The Mixed martial art’s psychology is rapidly and surely taking over in the minds of wingchunners. We are loosing faith in our system (All those masters with their ridiculous politics are not helping very much!) and as a result, we are looking in awe at other styles (mostly sport oriented) for clues on good technique and strategy.
Is that a good thing?..Is that normal evolution?..
a good thing?
no
a normal evolution?
i think the only thing in wing chun that should be evolving is how well you do wing chun, not wing chun itself.
Wing chun should evolve too. Things that stop evolving are called fossils. Like Old Jong. 
I think wing chun is a good compact system. no need to add, no need to take away.
learn extra on the side if you want but why fix something that isn’t broken?
peace
yenhoi- evolution may be- not all change is an improvement.
Sometimes the changes are due to folks reaching an impasse
in their understanding of wing chun.Of course continuing the wing chun journey can result in applications that others didnt think of-
though the concepts are there.
I don’t know much about Wing Chun but generally speaking I think Martial Artists need to ask themselves what the main purpous of their training is - if the most important thing is to develop the ultimate fighting system, in time all styles would converge into something very similiar (with the only differences attributable [is that an English word or something I just made up?] to different peoples physical setups and abilities).
On the other hand, if the most important thing is the cultural heritage and a general fascination with different styles, then I think people should try to preserve the details and the differences between different systems and subsystems.
If every martial art should evolve into a kind of MMA I think it would lose a lot of it’s appeal.
Wing Chun is just groovy as is. But there are things it doesn’t have like breakfalls and specific ground techniques (some would probably argue that), fun fast forms crazy high kicks, wet t-shirt contests, etc.. I like to know these things. There is nothing wrong with learning what you want to know outside of a system. Just make sure if you pass it along you keep everything separate, and say what goes where.
I agree with Kung Lek.
As a system of studying, teaching, and somewhat understanding fighting, wing chun should go un-altered and preserved.
Traning methods and how class is conducted etc, should be continually changing to suit the students (current generation) needs and abilitys, as well as whatever the outside environment is like - such as none of us are really in need of a huge WC army any time soon, we all train in safe comfortable environments were we must simulate almost everything.
Seems to work. The many factions of WC being my evidence - the principles are there across the board, how they are taught and used differs sometimes greatly (and bitterly.)
hi my friends
my friend one more great theme from you ,and you have apsol. right, im like to say : people its not giltt. for that lost road and lost hope , and only tho its gilty its masters ( sifys) tho cant learn wingchun stydents what must see in wing chun and what its real wing chun world, im mean stydent must see like first kug fu in wing chun style , must see power , must see great strategy in wing chun (KUNGFU) style - just friendly tiger_1:)
Wing chun should evolve too. Things that stop evolving are called fossils. Like Old Jong.
Good point. But I dont think the sytem needs to evolve I think the way most people train needs to evolve.
Sitting there doing drills isnt going to make you a fighter.
Do the forms, do you chi sau, and work on putting them into in action will.
Wing Chun is like boxing guys. If a grappler beats some wing chun guys ass on the ground its normal.
Thats why these boxers and kick boxers learned how to fight on the ground too, because thats all that happend to them.
They would hop in the ring, get taken down and beaten down.
Dont lose faith in wing chun because of grapplers. I see it happen alot. I dont really see it from the kung fu people but from the guys who actually fight. They would see a grappler beat a kung fu guy and then they have this thought molded into their heads that kung fu is ****.
Those guys in those rings work their asses off…I bet most of us dont work half as hard as they do. Dont expect to get far without working on it.
As so many have said before. Its the people not the style.
Originally posted by Atleastimnotyou
[B]a good thing?
no
a normal evolution?
i think the only thing in wing chun that should be evolving is how well you do wing chun, not wing chun itself.
[/B]
Hi Corey,
Well said. The system likely doesn’t need to evolve, but we all can expect personal improvement in our Wing Chun as we put in the time and effort.
Regards,
Yeah I said that too but I talk to much.
Wheres my credit?
WCK should evolve, but it should not be evolved. Like calligraphy, the tradition must be mastered first. Then evolution may occur if needful. If some newbie just decides to change rather than understand, then results may vary.
