Chinese martial arts, often abbreviated as CMA, refers to the enormous variety of martial art styles native to China. Chinese martial arts are also often referred to as kung fu or wushu.
Many Chinese martial arts, and several Japanese martial arts, claim to have originated from the teachings of Bodhidharma at the Shaolin Temple, a Buddhistmonastery. Researchers regard the claim that all components of Chinese martial arts derive from Bodhidharma with considerable skepticism, since history records earlier sources for some techniques and schools. However, the Shaolin Temple, located in the Henan province near the city of Dengfeng, has had centuries of long tradition of fostering the martial arts as it has provided refuge for martial artists with widely differing techniques from all over China.
Chinese martial arts are split into two broad categories: external and internal (or hard and soft). The difference is what type of training is the main focus of the style, even though most styles contain both external and internal elements. In addition, external styles in particular are often divided into northern and southern as well, referring to what part of China the styles originated from, separated by the Changjiang (Yangtze River).
Internal styles focus primarily on the practice of what are considered internal elements, such as awareness of the spirit, mind and the qi, or breathing. Some internal stylists say that the difference between internal and external for them is mostly the distinction of the inside and the outside of the body. The reason for the label "internal," according to most schools, is that there is a focus on the internal aspects earlier in the training, once these internal relationships are apprehended, the theory goes, they are then applied to the external applications of the styles in question. Because of the extended periods of time that beginning students are expected to work on very basic principles in most internal schools, and perhaps also the prevalence in recent years of many Western "New Age" oriented schools who are accused by traditionalists of emphasising philosophy and speculation at the expense of hard work (see the next paragraph), many people believe internal styles lack "external" physical training. In the older schools, however, much time is spent on basic physical work, such as stance training (zhan zhuang), stretching and strengthening of muscles, as well as on empty hand and weapon forms which can contain quite demanding coordination from posture to posture. Also, many internal styles have basic two person training, such as pushing hands. The forms of most internal styles are performed slowly, though some also include sudden outbursts of explosive movements, such as those the Chen style of Taijiquan is famous for teaching earlier than some other styles. The reason for the generally slow pace is to improve coordination and balance by increasing the work load, and to require the student to pay minute attention to their whole body and its weight as they perform a technique. At an advanced level, and in real fighting, internal styles are supposed to be performed quickly, but the goal is to learn to involve the entire body in every motion, to stay relaxed, with deep, controlled breathing, and to coordinate the motions of the body and the breathing accurately according to the dictates of the forms while maintaining perfect balance. