Ng Mui ( Chinese: t , p ''Wú Méi'';

Cantonese Cantonese is the traditional prestige variety of Yue Chinese, a Sinitic language belonging to the Sino-Tibetan language family. It originated in the city of Guangzhou (formerly known as Canton) and its surrounding Pearl River Delta. While th ...

: ''Ng⁵ Mui⁴'') is said to have been one of the legendary Five Elders—survivors of the destruction of the

Shaolin Temple Shaolin Monastery ( zh, labels=no, c=少林寺, p=shàolínsì), also known as Shaolin Temple, is a monastic institution recognized as the birthplace of Chan Buddhism and the cradle of Shaolin kung fu. It is located at the foot of Wuru Peak o ...

by the

Qing Dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing, was a Manchu-led Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China and an early modern empire in East Asia. The last imperial dynasty in Chinese history, the Qing dynasty was preceded by the ...

. According to legend she is said to have been a master of various martial arts including the Shaolin martial arts, the Wudang martial arts, Ng Ying Kung Fu () and Yuejiaquan, and the family style of

Yue Fei Yue Fei (; March 24, 1103 – January 28, 1142), courtesy name Pengju (), was a Chinese military general of the Song dynasty and is remembered as a patriotic folk hero, national hero, known for leading its forces in Jin–Song Wars, the wars ...

. She is also credited as the founder of the martial arts Wǔ Méi Pài (Ng Mui style),

Wing Chun Wing Chun (Cantonese) or Yong Chun (Mandarin Chinese, Mandarin) (, lit. "singing spring") is a concept-based martial art, a form of Nanquan (martial art), Southern Chinese kung fu, and a close-quarters system of self-defense. It is a martial ...

, Dragon style, and Five-Pattern Hung Kuen. She has been associated with various locations, including the

in either

Henan Henan; alternatively Honan is a province in Central China. Henan is home to many heritage sites, including Yinxu, the ruins of the final capital of the Shang dynasty () and the Shaolin Temple. Four of the historical capitals of China, Lu ...

Fujian Fujian is a provinces of China, province in East China, southeastern China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, Guangdong to the south, and the Taiwan Strait to the east. Its capital is Fuzhou and its largest prefe ...

, the Wudang Mountains in

Hubei Hubei is a province of China, province in Central China. It has the List of Chinese provincial-level divisions by GDP, seventh-largest economy among Chinese provinces, the second-largest within Central China, and the third-largest among inland ...

, Mount Emei in

Sichuan Sichuan is a province in Southwestern China, occupying the Sichuan Basin and Tibetan Plateau—between the Jinsha River to the west, the Daba Mountains to the north, and the Yunnan–Guizhou Plateau to the south. Its capital city is Cheng ...

, a supposed White Crane Temple, the Daliang Mountains on the border between

and

Yunnan Yunnan; is an inland Provinces of China, province in Southwestern China. The province spans approximately and has a population of 47.2 million (as of 2020). The capital of the province is Kunming. The province borders the Chinese provinces ...

, and additional locations in

Guangxi Guangxi,; officially the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, is an Autonomous regions of China, autonomous region of the China, People's Republic of China, located in South China and bordering Vietnam (Hà Giang Province, Hà Giang, Cao Bằn ...

and

Guangdong ) means "wide" or "vast", and has been associated with the region since the creation of Guang Prefecture in AD 226. The name "''Guang''" ultimately came from Guangxin ( zh, labels=no, first=t, t= , s=广信), an outpost established in Han dynasty ...

. According to one folk story, she was the daughter of a Ming general.

Wing Chun

The subject of Wing Chun's origins has become a mix of fact and fiction due to the impacts of early secrecy and modern marketing. However, many Wing Chun lineages recognize Ng Mui as part of Wing Chun genealogy. According to the

master Ip Man, Ng Mui was residing and studying at the southern

Shaolin Monastery Shaolin Monastery ( zh, labels=no, c=少林寺, p=shàolínsì), also known as Shaolin Temple, is a monastic institution recognized as the birthplace of Chan Buddhism and the cradle of Shaolin kung fu. It is located at the foot of Wuru Peak o ...

; she managed to survive its destruction by Manchu forces due to her Sifu becoming a traitor after she defeated him during the reign of the

Kangxi Emperor The Kangxi Emperor (4 May 165420 December 1722), also known by his temple name Emperor Shengzu of Qing, personal name Xuanye, was the third emperor of the Qing dynasty, and the second Qing emperor to rule over China proper. His reign of 61 ...

