09/09/2026
梁相門人小傳：師開一門，徒續一燈，老外武館傳承中國師徒關係
Preserving the Chinese Sifu–Disciple Tradition in the West: DOMINIC CAVALLI
武林能打者眾，能教者少。所謂「師父領進門，修行在個人」，徒弟固然要修，師父也須開門；門鎖得死死，反怪徒弟悟性不足，不叫高深，只叫卸膊。謝永恩師父早年在李鄭屋邨隨葉問宗師學詠春，親歷舊武館歲月：木人樁未教不可摸，六點半棍非耀武揚威之物不可亂碰，八斬刀若資歷不夠更別問；師兄練尋橋、標指，後輩只准看，不准問。師父打一遍，徒弟自行悟；悟不到，師父一句「唔夠醒目」便算交代。此法昔日自有苦衷，今日卻不可照單全收。現年八十五、教拳逾六十載的謝師父深知：老火湯雖香，湯渣不能也供上神枱；祖師當年點蠟燭，是因尚無電燈，後人有燈不用，繼承的不是智慧，只是限制。故謝永恩師父教拳有三不：(1)不把講不清當高深，(2)不把不准問當禮貌，(3)不把靠猜當悟性。小念頭為何如此站，尋橋轉馬解甚麼困，標指何時用；黐手如何練反應、結構、中線與距離，木人樁怎樣接實戰，六點半棍、八斬刀如何鍛鍊功力、身法與發力，皆從重心、角度、時機逐層拆解，再以散手、步法、對抗及壓力測試反覆驗證。第一代尚知為何「埋肘」，四代之後若只剩「不准飛肘」，便是手法未亡，理解先死。謝師父曾在InsideKungFuMagazine武術雜誌發表一篇名為《MoneyCannotBuyMartialArts》的文章。功夫固然不能當貨賣，但徒弟既交出學費、時間與信任，師父便須親力親為。學生不是來買師父脾氣，也不是來參加猜謎大會。能打，是本事；能示範、能拆解、能令學生真正學會，方是師德。
In the martial world, skilled fighters are plentiful; true teachers are rare. There is an old Chinese saying: “The master opens the gate, but the student must walk the path.” We often repeat this proverb to remind students that no one can practice on their behalf. The student must put in the time, endure the hardship, and discover the art through personal effort. That is true—but it is only half the truth. The student must walk through the gate, but the teacher must first open it. If a teacher bolts the gate, hides the key, and then blames the student for lacking IQ, that is not profundity. It is an abdication of responsibility. Sifu Ben Der began studying Wing Chun under Grandmaster Yip Man at Lei Cheng Uk Estate in Hong Kong. He lived through the old days of the traditional kwoon. In those days, students did not touch the wooden dummy until they had formally been taught. The six-and-a-half-point pole was not a toy to be handled for show. The butterfly swords were not even to be mentioned before one had earned sufficient seniority. When senior students practiced Chum Kiu or Biu Jee, juniors could watch—but they were not expected to ask questions. The teacher demonstrated once. The student was expected to understand through observation. If he failed, the answer might simply be, “You are not smart enough.” Such customs arose for historical reasons. But history should be understood, not blindly embalmed. Now 85 years old, after more than six decades of teaching, Sifu Ben Der understands this deeply. An old herbal soup may be rich and nourishing, but its residual dregs need not be placed upon the ancestral altar. Our forefathers lit candles because electric lamps did not yet exist. If we possess the lamp but refuse to switch it on in the name of tradition, we are not inheriting their wisdom—we are inheriting their limitations. For that reason, Sifu Ben Der refuses three things: (1) he does not pass off poor explanation as profound knowledge; (2) he does not silence honest questions in the name of etiquette; and (3) he does not mistake a student’s guesswork for understanding. Why does Siu Nim Tau train the body to stand as it does? What problem is solved by the turning and shifting of Chum Kiu? When should the recovery methods of Biu Jee be used? How does Chi Sau develop reaction, structure, centerline control, and distance? How does the wooden dummy connect formal movement to practical combat? How do the long pole and butterfly swords develop power, body mechanics, footwork, and the ability to issue force? Sifu Ben Der teaches these matters layer by layer—from balance, angle, and timing to footwork, free application, live resistance, and pressure testing. Because a principle that cannot survive pressure is merely a theory. The first generation may understand why the elbow must be tucked in. Four generations later, if all that remains is the command, “Do not raise and flare your elbow,” then the movement may have survived—but its meaning has already died. Years ago, Sifu Ben Der published an article in Inside Kung-Fu Magazine entitled “Money Cannot Buy Martial Arts.” Indeed, kung fu cannot be purchased like an object from a shop. Money may pay for instruction, but it cannot buy patience, discipline, courage, or understanding. Yet when a student gives a teacher his tuition, his time, and his trust, the teacher owes him honest effort in return. A student does not come to purchase the teacher’s temper. Nor does he enter the kwoon to compete in a guessing game. To fight well is personal ability. To demonstrate clearly, explain patiently, and help another person genuinely learn—that is the virtue and responsibility of a teacher.
