Kung Fu School Shrines

The school shrine in a Chinese martial arts school is known as “sun toi” in guangdong-hua (aka. Cantonese dialect) and is considerably different from the kamidana (“spirit shelf”) found in traditional Japanese martial arts schools.

First, a kamidana cannot be set on the ground or at eye level. It must be above an ordinary person’s eye level. Second, a kamidana cannot be set up over an entrance, but must be built into a space which people will not walk under. It is customary for the teacher to leave an offering of water, liquor, or food in front of the kamidana, which should be renewed regularly. These rules apply both to one’s household and to martial arts schools.

The sun-toi is usually set at eye level and often features photos of past masters. A formal class used to begin after the teacher bowed to the shrine a placed incense in a receptacle to pay homage to his martial arts ancestors (it has no religious significance; it is a show of gratitude and respect). Similar to the Japanese model, many sun-toi have receptacles for placing fruit and even liquor and flowers. The food is replaced every few days for obvious reasons.

On red paper or in red ink is/are written the name(s) of the past masters and this is placed aside the photos of them. In my school, I had no decent photo of my teacher, so I made a sketch of him and used that. It’s my understanding that (in China) only the names of the deceased are written in red ink. When I first visited China, a lady to whom I was giving a traveler’s check had a fit when I signed it in red ink (it was the only pen available)!

When my dear friend and kung-fu brother, Arthur Lee (probably the world’s highest authority on the style of Fut-Ga), passed away, his son (Sifu Harlan Lee, who is my son because Arthur and I cross-adopted each other’s family) placed his father’s photo on the school’s sun-toi. It is a very beautiful school shrine.

At or near the main entrance to the school is often a statue or picture (statues are preferred) of Guan-Gong, a legendary general and hero of ancient China (died in 220 A.D.). His likeness can be found at the entrances of martial arts schools, police stations, and even some common businesses. It is felt that this will protect the place and help prevent bad people from entering and causing trouble. This is called the “moon hao.” Oftentimes, a small receptacle for fruit and/or liquor is placed beside it. A small incense burner/bowl is also placed there and a stick of incense is burned in it every morning.