From my own point of view, talk about how to appreciate martial arts.

Traditional characteristics of Wushu routines

1 complexity

The characteristics of national traditional culture gave birth to Wushu in the form of "natural movement", which made it rich and complicated. Since the Ming Dynasty, China Wushu has formed many schools and boxers. People often use profundity and richness to describe martial arts. As far as boxing types are concerned, only from the statistics of the national Wushu excavation and arrangement in 1986, there are as many as 129 kinds of boxing with "orderly origin, clear boxing theory, unique style and self-contained system", and there are countless small boxing types, similar boxing types and incomplete routine techniques. Some even have similar boxing, and there are several technical schools. As far as its function is concerned, one punch can be used for fitness, repair, self-defense and entertainment (including self-entertainment and other entertainment). From the sports form, there are not only boxing and equipment routines composed of offensive and defensive actions such as kicking, hitting, throwing, taking and stabbing, but also practical antagonistic competitive fighting, as well as various special intensive training methods focusing on a certain physical skill. As far as schools are concerned, there are different schools, such as the theory of internal and external families, the difference between the North and the South, the difference between Wudang and Shaolin, and the schools with different styles, such as Taiji Gate, Bagua Gate, Xingyi Gate, Di Liemen, Changquan and Wendan. These boxing routines with different purposes, different rigidity and flexibility, and various styles of play make Wushu show the characteristics of complex form and content and wide range of styles and schools.

There are many reasons for this. The history of China is based on the individual natural economy of one family. This scattered and isolated mode of small-scale peasant economic production has led to the relative closure of different regions. Traditional patriarchal ideology and patriarchal system make people live in groups, forming strong cohesion and repulsion. These specific historical environments make Wushu skills often spread only in a family or a certain area, thus forming different local boxing types and schools. In addition, Wushu is based on individual body movements. Due to the different physical conditions, motivations and cultural attainments of Wushu practitioners, there are bound to be differences in offensive and defensive actions, and different technical styles and characteristics will also be formed. At the same time, the traditional holistic thinking mode makes Wushu a natural sport with universality and multiple social functions. For example, in a family village or region, martial arts is likely to become its main cultural life. During the slack season, I practise martial arts, and at festivals, temple fairs celebrate entertainment and contests. Clan disputes are also a means of self-defense. This diversified function is also a reason for the complexity and diversity of Wushu.

2 introversion

China culture is an introverted culture. Wushu routines embody the spirit of "Tao", and the cultivation process emphasizes "physical and mental cultivation". Its sports skills are mainly manifested in the overall harmony inside and outside. As the saying goes, "an expert will know if there is one" and "there is no bone in his waist, and his hands are scattered all over his body". China Wushu has always paid attention to "integration of inside and outside", showing greater introversion compared with western sports. The so-called "inside" mainly refers to the inner psychological qualities such as mind, spirit, ambition and qi, while the so-called "outside" mainly refers to the external body movements such as hands, eyes, body and steps. As the saying goes, "exercise your muscles outside and rest inside" is extremely rich in connotation. Changquan requires "hands, eyes, posture and steps", and "spirit, qi, strength and skill" are combined inside and outside; The harmony between heart and heart, heart and qi, and qi and strength of Xingyiquan is the concrete embodiment of this "internal and external integration" and the overall harmony requirements.

The introversion of Wushu routines shows the cultural mentality of the Chinese nation that emphasizes introversion, meaning, coincidence and intuition. It can be said that it is both the most practical and ideal. The connotation of Wushu techniques often requires an understanding of "anti-self" and can only be obtained from repeated practice. "Punch 1000 times, the posture is natural", which is the truth. Wushu is different from other specific external competitions, and it is difficult to define it. The strength of Wushu is achieved by attracting spirit with intention and promoting strength with spirit. The body movements of hands, eyes, body and steps are the reflection of inner essence, qi and spirit, and form and spirit, inner and outer are interrelated and unified as a whole. Inner strength, inner spirit and inner artistic conception are wonderful and inexhaustible, which often become the "lifelong art" that practitioners understand.

