Traditional Kungfu Academy

Kung-fu Academy

The school – in its full name, Hungarian Traditional Kungfu Academy – was created by the first functioning kungfu association of Hungary (founded in 1983) after 16 years of operation, in 1999. Attila Kapecska, who was a member from the very beginning and after 1989 became the leader of the organisation, opened the gates of the Academy in the month of September in the year 2000 for those interested in learning the tradtitional Chinese martal arts.

The primary objective of the Kungfu Academy is education people to live a healthy way of life, the development of physical and mental endurance, as well as the awakening of the need for regular workout and providing the necessary facilities and conditions for these. On the other hand, it also promotes the sudying of traditional martial arts history and their philosophy, as well as acquiring self-defense abilities, that are achieved by ancient Chinese methodology which is several hundred years of age.

Kungfu Academy is not competition oriented, it rather focuses on practice as a way of life.

At the Academy there are two training halls, both up the European standards. Comfortable dressing rooms, toilets and lavatories, as well as shower facilities are all available for those practicing at the school.

The whole area is ventillated, equipped with air cleaning machinery.

There is an attached non-smoking teahouse right next to the school which welcomes those who wish to converse or consume refreshments.

Regular training camps help practice, deepening the knowledge of the practicioners and their acquaintance with each other, so that they can form friendships and eventually a well integrated community.

The Kungfu Academy is planning to hold Tui Na (traditional Chinese meridian massage) Guasha (rubbing with herbal oils), traditional Chinese facial massage, and Chinese as a foreign language, as well as other learning courses.

Our Academy has contacts with many international (primarily Chinese) kungfu masters, who spend some time in Hungary with teaching each year.

Memebers of the Kungfu Academy have opportunity to practice avery day between 7 a.m to 10 p.m. in our center. (2nd Vidra u., II.district Budapest, HUNGARY).

Kungfu is one of the most ancient self-defense systems known to mankind. Its origins go back to the antique age. The word kungfu in Chinese have mand meanings. It may refer to hard work or effort, that is carried out to reach a certain goal, buti t can mean the higher knowledge or ability itself, that is the fruit of the steadfast work. In the West it signifies the martial arts of ancient China, a high level art of movement and body culture, which is in close connectin with the quest for healthy and long life. It is also a philosophy, a way of life.

There is no doubt that kungfu is one of the most complicated yet most effective systems of self-development, in which perfect concentration and outside action are merged into one single mental and spiritual process.The practice of this special state of counsciousness helped resolve many different tensions and problems generated by the society. Beyond the numerous traditions and customs it also integrates a rich body of science and knowledge, which includes the occult sciences, the traditional Chinese medicine and the art of meditation. All these methods were based on experience and series discoveries since thousands of years.

Kungfu has two main branches. These are the Shaolin or external styles and Wudang, or the family of internal styles. The Shaolin branch may be divided into two further paths, the Northern and the Southern Shaolin. The Northern styles incorporate the long fist systems, which feature longer range movements and more dynamic footwork. Its popular styles are Bai He Quan (White Crane) the Tong Bei Qua and the Shaolin long fist. The Southern styles are primarily short fist styles or short style boxing schools, which are more about stable stance and rapid series of hand techniques. Its best known styles are Hung Gar, Pak Mei and Choi Lee Fat.
Among the internal styles the three most notable are Xing Yi Quan, Tai Ji Quan and Bagua Zhang. These systems focus on the development of internal force, their technical repertoire can be considered complete.

At the Kungfu Academy, all the three major the internal styles are available, and also the Shaolin short fist style in its original form representing the Shaolin methods.

Why Kungfu Academy?

If your eager to know more about kungfu than merely self-defense, if you wish for an all-round self development, you are at the right place. If your health is important to you and you are ready to do something for it, chose us. If quality of teaching is of concern to you, you may feel lucky. We have been operating and teaching since 1983. The masters of Kungfu Academy are professionals who dedidicate all their life to practicing and teaching kungfu. Our school is not a gymnasium rented for the time of the practice, but more like a martial arts sanctuary created and shaped for our needs and according to our own taste. This counts a lot in learning and understanding kungfu.

Our stressful everyday life is often full of symptoms of energy deficiency. Chronic exhaustion, deconcentrated state are affecting an increasing number of people. All of the trainings offered by the Kungfu Academy are suitable for enhancing the life force of the practicioners, and in the meantime, for a bringing about a much better ability of concentration.

The energy level rises, and this is a stable foundation for keeping good health. This is important because only the health person is capable of practicing self-defense or taking part in real-life combat. With the strengthened awareness we gain we can venture into the exploration of our internal world, which hides many treasures for us.

„The world is a projection of your inner self”

If we change in the inside, than the changes will slowly come in the outer world as well. This experience is the first step towards a higher awareness. This world would need more conscious people. The Kungfu Academy would like to contribute to reaching this goal. To practice internal martial arts is wonderful thing. From the very beginning you are touched by the spirit of the ancient Eastern teachings in our school. It opens a whole new world to you. the Kungfu Academy is a special place where you may become special too, by becoming a part of a great community, which is bound together by the joy and love of practicing together.

