Meet a real-life Mr Miyagi based in Fuzhou, China – but what is his Incense Shop kung fu style?

Unlike his Karate Kid counterpart, Lin Shan Quan doesn’t do discretion – instead he’s going all out to bring his particular martial art to the uninitiated masses

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Lin Shan Quan, Fuzhou-based master of Incense Shop kung fu. Photo: Jambo Hui

Published: 7:15am, 28 Oct 2024

Down an otherwise nondescript back alley in Fuzhou, the capital of southeastern Fujian province, hangs a sign that reads “Lin Shan Quan’s Bonesetting Clinic”.

Inside, it’s fairly unremarkable – books are piled up near the back, acupuncture charts adorn a wall and in the middle, a large, oblong table is covered in old magazines, used teacups and a couple of ashtrays. What does stand out are the characters on the front door that read “Shaolin Incense Shop Boxing”.

Master Lin Shan Quan teaching one of his students kung fu out of his small clinic down an obscure alley in Fuzhou. Photo: Jambo Hui

Born in 1953, Lin Shan Quan is a man of many talents, famed for his knowledge of Chinese medicine, calligraphy and martial arts. Dressed in worn-out baggy trousers and a white traditional Chinese shirt, he looks every part the eccentric kung fu master as he explains his unique, incense-shop martial art over cups of Tieguanyin tea. Lin can barely sit still, his speech getting faster as he stands up to demonstrate movements with one hand, a cigarette burning away in the other.

He loves to fight, he says. “I can’t guarantee I will always win, but I will give anyone a try.”

As the name suggests, this particular style originates, according to legend, from incense shops. The story goes that when the Southern Shaolin Temple was burned down because of its role in anti-Qing activities, many of its warrior monks went into hiding. One, by the name of Zhi Yuan, took refuge in an incense shop and while living there, taught the staff Shaolin Luohan kung fu. It is said the workers’ style of the martial art incorporated their incredibly strong forearms, developed through the daily grinding of herbs to make incense.