FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Can I really learn effective Chi Kung on a weekend course?
Believe it or not, you will learn in a few days what many others may not achieve in 20 years! This is because Sifu teaches elite Shaolin Chi Kung, the Chi Kung of the Emperors of China. This Chi Kung produces very quick and very profound results. Furthermore, Sifu has been constantly refining his teaching techniques over 30 years. The Chi Kung that Sifu teaches on this course would have originally taken him 12 months to teach. Sifu’s philosophy is “maximum benefit from minimum effort”!

Why is the course so expensive?
The course is expensive because the students are being taught by one of the greatest living Chi Kung Grand Masters. Having said that, virtually all of Sifu’s students consider the course to be excellent value for money! It is actually a very cost effective way of learning proper Chi Kung. You could spend many years learning an inferior style, at great cost, and achieve poor results! Interestingly, because Sifu is so confident that you will also consider the course to be good value, he has introduced a unique money back guarantee!

Why can’t I just learn Chi Kung from a book or video?
If only life were that simple! Books and videos can be good for reference but it is impossible to learn a high level Chi Kung, such as Shaolin Cosmos Chi Kung, from them. There are subtleties that only a Master, in person, can communicate. In addition, only the Master can correct errors in your posture and form. Please bear in mind that incorrect practise of Chi Kung can be harmful.

Who gauges our progress?
If after learning either one of these great arts, how do we know whether or not we are doing it correctly; who gauges our progress ?

Answer
The best test is to access your results against the effects these arts are purported to give. As chi kung is purported to give good health, vitality and mental clarity, you should have these results if you have practised it correctly. If you do not experience any noticeable results, it is likely you have correctly practised not chi kung but some form of gentle exercise that pretends to be chi kung.

Such a situatiion is more obvious in Taijiquan. Virtually all Taijiquan classics mention that Taijiquan develops internal force and is very effective for self defence. If you have practised what you think is Taijiquan for some time but do not know what internal force is or how to defend yourself, it is certain that you have not practised Taijiquan although you might have practised it correctly.

On the other hand, if you feel uncomfortable, painful, nervous, weak or sickly, what you practise may or may not be chi kung, kungfu or taijiquan, but you have practised it wrongly.

The best person to gauge your progress is your teacher -- if you have a good teacher. Because of his experience and wider perspective, he is usually a better person than you yourself to gauge your own progress. But if you have chosen a mediocre instructor as a teacher, who himself has little experience of what he teaches, obviously he is not a good judge.

But in your case, after you have completed the intensive course from me, you yourself would be a good judge as you would know exactly what to look for in your own accessment. Your friends too would be able to gauge your progress. If you have practised correctly what you have learnt from me, your friends would not fail to notice the good health and vitality in you.

Did you pay your Master for training?
I hope you will not find this question impertinent. Please ignore it if you find it unsuitable. Did your Sifus charge you a lot for your training?
Michael, Malaysia -- Aug (1) 1998

Answer
The question is not impertinent. In fact I like your question as it provides me an opportunity to explain my fees although I do not need to give any justification.

My sifus did not charge me a lot for my training. Uncle Righteousness taught me free of charge; Sifu Ho Fatt Nam charged me only a nominal fee.

If I have to pay, I would never have paid enough. This is not an exaggeration. They taught me not just the best Shaolin kungfu, chi kung and Zen, but how to lead a rewarding life for myself, my family and other people, according to the highest ideals in the Shaolin philosophy. To put in a nutshell, I have learnt and practiced righteousness from Uncle Righteousness, and impeccable morality from Sifu Ho Fatt Nam.

My fees, depending on how you look at them, can be very expensive or very cheap. Compared to some instructors who charge US$10 for as long as you want to practice, or even the more expensive ones who charge US$50 for three months, charging £300 for two days is certainly very expensive.

If you have been looking for genuine kungfu or chi kung, and have expressed that you would give anything to learn it, and you learn it in four days what others, if they are lucky to have the opportunity to learn genuine kungfu or chi kung, take twenty years to acquire, paying £300 is very cheap.

For someone who has been suffering from asthma, diabetes, cardiovascular disorders, cancer or any other chronic degenerative diseases, which he knows conventional treatment gives him little chance of recovery, and for which medical tests merely to confirm the illness is present, will cost him (or his insurance company) thousands of dollars, paying £300 to learn an art for just two days, an art which according to statictics gives him at least 60% chance of recovery if he continues to practice it for a few months, is very cheap.


I just received a fax from Douglas, my most senior student in Europe. The following quotation may cause you to think that my fees are very cheap! This is just one of my many successful cases.

