Choy Lee Fut Founder – Chan Heung: A Brief Biography
Provided by the Chan Heung Memorial Association, 1970s Choy Lee Fut Magazine, Volume 1
Chan Heung, founder of the Choy Lee Fut school, courtesy name Dat Ting, was a native of Jingmei Village, Yaxi, Xinhui County, Guangdong Province. His father was named Da Neng, and Chan Heung was the ninth-generation descendant of the Jingmei Chan clan, the second son in his family, born in the eleventh year of the Jiaqing reign (1806), on the tenth day of the seventh lunar month, during the hour of the rat. As a child, he was intelligent and much loved by his father. At the age of seven, he began learning martial arts from his uncle, Chan Yuen-Wu, who recognized Chan Heung’s extraordinary appearance and unique bone structure, and thus taught him wholeheartedly, hoping he would become accomplished. Chan Yuen-Wu was himself a lay disciple of the Shaolin Temple. Time flew by, and after more than ten years of training with his uncle, Chan Heung developed a body of iron sinews and steel bones. His arms and legs were longer than average, and he was naturally strong. By the age of fifteen, he was already unmatched in the villages around the county. Recognizing Chan Heung’s intelligence, his uncle introduced him at age seventeen to Li Yau-San, a fellow disciple, who saw great potential in Chan Heung and accepted him for further study. After four years, Li Yau-San passed on all his skills to Chan Heung, who by then had mastered both the southern palm and northern leg techniques, reaching the pinnacle of external martial arts. Li Yau-San once said to Chan Heung: “Both your uncle and I learned our martial arts from Shaolin monks, and it took us twenty years of hard training to achieve success. Yet you have mastered everything we know in just over ten years, which is truly remarkable. With your intelligence and perseverance, if you could train at the Shaolin Temple, your achievements would be even greater. However, few Shaolin monks remain in the world; some have gone overseas, some have retreated into the mountains, and some have disappeared. I know only one, Monk Choy Fook, who bears scars on his head from a fire and is known as ‘Scarred Head Monk.’ His Zen and martial arts are outstanding, but he now lives in seclusion on Luofu Mountain. If you could learn from him, your future would be limitless.”
Choy Lee Fut Founder Chan Heung
Upon hearing this, Chan Heung earnestly begged Li Yau-San for an introduction. Li Yau-San explained that Monk Choy Fook’s whereabouts were uncertain and his temperament unusual, so he initially refused. But Chan Heung was determined, kneeling and pleading until Li Yau-San finally wrote a letter of introduction. Chan Heung took the letter to Luofu Mountain, and upon meeting Monk Choy Fook, presented the letter. After reading it, Choy Fook stared at Chan Heung for a long time before saying, “I am just a monk devoted to Buddhist study. I have long neglected martial arts and am now old. You have come a long way to seek my instruction, but I am unable to help you. If you are interested, you may stay and study Buddhism with me; otherwise, you may return home.” This was a test of Chan Heung’s sincerity. Most would have been discouraged, but Chan Heung, being persistent and knowing from Li Yau-San of Choy Fook’s martial prowess, immediately knelt and begged to be accepted as a disciple, saying he would be content to learn Zen if not martial arts. Choy Fook allowed him to stay, and Chan Heung spent his days studying Buddhist scriptures and practicing martial arts in secret. One morning, while Chan Heung was practicing kicks and sweeping stones in front of the mountain, Choy Fook appeared and asked, “Is that all your strength?” He pointed to a large stone and told Chan Heung to try kicking it as far as he could. Chan Heung kicked the stone several meters, thinking he would be praised, but Choy Fook only smiled, then, without any stance, used his toe to flick the stone, sending it flying even farther. Chan Heung immediately realized the importance of internal power and asked to learn from Choy Fook. After observing Chan Heung’s strong foundation and sincerity, Choy Fook gradually taught him the inner methods of Buddhism and Shaolin martial arts, as well as stories of the Shaolin Temple and the importance of serving the nation and people. Chan Heung studied with Choy Fook for eight years before returning home at age twenty-nine. He then spent two years refining and organizing what he had learned, creating new routines and setting training stages. In the sixteenth year of the Daoguang reign (1836), the Choy Lee Fut system was officially founded, named after his teachers Choy Fook and Li Yau-San, both Buddhist disciples, to honor his teachers and never forget his roots. Chan Heung established a martial arts school in his ancestral hall in Jingmei, teaching his clan and neighboring villagers. His skills were extraordinary, and soon young men from all around came to learn from him. He taught diligently, and two years later, at age thirty-three, he married a woman from the Huang family of a neighboring county. Two years after marriage, his eldest son, Anbo, was born in 1840. In 1840, the Opium War broke out after Governor Lin Zexu burned opium at Humen. The war affected the Pearl River Delta, and the British navy advanced by water to Humen. Local gentry organized militias, and Chan Heung led his disciples to join the naval forces at Humen, fighting the British. The defenders fought bravely, preventing the British from advancing. Eventually, the British attacked northward, and after the Treaty of Nanking in 1842, many militias disbanded. Chan Heung and his disciples returned home, now more aware of the weakness of the Qing government and foreign ambitions. Later, when the Taiping Rebellion broke out, some of Chan Heung’s disciples urged him to join, but as a Buddhist, he declined, focusing instead on training his students. In 1853, after the Taiping army captured Nanjing, the Qing government recruited militias to fight them. Fearing being conscripted and wishing to spread Choy Lee Fut, Chan Heung left home at age forty-eight with his family, traveling to Nanhai, Shunde, Zhongshan, and Dongguan, establishing schools and teaching students. Among his accomplished students were Chan Xiancheng, Chan Dianchen, Chan Dacheng (Jingmei), Chan Yudian, Chan Dianhuan (Foshan), Chan Dayi, Chan Rongmou (Shunde), Chan Diancheng, Chan Dawei (Zhongshan), Chan Zhuangmou, Chan Bangxing (Panyu), and non-family disciples such as Long Zicai, Ruan Xi, and Zhang Yan. During these years, Chan Heung not only taught Choy Lee Fut but also instilled anti-Qing ideas learned from Choy Fook. He used secret signals among his disciples for identification, such as specific shouts during techniques. After the fall of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom in 1864, Chan Heung went to San Francisco, USA, where he was hired as a martial arts instructor by the Chan Clan Association. While in America, he famously killed a tiger with his bare hands, and the tiger skin was kept at the association. People marveled at his strength even in old age. He stayed in America for four years before returning home at age sixty-three. Upon his return, his eldest son Anbo managed the ancestral school in Jingmei, while disciples Zhang Yan (Zhang Hongsheng) managed the Foshan branch, and his second son Guanbo and disciple Long Zicai managed the Jiangmen branch. Chan Heung passed away in 1875 at the age of seventy in his hometown of Jingmei, where he was buried. His virtue and legacy endure to this day.
Chan Heung Biography - Choy Lee Fut Magazine, Volume 1