An ancient Chinese saying states that at the beginning of time there were only Heaven and Earth, that is to say Yang and Yin. Among them then appeared Man, symbol of excellence, of a perfect balance between Yin and Yang.
The triad Heaven – Man – Earth symbolically represents a subdivision found in all existing things and constitutes one of the great principles expressed by Chinese philosophy: everything (a tree, an architectural work, a painting, a poem…) in order to be in harmony with the energy and laws of the universe, must include a part corresponding to Heaven (Yang), one corresponding to Earth (Yin) and a third, corresponding to Man, which represents an intermediate balance between the two polarities of energy.
Everything that meets these requirements is in harmony with the Tao, the great Law of the Universe, and is destined to endure over time, bringing benefits and effectively performing the function for which it was created.
Wing Tsun also satisfies this principle, thus proving to be a very complete and balanced system.
In fact, it is based on three philosophical roots which, far from being only abstract and theoretical references, concretely influence its practice:
- Buddhism, which teaches the correct state of mind that the practitioner must have during practice, whether combat or training, and which, therefore, corresponds to Heaven.
- Taoism, which teaches the Practitioner the correct use of their body and their strength in accordance with the principles of compliance and harmony of opposites and which corresponds, of course, to the Earth.
- Confucianism, which, with its principles, regulates the human, ritual and hierarchical relationships between Practitioners (considered as belonging to a single, large family), as well as the attitude and behaviour to be held towards all humanity, which corresponds, of course, to Man.
These three roots are all equally important and indispensable for a correct learning of Wing Tsun and the practitioner must take care of and develop them all without penalizing any of them, otherwise his Wing Tsun will be faltering and unreliable, as is a table without a foot.
It is important to highlight that we are not talking about an intellectual, theoretical knowledge, but about a concrete implementation, in daily practice and in reaction to aggression, of the principles expressed by these doctrines.
In fact, in the East, philosophy has never been a purely speculative activity, to be carried out in the confines of the Academies, but an exciting and lively inner search whose purpose, exquisitely practical, has always been to lead the individual to the discovery of a better way of living.
To understand how concrete and direct the link of these teachings is with the practice of a true Martial Art, think of how many chances of success would have, in a real clash, a practitioner capable of excellent technique, fluid bodily movements and, at the same time, powerful, but who was paralyzed by fear or blinded by anger or worse still, busy mentally formulating attack strategies and complex defences… All his splendid technique would remain unexpressed, imprisoned in his body by his own state of mind.
A similar result would also be encountered by those who, despite possessing excellent control of their mind (Heaven – Yang), were then unable to use their body effectively (Earth – Yin).
Heaven and Earth cannot exist without each other.
The development of the abilities corresponding to the Human level is no less important: effectiveness, cultivated and obtained without the maturation of the right human disposition, is like a loaded gun in the hand of a child. It would only be a danger to everyone.
A good Wing Tsun Teacher should therefore deepen the knowledge of these doctrines to a sufficient extent to be able to transmit the principles of correct practice to his students.