CKF – Swimming in a big ocean.

For the longest time, I thought that with my vast library of MA materials, spending countless hours in my younger days talking to CKF elders, I had already amassed a vast cache of info.

And of course, I could not have been more wrong.

These last few years, traveling and meeting Sifus all over this region has been a real revelation.

One that is making me reviews all that I thought I knew regarding histories, lineages etc…

Take Cho Gar for instance – I have no material anywhere pointing to their rich heritage of traditional fighting arts.

Through talking to folks like Por Suk and Ku Sifu, I now know that they played a very considerable role in the histories and evolutions of many southern Cantonese styles.

Just the other day, I wandered into a temple here in Kuching and among the many deities; I saw a special altar identified as “General Cho”…

Who is this “General Cho”? Talking to the temple keeper, he explained that this deity has been worshipped in his village in China and now that most of his village has been relocated to Sarawak, they are continuing the tradition here.

And what is his family name?

Cho Gar!

Here’s a short clip from Poon Yue in China – another Cho Gar dominant village. This is their version of “Tiger Crane”.