We are looking forward to welcome all who are interested at our location personally or you can send your inquiries by email to kapecska.attila@kungfuakademia.hu or call us on +36-30-999-97-97 and +36-30-979-79-72.

Come and join our introductory trainings as a guest free of charge.

Frequently Asked Questions

The Dragoncloud Society

The Dragoncloud is a continously growing, open system, which concentrates on one aspect only, and that is efficiency.

This special methodology is focusing on the here and now, adapting to the needs and requirements of the present day, so it mainly urges the development of abilities.

The way of the Dragoncloud is taking you towards understanding, to reach the detachment from forms, where instincts and conditioned reflexes constitute a complete and functioning system.

The Dragoncloud Society is created for the joy of practice, the experience which is the result of the common trainings.

The Fleececloud Training Community

This is the „second line” of the Dragon Cloud Society, the children group of the Kungfu Academy, where playful excercises help to initiate the youngest practicioners into the world of martial arts applications. At first our aim is to develop and reinforce a concentrated attention or awareness. With our special movement coordination enhancing excercises they produce convincing results in the development of self defense abilities by the end of the year.

Recommended age is between 7 and 13 years of age. Required garment: light training shoe with a thin sole, black pants and a white t-shirt.

Ironhand Qi Gong Training

This is a special self-defense training of the Dragoncloud, which is complete in itself. The ability is reachable with about one year of practice.

Training is concentrating on the edge of the palm of the closed fist, and teaches its aplication into the nine main striking directions. (The name comes from these.) The training requires the systematic punching of a special filled linen bags, after having trained in pairs as a preparation. At the end of practice the hands are treated with a herbal extract, so that the hands won’t be altered in their looks, only in their thickness and strength would grow.

During practice we generate and store a large amount of energy in the hands, the wrists and the lower arm, which give rise to outstanding abilities eventually. The Ironhand Qi Gong training can be the accompaniment of any martial arts training, but it may also be regarded as an independent method, which creates a lasting value.

Xing Yi Quan

One of the three main internal styles along with Taijiquan and Ba Gua Zhang, which show full correlation in their basic principles. Out of these three styles, Xing Yi Quan is the most simple and most easy to learn system.

Learning this style takes about just a few years (around 4 years of practice.)

The system in its present form was created by Marshall Yue Fei during the the Southern Song dynasty (1127-1280 A.D.). At the timem China was at war with the Mongolians, who occupied its territories of the North. Because of this martial arts training was a crucial task. Yue Fei created a such a style in Xing Yi, by which his soldiers could proress in martial abilities to a high level in a realtively short period. The basic techniques are simple yet powerful and efficient. The Mongolians dreaded the armies of Yue Fei, who reconquered large areas from them quite rapidly.

Xing Yi Quan is the only style of kungfu, which focuss on attack. It is considered one of the most efficient system, which has proven its value many times over. At the national championships organised in China in 1928, 1929 as well a sin 1933 (which were combats without protective equipment or almost any rules) the representatives of Xing Yi Quan won the first place. It is not at all uncommon that a practicioner of a more simple style who had been practicing for a shorter period of time eventually beats the follower of a more complex style who had been practicing already for a long time. There is a saying „It is better to know just a few useful things, than many useless ones".

Xing Yi Quan is emphasizing the natural postures, its is a semi-hard style, as it is soft at the initiation of an attack and hard in their consummation. It is extremely agressive in combat. Often attack is used for defense. Among its techniques you can find the surging, the sticking and twisting. Its footwork is dynamic, fast and flexible. Apart from linear movement, it uses some jumpings, side-shifts and low kicks.

The main advantage of Xing Yi Quan is close combat. The basic forms are simple and easy to learn. Simplicity may be delusive, as the techniques have almost infinite number of variations.

The basic theory and the principles of practice are easy to grasp, so the student may be aware of what, why and how to learn, and how much to practice.

Xing Yi Quan has not only martial properties but also an outstanding postitive effect on health. It teaches five basic movements at first, which are analogous with the so called elements within the traditional five phases theory such as metal, water, wood, fire and earth.

These techniques are capable of stirring even the stagnant Qi in the 5 essential yin organs, which are the lungs, the kidneys, the liver, the heart and the spleen. The body thus becomes more resistant and healthy.

Cultivating Qi and condensing it in the tantien or leading it into the limbs are carried out by simple excercises, which are to be practicied alone. One of these excercises is the San Ti Shi, a special standing excercise, which is the root and core of Xing Yi Quan.

The greatest advantage of Xing Yi Quan is its potential to develop the spiritual abilities. The internal energies are built up and used through ancient methods to maintain youthfulness and to awaken the latent and generally unused areas of the brain.

A book on Xing Yi Quan is available at the Kungfu Academy.

