Chan Sau Chung - Da Sheng Pi Gua International Kung Fu Federation

Da Sheng Pi Gua International Kung Fu Federation

Chan Sau Chung formally launched the Da Sheng Pi Gua International Kung Fu Federation in Hong Kong on December 7 2000. It sought to lend organization and structure on a worldwide basis, to the teaching of genuine Da Sheng Pi Gua Kung Fu together with this, the official Federation website was also launched. The Federation's logo depicts a monkey sitting on top of a globe however due to Wikipedia rules it cannot be displayed in this article.

The Federation's website offered site visitors a view into the origin, development and evolution of Da Sheng Pi Gua Kung Fu as well the option to learn Da Sheng Pi Gua Kung Fu by taking video courses. These courses were offered at four levels as follows:

1. Beginner
2. Internediate
3. Advanced
4. Masters

Each level had its own costs and students would be provided with video taped lessons containing the curriculum for that level which included stances, strikes and various forms and were allowed to train at their own pace and at the point where they felt comfortable they were required to make video recording of themselves doing the forms and send these to the Federation for grading and assessment. At the Beginners level the stances and strikes were very basic and the forms were really an introduction to Pi Gua Kung Fu. As each student progressed, the material provided got more advanced and there was a gradual introduction to Da Sheng Kung Fu. It was mandatory that each student go through the natural progression of successfully completing each level, be assessed and if successful, permission would be granted to advance to the next higher level. No skipping of levels was allowed whatsoever. It was at the Advanced level that the student began learning advanced Monkey Forms. The length of time required to complete each level depended on the each student, whether they were practicing kung fu prior to commencing the program, how often they trained and how committed they were to the program. The Beginners level was expected to take anywhere from six to eighteen months, Intermediate was expected to last between twelve to thirty months, Advanced was expected to last between eighteen to forty months while at the Masters level the student would be required to train in Vancouver under direct supervision from Master Chan Kai Leung and Grandmaster Chan Sau Chung. The Master's level period of training could take upward of five years prior to successful completion. It is important to again note that no skipping of levels was allowed so no student could enter the program at the Master's level. Bear in mind also that there are five variations taught by the Federation (lost monkey, stone monkey, wooden monkey, tall monkey and the drunken monkey) and that there are upwards of one hundred and twenty-six weapon and empty hand forms. At various levels, approved students were permitted to participate in tournaments as members of the Da Sheng Pi Gua International Kung Fu Federation. Upon successful completion of the Master's level training, students would be graded and where appropriate certified by Grandmaster Chan Sau Chung to open their own Da Sheng Pi Gua Kung Fu schools.

Together with the video taped lessons, Intermediate level students were initially provided with a book written jointly by Chan Sau Chung and his son Chan Kai Leung, entitled "Essence Of The Monkey". This book gave very detailed insights into the development of Da Sheng Pi Gua Kung Fu and provided information obtained directly from Gan Dak Hoi himself etc. It also provided information on ALL students who were trained by Gan Dak Hoi and which ones were certified to teachDa Sheng Pi Gua Kung Fu. The Federation continues to update this family tree with the modern day students who have mastered all five variations but only those from the lineage previously certified by Gan Dak Hoi.

For reasons related to the preservation of information, the Federation came to the conclusion that it had to take down the website and make the "Essence Of The Monkey" book available to its Advanced and Masters students only etc.