Traditional Vietnamese martial arts have a system of performances with different weapons, such as knifes, sticks and swords.

Apart from these common weapons, each martial arts school uses a distinctive one, such as the “song ngu” (two carp) weapon of the Hong Quyen Chu Gia Martial Arts School.

The Hong Quyen Chu Gia Martial Arts School, headed by martial arts master Chu Ha, is famous for its special weapons like walking-sticks, umbrellas, farmer’s pipes and particularly “song ngu” - a weapon that has the shape of two carp made of iron or bronze.  

When talking about traditional Vietnamese martial arts, it is necessary to mention the flexible, clever and powerful fighting style.

The blows and fighting positions are based on the basic principle of “using flexibility to control firmness and using weakness to control strength”.

The small stature and agility of the Vietnamese people also aid in this style. In addition, with the ability to observe the phenomenon of natural movement, Vietnamese martial arts masters created the blows and fighting positions that can change in accordance with the laws of nature and have a high effectiveness.

For instance, based on the light sways of an apricot branch in the wind, they created the “Lao mai” quan performance.

They took the power of tigers and lissomness of cranes to create the “Ho hac song hinh” and they used the flexibility and smallness of a paper fan to create the “Thiet phien”.

As for the “song ngu” style, the typical principles of martial arts are inherited from the ancestors. Carefully observing the movement of the fish, the martial arts masters, such as Chu Ha, discovered many ways to apply this flowing style to “song ngu” fighting.

Moving under water, fish seem to be slow and dull but they are capable of quickly coping with whatever happens around them.

Their ability to catch prey as quick as lighting by twisting their bodies to swim is the foundation for creating the fighting positions of the famous “song ngu”. It is very versatile with uninterrupted blows.

Another note is that the weapon used in “song ngu” performance is made of bronze or iron so it is a very heavy and highly effective weapon.

The row of fins is like a sharp saw blade that creates dangerous blows.

The heads of fish are tapered and firm so when attacking it is more dangerous than a punch.

The body of a fish embracing the arms forms a firm shield for defence. For this reason, the fighters who want to control its flexibility must have a strong inner force.

Because of the above distinctive features, “song ngu” is ranked as one of the most dangerous weapons of the Hong Quyen Chu Gia Martial Arts School. 

“The “song ngu” weapon is made of iron or bronze.   “Song ngu” – a dangerous weapon of the Hong Quyen Chu Gia Martial Arts School.   “Fighting with “song ngu”.   Martial arts master Chu Ha (right) and his disciple practise the “song ngu” fighting style.   A defensive position.