The original Blue Lanterns: 蓝灯武侠

No, Blue Lantern Martial Arts has nothing to do with the "Blue Lantern Corps"  of the DC Comics' "Green Lantern" series. In fact, long before there was even a DC Comics there were blue lanterns in Chinese martial arts culture. We in the West are all familiar with the happy red lanterns we see at Chinese New Year celebrations adorning Chinese restaurants and hanging throughout "China Towns" in major Western cities. The red lantern-- and the color red in general--  symbolizes happiness, wealth, prosperity and good luck. 

However, in the Chinese martial arts community, particularly in the South of China, the Laam Dung, or "Blue Lanterns,"  were a symbol of kung fu secret societies. This history is usually reserved for active members, however, this is a question often asked by prospective members and others confused as they associate the red lanterns with Chinese culture. I have even been asked by a prominent Sifu of a kung fu lineage "Why blue? Red is happy!". He was unfamiliar with this tradition as his kung fu system does not include this history and knowledge in its curriculum. The knowledge is out there if one knows where to look, it is obscure, but not secret. 

A certain lineage of Wing Chun martial artists, driven underground by government repression, formed secret societies, often with the goal of overthrowing the regime. The blue lanterns were hung in windows and out-of-the-way places to indicate a safe house, a place where the martial arts, particularly Wing Chun during its underground years, could be practice and trained. During times of strife the martial arts were often targeted by oppressive regimes and the primary reason the Southern Shaolin Temple was destroyed in 1641 by the Qing Dynasty