Donn F. Draeger - Shaolin Kung Fu

Please note that the publisher and author of this instructional book are NOT RESPONSIBLE in any manner whatsoever for any injury that may result from practicing the techniques and/or following the instructions given within. Martial arts training can be dangerousboth to you and to othersif not practiced safely. If youre in doubt as to how to proceed or whether your practice is safe, consult with a trained martial arts teacher before beginning. Since the physical activities described herein may be too strenuous in nature for some readers, it is also essential that a physician be consulted prior to training.

SHAOLIN
KUNG FU

Painting of Ta Mo by Pye Ling Shan Rur; calligraphy by Shi Mit Tu. Courtesy, Penang Shaolin Athletic Association.

SHAOLIN
KUNG FU

The Original Training Techniques
of the Shaolin Lohan Masters

DONN F. DRAEGER and PNG CHYE KHIM

Foreword by Alexander Bennett

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Foreword

SINCE THE EARLY SEVENTIES, martial arts movies featuring sleek Asian combatants leaping adroitly through the air while unleashing a flurry of kicks and punches on stunned, usually much buffer opponents, have been popular and have even motivated millions of people to take up the martial arts themselves. Many of the fighting machines starring in these mostly Hong Kong movies apparently studied the ancient form of Shaolin Kung Fu. Thus, Shaolin has become synonymous with the Western image of Asian martial arts. In fact, there is a saying that, all martial arts under heaven originated from Shaolin. Whether this is true or not, it is undeniable that the Shaolin Temples influence on the technical and philosophical development of future styles in China and other parts of Asia cannot be denied. In spite of the movie renditions, the martial arts of the Shaolin Temple are truly ancient and resonate with a deep philosophy that negates the use of violence.

With over 1,500 years of history, many variant forms have developed over the generations. It is believed that perhaps more than a thousand styles of Shaolin-derived kung fu exist, each one with its own unique techniques for fighting and physical and mental well-being. The style of kung fu explained in this book, Lohan (Hood Khar pai), traces its roots to one of the oldest forms of kung fu, and in its current form was first introduced from Southern China to Southeast Asia in the late 1940s. The monk who propagated it there was Sek Koh Sam (18861960). He first taught the system in Singapore from 1947 and then transferred to Malaysia where he founded the Sao Lim (Shaolin) Hood Khar Pai Association in 1953 (Penang Sao Lim Athletic Association.)

After his death in 1960, one of his top students, Png Chye Khim, coauthor of this book, eventually became the lead instructor at the organization. Master Png Chye Khim was born in Penang in 1939. He first met Sik Koe Chum in 1956, and eventually became the 49th generation master of Sao Lim Khar Hood Pai.

Png Chye Khim was particularly famous for his phenomenal Iron Palm technique, which observers claim was so powerful that heavy punching bags bent on impact. He was also known for his ability to use the double-edged swords often used in wushu (Chinese martial arts). Despite his formidable fighting ability, he was known and respected as being a man of great humility and courteousness. He was also an expert in other styles of Chinese martial arts such as Tai ji quan and was a renowned physician of traditional Chinese medicine. He passed away in 2010 but his legacy remains as a true master of his art.

The fact that he teamed up with Donn Draeger in this project is significant. To many non-Japanese martial art enthusiasts, myself included, Draeger is widely touted as one of the greats in terms of being an actual practitioner, and as a researcher of martial arts as a field of academic inquiry. It was Draeger who popularized the term Hoplology, or studies of human combat behavior from the 1960s.

Draeger was born in Milwaukee on April 15, 1922. His martial arts career started when he entered the gates jujutsu and judo dojos as a child. In 1943, after graduating from Georgetown University, he joined the U.S. Marine Corps and saw action in several fierce World War II battles including Iwo Jima. Dispatched to Korea after the war, he taught judo to troops stationed there among his other duties in the Marines. He retired in 1956 with the rank of captain and dedicated the rest of his life to researching combat systems of the world. He spent much of his time in Japan where he studied modern budo disciplines including judo and jodo and became the first foreign student admitted into the celebrated classical school of Tenshinsho-den Katori Shinto-ryu under Master Otake Risuke.

Although he is usually cited for his expertise in the Japanese modern and classical martial arts, his interests were certainly not limited to Japan. He travelled extensively through Asia with hoplology students in tow, and the many books and articles he published from the 1960s through to the early 80s guide readers through illuminating journeys into idiosyncratic martial arts of many regions. His impressive body of work, although several decades old now, still provides required references for any English thesis on the subject so long as the author wants to be taken seriously.

This particular book, Shaolin Lohan Kung-Fu, is one of many classics that Draeger authored or co-authored. Png Chye Khim provided knowledge of the system. Draeger was not a technical expert in this particular style by any means, but his role was in successfully conveying Png Chye Khims finer linguistic and contextual nuances to the rest of the world. If Draegers name is on the cover of any book, then you can rest assured that the content, no matter how arcane or inaccessible the teachings may have been, will now be accessible to any serious student of the art or lay reader alike. As such, his immense contribution to the worldwide dissemination of martial arts, Japanese or otherwise, cannot be overstated.