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| What is kung fu? | ||
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A style?
A lot of people use the term 'kung fu' in the same way that they say
karate, muay thai or taekwondo. This is inaccurate.
Consider karate...
Karate is one of many Japanese fighting arts, in the same way that taekwondo is
one of a handful of Korean fighting arts.
'Japanese fighting arts' includes judo, aikido, ju jutsu, iaido, kendo etc.
Karate is one method that has many variations, schools and techniques. Many
different schools of karate, but all still doing karate.
If you were to watch any style of karate you would recognise it as being
distinctly different to say judo.
Martial skill
Unlike karate, the term kung fu is not referring to
one
approach. It is an umbrella term meaning 'Chinese martial art' or simply
martial skill itself...
The many
styles of kung fu are in fact completely different systems. One style of
kung fu and another may be as different from each other as karate and judo are
to one another.
The term kung fu encompasses all Chinese martial arts, not just one
approach. There are hundreds of different styles and systems.
In many martial arts schools the practice was carried out in secrecy and the
school's very existence was frequently concealed from the authorities. For
example, tai chi is based on body of theory known to be around 2000 years old
yet it was not revealed until 1750.
(Howard Reid)
Is tai chi kung fu?
According to The Sword Polisher's Record: The Way of Kung Fu by Adam Hsu,
tai chi chuan is certainly kung fu.
It is actually an 'advanced'
kung fu (Chinese boxing) method.
It is a Chinese martial art and it does involve hard work, time and skill.
For many years it was used in combat by the Chinese military.
What differs from most kung fu styles is the Taoist
component and the somewhat complex 'internal'
aspects of the art.
As kung fu styles go, tai chi is a very hard
method to learn.
External martial artist
Some students have prior experience in martial arts when they start learning
tai chi chuan. Usually they trained externally (judo, karate, ju jitsu, aikido,
wing chun etc).
They are well accustomed to practice, rigorous training and combat.
Traditional model
With many martial arts there is a heavy emphasis upon hard (strenuous)
training.
It is all about strength-building, coordination, mobility, stamina,
accuracy, whole-body movement, whole-body power and patience.
This traditional approach was designed to test the resolve of the student
and ensure that the necessary fundamentals were established.
Hard training
Sit-ups, circuit training, body building, gym machines, running, sweating
and straining... High repetitions. Long gruelling training sessions.
Challenging postures held for sustained periods of time.
This is the external way. But it is not the tai chi way.
When you do tai chi, you shouldn't sweat.
Sweating is a sign that energy is being dissipated.
It comes from tension and it's as if you are depleting your bank account.
Doing tai chi, you want to accumulate energy, not spend it.
So, if you sweat, you should stop and rest.
(Cheng Man Ching)
Tai chi is
an art where all the principles of other martial arts have been turned upside
down.
They practice fast, we practice slow.
They practice hard, we practice soft.
(Cheng
Man Ching)
There are many similarities between
the hard and soft fighting systems; both use animal movements and forms, for
example, and both incorporate the five elements, but because of the Taoist
influence, the soft arts exhibit a stronger and deeper relationship with the
natural world.
Since the Taoist concepts are rooted in the most distant past with the most
ancient beliefs of the Chinese, it is difficult for the Western mind to
understand them. Therefore, before you can investigate the internal martial
arts, you must first back to the very origins of thought in ancient China.
(Howard Reid)
Kung fu styles like
tai chi have become widespread and popular. It is important for all
practitioners to understand a major weakness in the transmission of all
Chinese arts; a lack of basic training. In fact, a step-by-step training program,
standardized terminology, clear explanations and correct interpretations are
either entirely missing or woefully scarce.
(Adam Hsu)
Page created
18 April 2005
Last updated
30 October 2023
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