中国文化概要 Lecture 11 Wushu and Qigong.docVIP

Wushu and Qigong What’s WUSHU called in the West? Wushu, Chinese martial arts, known in the West as Kungfu, is a traditional folk sport characterized by various bare hand and armed combat techniques. The History of Wushu In primitive society, hard living conditions compelled the ancient people to use their stone and wooden tools as weapons to hunt and to defend themselves.Their fighting skills with bare hands and in using weapons formed the basis of primitive wushu. During the Shang(c.16-11th B.C) and Zhou(c.11th-221B.C) dynasties, with the development of productive forces, especially that of the techniques in bronze casting, the variety of weapons increases and their quality improved. In the Han Dynasty(206B.C-220A.D), wushu became quite popular. Tang Dynasty During the Tang Dynasty, both military men and scholars were required to practice wushu.The boxing style of Shaolin Temple became very popular. Shaolin Temple Ming and Qing Dynasties The Ming Dynasty saw the all-round development of Chinese martial arts. Qi Jiguang wrote two better-known books: New Martial Arts and Military Training Record. In order to keep its ruling position, the government of the Qing Dynasty once restricted wushu practice, but that could not prevent wushu from spreading among the people. Types of Wushu Bare-handed boxing The wielding of weapons Combat Collective performances Famous Boxing Styles Changquan, taijiquan, xingyiquan, nanquan, shaolinquan, tanglangquan, zuiquan… Weapons Long weapons: spears, broadsword; Short weapons: short swords, daggers, hooks Flexible weapons: nine-section cudgels, three-section cudgels Qi Gong Qigong is believed to have started in the 17th century BC in the age of Lao Zi, the founder of Daoism. Hua Tuo, a famous physician, created China’s first structured self-strengthening exercise, the Five-Animal Play, incorporating movements that imitated the tiger, deer, bear, ape and bird. Qigong has come to a long way since then. Functions of Qigong 1. Invigorate and