Martial Arts History
Some say that the birth of the Martial Arts occurred when Bodhidharma, an Indian Monk, made an epic journey across the Himalayan mountains in the years between 500 and 526, eventually arriving and settling at the Shaolin Monastery in the Chinese province of Hun-an. He took with him a system of exercises devised to help the monks in their rigorous regime of work and meditation, and to be able to defend themselves against bandits while on their travels. It's a wonderful story but even if true it only explains a tiny part of the development of the Martial Arts, because as long as there has been mankind there has been fighting.
The Chinese Arts
China has one of the longest histories of martial arts tradition of any society in the world, and with hundreds of styles over the past two to four thousand years, many distinctive styles of Kung- Fu have been developed, each with its own set of martial techniques, ideas & strategies.There are also common themes to the different Kung Fu styles, which are often classified by families or schools. There are Kung Fu styles that mimic movements from animals and others that gather inspiration from various Chinese philosophies. Some Kung Fu styles put most of their focus into the belief of the harnessing of chi / qi energy, while others concentrate solely on competition and exhibition. Each style of Kung Fu offers a different approach to the common problems of self defence, health, fitness and self-development.
The Japanese Arts
Before the restoration of the Meji era in 1868 a very large number of ryu (schools) existed, there were reckoned to be about 3000 ryu. Most of the ryu were created by noble Samurai (members of the military class of warriors), others simply by ronin (samurai without a Lord) or even common people. The ryu sometimes divided intoha (branches) as a result of the various masters composing new techniques or movements from old ones. The seat of a ryu was usually located were the founder lived. Some ryu were independent, others belonged to the greatDaimyo (families). Each master had his own ryuji (style), and transmitted the okuden (secrets) of his style to a few chosen disciples. Most of the ryu which still existed before the second world war have now dissapeared, for the old masters are dead and the pupils have deserted the dojo. According to the Bujutsu Ryu Soroku, a work published in 1843, there were in Japan at that date some 150 important Ryu; 66 teaching Ken-Jutsu and Iai-Jutsu (sword), 31 teaching So-Jutsu (spear), 20 teaching Ju-Jutsu (grappling/joint locking), 19 in the use of firearms and 14 devoted to Kyu-Jutsu (bow),Any Bujutsu/Budo system established before 1877 are recognised as Ko Ryu (old schools). Thereafter they are known as Gendai Bujutsu (modern martial arts). Some ryu like the Chujo Ryu (sword), are now extinct, others, like the Tenshin Shoden Katori Shinto Ryu (sword and other traditional weapons), still flourish today, dating back more than 500 years.
You may have noticed that there is no mention of Judo or Karate, that's because Judo is a sport (derived from Jujitsu) and Karate is not a Japanese Martial Art although it has been practised there since 1922.
