12 Chinese Martial Arts (Kung fu)

106 Pages·2011·7.57 MB·English

Revised Edition: 2016
ISBN 978-1-283-50601-4
© All rights reserved.
Published by:
White Word Publications
48 West 48 Street, Suite 1116,
New York, NY 10036, United States
Email: [email protected]
Table of Contents

Chapter 1 - Martial Arts
Chapter 2 - Karate
Chapter 3 - How to Understand Basic Karate
Chapter 4 - How to Choose a Martial Art
Chapter 5 - How to Teach the Basics of Karate
Chapter 6 - How to Tie a Karate Belt
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Chapter 7 - How to Teach Martial Arts
Chapter 8 - How to Do a Jumping Front Kick
Chapter 9 - How to Learn Kung Fu
Chapter 10 - How to Increase the Speed and Accuracy of Your Kicks in Tae
Kwon Do
Chapter 11 - How to Kick (in Martial Arts)
Chapter 12 - Chinese Martial Arts (Kung fu)

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Chapter- 1
Martial Arts

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A block print from the Wu Pei Chih ("Bubishi" in Japanese), an 18th or 19th-century text
which describes techniques found (mostly addressing the Fujian White Crane style)
Martial arts (literally meaning arts of war but usually referred as fighting arts) are
systems of codified practices and traditions of combat. Martial arts all have similar
objectives: to physically defeat other persons or defend oneself or others from physical
threat. Some martial arts take a great deal of their underlying theory from beliefs systems.
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Most specifically, Buddhism, and in Asia have been practiced in harmony with others,
such as Hinduism, Taoism, Confucianism or Shinto while others follow a particular code
of honor. Martial arts are considered as both an art and a science. Many arts are also
practiced competitively, most commonly as combat sports, but competitions may also
take the form of "forms competition."
The term martial arts refers to the art of warfare (derived from Mars the Roman god of
war) and comes from a 15th-century European term referring to what are now known as
historical European martial arts specifically to what is today known as Historical
Fencing, but is now most commonly associated with Asian fighting styles, especially the
combat systems that originated in East Asia. The term both in its literal meaning
however, and in its subsequent usage may be taken to refer to any codified combat
system, regardless of origin, a practitioner of martial arts is referred to as a martial artist.
Martial arts have originated and evolved in various cultures at various times. In the
Americas, Native Americans have traditions of open-handed martial arts such as
wrestling, while Hawaiians have historically practiced arts featuring small and large-joint
manipulation. A mix of origins is found in the athletic movements of Capoeira, which
African slaves developed in Brazil based on skills they had brought from Africa.
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While each style has unique facets that differentiate it from other martial arts, a common
characteristic is the systematization of fighting techniques. Methods of training vary and
may include sparring (simulated combat) or formal sets or routines of techniques known
as forms or kata. Forms are especially common in the Asian and Asian-derived martial
arts.
Variation and scope
Martial arts vary widely, and may focus on a specific area or combination of areas, but
they can be broadly grouped into focusing on strikes, grappling, or weapons training.
Below is a list of examples that make extensive use of one of these areas; it is not an
exhaustive list of all arts covering the area, nor are these necessarily the only areas
covered by the art but are the focus or best known part as examples of the area:
Strikes
• Punching: Boxing (Western), Wing Chun,
• Kicking: Capoeira, Savate, Taekwondo
• Other strikes: Karate, Muay Thai, Kung Fu, Choi Kwang Do
Grappling
• Throwing: Aikido, Glima, Jujutsu, Sambo, Judo
• Joint lock/Submission holds: Aikido, Jujutsu, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (BJJ), Hapkido,
Judo, Chin Na
