Kung Fu, Martial Arts and the Ideal of Home Country

Kung Fu is the culmination of thousands of years of traditional Chinese culture. There are many schools of Chinese Kung Fu， famous ones including Shaolin， Wudang， Tai Chi， Hsing-I， and Eight Diagrams. Over thousands of years of continuous development and evolution， Kung Fu has developed into the ultimate form of practical martial arts combat， namely， freestyle grappling.

Though the techniques are constantly changing， the mentality of Chinese Kung Fu to support justice and defend the nation has remained unchanged. As we can see in the history of Chinese Kung Fu， there’s a prominent theme of “patriotism” between the lines. This is the supreme core enabling Chinese Kung Fu to continue and flourish.

Kung Fu， Martial Arts

and the Ideal of Home Country

Zhu Qianhua

March 2022

China Intercontinental Press

128.00 （CNY）

Zhu Qianhua

Member of Chinese Writers Association （CWA）， "a senior writer of Chinese National Geography and National Geographic， and winner of the first Zhu Ziqing Literature Award. Representative works include Where is Our Home， South Secret Territory.

After the unification of China， the Qin Dynasty （221–207 BCE） became the first dynasty of Chinese feudal society. Wushu martial arts saw great development from 2nd century BCE to the 6th century. During this period， Wushu martial arts schools began to appear; many instruction manuals were published， such as General Li’s Shooting Method， Fighting with Bare Hands， and Kendo. In military affairs， the sword gradually disappeared from the battlefield and was transferred to non-military use. In the Han Dynasty （202 BCE-220 CE）， knife and sword techniques and Juedi wrestling （a form of theatrical wrestling accompanied by music in which participants butted heads） began to spread eastward to Japan. The latter later evolved into sumo wrestling.

The Jin Dynasty （266–420） and the Southern and Northern Dynasties （420–589） were periods of division and turbulence. Long-term war promoted the development of military and martial arts. The fusion and influence of national culture promoted and enriched the content of Wushu. During this period， Buddhism and Taoism began to be associated with martial arts. The word “Wushu martial arts” was first found in Yan Yanzhi’s The Work of the Crown Prince of the Southern Dynasty. According to the work， Wushu was related to military skills， similar to the meaning of “shooting and fighting” and wrestling. After the Han Dynasty （202BCE–220CE）， the word “martial arts” began to appear and was soon widely used.

From the Jin Dynasty to the Southern and Northern Dynasties， Buddhism and Taoism really began to have a very important impact on the development of Wushu martial arts. At the beginning of the famed Shaolin Temple in Henan Province， a disciple named Seng Chou was highly skilled in martial arts.

In the Sui Dynasty （581–618）， the country began to develop the rudiments of military examination. During the reign of Empress Wu Zetian （690–705） of the Tang Dynasty， the military examination system was formally established. The politics of the Tang Dynasty （618–907） was more open-minded， and there was no defense against the barbarians. The central region government and the hinterland had close communication with ethnic minorities and foreign countries. During this period， there was a trend of chivalry， and the saber came into fashion as a fighting weapon， wrestling， hand wrestling， sumo-style wrestling and so on flourished.

In the Song Dynasty （960–1279）， there were sharp ethnie and class contradictions and frequent wars. Wushu martial arts had also reached the mature stage. The rulers of the Song Dynasty attached great importance to the training of the army， and the central government sent Wushu masters with excellent martial arts skills to be troop instructors. The martial arts instruments of the Song Dynasty were relatively complex. The so-called eighteen kinds of martial arts had already appeared. Martial artists can perform martial arts publicly in the Washe Goulan （a public place of entertainment， like the theater today）. Sumo also became a popular form of folk martial arts， and even women’s sumo appeared. “Man’s hand stroke” was developed as a kind of complicated striking action， extending the use of the elbow， palm， fist and foot， and the body could turn over and rotate， and hit fast and forcefully. At that time northern nomadic people mainly lived on hunting. They fought against the Song Dynasty with their fierce riding and shooting skills and then entered the central plains to establish the Yuan Dynasty （1271–1368）. In the process of long-term integration with the Han nationality， the northern nomadic martial arts and the central plains wushu martial arts interacted， forming routines and instruments with their own national characteristics， such as throwing weapons， javelin， etc.， that is a part of Chinese martial arts culture.

Before the Song Dynasty， Chinese martial arts were classified by knife， spear， sword， club， and fist. In the Ming Dynasty （1368–1644）， there were various schools and styles， and the system of Wushu martial arts began to take shape.

The martial arts of the Shaolin Temple first gained fame in the Ming Dynasty. Meanwhile， the famous general Qi Jiguang’s well-known martial arts work Quan Jing spread to Japan.

In the Qing Dynasty （1636–1912）， Wushu martial arts continued to flourish; however， due to the extensive use of firearms in the latter part of the dynasty， Wushu moved to the civilian sphere. Because of the sharp national contradictions and social unrest， secret societies were popular then. One of the common characteristics of these organizations was to practice boxing and martial arts. Tai Chi， Hsing-I， Eight Diagrams Palm， and other new boxing types focusing on internal skills began to form their own independent systems.

After the Revolution of 1911 that toppled the Qing Dynasty， Wushu martial arts activities became even more active. At that time， people from all walks of life advocated “strengthening China and strengthening the Chinese people.” Some people of insight founded associations to promote such activities.

The Jingwu Gymnastic School， founded by Huo Yuanjia （1868–1910）， had great influence， later being renamed the Jingwu Sports Association. It advocated “martial arts， sports studies， and creating strong and resolute people” to attract famous martial arts masters， further promoting the spread and popularity of Wushu martial arts.

The founding of the People’s Republic of China in 1949 brought new life to this cause. A large number of Wushu martial arts routines and instruments from earlier times were excavated and sorted out. A variety of martial arts competitions emerged in an endless stream. In December 1982， the National Sports Commission held the first National Wushu Martial Arts Working Conference in Beijing. In March 1985， the National Wushu Martial Arts Research Institute was established.

On January 8， 2020， the executive committee meeting of the International Olympic Committee （IOC） in Lausanne， Switzerland， listed martial arts as an official competition for the Fourth Youth Olympic Games. It marked the first appearance of Wushu martial arts as an official Olympic sport.

Now， there are many international exchanges of Wushu martial arts， creating a self-defense and fitness activity loved by people all over the world.