Since its inception, Kuen-Do has taken on many definitions, among them “modified Wing Chun”; “Mixed Martial Arts; “an eclectic style”; “a new style of martial arts” and the list goes on. This has prompted us as practitioners to pose the question to our founder, Jung Ga (Headmaster) Randy Tay, WHAT REALLY IS KUEN-DO? Below is Jung Ga’s response:

“I will be the first to admit that this is not an easy question to answer. The problem lies with the need for people in general to put a label on everything, to clearly define what this or that is, and to categorize. Let us first examine the common terms associated with Kuen-Do before I attempt to answer the big question.

While it is true that Kuen-Do has its roots in Wing Chun, it is more than simply a “modified version of Wing Chun”. All styles of martial arts were either created based on an imminent need or evolved over time. Take Wing Chun for example. It is not known exactly by whom it was created, though many lineages have their own accounts. What is known is that it was developed in as short a time as possible to be utilized by the rebels during the Manchurian Dynasty, in order to fight the Imperial court. Over a period of three centuries as many as 20 different lineages have evolved and are in existence today, possibly more. If you examine each lineage closely you will find that though the principles remain similar, all put emphasis on different things. Can any master of these lineages claim that they are identical to the ones practiced 300 years ago? Probably not. Therefore the Wing Chun we know today should all be considered as “modified Wing Chun” since none are identical to the original whereas Kuen-Do is something similar yet different, hence not “modified Wing Chun”..

Ever since the First Ultimate Fighting Championship, there has been a new buzzword in the martial arts circle: “Mixed Martial Arts". Many practitioners, once they realize one style of combat is insufficient for all situations, cross-train in various styles in order to become better all-around fighters. As mentioned earlier, different styles were developed for specific purposes, e.g. Tae Kwon Do has a lot of aerial kicks so that they could kick mounted horsemen but was only unified as Tae Kwon Do using Japanese influenced arts; Okinawan arts strived to perfect the “one strike one kill” principle in order to incapacitate their opponent, the samurai, or risked being sliced in half by their blade but only after several exchanges with Chinese arts; Japanese arts such as Jujitsu, placed emphasis on joint-locks and maneuvers to combat opponents who were in armor where striking would have little or no effect but was developed and evolved over many centuries; Chinese arts, with their long history and diversity, were created and evolved to meet imminent needs like Wing Chun, as mentioned, or the Preying Mantis, founded by Wang Lang who was repeatedly defeated due to his small size. Hence, if one actually studies the history of the various arts, he or she will find that they were at one time or another “Mixed Martial Arts”. Every style was created upon its founder’s own experience and later their insights (i.e. Karate was founded based on the Okinawan arts with the Japanese notion of Budo, and within Karate there evolved many different later characteristics that formed the various respective stles). Therefore, the term “Mixed Martial Art” or MMA for short, in itself is an oxymoron. However, a large part of the development of this term is again, due to the need for people to categorize, label and describe things for the purpose of familiarity, namely, when one sees a practice which is not confined within an accepted style, instead of acknowledging it as a natural form of evolution, one chooses to categorize such practice as a “Mixed Martial Arts”. However, I shall explain in a while that sometimes things are better left without such a label.

Another term used similar to “Mixed Martial Arts would be “eclectic styles”. The difference, though subtle, is important. Eclectic would best be defined as a school which offers various disciplines. To point out the difference, consider a very large chain of Karate in the East coast of the USA. This chain of schools offers various approaches to combat without providing the various lineages to this approach “We teach karate, kickboxing, grappling etc.” is what you’ll hear upon inquiring about these schools. Now contrast this to schools that offer various styles taught by different teachers of that specific style with their respective lineage, e.g. “we offer Goju-ryu Karate, Yoshinkan Aikido, Kyokushin Karate, Yip Man’s Wing Chun etc”. The former would be Mixed Martial Arts, while the latter eclectic styles.

With that said, I would like to point out that while I founded Kuen-Do, I did not create a new style. I merely discovered a way of cultivation of the mind, body and spirit and conveniently place a label for the purpose of identification. This “way” is nothing new and has been tread by various masters of different eras. I contemplated for a long time for a suitable name before settling on a non-bias name – Kuen-Do. As we all know, “Kuen” means “Fist” literally but in Cantonese it is also a term meaning “Martial Arts”. Hence Kuen-Do would also mean “Way of the Martial Arts”.

The purpose for such a name is not to mean that I am better than anybody, merely the fact that unlike others, I acknowledged the various traditions but am not attached nor as the results of insecurities, the need to shield myself behind familiar terms like “karate, Wing Chun, kickboxing etc”. In order words, rather than being interested in developing in a given system, I choose to develop myself as a human being, using the martial arts as tools instead of subjecting myself to the martial arts. The name was coined for those who have a need to put a label on everything, if not I would have extreme difficulty in communicating my ideas across.

The principles within Kuen-Do are not mere preference of doing things, or a matter of your way versus my way. While the principles might be expressed differently, these same principles are universal irregardless of styles. For example, to put an opponent to submission, you will have to take advantage of one or a combination of these four principles of muscle/tendon separation, joint-manipulation, pressure points and body cavities. Unless these styles combat beings of another body structure, the universal principles will apply albeit in different emphasis.

Kuen-Do is not something that you can “learn” but rather something that you experience. For example, if I tell you the mango is sweet, you cannot learn the taste of mango. If you try to draw from previous experience of an apple or an orange but never tasted a mango before, you still will not know the taste of mango. The only way to know it is take a bite and experience it for your self. The training is like looking for that elusive mango, and once you find it, take a bite and taste it. To insist on categorizing Kuen-Do would be speculative at best, misleading at worst.This is precisely the reason why I do not teach techniques per se, but rather use techniques as a tool for you to experience the principles behind and to know your own body better. Once you experience the principles, you understand your body. Techniques become secondary and will manifest themselves when they are needed.

This, my friend, is Kuen-Do.

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