Martial Arts
Martial Arts
Martial arts are fighting systems with specific theories and traditions about the techniques used to defeat another person or persons physically. People practice them for variety of reasons including, learning combat and self defense skills, improving physical and mental fitness, sport and competition, spiritual contentment, and general self improvement.
Diversity of martial art systems and styles used around the world is enormous. They are differentiated by the techniques used, the attitudes of the practitioners, training methods used, and the applications of the art. In addition they differ from each other due to their origins and traditions.
Techniques Broadly speaking martial art fighting techniques can be grouped into several categories; striking techniques, throwing techniques, immobilization techniques and weapons techniques. Martial arts differ in the emphasis they place on various techniques.
Striking involve hitting the opponent with hands, feet, knees, elbows, head, or any other part of the body depending on whether the particular techniques are allowed by the rules of martial art concerned. The martial arts that stress strikes whether punches or kicks include Boxing, Karate, Tae Kwon Do, Wing Chun, Capoeira, Kung fu, Savate, Muay Thai, and Sikaran, among others.
Throwing techniques aim to bring the opponent to the ground. Martial arts like Judo, Aikido, Hapkido, Sambo, Glima and Shuai Jiao, lay stress on such methods. Most of them also have immobilization techniques using grappling. Additional immobilization techniques used by martial arts are pinning, hand trapping, and submission holds, among others. Jujutsu, Varma Kalai, Naban, and many wrestling type of martial arts, extensively use such techniques
Many martial arts also have techniques for handling weapons. Weapons involved are usually traditional, but some martial arts have incorporated modern weapons as well. Weapon handling martial arts include, Fencing Kenjutsu Gatka, Kapu Kuialua, Eskrima Mau rakau, and Jogo do Pau, among others.
In addition to these fighting techniques some martial arts especially Chinese and Indian ones teach various healing arts like acupuncture, acupressure, qigong, and Ayurveda as additional disciplines. Some Eastern martial arts involve training in meditation techniques as well.
Mental and physical discipline and self restraint are also important aspects of martial arts especially in East Asia. Students are instructed on the importance of following high moral precepts in daily life as well as in the application of the art.
Martial art techniques can also be broadly categorized as ?hard? or ?soft?. While there is some disagreement as to exact definition, hard techniques involve meeting force with force and linear movements, while soft techniques involve circular movements and yielding in order to redirect opponent?s strikes. Karate and Aikido are considered martial arts with predominantly hard and soft techniques respectively. Most martial arts practiced today combine both hard and soft techniques but differ with regard to the stress they place on one or the other
History Martial arts developed from the people?s need to defend themselves. Over the centuries the techniques used by a particular culture or group of people were developed and refined into what became martial art traditions. It is probable that most such traditions become obsolete and fell into disuse as the technology and the society in which they were based changed. This is especially true in the Western European countries during Industrial and modern ages.
Survival of martial arts in some Asian countries was due to various cultural as well as political factors. Hierarchical master and apprentice training methods, Confucian respect for traditions, caste based nature of society where some arts were considered privileges and duties of particular castes, as with Samurai in Japan and Kshatriyas in India, political isolation from rest of the world, all contributed to the preservation of martial arts in those countries to varying degrees.
Martial arts also influenced each other. Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and Okinawan, martial arts have influenced each other to a considerable degree. Martial arts practiced in Southeast Asian countries like Indonesia, Thailand, Philippines, and Malaysia, have been influenced by both Indian and Chinese martial arts and have in turn influenced modern martial arts. Generally the techniques imported were adapted to local conditions and culture.
That similar techniques may have been developed through similar needs in several places is also a possibility.
Martial arts in modern world In modern times due to political changes like Meiji Restoration in Japan and liberation of Korea from Japan and developments in martial arts themselves, martial art practices became more widespread in society and many new styles and schools were created and developed.
While there was some interest before, Eastern martial arts began to spread in earnest in the Western world only after large number of American troops began to be stationed in Japan and Korea after the Second World War and Korean War. Popularity of martial art films also contributed to the spread of the arts.
Since then many countries around the world have begun to revive their ancient martial arts by promoting living traditions or by reconstructing dead traditions from other sources.
Adaptation of some marital art into sport competitions enhanced their spread. This is especially true for Judo and Tae Kwon Do, both Olympic sports, which by many standards have become two of the most popular sports in the world. Other competitions involving martial arts are organized by national or international sport governing bodies as well as private organizations.
Competitions involve sparring under rules imposed by organizers or performance of ?kata? (a prearranged sequence of movements intended to demonstrate mastery of techniques performed) solo or with others, or similar type of performances. Sparring sports may involve full contact to medium contact.
Most martial arts styles have introduced ranking systems usually denoted by colored belts based on the proficiency of the practitioner. Methods of testing for proficiency differ from one martial art style to another.
Martial arts are extensively used as training methods for many police and military forces around the world. Some modern martial arts styles were expressly created for modern military forces.