Training with Shifu Wu Nanfang

This article is adapted from an interview with Ben Lucas posted in our Skool community.

I've been training with Shifu Wu Nanfang for about 18 months now. One-on-one. Living at his school on Songshan Mountain.

People ask me what makes him special. It's a hard question to answer because the specialness isn't obvious. He doesn't have a huge following. Not a lot of money. No big "Shifu master aura" about him — the kind you see from some teachers who've figured out how to package themselves for Western audiences.

It's subtler than that. You spend time with him and slowly notice things. Little things. And then you think: oh yeah, he does that. No one else I know does that.

No Desire

I'm fussy about teachers. Very easy for me to feel when a master wants something from you — money, recognition, your admiration. With Shifu, I get none of that. Zero.

In 18 months, I've never felt he has any kind of desire in him for anything. Which is actually quite strange when you think about it. To meet someone who is 100% content with everything, all of the time.

I've trained with masters who were extremely proficient. But also extremely busy. No time for students. Always in meetings, running programmes, building their brand. I never wanted that kind of life for myself.

If you're taking someone as a master, look at someone whose life in the small things is something you'd actually want.

No Interference

Many people come to Shaolin with a fantasy. Hardcore master. Beats you with a stick. Shouts at you. Destroys your ego. Turn up one minute late and you're holding horse stance until your legs give out.

There was some competitive boy in me that wanted that.

The universe had other plans. Dealt me a stream of soft, flowing teachers. Never got my fantasy fulfilled. But probably what I needed.

Shifu is very much in this category. I've never had the feeling of him interfering with me — not trying to motivate me, not trying to encourage me to practise. He corrects you just enough so you have something to work on. Without you ever feeling self-conscious or stuck in your head.

His style is energetic rather than detailed. I practised Xiao Hong Quan this morning — about 10 minutes — and at the end he just said: "It's okay. Bit more stable."

That's it.

We asked him recently: what should people do if they're struggling with discipline? They wake up, feel too tired, keep making excuses.

His answer: "Don't worry about them. They don't have yuanfen."

Yuanfen. Affinity. Destiny. Either you have it or you don't. He's not interested in convincing anyone.

Beyond Words

Traditionally, Shifu says, masters don't talk when they practise Kung Fu. You observe. You watch. The more you explain, the more you go into the intellect — and this makes your ability to sense weaker.

People ask him questions. What is Qi? What's the purpose of this movement? How should we circulate energy?

His answer is basically the same every time: "Practise for yourself, then you'll understand."

If you're hoping for deep Chinese medicine, special tricks with meridians, esoteric secrets — sorry. That's not the style. This is beyond the logic mind.

No Conflict

There's no conflict in him. He sees nothing wrong with anyone or anything.

A friend once came to visit and described a complex relationship drama for about 10 minutes. Then asked: "Shifu, what should I do about this problem?"

He said: "Dou shi kong."

All these problems — it's all empty.

If I'd said that, she'd have been furious. But from him it landed differently. The medicine she needed. She was like: oh yeah, what am I even talking about?

He takes everything extremely lightly. No problems. Everything is beautiful.

I think he has a very full Dantian — you feel his breathing, his big balloon of a stomach. Full from the inside. So not interested in outside things.

Sui Yuan

The school declined for some years. Coronavirus. The old Facebook group got shut down. Various things. When I arrived, it had clearly changed from what I'd seen online.

Shifu seemed exactly the same.

Then opportunities arose. Germany. The online programme. For him it's simple: if the universe presents something, you take it. But you don't go looking.

Everyone says this — follow the flow, don't have too many desires. But it's different meeting someone who actually lives it. I've never seen him irritated. Never seen him worried.

A 2,000-Year-Old Tree

If I had to compare him to anything, it would be a tree. A nice old tree.

When I come away from spending time with Shifu, it has this feeling. Like I've just spent an hour with a 2,000-year-old tree.

Shifu is 63. He wants to transmit everything in the years ahead. The lineage is open.