And evolution can take many forms. I kind of chuckle at the idea of “wing chun is perfect there can be no change” because MA had to evolve to begin with for WCK to form, and over the generations since, masters of every lineage have changed their art (even if they didn’t intend to, no one is a computer-perfect replicator). Yip Man made changes. Yuen Kay-San and Sum Nung made changes. Leung Jan made changes. Some were just (to quote Joy) re-arrangements of the text-book. Some were choices in surfacing application rather than leaving implication. Some where elaborations to handle fighters before unknown (western boxers, wrestlers), and some were more substantial. Time has and will tell which changes survive and which don’t. But picking a still frame from the historic flow of video seems as senseless as change for changes sake (a sifu trying to preserve exactly what his sifu changed, vs. a student changing what his sifu preserved exactly).
Another thing to remember is that WCK is not fighting. WCK is a system to improve fighting, nothing more, nothing less. Is your goal to be good at WCK, or to be good at fighting? Not all suits fit all occasions. And if your goal is to be good at fighting in an octogon or ring, you might need a different suit (as a BJJ person might have needed a different suit as a member of a Red Junk opera with rebel urges 
Historically, there were some who stuck with a system and took it to unbelieveable hights. There were also others who sought out specialist sifu (or were sent to them by their original sifu) and polished kicks with Mok Ga, long bridge with Lama Pai, grappling with Sut Gao, internal with Tai Gik, etc. Neither approah is inherently more noble or honorable than the other, each individual has to do what suits them best, and has to be happy with what they do.
RR
What Rene said.
It depends on your personal goals.
If Wing Chun didn’t evolve or borrow, we wouldn’t be doing the 6.5 point pole right now.
fossile talk!
Everybody brought good points. I like the part where I read ‘’ The way people train should evolve’’ Yeah but for what ?..For sport fighting?..Is’nt Wing chun very effective as a self-defense art?..
I believe I practice Wing Chun realisticaly enough to be effective in a self-defense situation.I do not neglect the more suttle Wing Chun practices also. I think our punches and strikes are as good as the boxing types. The principles of Wing Chun ,the things like sticking and escort as it goes are not favorable to hit and run sparring,jumping around while waiting for an oppening.
Anyway,you know what I mean.Don’t need to be a paleontologist to understand that!..Eh?..
Rene says:Some were just xxxx re-arrangements of the text-book. Some were choices in surfacing application rather than leaving implication. Some where elaborations to handle fighters before unknown (western boxers, wrestlers), and some were more substantial. Time has and will tell which changes survive and which don’t.
((True. However time can be cruel. Good things can be swept aside. Greshams law on bad money driving out…
The coming of weaponry and guns eroded many earlier medieval european and also Japanese skills. Our good fortune that the Chinese
were able to preserve so many great arts)))
Old Jong: Anyway,you know what I mean.Don’t need to be a paleontologist to understand that!..Eh?..
((But I bet a palentologist will be puzzled if he/she comes accross an old jong-hopefully way down the road!!)))
Anerlich says:If Wing Chun didn’t evolve or borrow, we wouldn’t be doing the 6.5 point pole right now.
((True- but note…the pole work got absorbed into fairly consistent wing chun principles… centerline, bong-kwan, tan-kwan, biu etc- rather than hung gar body motions. So today we can usea cue stick and use it with wing chun body motions))
The applications never stop adapting every instance since no one can step the same water flow twice;
and not everyone have the same size of body. Same length of hands. and same habit… that is just nature . Nothing Wrong..
Everyone evoled the “engine”… ShaoLIn? Errrrmei? HakKa? Wudang? Hung Gar? ..White Crane… HeiGong.. TaiJi… Hundreds of directions… Hey make up your mind! LOL
But then, Still Stuck in a still stance where only hand moves which is not even good or proper to breath naturally …
Some belive it will generate mytherious power if one join the group.
Some belive Chan will safe everything of WCK. :o
On the other hand, Sure the His-story has been greatly evoled as one likes it. Hey I am the olderst…
So what has been evoled? what has not?
Or matching in the same place round and round ? 
Let it be Let it be Let it be Let it be…speaking words of wisdom … Let it be… The Taiping will safe all of us.. OMMMMM . Hee Hee Hee, no one suspect that “half point”…
Hsuuuuu Don’t tell others…
Can Da lips sing like a bird?
Review your actions during the past few weeks. Imagine yourself correcting all your mistakes, and act on one correction before going to sleep.
humm…
http://www.wushuweb.com/6j_zy.asp?id=1669
RH, wake up, Read it , and Laught or Cry.
Originally posted by Kung Lek
learn extra on the side if you want but why fix something that isn’t broken?
Because it is, and very much so.