" Dear Sifu,
I got a call yesterday from M.A., the young mother from Alicante whose baby suffered from narrow arteries from the heart to the lungs as well as leaky ventricles in her heart. She was thrilled at the progress that the baby has made. The doctor couldn't beleive how good the baby looked. Her next checkup is August 21. She asked me if you would be kind enough to send energy to the baby again to ensure that no surgery will be necessary."


Intending studnets would have the following three legitimate questions:

How do I know the kungfu or chi kung I learn is genuine? After all every one who teaches, believes or says his art is genuine, if not the best.

How can I be sure that I can recover from my illness?

Can I learn it in four days? I thought kungfu or chi kung takes years to master.

The answers are as follows.
Find out from reliable, established sources what genuine kungfu or chi kung is, and compare what I teach with what you have found out. Also find out from those who have learned from me before, whether they are satisfied with my teaching, and whether they get the results promised.
No one, including I or the best doctor, can gauranteee that his patients will recover, because recovery depends on other factors besides treatment. But I can say that at least 60% (actually closer to 80%) of those who suffered from so-called incurable diseases, regain good health after learning and practicing chi kung from me. I would not provide names because I respect the privacy of my students, but those genuinely concerned should have no difficulty finding out for themselves if they take some trouble to ask around.

Yes, you can learn the necessary skills and techniques in four days. Some of the skills are quite fantastic, such as tapping cosmic energy, and channelling the energy down your body to clear energy blockage! Students do not have to pay me any fees if they are not satisfied that the course objectives, which are clearly set out, have been fulfilled. If someone thinks that he should have a longer time learning, he should know that I charge for efficiency and benefits acquired, not time spent. If I take four weeks to give him the same benefits which I can do in four days, I deserve a lower, not a higher, fee.

The intensive course is not meant to make you a master. Its purpose is to equip you with fundamental skills and techniques so that you can competently practice on your own after the course. You need to practice for at least a few months before you can have lasting good results. For example, after the course you will know how to generate your internal energy flow, but you have to practice this for a few months before your internal energy flow can effectively clear your energy blockage and restore your good health.

There are two good reasons, among others, why I charge a high fee. It is a practical way to ensure that a great art is taught to deserving students, and it ensures that they value the art and will practice it. In the past I used to teach some very good kungfu and chi kung to students for free. Because they did not pay for the training, they did not value it and stopped half-way. They each saved a thousand dollars but lost an invaluable art, and some lost the opportunity to recover from their so-called incurable disease.

A person with serious kidney problems went on a local newspaper to appeal for public donation to buy a dialysis machine. I offered to teach him free, and a reporter who knew of my good records in helping kidney patients recover, spoke to him. He replied that it was too troublesome to practice chi kung.

Some time ago there was frequent public comment on the high cost of maintaining dialysis treatment for kidney patients (which actually does not overcome the kidney problem, but prevents the patients from dying). I wrote to the secretasry of a kidney patients' association and offered my free service to any of his members interested. He did not even acknowledge my letter, but a few months later he said they were not interested.

Many people claim that they would sacrifice anything to learn a great art. But when it rains, they would not turn up for training. This doesn't happen when students pay a high fee. On the other hand, some people even think they are doing their teachers a service when they pay a small fee to learn. But if the fee is high, they value the art and subsequently derive good benefits from their practice. It is not just that they want to get back their money's worth; rather it is often the other way round, i.e. they already value the art in the first place, as evident from their readiness to pay a high fee to learn.

The tenth Shaolin Law dictates that the Shaolin arts are to be taught only to deserving studnets. In the past a student stayed with and served the master for a few years, during which time the master observed and tested the student to see if he was deserving. Such a method of screening students is not feasible in today's world. Willingness to make sacrifice to an equivalent value of £300 is a modern, albeit poor, alternative.

Of course there are many other factors contributing to make a student deserving. Hence, it does not mean that anyone willing to pay £300 will be taught. But as a working guideline, I would consider that anyone who thinks my art is worth less than £300 to learn, does not deserve the teaching.

£300 is a comparatively small sum to pay for the benefits one gets in my intensive courses. Ask kungfu students in general how many of them have internal force and can effectively use their kungfu techniques for self-defence, or ask chi kung students how many of them can tap cosmic energy and generate internal energy flow. Less than 20% will answer positively, and they probably have taken many years to acquire these skills. Yet, my students learn the skills in four days, and through daily practice for six months will attain a level these lucky 20% attain in 10 years.

But my best kungfu and chi kung are still taught to advanced students free. And deserving, beginning students who cannot afford to pay get free teaching from me

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