(Website) https://www.facebook.com/FresnoWingChun
這份勤教之德，後來照亮了DominicCavalli。Dominic習武二十餘年，曾學日本柔術、沖繩空手道與西洋拳擊，走過日本、波蘭、加拿大尋訪名師學藝和比武講手，只求一個「真」字。初見謝師父，Dominic自恃柔術黑帶，施腕鎖相試。誰知謝師父不爭不頂，輕輕一化，其力如泥牛入海，身如舟遇暗流，重心頓失。Dominic心頭大震，方悟梁相詠春之妙，在棄力用位、借位生勁；肯放下控制，方能聽勁、發柔力。然真正改變他的，並非謝師父使他失根，而是事後仍肯逐寸解釋：力從何散，位在何時失，角度因何錯。高手使人驚服，良師使人明白。其後Dominic主持FresnoWingChun詠春學生會，遂依樣傳燈。他不濫收門徒，也不以聲大拳重嚇人，只逐一細看鬆肩、沉肘、守中、立身。學生問招，他不叫人死背，只反問：「身在哪裡？中線在哪裡？對方的根在哪裡？」他尤重拔根：手輕貼，步微移，腰胯一合，對方平衡已空，如大樹根鬆，未倒先敗。若橋斷根失，不怨人狠，先查自身結構；同一句拳理，此人不明，便換一種說法。標準不降，教法因人；一眼看中線，一眼看學生。Dominic由此立下八則詠春教育心法：(1)藏鋒而不炫強，(2)隱智而不弄玄，(3)戒慾而不貪勝，(4)省身而不怨人，(5)求實而不作假，(6)慎言而不貶派，(7)節情而勝敗自若，(8)向善而有力不欺。謝師父替Dominic開了一扇門，Dominic又替自己的學生逐一點燈。守得住規矩，是門風；說得清功夫，才是傳承。真正的傳承，不是把秘密守到死，而是讓下一代比自己更明白。一燈既明，百燈可續；拳理不死，詠春自活。
It was this devotion to teaching that later illuminated the path of Dominic Cavalli. Dominic had already studied martial arts for more than twenty years. His background included Japanese jujutsu, Okinawan karate, and Western boxing. He travelled through Japan, Poland, and Canada, seeking respected teachers, exchanging knowledge, and testing his skills. He was searching for one thing above all else: Truth. When Dominic first met Sifu Ben Der, he carried the confidence of a jujutsu black belt. He applied a wrist lock to test him. Sifu Ben Der did not struggle. He did not brace himself or fight force with force. With one quiet adjustment, he dissolved the lock. Dominic’s power disappeared like ”a mud cow entering the sea”—without splash, echo, or return. His body became a boat caught by an unseen current. In an instant, his balance was empty and his root was gone. At that moment, Dominic glimpsed the subtlety of Leung Sheung Wing Chun: Do not contest strength with strength. Give up the struggle for force, take the superior position, and allow position itself to become power. Only when we release our need to control can we begin to listen through contact. Only then can relaxed power arise. But what truly changed Dominic was not merely that Sifu Ben Der uprooted him frequently. Many experts can leave another person astonished. Sifu Ben Der did something more valuable: he explained exactly what had happened. He showed Dominic where the force had dispersed, when the position had been lost, and why the angle had failed. A great fighter leaves you impressed. A great teacher leaves you enlightened. Dominic later carried this same spirit into leading the Fresno Wing Chun Student Association, an affiliate of the Worldwide Leung Sheung Tong Wing Chun Confederation. He did not collect students merely for the sake of numbers. He did not intimidate them with a loud voice or heavy hitting hands. Instead, he studied each student carefully: Is the shoulder relaxed? Is the elbow settled? Is the center protected? Is the body properly aligned? When students ask about a technique, Dominic does not simply demand that they memorize another movement. He asks them: “Where is your body?” “Where is the centerline?” “Where is your opponent’s root?” He places particular emphasis on uprooting. The hand makes light contact. The foot shifts only slightly. The waist and hips unite—and suddenly the opponent’s balance is empty. Like a great tree whose roots have loosened beneath the soil, the opponent is defeated before he has visibly fallen. If the bridge collapses and the root is lost, Dominic does not first complain that the other person was too aggressive. He examines his own structure. When one explanation fails to reach a student, he finds another. The standard remains firm; the method remains flexible. A true teacher keeps one eye on the centerline—and the other on the student. From this approach, Dominic established eight principles for teaching Wing Chun.
1. Keep the blade in its sheath. True strength does not need to advertise itself.
2. Carry wisdom lightly. Depth should illuminate; it should never hide behind unnecessary mystery.
3. Discipline desire. The person obsessed with winning has already surrendered his judgment.
4. Examine yourself before blaming another. The honest mirror is often the hardest opponent.
5. Seek what is real. Empty gestures may imitate skill, but they cannot withstand pressure.
6. Guard your speech. Never try to elevate your own school by belittling another.
7. Govern your emotions. Meet victory without arrogance and defeat without despair.
8. Direct strength toward goodness. Power used to bully the weak is merely weakness wearing armour.
These principles remind us that martial education is not only about what the hands can do. It is also about what kind of person those hands belong to. Sifu Ben Der opened a gate for Dominic. Dominic, in turn, lights a lamp for every student willing to carry the flame forward. To preserve discipline is to preserve the character of a school. But to explain the art clearly is to preserve the lineage itself. True tradition is not the guarding of ashes. It is the carrying of fire. A lineage is not a vault in which secrets are buried with the dead. It is a living bridge, built so that the next generation may travel farther than the last. The purpose of transmission is not merely to make our descendants repeat what we know. It is to help them understand more clearly than we did. One lamp, once lit, may light a hundred more—and a candle loses nothing by sharing its flame. So long as the principles are understood, the art does not die. So long as the art is taught with honesty, Wing Chun remains alive. Thank you.
Testimony from Student (Deepak Ahluwalia): I first began training with Dominic back in 2017 out of the Fresno Wing Chun school. As someone who had zero martial arts experience- Dominic made me feel not only welcome but also at ease. To this day, no question is too small. He treats his students with the kindness and compassion without fail. A big reason I have learned to love the art of wing chun is because of Dominic’s teaching style. He doesn’t treat this as a business to generate income. He treats this as a sacred art, which only the ones he feels like are able to use this for good, are the ones fortunate enough to learn from him.
For more info, go to:
https://LeungSheung.com
