Martial Arts takes its name from the Roman god of war, Mars and refers to a series of rules and codes that standardize a particular fighting styles that come from all around the world.
In addition some martial arts are part of a religious and traditional lifestyle. These are more often East Asian practices like Buddhism, Hinduism and Daoism. As well as being a lifestyle and code of honor choice they are also commonly seen as combat sports.
Methods of training also include sparring, simulated combat and form or kata where students practice specific routines and movements as part of a training technique.
Martial arts systems can be divided into different categories depending on the techniques they employ. These vary between striking, using punches or kicking, grappling, where practitioners throw or hold an opponent and martial arts that employ traditional and modern weapons.
From its earliest origins martial arts have adopted a mystical series of rules, of conduct, things like humility, respect and discipline became essential components. Many of the fighting styles can be traced back to a mixing of Indian and Chinese attitudes. Much of this is described in Sun Tzu famous book on war from 350BC.
As European influence spread throughout the world many codes were banned, or ceased to be effective ways of fighting against modern firearms, while some evolved into performance dances and sporting events. The Olympics showcase such arts as judo, boxing, taekwondo, wrestling and fencing, all technically classed as martial arts.
During the nineteenth century with increased trade between the east and west many diplomats, merchants and engineers came into contact with they old romance fighting styles and growth in interest from their traditional homelands came resurgence in interest in traditional eastern martial arts.
By the 1960's Hollywood had gotten interest in martial arts and the arrival of legendary Bruce Lee and more lately Jackie Chan and Jet Li have once more encouraged interest in martial arts.
All martial arts have a system of testing and evaluating where students are graded and periodically assessed by their teachers. Successful passing of exams gives the student another belt or new title to acknowledge their progress.
During competitions students will use different levels of contact either light, medium or full which reflects the amount of force used. In some sparring sessions protective equipment is worn and certain dangerous moves might be banned depending on the fighting style.
Chinese Martial Arts, Wushu and Kung Fu training consists of differing components. These are basics, forms, applications and weapons, which are also tied into philosophy, ethics and medicine. The basics form the main part of any discipline both internal and external.
Stances, the postures adopted when fighting. Meditation is important for controlling breathing, concentration and focus. While practicing forms gives the student knowledge of the flow and pattern within the discipline. Application and understanding of techniques are tested through sparring with partners both for demonstrating comprehension and public displays.
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