The Term: By History, the word “Kung Fu” is not really featured in any old texts. It was coined by a French by the name Jean Joseph Marie Amiot, a missionary who lived in the 18th Century, referring to Chinese martial arts. Kung Fu is also called Kuoshu, Gongfu, or Wushu, and originally refers expertise in any ability, and not singly to martial arts.
Brief History: The practice, philosophy, and concept of Kung Fu can be drawn back to early Chinese writings such as Zhuang Zi, Dao De Jing, and Sun Zi Bing Fa (Art of War authored by Sun Zi), all written around 1111-255 BC. These writings carry contents related to the practice, propagation, and principles of Kung-Fu. One theory regarding the first written history of Kung Fu suggests that the Yellow Emperor, who reigned from 2698 BC, wrote the first documents on Chinese martial arts. Others credit the Taoist monks for introducing an art form that resemble modern Tai Chi around 500 BC. Then in 39-92 AD, Pan Ku included “Six Chapters of Hand Fighting” in his discussion on the history of the Han dynasty (Han Shu). As its popularity progressed, a physician named Hua T’uo also wrote his own study entitled, “Five Animals Play” in 220 AD. Kung Fu had become a common word in the West beginning in the late 1960s, popularized by martial arts movies and TV series. The Western world today has also seen an notable increase in the creation and production of Kung Fu movies featuring great actors/masters such as Jet Li and Jackie Chan.
Fundamental Principles: The concept of Kung Fu revolves around 3 fundamental principles – Time, Self-Discipline, and Motivation. As the experts says, the real motivation behind learning Kung Fu is to be inspired and not to use force, which should emanating from a deep desire for learning and development of mind and body. The vital driving force is motivation. There is no external or worldly benefits for the learner, and the only reward is that of skill, strength, wisdom, and knowledge. In Kung Fu, discipline is complemental to motivation. Discipline puts motivation into deed and action. A learner has to make an effort into what he has been motivated for, and self-discipline assists him get started and guides him in achieving that goal. Thus, motivation is just a state of mind when there is no discipline. Time is the path to perfection in martial arts. Once motivation and self-discipline have set in, a learner has to spend a considerable amount of time putting mind and body into practice. A truly inspired learner does not have the privilege to waste time, stay idle or indulge in fruitless activities. Everything done by him/her should reflect real self-discipline and motivation.
Variants and Styles: As time goes by, many forms and styles have come up in martial arts, or Kung Fu. Some of the more common types include Tae Kwon Do, Shaolin, White Crane, T’ai Chi Ch’uan, Bagua Zhang, Karate, Escrima, Wing Chun, Jujitsu, and Judo.
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