Hung Hei-Gun

Hung Hei-Kwun (洪熙官; Hung Hei-Gun) was the founder of Hung Gar Kung Fu.

Overview

Hei-Kwun was originally named Jyu and was a tea merchant. He escaped to the Southern Fujian Shaolin Temple after he had argument with a few upper class Manchurians during the Qing Dynasty when the Manchus were in control. Abott Jee Sin accepted him into the temple and soon found out how talented and hardworking he was in Southern Shaolin Kung Fu. Jee Sin was impressed by these qualities and soon began to teach Hung the Tiger style that he specialized in. After six years he became number one of the top ten of the laymen followers (they were people who went to the temple to learn only kung fu and not religion). However, afterwards the Qing government destroyed the temple because the temple gave refuge to many rebels who wanted to restore the Ming Dynasty.

Hung escaped and during his wanderings he met Fong Wing Chun (not Yim Wing Chun of the Wing Chun Style) and found out that her father, Fong Sai Yuk (kung fu brother of Hung) was killed by the same person who killed his mentor, Jee Sin. So Fong Wing Chun taught him her crane style to balance out his hard tiger techniques with the evasiness of her crane techniques. Hung then avenged Jee Sin and Fong Sai Yuk by finally destroying the murderer (Bak Mei according to some sources). Hung and Fong Wing Chun soon fell in love and they were soon married. Hung then opened a martial arts school when the banning of martial arts was lifted in China. He called it Hung Gar Kuen in honour of the First emperor of the last true Chinese (Ming) Dynasty and to protect his disciples from harm from the Manchus because the Shaolin arts were still banned. His style soon was ranked the best of the five major family styles in the Province of Kwangtung. it was also recorded that he died at the age of 182.(probably a myth, there are many similar myths about other famous masters regarding their longevity, like Cheng San Feng)

ee also

* Hung Gar
* Jee Sin

References

* "Beginning Shaolin Hung-Gar Kung Fu" - John Leong
* "Hung Gar Kung Fu: Chinese art of self defense" - Bucksam Kong and Eugene H. Ho, copyright 1973 Ohara Publications Inc.
* "The Tiger/Crane Form of Hung Gar Kung Fu" - Bucksam Kong, copyright 1983 Ohara Publications Inc.
* "Kung Fu Magazine" - Sept.1999, Pacific Rim publications, Arnaldo Ty Nunez