Wu Xing Quan

It is true, that it might take years until you get adequately trained in the entire Xing Yi Quan system. In case you lack time, the essence of Xing Yi may be explored through a few more simple excercises. This opportunity is also available at the Kungfu Academy. The Five Elements Fist is the root of Xing Yi, the essence of its teachings. It teachis you less techniques more thoroughly. The advantage of this approach is that only 100 trainings are sufficient to learn them, if supported by 15-20 minutes of daily practice at home. After this the development of abilities may be carried on indefinitely, even idependently.

The Art of Xing Yi Spear

In Chinese martial arts, there is a well known saying, according to which the spear is the king of weapons. As a proof, we can point to the fact that innumerable weapons were created to neutralize the spear in battle. The spear is extremely strong and in expert hands it is a matchless weapon. Its stab is like a fired arrow, straight and swift. The front hand leads the staff like a tube, the back hand is like a lock as it holds on very tightly to the end.

Xing Yi Sword

The International Martial Arts Centre was founded in China in 1920, which launched a new competitive sport called Duanbin (short weapon). The tournaments are held on circular battle ground 6-8 meters in diameter with a set system of rules. This system is capable of testing the efficiency of the short weapon techniques in application. The use of the sword or the broadsword in practice is a desired goal in many a style, while there is no lifelike application possibility.

Bagua Zhang

Bagua Zhang is one of the internal martial arts styles along with Xing Yi and Taiji. It is the youngest out of the three styles. It emphasizes the use of the palms instead of the fists, hence its name, which is bagua zhang or „eight trigrams palm".

The name comes from the Book of Change (Yi Jing) where the eight trigrams are one of the basic symbols. The trigrams represent eight natural forces, as they carry their essential meaning.

The founder of the style was Dong Haichuan, who lived during the time of the Qing dyanasty around 1799-1882 A.D. The style he created became known in Beijing around 1866, and quickly spread the neighbouring Hebei provinces as well as in other areas of China.

There are many incredibles legends about his life, and he became a figure in martial arts history who has an almost superstitious fame. He fought the famous Xing Yi master Guo Yunshen, but none could overcome the other in a two-day combat. Dong Haichuan could run so fast, that he could disappear from the eyesight of the watchers, so that they suspected some kind of magic.

Chen Taiji Quan

Taiji Quan is appropriated to Zhang San-Feng, who lived around the year 1100 A.D. It has 5 main schools today: Chen, Yang, Wu, Wuu and Sun. Among all of these the Chen style can be regarded as the original. Chen Wangting, a 9th generation master, was the creator of the Chen style as we know it today. The base of Taiji Quan is the Yin-Yang theory, which was first discussed in detail in the Yi Jing (Book of Change) around 1122 A.D. The legendary grandmaster of recent history is Chen Fake (1887-1957) who learned from his grandfather Chen Changxin. The Hungarian Chen Taiji Quan school is lead by Han Kui-Yuan, who learned the style from Tian Xiuchen and Feng Zhiqiang.

The most important element of practice is the systematic repetition of forms, which contain the basic technical elements. The school teaches the 24, 48, 71 and 83 step forms. An integral part of the training is Qi Gong practice, which is based on the so called Hunyuan Qi Gong that comes from Feng Zhiqiang. Application is prepared by pushing hands excercises, of which several versions are taught at the school. At a higher level of practice, weapon usage is taught with emphasis on straight sword and broadsword.

Chen Taiji Quan as a health preservation method is unparraleled, and as a martial arts system it can be attained by anyone with long and devoted practice.

Qi Gong

Qi Gong (Chi kung) is ancient art of the cultivation of the life force. It is the occult science of collecting, storing and moving energies. Internal energies and people who are experts at them are often viewed in a mystic light, although the whole process can be approached and understood through a rational way of thinking.

Qi is not a kind of mystical energy. This kind of approach will lead the student nowhere. Qi Gong is nothing but sum of excercises that are regulating and equalizing the electric functions of the body. Practicing Qi Gong is the most effective method for health preservation without any doubt. There is a martial arts aspect to Qi Gong, which is called Martial Qi Gong.

We recommend our courses to everyone, as they shed lights on hidden aspects and stir the energies through excellent excercises, which become personal experience from thtat moment.

Shaolin Duan Quan

The likely time of the birth of the Shaolin short fist techniques is around the Mongolian invasions of the 1200’s A.D. This was a new chapter in the development of the Shaolin martial arts. The short fist style is application oriented, all techniques are tested in practical use for efficiency. It builds heavily on physical endurance and develops te physical and mental condition of the practicioner to a very high level with effective methods and systematic training.

The main features of Shaolin short fist are its agressive and offensive, destructive advancements as well as the powerful attacks by knees and elbows. It uses a lot of grabbing, tearing and joint-straining techniques, overthorws are common as well as attempts to tip up the opponent, to make them lose balance.

Shaolin short fist includes the system of attacking essential life points (Dim Mak), with their special technique and secret training methodology.