EARLE'S ACADEMY VING CHUN KUEN

KUNG-FU ORIGINS & HISTORY

KUNG-FU ORIGINS part 2

THE DEVELOPMENT OF CHINESE MARTIAL ARTS BY TYPE: A SIMPLE OVERVIEW

There are four divisions of Wu Shu (Kung-Fu). They are; Weaponry; Wrestling; Pugilism; & Health Nourishing.

WEAPONRY

There are four divisions of Weaponry

1. Rod

2. Knife

3. Lance

4. Sword

That is the four broad catagories of Chinese weaponry. The different types of weapons actually number more than 18. Within each grouping may be many different weapons; for example it is said that there are more than 40 types of broadsword.

WRESTLING

There are two divisions of Pugilism

Soft Fist - which might be divided into three main catagories

1. Yee Chuan

2. Pai Kua

3. Tai Chi Chuan - which might be divided into three major systems: Chen; Yang; and Wu; each representing dozens of styles of Tai Chi.

Hard Fist - which might be divided into two main catagories - both might be divided into many

branches. The two main catagories are:

1. South Shaolin

2. North Shaolin

Two Divisions of Health Nourishing - Passive & Active. 

Note: these are the health nourishing exercises introduced to China by the Indian Monk Damo, which developed seperately to and later than the fighting arts of China.

Passive Course - might be divided into three main catagories;

1. Marrow washing

2. Posing

3. Meditation

Active Course - might also be divided into three main catagories:

1.Sinew Changing

2. Acts Of 5 Birds

3. 8 Peices Of Brocade

Summary of Charts:

There are literally hundreds of different styles of kungfu, each with its own unique history and flavour. Therefore it is important when discussing a particular style that one does not convey to the listener/reader that the facts pertaining to that system, such as origin, or theory, are common to all systems of kungfu.

Kevin Earle