In Humans of KL

“As a practitioner of the art, I have never felt that my creed, race or ethnicity has affected me in any way, in either my training as a martial artist or teaching of the art.

When we set up this school (in Cheras) three to four years ago, it was more in a sense of finding a place that’s not too expensive. This is a non-profit organization. We don’t do it for profit. I mean the students pay fees, but the purpose is for each student to contribute for the place of training. 

Just like any school, this is a place where people grow up, and it’s about finding yourself. I think I’ve seen it with the students that come through here, and stayed for a significant amount of time and they become really good friends. There is camaraderie of sorts, a feeling that they belong to the same journey.

We call it the kungfu brotherhood. That’s why in kungfu you refer to each other as your elder brother, younger brother, your sister… It’s a family, and I think the idea of family was born out of the fact that everybody in the journey is responsible for the expression of the art, and the spread of the art. It’s been wonderful seeing this place evolve to be an extended family, for me and for the students.

To me, teaching is about the sharing of the experience or journey, of course you undertake a certain amount of formal teaching, but the satisfaction comes from the evolution of the individual that began as a novice… where you see the awkwardness, the stuttering steps.

Then almost like a flower blossoming, several months later, you see improvements, you see the rise in confidence, you see the increase in passion, and you see that double and triple as they continue in the journey. 

They come to a stage where they are matured in the understanding of the art, and they take it to the next level, and when that happens, to a lesser or greater degree, depending, you feel you have given something, and that feeling of having given something, that’s the most satisfying thing for me.” – Sifu Kamarul Hisham Kamaruddin, Wing Chun Cheras – Kung Fu Centre.

Story by Christine Cheah (Yu Ping May)
Photo by Irene Yap

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(This post was first published on February 18th 2018)

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