• Pinning Techniques: Wrestling, Judo, Shuai Jiao
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Weaponry
• Traditional Weaponry: Eskrima, Fencing, Gatka, Kendo, Kyūdō
• Modern Weaponry: Jukendo
Many martial arts, especially those from Asia, also teach side disciplines which pertain to
medicinal practices. This is particularly prevalent in traditional Chinese martial arts
which may teach bone-setting, qigong, acupuncture, acupressure (tui na), and other
aspects of traditional Chinese medicine. Martial arts can also be linked with religion and
spirituality. Numerous systems are reputed to have been founded, disseminated, or
practiced by monks or nuns. For example, gatka is a weapon-based Indian martial art
created by the Sikhs of the Panjab region of India and the Kshatriya caste of Hindus also
have an ancient martial art named Shastra vidhya. Japanese styles like aikido, have a
strong philosophical belief of the flow of energy and peace. The Martial Arts are
considered both an art for its dynamics of body movement as well as a science for its
systematic application in relation to anatomy, physics, philosophy, hoplology and
criminology.
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History
Africa
African knives may be classified by shape—typically into the "f" group and the "circular"
group—and have often been incorrectly described as throwing knives. Stick fighting
formed an important part of Zulu culture in South Africa, and is a significant part of
Obnu Bilate, a fighting form practiced in southern Botswana and northern South Africa.
Stick fighting was also described in Ancient Egyptians tombs, it is still practiced in upper
Egypt (Tahtib) and a modern association was formed in the 1970s. Rough and Tumble
(RAT) is a modern African martial art, also incorporating elements of Zulu and Sotho
stickfighting.
Americas
Native peoples of North and South America had their own martial training which began
in childhood. Most groups selected individuals for training in the use of bows, knives,
blowguns, spears, and war clubs in early adolescence. First Nations men, and more rarely
some women, were called warriors only after they had proven themselves in battle. War
clubs were the preferred weapon because Native American warriors could raise their
social status by killing enemies in single combat face to face. Warriors honed their
weapons skills and stalking techniques through lifelong training.
After the arrival of European colonists and settlers, the Native American population was
drastically reduced and forcibly moved into reserve territory. With the introduction of
fire-arms, traditional North American martial arts fell into disuse. From the 16th century,
Portuguese colonists brought West Africans to serve as slaves in Brazil. The slaves
developed the dance-like capoeira, a Brazilian fighting style with great roots in Africa.
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Involving a high degree of flexibility and endurance, it consists of kicks, elbow strikes,
hand strikes, head butts, cartwheels and sweeps.
Recent history
As Western influence grew in Asia a greater number of military personnel spent time in
China, Japan, and South Korea during World War II and the Korean War and were
exposed to local fighting styles. Jujutsu, judo and karate first became popular among the
mainstream from the 1950s-60s. Due in part to Asian and Hollywood martial arts movies,
most modern American martial arts are either Asian-derived or Asian influenced.
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, or Gracie Jiu-Jitsu, is an adaptation of pre-World War II judo
developed by the brothers Carlos and Hélio Gracie, who restructured the art into a sport
with a large focus on groundwork. This system has become popular and proved to be
effective in mixed martial arts competitions such as the UFC and PRIDE.
The later 1960s and 1970s witnessed an increased media interest in the Chinese fighting
systems, influenced by martial artist and Hollywood actor Bruce Lee. Jeet Kune Do, the
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system he founded, has its roots in Wing Chun, western boxing, savate and fencing.
Asia

