Martial Arts

I

Introduction

Martial Arts, various methods of unarmed combat, originally used in warfare in East Asia and shaped by Eastern Asian philosophical concepts, notably Zen Buddhism.

In the early 6th century ad, Bodhidharma, an Indian priest and knight, brought Zen Buddhism to China along with a system of 18 self-defence exercises. The exercises evolved into a form of boxing, which spread, with Zen, throughout China and in the 12th century reached Japan.

The martial arts are popular in many parts of the world today as means of self-defence, law enforcement tactics, competitive sports, and exercises for physical fitness. Among the better known forms are karate, kung fu, ju-jitsu, judo, aikido, tai chi chuan, taekwondo, sumo wrestling, and kendo.

II

Types and Techniques

In some forms of the martial arts, practitioners customarily wear coloured belts to denote rank. A white belt indicates a novice; a black belt signifies proficiency at various levels. The levels of black belt are designated by dan (Japanese, for “degree”). For example, first dan, or first degree black belt, signifies a beginner black belt; fifth dan, or fifth degree black belt, usually signifies a master.

Tactics basic to the martial arts include hand, arm, and foot blows; knee kicks; throws and trips; gripping or immobilizing; and blocks or parries using wrist, forearm, or elbow.

Kung fu (Chinese boxing) is, with karate, the most popularly known of all the martial arts. It employs kicks, strikes, throws, body turns, dodges, holds, crouches and starts, leaps and falls, handsprings and somersaults. These movements include more techniques involving the open hand, such as claws and rips, than those used in karate.

Ju-jitsu (from Japanese, Jū, for “gentle”), uses holds, chokes, throws, trips, joint locks, kicks, and atemi (strikes to vital body areas). The techniques are gentle only in the sense that they are directed towards deflecting or controlling an attack; however, they can maim or kill.

Judo is a popular wrestling form developed from ju-jitsu in 1882 by Dr Jigoro Kano, a Japanese educator. Like ju-jitsu, it attempts to turn an attacker's force to one's own advantage. Techniques include throwing and grappling. Judo was first included in the Olympic Games in 1964.

Aikido was, like judo, derived from ju-jitsu within the last century. In aikido, an attack is avoided with flowing, circular movements. The opponent can then be brought to the ground with painful, immobilizing joint locks. Aikido is, with tai chi chuan, the gentlest martial art and is not practised as a competitive sport.

Tai chi chuan, more popularly referred to as tai chi, is an ancient Chinese exercise and fighting system, still practised in China and elsewhere in the world, mainly for its health benefits. It employs slow, graceful movements that are stylized renditions of original arm and foot blows.

Taekwondo is a type of fighting system that originated in Korea and that employs kicking, punching, and various evasive techniques. Most famous for its kicks, taekwondo incorporates jumping and kicking into characteristic manoeuvres called “flying kicks”. It spread worldwide from Korea in the 1960s and the first World Taekwondo Championship took place in Seoul, South Korea, in 1973.

Sumo wrestling, a popular Japanese combative sport, pits huge men against one another in an attempt to force a wrestler out of the ring, or to bring his body, below the knees, to the mat. The rules of sumo wrestling prohibit kicking, gouging, hair pulling, and the like, but allow such actions as pushing, pulling, slapping, throwing, and grappling. Traditionally, sumo wrestlers are Japanese, although Americans have recently won sumo championships and proved themselves capable wrestlers.

Kendo, or Japanese fencing, is a sport derived from ancient sword fighting, now using bamboo swords.

III

Recent Popularity

Worldwide contemporary interest in the martial arts often focuses on their spiritual aspects, as means of increasing self-confidence, assertiveness, and concentration. Personal defence is also increasingly an important issue, particularly for women and the elderly. Special programmes in many of the martial arts have been designed to train a smaller or more fragile person to handle a larger, stronger assailant. The martial arts have also recently become popular not only as competitive sports and as ways of maintaining physical fitness but as forms of self-expression, similar to dance or gymnastics. This is, in fact, the main purpose of wu shu (martial arts) as practised today in China.