(1662–1722). She fled to the White Crane Temple. (which this account locates in the Daliang mountains between

and

) where she met a girl of fifteen named Yim Wing-chun whom a bandit was trying to force into marriage. Ng Mui taught Yim Wing-chun how to defend herself by distilling Shaolin martial art knowledge into a system that Yim Wing-chun could learn quickly, and use without developing great strength. A variation to this legend is that after escaping the destruction of the

by Qing forces around 1730, the Abbess Ng Mui fled to the Daliang Mountains on the border between

and

. Ng Mui often bought tofu at a shop owned by Yim Yee (嚴二). Yim Yee had a daughter named Yim Wing-chun (嚴詠春), whom a local warlord was trying to force into marriage. Ng Mui taught Yim Wing-chun a version of her southern-Shaolin kung fu, which allowed her to drive off the warlord. After completing her training under Ng Mui around 1790, Yim Wing-chun married Leung Bok-chao (梁博儔) and taught the fighting techniques which Ng Mui had passed on to her. After Yim Wing-chun died around 1840, Leung Bok-chao passed the new style on to Leung Lan-kwai.

Five-Pattern Hung Kuen

Dragon

Modern Dragon style historians relate that Shaolin nun Ng Mui, who is said to have originated the Dragon style, was one of the last members of the temple before its first destruction, which they date to 1570 (Chow & Spangler, 1982). The Shaolin Gung Fu Institute of the Pacific Northwest agrees with the date of 1570 for a destruction of the temple and states explicitly that Dragon style was created at the ''Henan'' Shaolin Temple c. 1565.

Wǔ Méi Pài

In the Wǔ Méi Pài tradition, Ng Mui—the daughter of a general in the Ming imperial court—fully developed her practical style in the

Forbidden City The Forbidden City () is the Chinese Empire, imperial Chinese palace, palace complex in the center of the Imperial City, Beijing, Imperial City in Beijing, China. It was the residence of 24 Ming dynasty, Ming and Qing dynasty, Qing dynasty L ...

. To develop balance and leg strength she trained on upturned logs, in a pattern she invented. She was travelling when her parents were killed in the Manchu capture of the Ming capital. She took refuge in the White Crane Temple (which this legend locates in Kwangsi Province), and became an anti-Qing rebel, teaching her style only within the Temple. The style uses instantaneous counters, and slower movements from Bodhidharma and

Qigong Qigong ()) is a system of coordinated body-posture and movement, breathing, and meditation said to be useful for the purposes of health, spirituality, and martial arts training. With roots in Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chinese medicine, Chin ...

Tibetian White Crane

According to the genealogy of Tibetan White Crane, "Ng Mui" is the Chinese name of the Tibetan ''monk'' Jikboloktoto, who was the last generation of transmission before Sing Lung, who brought the art to Guangdong. This account is most different from the others, with a male Ng Mui, the absence of a Manchu menace to flee from and, given the dating of Sing Lung's relocation to Guangdong to 1865, a 19th-century setting.

Popular culture references

Michelle Yeoh Yeoh Choo Kheng (; born 6 August 1962), known professionally as Michelle Yeoh (), is a Malaysian actress. In a career spanning over four decades, Yeoh has appeared Michelle Yeoh filmography, in projects encompassing a wide array of genres, a ...

's 1994 movie ''

'', the main character's teacher, played by Chang Pei Pei, was based on the legends of Ng Mui. In a 2010 film ''Kung Fu Wing Chun'', also about the origins of Wing Chun, Ng Mui is played by Kara Wai.

Notes

References

* * * *

External links

Wu Mei Kung Fu Association, which traces its lineage back to Wu Mei/Ng Mui

Wingchun Archives: Preserving the History & Methods of Wing Chun Kung Fu
* {{cite web, url=http://www.wingchunpedia.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php?n=WCP.NgMui, title=WingChunPedia - Ng Mui, website=WingChunpedia.org, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160107182811/http://www.wingchunpedia.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php?n=WCP.NgMui, archive-date=January 7, 2016, url-status=dead, access-date=2010-06-06, quote=The true identity of Ng Mui, has been under debate, within Chinese Martial Art circles, for over two hundred years.
Shifu Alan Tinnion demonstrating Wu Mei Quan Bournemouth Chinese Lantern Festival 2008
Chinese martial arts Martial arts school founders Year of birth unknown Year of death unknown Female generals Women warriors Women in war in China Women in 16th-century warfare Women in 17th-century warfare Chinese Buddhist nuns Qing dynasty Buddhists Buddhist abbesses 16th-century Buddhist nuns 17th-century Buddhist nuns