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Korean Kung Fu or Sip Pal Gee, Chung Moo Kwan, Yong Moon Moo Kwan or Moo Sool Won. It is also known as Long Fist Mantis Kung Fu and is a little known line of the martial arts. One family is Sip Pal Gee, the 18 weapons system. Korean Kung Fu consist of Long Fist, Praying Mantis, and Pakua and traditional Korean martial arts such as Tang Soo Do. Korean Kung Fu is distinct from modern or contemporary wushu in the sense that it has not been watered down from the Cultural Revolution or communist revolution. Korean Kung Fu is a no-nonsense effective fighting art, not for performance but rather for martial skills.

The generally accepted story about the evolution of Kung Fu in Korea is that about 1949 many Chinese emigrated from China to Korea after the Chinese revolution, including four teachers of Kung Fu (gongfu): Lin Pin Zhang (1910–1982) of Tai Ji Tang Lang Chuan (Praying Mantis), Jiang Kyung Fang also of Praying Mantis (1912–1993), Lu Shui Tien (or No Sue-Chon) (1894–1978) of Bagua Zhang or Pa-Kua Chang in Inchon and Lee De Jiang (or Lee Duk-Kang) of Changkwon (Shantung Long Fist) in Seoul.

One of the students of the two most famous Kung Fu Masters in South Korea, namely of Lin Pin Zhang and Lee Duk Kang, was Gang Young Il. He trained with both of them but he trained also Chi Kung with Master Yo Pom Sam. Gang Young-Il was the teacher of Master Lee Je Dong, who brought this style to Europe. It is a mixture of Long Fist Kung Fu and Mei Hua Tang Lang (Plum Flower Praying Mantis) techniques. In the curriculum is implied also another Northern Shaolin Kung Fu style, known among martial artists as Tan Tui (Tan Te or Dam Toi: 12 Springing Legs).

Yong Moon's Kung Fu is primarily a combination of Longfist, Taiji Mantis, and Pakua Chang. He left his school in Busan, Korea and brought Korean Kung Fu to America, beginning in Louisiana during the 1980s. Yong Moon's style of teaching is known to be traditional, strict, and military like. At that time, Yong Moon's top student was Neil Leblanc. Yong Moon came to Los Angeles and opened up his Kung Fu school in the early 1990s where he still resides and teaches today with his wife, Ari Moon, at the Moo Sool Won kung fu School. Yong Moon's curriculum starts with basic stances, Tan Tuis, self-defense applications, and Changkwon forms, transitions into Praying Mantis, and Pakua at the higher levels. Students also learn weapons: Staff, Broadsword, Spear, Straightsword, Fan, 3-Section Staff, etc.

A variety of the 18 kung fu weapons are taught in Korean Kung Fu or SIP Pal Gee: Staff, Spear, Broad Sword, Straight Sword, Steel Chain Whip, Kwan-do, Steel Fan, Nun-chucks, 3 Section Staff, Throwing knife, Short sticks, Double Broad Sword, Dagger, etc.

Basic stances [edit]

1. Front Stance (climbing the mountain)
2. Horse Back Stance
3. Little Front Stance (kneeling)
4. Crouching Stance
5. Crane on one leg Stance
6. Tiger Stance
7. Cross Leg Stance
8. Chicken lays egg Stance (twist)

Sip Pal Gee Forms [edit]

Schools that have been known to teach the system in part or whole: Yong Moon Moo Kwan, Moo Sool Won, Southern Kung-fu Academy, Southern Black Belt Academy, Culture, Sports Club "Kallirroon" (Greece) and Nord Shaolin Kung Fu Club (Vienna). Grand Master Derek S. Chun is located in Marrero, Louisiana.^[1]Grand Master Yong Moon, located in Los Angeles, California.^[2](http://www.moosoolwon.net) (http://www.twmaf.com) Culture, Sports Club "Kallirroon" is located in Heraklion, Crete, Greece (http://www.shaolinkungfu.gr) and Nord Shaolin Kung Fu Club is located in Vienna, Europe (http://www.nordshaolin-kungfu.at)

Notes [edit]

1. ^ Chung Moo Kwan
2. ^ Yong Moon Moo Kwan

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