The Year of the Snake: A Year of Transformation and Mastery
I wish you all a very Happy Chinese New Year! In Chinese tradition, this is Year of the Snake, which is a time of wisdom, strategic growth, and profound transformation.
The Snake and transformation are embedded deep in the psyche of Wing Tsun. One well-known myth suggests that Wing Tsun was developed when Ng Mui observed a fight between a crane and a snake. However, this story is actually a symbolic reflection of people. Ng Mui was a originally master of the White Crane style, while the man responsible for the destruction of the Fujian Shaolin Temple, Lee Pa Sun, was himself a martial artist who had been overlooked for promotion—earning him the nickname "The Snake”. This moment in history is a testament to how transformation and strategic adaptation shape martial arts, often in unexpected ways. It also teaches us the original Wing Tsun principle ‘Whatever your opponent does is to your advantage”. Out of destruction came clarity and out of conflict came harmony.
For me, this story also resonates deeply on a personal level. After 12 years in the making, I am delighted to announce the launch of our first in-depth online Wing Tsun course. My lifelong passion has been to help my students develop faster, refine their practice, and maximise their progress—both in and out of class. This course represents years of dedication, research, and refinement to ensure that students experience the profound transformations that Wing Tsun offers. The timing is serendipitous—not only is this the Year of the Snake, a time of evolution and mastery, but it is also Chinese New Year, making it the perfect moment to begin a new chapter in learning.
The journey to bringing this course to life has been long—but not rushed. In many ways, it has followed the wisdom of the Snake itself: observing, refining, and waiting for the right moment. Twelve years ago, I first envisioned creating a course that would capture the depth of Wing Tsun—not just as a martial art, but as a philosophy, a way of thinking, a way of moving through the world. Over the years, I refined this idea through teaching, learning, and my own evolution as a practitioner and teacher. With hundreds of hours in planning, filming and editing I’m sure you will find the result as profound as I have. Indeed, senior students who were in the filming with me, were making notes in the breaks and saying “Sifu, I didn’t know – this would have saved me 10 years of practise! The new students are so lucky!!
And in short, as is the way in life, the course wasn't launched earlier because it wasn't ready. Not in the way it needed to be. It had to evolve through experience—through thousands of hours of practice, teaching, and refinement. And now it is finally ready to be shared.
The Invitation: Your Time for Personal Freedom
As we discussed above, this year is about stepping into your power with mastery, and calculated action. So if you’ve been waiting for the right time or right sign to start or deepen your Wing Tsun practice, this is it.
And from my end personally, I can offer you three aspects to help make your Year of the Snake great:
1. Visit me in Bromley, South East London to experience the true energy of Wing Tsun.
2. Join our online course to build your knowledge and refine your skills wherever you are.
3. Embrace this year as an opportunity for growth, adaptability, and mastery—in your training and in your life. Reflect on what this means to you, and then take action on your first steps.
Yours in mastery and transformation,
Sifu