Chu Shong Tin possessed exceptional humility. This charming quality arose from an absolute confidence in his ability. He did not need to prove himself or impress others. However, when the occasion demanded he could meet a challenge calmly and coolly. Many years ago I witnessed such a moment and was thrilled to my core by the way that CST handled the situation.
Sometime around 1988 CST was conducting a seminar at The International Wing Chun Academy in Sydney, which was owned by one of his students, Jim Fung. This event was run as a workshop where CST would demonstrate and explain a particular movement and the attendees would pair off and practice while CST went around assisting and answering questions. There were about 60 or 70 participants.
I noticed a person who seemed to be showing students his own version of how to do things, in effect running his own little sub-seminar and undercutting the lesson. CST also saw this person and asked about him. Jim Fung replied that he was a quite well known local Tai Chi master. I was quite annoyed at this man jumping in on CST’s crowd; basically spruiking for students by trying to show a better way of doing the movements, effectively pitting his teaching skill against CST’s. However CST did not seem concerned and just ignored him.
As the seminar drew to an end the Tai Chi master raised his hand to comment with what was more of a challenge than a question. He said he noticed that CST referred to Wing Chun as a perfect martial art. “Tai Chi has been around for thousands of years therefore surely it must be superior to Wing Chun?” At the time this looked to me like one gunfighter taunting another. I was shocked and also a little anxious for CST. How little did I know back then!
CST’s response was the epitome of directness and simplicity. He calmly asked the master if he did Tai Chi? To which the challenger replied yes. CST then said another one of my favourite quotes, (I was getting all this through translation as they were speaking in Chinese but still my heart was pounding); “I don’t do Tai Chi but my Tai Chi is better than yours”. He said it quite calmly but you could have cut the air with a knife. By now I was becoming breathless!
CST invited the master on to the stage and asked him to perform whatever Tai Chi movement he felt was the most powerful in his repertoire against his resistance. The master stepped on to the stage, as I recall looking a little disconcerted at CST’s absolute confidence in willing to test himself in public against a challenger he knew nothing about! His chosen move was a kind of double handed push, which I imagine was meant to send CST flying off the stage. Of course CST stood there like a rock and the Tai Chi master bounced back. CST then said, “Ok I will try your movement” and he performed what looked like exactly the same technique, except this time it worked and the Tai Chi master was sent flying back. CST then explained that he was simply applying Wing Chun principles to the movement. The Tai Chi guy slunk away and never showed his face in our school again.
I decided at that moment that CST was simply the coolest man in the entire world. My opinion never changed!
~ Mark Spence