Refining a legacy: the distillation of Ging Mo Kune

When I walked into the Malcolm Sue Kung Fu School, I did not know what to expect. I did not even know what style of kung fu they taught — but after the first lesson I was hooked. I was impressed by how practical and modern the training was. Unlike other systems I’d trained in, Ging Mo Kune gave me skills that I could use to defend myself after the first class. That directness was rare, so I stayed.

Malcolm Sue began teaching Chow Gar Tong Long Pai (Southern Praying Mantis Kung Fu) in Brisbane, Queensland in the 1960s and in the 70s- he started accepting Caucasian students. Over time, he observed that the traditional techniques — developed by and for smaller-framed Chinese practitioners — didn’t translate easily to the larger physiques of his Caucasian students. Rather than forcing replication, he began adapting his teaching to suit the body dynamics in front of him. In the 1980s, he took a sabbatical to China, where he deepened his martial knowledge by mastering Chen Style Tai Ji Quan and becoming a traditional Chinese doctor. Upon returning to Australia, he relocated to Perth, Western Australia and began developing Ging Mo Kune — a modern system that integrated Southern Praying Mantis foundations with elements of Chen Tai Ji and basic principles of Chinese medicine. The result was an evolved designed to meet the practical needs of a new generation. 

When we look closely at the syllabus taught at the Malcolm Sue Kung Fu School, it becomes clear that the uniquely Ging Mo Kune material was concentrated between Black Sash and Green Sash. Students didn’t begin learning traditional Chow Gar Tong Long Pai until they reached Blue Sash, and Chen Style Tai Ji Quan was introduced at Red Sash — unless they opted into seminars earlier. This structure reflects a deliberate pedagogical choice, a decision about what and how to teach. Ging Mo Kune, which translates to “The Essence of (Chinese) Martial Fist,” was designed to equip students with practical, adaptable self-defence skills before guiding them into the deeper traditions of Chinese martial arts. SiJo Malcolm Sue recognised that the original systems were created by and for smaller-framed Chinese practitioners, and he refined his teaching to suit the body dynamics of the students in front of him. Ging Mo Kune distilled what worked across diverse bodies and self-defence contexts, offering a foundation that was immediately useful. Only after that foundation was laid did the syllabus open into the more intricate, and philosophical dimensions of Chow Gar Tong Long and Chen Tai Ji.

Ging Mo Kune Syllabus
SASH	Hand Drill	Weapon Drill	Partnered Drills	Philosophy
Black	Sart Sau Gung ‘ (Part one)	Cho Kap Gwan Fat	Teui Sau (Chai Sau) Jong Gau Choi Jong Gar Sau Jong Dai Sau Jong Chow Got Jong	Use Attack as your indestructible spiritual strength.
Yellow	Sart Sau Gung (Part two)	Cho Kap Dai Do  (Sabre)	Awareness is the spirit; attack is the foundation of thought.
Green	Sart Sau Gung (Part one and two)	Seung Bei Sau (Double daggers)	Stick vs knife fight Stick vs stick fight	Attack like thunder from the heavens, retreat like dust of the earth.
Blue	Sam Bo Gin	Seung Do (Butterfly knives) Ng Hung Gwan Fat	Kiu Sau Jong Lap Sau Jong	Calm as a water in a lake, move as a rabbit released.
Purple	Sam Bo Yiu Kiu	Fook Fu Gwan Fat	Yiu Sau Jong Hand vs Seung Do fight	Stable as a mountain range, move as an axle spins.
Brown	Sam Hung Bik Kiu Sam Bo Pai Tarn	Jung Kap Dai Do (Sabre)	Moot Sau Jong	My body is Geng (exploding power) exploding on touch.
Red	GingMo Bo Sim Sau Che Tai ji (part one)	Ging Mo Gim	Heun Sau Jong Warn Tek Jong Bak Gwa Ma jong	My Attack is invisible; awareness brings no escape.

As I transitioned from student to teacher, I made a conscious decision to change what I taught— I chose to condense all seven hand drills into just three, and to honour Malcolm Sue’s legacy, I named them Sart Sau Gung Part One, Part Two, and Part Three. I also made a deliberate choice to stop teaching choreographed fighting drills. This wasn’t a rejection of tradition, but a response to practicality. The rise of Mixed Martial Arts dismantled many of the illusions I once held about Chinese martial arts, especially the value of choreographed fighting drills. It revealed how choreography-heavy training and knowledge gatekeeping

Stagnate a student’s development and this is contrary to the true purpose of Martial Arts which is to prepare practitioners as quickly as possible, how to adapt and respond in the chaos of fighting. That’s why sparring is central to my teaching. It’s where theory meets reality. Students test their combinations, refine their timing, and learn to stay calm under pressure.

Ging Mo Kune Syllabus
SASH	Hand Drill	Weapon Drill	Partnered Drills	Philosophy
Black	Sart Sau Gung ‘ (Part one)	Cho Kap Gwan Fat	Teui Sau (Chai Sau) Jong Gau Choi Jong Gar Sau Jong Dai Sau Jong Chow Got Jong	Use Attack as your indestructible spiritual strength.
Yellow	Sart Sau Gung (Part two)	Cho Kap Dai Do  (Sabre)	Awareness is the spirit; attack is the foundation of thought.
Green	Sart Sau Gung (Part one and two)	Seung Bei Sau (Double daggers)	Stick vs knife fight Stick vs stick fight	Attack like thunder from the heavens, retreat like dust of the earth.
Blue	Sam Bo Gin	Seung Do (Butterfly knives) Ng Hung Gwan Fat	Kiu Sau Jong Lap Sau Jong	Calm as a water in a lake, move as a rabbit released.
Purple	Sam Bo Yiu Kiu	Fook Fu Gwan Fat	Yiu Sau Jong Hand vs Seung Do fight	Stable as a mountain range, move as an axle spins.
Brown	Sam Hung Bik Kiu Sam Bo Pai Tarn	Jung Kap Dai Do (Sabre)	Moot Sau Jong	My body is Geng (exploding power) exploding on touch.
Red	GingMo Bo Sim Sau Che Tai ji (part one)	Ging Mo Gim	Heun Sau Jong Warn Tek Jong Bak Gwa Ma jong	My Attack is invisible; awareness brings no escape.

That same commitment to clarity and practicality led me to develop the Da Mo Xin Syllabus. It’s not a reinvention of Ging Mo Kune, but a distillation — shaped by years of sparring, reflection, and refinement. To reach Red Sash in the Ging Mo Kune system I had to learn thirty choreographed drills; today, I teach only nine. The purpose of the drills that I teach is to act as an alphabet system. By learning them, students retain the vocabulary needed to build tactical combinations for their own training. These combinations aren’t handed down — they’re built collaboratively, tested through sparring. Over time, this process helps each practitioner develop a method that’s truly their own. The Da Mo Xin Syllabus supports this by offering structure without rigidity, guiding students through a progression that’s both practical and personal.