Traditional Kung Fu Meets the Modern World

Black Belt Magazine - October 2010

Ever since Bruce Lee became a superstar, wing chun kung fu has enjoyed a special reputation in the West. Introduced to the art by his childhood friend, William Cheung, lee learned its core lessons, then formulated his own system, which he dubbed jeet kune do, and introduced it to the world. In the mean time, Cheung stayed true to the traditions of his art and became its leading light.

In 1983 Eric Oram signed on with Cheung. To say he was a quick study would be an understatement. Oram swiftly rose through the ranks, eventually becoming one of Cheung's senior disciples. In 2005 he opened the Wing Chun Kung-Fu Chinese Boxing Academy, a 4,300-square-foot facility with high wood-beam ceilings and bare brick walls. Despite its decidedly Western look, it has all the requisite wing chun accoutrements, including wooden dummies, an iron-palm station and butterfly swords affixed to the walls. Although it's a venue for leaning how to fight, it has the atmosphere of a Buddhist temple.

Oram is an exacting man, and it shows in everything from his clean-cut appearance to the kind of students he attracts. Newbies start with a program that lays the foundation, then adds the stances, blocks, strikes, and combinations they need to be functional. "Once they have a sense of the hardware they're ready to shift to another level," he says. "We start plugging in software until they bring it to life."

Oram's approach to teaching appears to be just what students want because the school is thriving despite loads of competition and the fact that he doesn't advertise. The secret of his success: He learned a long time ago that not all students are training to become lethal weapons.

"I was focused on making [my students] the best fighters," he says. "Then I started hearing about what they got out of training. They said it gave them more confidence in board meetings, better reflexes, a better relationship with their wives. My reaction was: ‘This is unbelievable. Not one person mentioned anything about fighting. These guys don't appreciate it.'

‘Then I stepped back and looked at the big picture, and it made perfect sense. The character building that occurs during training transforms you. It was my first glimpse of how wing chun training can be used as a path to self-mastery and not just a way to destroy someone else.' "