Hung Ga (), Hung Kuen (), or Hung Ga Kuen () is a southern Chinese martial art belonging to the southern Shaolin styles. The hallmarks of Hung Ga are strong stances, notably the horse stance, or "si ping ma" (), and strong hand techniques, notably the bridge hand and the versatile tiger claw. Traditionally, students spent anywhere from several months to three years in stance training, often sitting only in horse stance from half an hour to several hours at a time, before learning any forms. Each form could then take a year or so to learn, with weapons learned last. In current times, this mode of instruction is generally considered impractical for students, who have other concerns beyond practicing kung fu. However, some instructors still follow traditional guidelines and make stance training the majority of their beginner training. Hung Ga is sometimes mischaracterized as solely external—that is, reliant on brute physical force rather than the cultivation of qi—even though the student advances progressively toward an internal focus. Historical origins Hung Ga's earliest beginnings have been traced to the 17th century in southern China. More specifically, legend has it that a Shaolin monk, Jee Sin Sim See (”sim see” = zen teacher) was at the heart of Hung Ga's emergence. Jee Sin Sim See was alive during a time of fighting in the Qing Dynasty. He practiced the arts during an era when the Shaolin Temple had become a refuge for those that opposed the ruling class (the Manchus), allowing him to practice in semi-secrecy. When the Shaolin temple was burned down, many fled to the Southern affiliated Shaolin temple in the Fukien Province of Southern China along with him. There it is believed Jee Sin Sim See trained several people, including non-Buddhist monks, also called Shaolin Layman Disciples, in the art of Shaolin Kung Fu. Of course, Jee Sin Sim See was hardly the only person of significance that had fled to the temple and opposed the Manchus. Along with this, Hung Hei-gun also took refuge there, where he trained under Jee Sin Sim See. Eventually, Hung Hei-gun became Jee Sin Sim See's number one student. That said, legend has it that Jee Sin Sim See also taught four others, whom in their entirety became the founding fathers of the five southern Shaolin styles: Hung Ga, Choy Ga, Mok Ga, Li Ga and Lau Ga. Luk Ah-choi was one