History of Yan Shou Gong

In the early 1980s 2 Grand masters(GM): GM Chee Kim Thong(CKT), GM Yap Cheng Hai(YCH), with a combined experience of more than 100 years, pooled their skills and knowledge to develop a system of exercises based on authentic Shaolin NeiGong, that could be practiced by the lay-person, to develop well-being and good health for a long, healthy and happy life. It had to meet meets the following objectives:

• easy to learn
• easy to practice
• effective in producing results in a short time

The result is Yan Shou Gong (YSG), which means The Art of Longevity.

This last point was the most important, there are many types of QiGong, and many do not give any effective results, or it takes too long, typically years, before getting results.

YSG is not a new invention, it is a condensation of the many forms (108 forms in Luohan Ruyi and 36 forms from WuJi) by taking the best and most effective techniques from these 2 NeiGong Arts. YSG also included a handful of techniques from TaiJi, BaGua and 5 Ancestors.

The process of developing YSG did not happen overnight, it took years. Development started in the early 1980s till the early 1990s.

GM Yap Cheng Hai has been actively teaching YSG after its creation, usually along with his FengShui courses to an international audience, which included students from Germany, France, Russia, Estonia, South Africa as well as countries in South East Asia.

Unfortunately, GM Yap did not certify any instructors, and in the years leading to, and after his passing in 2014, the momentum of YSG slowed considerably. However, the deep knowledge of YSG was passed down to his eldest son, Master Yap Boh Heong, who had been assisting GM YCH in teaching the YSG classes.

Since 2016, Master Yap Boh Heong (YBH), has taken over tradition and started actively teaching YSG in Europe, starting with the Netherlands and now in Germany. In May 2020, there was a YSG course offered in Shaolin Temple Europe based in Otterberg, Germany.

Under this program, Master YBH has further refined the teaching and training methods to yield even faster results, i.e. where students can develop and feel their Qi and its benefits in a much shorter time. Master YBH has further developed an effective system for training and qualifying instructors, and maintain quality in the courses.

In 2018, Master Lyndon Oudsten from Netherlands has been appointed as the Chief Instructor of YSG for Europe.

YSG has brought great benefits to many people, and its a simple exercise that can be learned in a few hours and can be practiced for as little as just 15 minutes a day to yield benefits. It can help reduce stress, feel more energy, relief aches and pains, etc… and gives a sense of well-being.