Ancient depiction of Shaolin monks practicing the art of self defense
The foundation of modern Asian martial arts is likely a blend of early Chinese and Indian
martial arts. During the Warring States period of Chinese history (480-221 BC) extensive
development in martial philosophy and strategy emerged, as described by Sun Tzu in The
Art of War (c. 350 BC).
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An early legend in martial arts tells the tale of a Tamilian, a South Indian Pallava prince
turned monk named Bodhidharma, believed to have lived around 550 A.D. Regarded as
the founder of Zen Buddhism, the martial virtues of discipline, humility, restraint and
respect are attributed to this philosophy. Thus the values of ethical conduct and self
discipline have been intertwined with martial practice since the earliest times.
The teaching of martial arts in Asia has historically followed the cultural traditions of
teacher-disciple apprenticeship. Students are trained in a strictly hierarchical system by a
master instructor: Sifu in Cantonese or Shifu in Mandarin; Sensei in Japanese; Sabeom-
nim in Korean; Guru in Sanskrit, Hindi, Telugu and Malay; Kruu in Khmer; Guro in
Tagalog; Kalari Gurukkal or Kalari Asaan in Malayalam; Asaan in Tamil; Achaan or
Kru in Thai; and Saya in Burmese. All these terms can be translated as master, teacher or
mentor.
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Kalaripayat, the martial art of Kerala, India which witnessed a revival in the 20th century
Europe's colonization of Asian countries also brought about a decline in local martial
arts, especially with the introduction of firearms. This can clearly be seen in India after
the full establishment of British Raj in the 19th century. More European modes of
organizing police, armies and governmental institutions, and the increasing use of
firearms, eroded the need for traditional combat training associated with caste-specific
duties and in 1804 the British Colonial government banned kalaripayat in response to a
series of revolts. Kalaripayat and other Dravidian martial arts experienced a resurgence in
the 1920s in Tellicherry before spreading throughout South India, while other traditional
systems like thang-ta witnessed a resurgence in the 1950s. Similar phenomena occurred
in Southeast Asian colonies such as Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam and the Philippines.
The Western interest in Asian martial arts dates back to the late 19th century, due to the
increase in trade between the United States with China and Japan. Relatively few
Westerners actually practiced the arts, considering it to be mere performance. Edward
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William Barton-Wright, a railway engineer who had studied jujutsu while working in
Japan between 1894–97, was the first man known to have taught Asian martial arts in
Europe. He also founded an eclectic style named Bartitsu which combined jujutsu, judo,
boxing, savate and stick fighting. Bruce Lee is credited as one of the first instructors to
openly teach Chinese martial arts to Westerners. Jackie Chan and Jet Li are prominent
movie figures who have been responsible for promoting Chinese martial arts in recent
years.
Europe
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Boxing was practiced in the ancient Mediterranean
Martial arts existed in classical European civilization, most notably in Greece where
sports were integral to the way of life. Boxing (pygme, pyx), Wrestling (pale) and
Pankration (from pan, meaning "all", and kratos, meaning "power" or "strength") were
represented in the Ancient Olympic Games. The Romans produced gladiatorial combat as
a public spectacle.
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A number of historical fencing forms and manuals have survived, and many groups are
working to reconstruct older European martial arts. The process of reconstruction
combines intensive study of detailed combat treatises produced from 1400–1900 A.D.
and practical training or "pressure testing" of various techniques and tactics. This
includes such styles as sword and shield, two-handed swordfighting, halberd fighting,
jousting and other types of melee weapons combat. This reconstruction effort and modern
outgrowth of the historical methods is generally referred to as Western martial arts. Many
medieval martial arts manuals have survived, primarily from Germany and Italy. The
most famous of these is Johannes Lichtenauer's Fechtbuch (Fencing book) of the 14th
century, which today forms the basis of the German school of swordsmanship.
In Europe, the martial arts declined with the rise of firearms. As a consequence, martial
arts with historical roots in Europe do not exist today to the same extent as in other
regions, since the traditional martial arts either died out or developed into sports.
Swordsmanship developed into fencing. Boxing as well as forms of wrestling have
endured. European martial arts have mostly adapted to changing technology so that while
some traditional arts still exist, military personnel are trained in skills like bayonet
combat and marksmanship. Some European weapon systems have also survived as folk
sports and aWs self-defense methods. These inclTude stick-fighting systems such as
quarterstaff of England, bataireacht of Ireland, Jogo do Pau of Portugal and the Juego del
Palo (Palo Canario) style(s) of the Canary Islands.
Other martial arts were adapted into sports that are no longer recognized as combative.
One example is the pommel horse event in men's gymnastics, an exercise which itself is
derived from the sport of equestrian vaulting. Cavalry riders needed to be able to change
positions on their horses quickly, rescue fallen allies, fight effectively on horseback and
dismount at a gallop. Training these skills on a stationery barrel evolved into sport of
gymnastics' pommel horse exercise. More ancient origins exist for the shot put and the
javelin throw, both weapons utilized extensively by the Romans.
Near East
Pictorial records of both wrestling and armed combat date to the Bronze Age ancient
Near East, such as the 20th century BC mural in the tomb of Amenemhet at Beni Hassan,
or the 26th century BC "Standard of Ur".
Modern history
Wrestling, Javelin, Fencing (1896 Summer Olympics), Archery (1900), Boxing (1904),
and more recently Judo (1964) and Tae Kwon Do (2000) are included as events in the
modern Summer Olympic Games.
Martial arts also developed among military and police forces to be used as arrest and self-
defense methods including: Unifight, Kapap and Krav Maga developed in Israeli Defense
Forces; San Shou in Chinese; Systema: developed for the Russian armed forces and
Rough and Tumble (RAT): originally developed for the South African special forces
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