The formation of introverted characteristics of Wushu routines is mainly influenced by China's traditional philosophy of "harmony between man and nature" and the theory of traditional Chinese medicine. "The Unity of Heaven and Man" has brought a series of unity to China's traditional philosophy, such as the unity of form and spirit, the unity of inside and outside, and the unity of subject and object. China's traditional philosophy has become the guiding ideology of Wushu practice. The basic theory of traditional Chinese medicine is the physiological basis of Wushu training. For example, in the theory of traditional Chinese medicine, a person's "zork" is the three treasures. Exquisite spirit is full of energy, full of energy is full of spirit, full of spirit is healthy Therefore, according to this law, Wushu practice promotes the transformation of essence and spirit through various methods, and puts forward the theory of "practicing essence and spirit, practicing spirit and returning to deficiency", which shows that the influence of traditional culture is the national characteristic of Chinese Wushu.

3 competitive art

Darwin, a famous biologist, once pointed out that man, as one of the animals, also has the instinct of competition in order to survive and develop. Yanzi Chunqiu: "All flesh and blood have their own struggles." "Huai Nan Zi Dao Ying" says: "Those who contend, there is also a place for people." These arguments all hold that competition is human nature. China Wushu, which originated from fighting, is naturally full of competition. For example, the grand occasion of the "Spring and Autumn Gladiation" recorded in Guanzi Qilv, the contest between Cao Pi and the general with a cane recorded in Dian Lun Xu, and the modern "hero" all show people's ability and desire to show their strength and defeat their opponents from the contest. Especially before Confucianism and Taoism, the two pillars of feudal culture in the pre-Qin period, Wushu characterized by Wushu was an important competitive activity for people to realize their self-worth and satisfy their competitive psychology. There is a typical example in the Spring and Autumn Annals: In the year of Lu, Ji You, the son of Lu, defeated the Ju army on the battlefield and took it back, but he had to compete with Ju to decide whether he was male or female. This mentality of pursuing another kind of competitive victory besides battlefield victory is the expression of people's competitive personality.

It can be seen that Wushu shows its strong competitive side in terms of technical origin, cultural mentality, ethical thought, etc., and going forward bravely and striving for strength is the psychological basis for moving towards the world competitive sports world. However, with the maturity of Confucianism and Taoism, especially after Confucianism occupied social orthodoxy, the gradual suppression of human competitive nature will inevitably lead to the gradual shrinkage of social competitive spirit.

As Rodin pointed out in "Philosophy of Art": "Spirit also has its climate, and its change determines the appearance of this art". Wushu routines are no exception. The passivity, obedience and inaction of "Tao" and the "unintentional" of "Zen" also have an impact on Wushu from another side. The peaceful culture bred by farming economy pursues interpersonal harmony, the principle of loyalty and forgiveness, and the Confucian thought of "being gentle, respectful and frugal" all play a role in infiltrating and standardizing Wushu. Neo-Confucianism in Song and Ming Dynasties combined Confucianism, Taoism and Buddhism, which greatly developed the idea of "harmony but difference". At this time, the family boxing system that appeared one after another was obviously deeply affected. The emphasis is no longer on "softness in rigidity", but on "softness in concealment of rigidity" and the pursuit of "impartiality" and "it is better to keep the middle".

Since the Song Dynasty, China's artistic culture has moved towards civilian aesthetic culture, and the traditional holistic thinking mode is reflected in the most typical artistic view. Wushu routines are also deeply influenced by it, which is not only artistic in technology, but also more artistic in practice, especially in the overall artistic conception, spirit, charm and contrast. In Wushu routines, we not only pay attention to the techniques and skills of one stroke, one style, one punch and one foot, but also pay attention to the whole set of techniques and skills such as strength, coordination, spirit, rhythm, content, style, structure and layout. In traditional techniques, special attention is paid to embodying an overall artistic conception from the spirit, rhythm and style. Being in a fighting situation, the momentum is like a rainbow and the charm is vivid, showing an indomitable fighting spirit and fighting spirit. Shaolin Wushu says: "The body must stand, the steps must exist, the hands must enter and exit, or advance or retreat, or rise or fall, all in one breath", in order to "punch once, the soldiers must be brave" (Shaolin Wushu). The artistic beauty of this kind of fighting created by Wushu can be described as "beyond rhyme" and "between words", which is fascinating and intriguing. Mr. Tang once talked about three characteristics of China culture: one is advocating nature, the other is the harmony between man and nature, and the third is the harmony between people (moral practice). The traditional way of thinking and cultural characteristics gradually weaken the competitiveness of Wushu, and finally make it entertaining and competitive.