Lineage

Shifu Birinder Tember – Academy Founder / Chief Instructor

Birinder Tember was born in Chiswick, London in 1966 and began training in Martial arts and vedic prana practices at the age of 5.

He received a deep grounding in Shotokan Karate before he commenced training in Chinese Martial arts in the late 80’s, initially with Wing Chun training and then later in Northern Shaolin Boxing and the full spectrum of Internal Arts under GrandMaster (GM) Wen Linjun as an indoor student.

GM Wen was a student of his late Grandfather, Shaolin GM Peng Qing and also a student of the internal arts under GM’s Sha GuoZheng and He Fu Sheng.

After GM Wen’s retirement from teaching Martial Arts, Birinder was invited to become a disciple of GM Sha Junjie (the son of the late Great GM Sha Guozheng).

He teaches the internal arts with a deep understanding of the martial principles and the flow of healing energy. He has taught hundreds of students of all ages as well as patients with specific health problems such as Cancer, Arthritis, Diabetes and many more.

Birinder holds a 6th Duan Wei grade in Chinese Wushu awarded by the Chinese Wushu Association, Beijing; he is a 3rd Generation Lineage holder of ‘Sha’s Wushu’ and a registered senior instructor with the Tai Chi Union Of Great Britain.

Great Grandmaster Sha Guozheng (1904-1992)

Grandmaster Sha GuoZheng was was born in Beihou Village Rongcheng City in Shangdong Province and began learning traditional Chinese Kung Fu at the age of 7, training in the Daoist Internal Arts of Xing Yi, Bagua Zhang, Taiji Quan, Tong Bei Quan and Qigong with several Masters.

Sha Guozheng had exceptional ability and developed his skills to an extremely high level. After his last teacher Jiang Rong Qiao passed away, Sha Guozheng was appointed by the Chinese Government to promote the arts and became the provincial coach of Yunan Province.

Practitioners and Masters from across China travelled to train at Sha’s academy in Kunming, China. Most Bagua Zhang Masters in China from the 70’s and 80’s will either have studied with Sha or will be very familiar with his name.

Learning Wushu is endless, the more you learn, the better. Without enough training, there is little understanding. Wushu should cast away prejudice from different factions; work together to learn from each other and jointly make progress.

Resources of Wushu come from inheriting tradition – Life of Wushu comes from innovation. Sha passed away in 1992 at the age of 88.

Grandmaster Sha Junjie

Sha Junjie was born in Kunming City, Yunan Province in 1962. He started learning martial arts from his father at an early age as well as Western Boxing from Master Shu Zheng, a famous boxer also from Yunan Province and Chen Taiji from Chen style GrandMaster Chen ZhengLei.

An 8th Duan in Chinese Wushu, Sha Junjie is the Vice Secretary General of the Yunan Wushu  Association; The Vice Chairman of the Kunming Wushu Association and Research advisor to Wudang in China to mention but a few titles.

He is recognised as one of the highest authorities in Xing Yi, Bagua and Tong Bei in China and his school in Kunming is the largest and most famous for internal arts training in Yunan Province and is recognised as part of the Yunan cultural heritage. Sha Junjie and his wife Li Bin travel all over the world promoting the internal arts.

Grandmaster Li Bin

Mrs Li Bin was born in Kunming City, Yunan Province in 1967.  She started Bagua Zhang training with the late Grandmaster Sha Guozheng when she was 8 years old and was amongst the grandmasters most talented students.

As with all of the Grandmasters disciples, and in addition to Bagua Zhang, Li Bin went onto master the skills of Xing Yi Quan, Tong Bei Quan and Taiji Quan.

She later married her teachers son, Sha Junjie and together with the Sha family continued to develop Sha’s Wushu.

Li Bin is the Co Director of the Sha GuoZheng Wushu Training Centre in Kunming. She holds a 7th Duan Wei Grade in Chinese Wushu and is recognised across China as a leading authority on Bagua Zhang and a first class martial arts umpire.

She travels extensively in China as well as internationally teaching the internal arts.

Grandmaster Wen LinJun

W en LinJun was born in Zhaotong, Yunan Province in 1960.  His Grandfather Peng Qing was famous throughout China as a Grandmaster of Shaolin Boxing and also as a war hero.

Wen Linjun began practice of Martial Arts with his Grandfather from the age of 8 and by age 14 his skills had developed to such a high degree that he became one of the senior instructors within his home town.

Wen Linjun studied with Sha Guozheng and He Fu Sheng (an exceptional Xing Yi Grandmaster) as well as several other teachers learning the standardised international routines.

In 1981 he became the youngest 1st class national umpire and holds a 7th Duan Wei grade in Chinese Wushu. Wen Linjun married Isabel who he met during her Chinese Medical training in China.

They moved to London in 1991 where he set up wushu schools and Chinese Medical clinics. He taught his grandfathers Shaolin Boxing and the Internal Arts he learnt from Sha Guozheng and He Fu Sheng until he retired from teaching for personal reasons.