout China with his show. When they stopped at Fut Shan they taught it to a doctor, Leung Chun, who later passed it on to Chan Wah-Shuen, who was Yip Man’s Sifu. In 1949 Yip Man brought Ving Tsun Kung Fu to Hong Kong where it has become the most popular style of Kung Fu today (“108 Muk Yan Jong,” Moy Yat, 1974).
Great Grandmaster Yip Man Yip Man (Yip Kai-Man) was born in the town of Fut Shan in southern China. Because his parents were wealthy, he was fortunate enough to study Ving Tsun Kung Fu under the tutelage of the venerable Chan Wah-Shuen (Nicknamed Jow Chin Wah). He was also an educated man. Not only was he well versed in Chinese literature, he also studied the English language. He headed the Ving Tsun Kung Fu system for over two decades, from 1949 until his death in 1972. He was the foremost proponent of the science and art of Ving Tsun Kung Fu. Under his leadership and guidance, Ving Tsun Kung Fu became the most sought after style of Kung Fu in Hong Kong and the most sought after style wherever martial arts are studied. Yip Man was respected not only by his disciples and students, but also by the leading martial artists of others styles and systems as well (“108 Muk Yan Jong,” Moy Yat, 1974).
Grandmaster Moy Yat Moy Yat (Moy Yit-Kai) was born in Toi Shan, in the province of Canton. In 1953, his family moved to Hong Kong where he had the good fortune to study Ving Tsun Kung Fu under Yip Man. He was a very close follower of the venerable teacher, being a frequent companion as well as a dedicated student. At twenty-four, Moy Yat became the youngest Ving Tsun sifu. Today, he is very well respected. His students number in the thousands and a good many of the Ving Tsun sifus were once his students. However, Kung Fu hasn’t been Moy Yat’s only preoccupation. He has also been a student of the fine arts. Aside from being a calligrapher and an excellent painter, he is an extraordinary seal maker. He and his Family immigrated to the United States in 1973, where he joined his brother Yit-Dean Moy in New York. Since then he has started several schools in the New York area where American King Fu enthusiasts are able to study the fine art of Ving Tsun (Moy Yat, “Dummy; A Tool for Kung Fu,” 1998).
Sifu Moy 29 Sifu Moy 29 began his study of the Ving Tsun system in 1975 at Grand Master Moy Yat’s first U.S. school, Ding Leg Yard. He had the privilege and good fortune of training with older brothers such as John Cheng (Moy Four), Micky Chan (Moy Sheun), and Lester Lau (Moy Yee). Many years have come and gone since those days, however one always remembers with gratitude those who gave him his Kung Fu. Being an artist, entrepreneur, and dealer in investment rarities, Sifu Moy 29 has had limited time to teach Kung Fu. However, those select few he has taught are Ving Tsun sifus today. Now those in Central New York who desire to do so may have the opportunity to learn Moy Yat Ving Tsun. A Brief History Under the auspices of Moy 29's Si mo Helen Moy, the matriarch of the family, Sifu Moy 29 is honored to be a member of the Moy Yat Ving Tsun kung fu family. Sifu Moy 29 joined the family in the seventies, and since then it has grown to thousands worldwide. He has many Si Hings, including some from grandmaster Moy Yat's first school in Hong Kong. From Ding Lee Yard: Lee Moy Shan, Lester Lau, John Chang and Mickey Chan. From the New York School: Si-Di William Moy, Pete Pagil, Miguel Hernandes, Leo Imura, Anthony Dandrige and many, many more. All the aforementioned Si-Hing and Si-Di, together with their students, grand students and great grand students continue on with the Ving Tsun that Grandmaster Moy Yat transmitted all those years ago. Today in central New York Moy 29 and his son Ryan continue to teach Moy Yat Ving Tsun Kung Fu. His schools in Auburn and Ithaca have produced many Sifus in accordance with Grandmaster Moy Yat's traditional teachings. |
