Sports

The Trung Son School of Martial Arts

The Trung Son School of Martial Arts was founded in 1964 by instructor Mai Van Phat (1917-1997) in Saigon (present-day Ho Chi Minh City). A native of southern Can Tho province, Phat showed his passion for martial arts since he was a little boy. He was trained by superior Buddhist monk Thich Thien Hoa in the That Son mountainous area of An Giang Province.
After ten years of hard training, Phat returned to his native countryside and opened martial arts courses for the local young people, with the enthusiastic spirit of contributing to the national fight against the French colonialists. In those years, a Chinese martial arts instructor also taught him the skills of the Shao-lin School.

In 1955, Phat went to Saigon (present-day Ho Chi Minh City) where he worked and trained in the martial arts. Later he preferred living in a pagoda as a monk and took the Buddhist name of Thich Thien Tanh, taking martial arts training as a way to guide young people in patriotism and human behavior.

In those years, he gradually systematized the quintessence of martial arts that he had been trained in by the two master instructors and compiled them into textbooks with different levels.

To further expand the teaching of martial arts, Phat founded the Trung Son Martial Arts School in 1964. In 1969, together with some prestigious martial arts instructors in the Vietnamese traditional martial arts circles, Phat established the Vietnam Martial Arts General Department. Later he was entrusted with the position of head of the Vietnam Traditional Martial Arts Federation’s consultancy board.
 

Disciples of the Trung Son Martial Arts School celebrated their 49th anniversary
and inaugurated the 33rd club in Tan Binh District, Ho Chi Minh City, on Nov. 24, 2013.

The rung Son Martial Arts School’s followers hold a portrait
of their late chief instructor Mai Van Phat at Tan Binh Club.

Instructor Le Ngoc Diep, current president of the Trung Son Martial Arts School’s council.

Disciples of other martial arts schools attend the 49th anniversary of Trung Son Martial Arts School.

Trung Son martial arts’ typical technique is based on Vietnam’s fighting tactics and Shao-lin skills.

With the merciful heart as a Buddhist follower, the chief of Trung Son Martial Arts School instructed his martial arts disciples with the spirit, “learning martial arts is training personality”, which has been practiced and upheld by generations of his followers. The techniques of Trung Son martial arts is based on the Vietnamese military fighting tactics mixed with the Shao-lin playing skills, along with inner attacks and outside support.

Vietnamese fighting tactics require a great unity within the team, and mutual understanding among team members. This is demonstrated vividly through the “Thap Nhi Hinh Long” fight of the Trung Son martial arts. A team of 8-12 members stand in eight trigrams of the I Ching, of which each member has to coordinate in attacking or supporting the others, or in changing the direction so as all members form a secret fighting position.

Meanwhile, another bare-handed move “Lao Hau Ly Son” requires good coordination with different parts of the body. They have to change flexibly just the way a monkey moves. This movement is suitable for small, agile practitioners.

The typical weapon of Trung Son martial arts is a pair of knife-shaped lances. They are short and havea large interface.The handle has a strap that works as a handle and helps the user flexibly move the lance. Only disciples who reach the secondary level are allowed to use the lances when training in “Song To Lao Ho”. They have to use the lances well in combination with flexible moves of their body parts, all creating a perfect uninterrupted fight without any errors.

In addition, a pair of hammers and long cudgels is also specific weapons used by Trung Son martial arts followers.
 

A pair of knife-shaped lances is typical weapons of the Trung Son Martial Arts School.

A typical posture of the Trung Son Martial Arts School.

The Trung Son Martial Arts School trains its followers in both techniques and physical strength,
and considers inner attack and outside support as its basic skills.

The Trung Son Martial Arts School’s disciples train in physical strength and techniques.

“Thap Nhi Hinh Long”, a typical fight of the Trung Son Martial Arts School.

Performing Trung Son martial arts with the knife-shaped lances.

The long lance is also used by Trung Son martial arts disciples.

Performing with a cudgel.

The fan can become an effective weapon for Trung Son martial arts female followers.

Under the management of the Martial Arts Council, Trung Son martial arts has strongly developed especially in southern HCM City and the southwestern provinces. To date there are 33 clubs open nationwide, plus some others in the United States and Australia, which are taught by Trung Son martial arts instructors. The number of disciples has increased to about 8,000 at present, and many have participated in competing at national and international martial arts festivals and won important awards such as Tran Thanh Tuyen, Le Van Duc and Nguyen Mai Trinh, to name but a few.

Le Ngoc Diep, President of the Martial Arts Council, said: “Disciples of Trung Son Mrtial Arts School have all followed the guidance of the ten teachings by their late founder-instructor, Mai Van Phat, of which he focused on the combination of personality educating and physical training. In doing that, Trung Son Martial Arts School’s followers have contributed their part to preserving the quintessence of the traditional martial arts.”


Story: Son Nghia - Photos: Nguyen Luan 

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