Do you know Bruce Lee, Jet Li or Jackie Chan, all famous Chinese film stars adept in Wushu? Wow, how magic and terrific! Anyone who has seen classical Chinese Kung Fu movies will be deeply impressed by the Chinese Wushu, which is called Kung Fu or Chinese martial arts in the west. This year's hottest Kung Fu movie is the Hollywood box office hit, Chow Yun-Fat's CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON, another martial arts epic.
Literally, wu means military while shu means art, thus Wushu the art of fighting or martial arts. Wushu is an important and unique component of Chinese cultural heritage with centuries of cultural history attached. Wushu not only includes physical exercise but also Chinese philosophy, meditation and aesthetics.
In the past, Wushu was developed for the sake of military prowess and physical well being. Wushu was seen as crucial to a soldier's survival in the time of hand -to -hand combat. Today, military function has faded and it has been organized and systematized into a formal branch of study in the performance arts by the Chinese, while it's physical welfare and athletic functions become dominant. Hence Wushu is popular among the whole nation of China, practiced by men and women, young and old alike. Today many people practice Wushu to pursue health, defense skills, mental discipline, entertainment and competition.
Wushu can be practiced solo, paired or as a group, barehanded or armed with ancient Chinese weapons. In centuries past, Wushu developed into many systems and styles. The most famous systems include Shaolin Temple system and Mt. Wudang System. Only the Shaolin system has hundreds of styles. Among the many styles are Chang quan (long fist), Nan quan (southern fist), Taiji quan (shadow boxing or supreme ultimate fist), Xingyi quan (mind fist), Baqua quan (eight directions fist). The former two belong to the external style which emphasizes physical strength and abilities while the latter three belong to the internal style that depends upon internal power-qi. The ancient weaponry of Chinese Wushu consists of many represented by 18 named weapons.
Recently, Chinese Wushu has been modernized. Training and competing standard systems have been set up. Continuing its fighting function, Wushu becomes a more athletic and aesthetic performance and competitive sport. More and more foreigners come to learn the mysterious Wushu. In order to promote Wushu internationally, China Zhengzhou International Shaolin Wushu Festival will be held twice annually.
Wushu is now to be a sport of the Olympic Games soon.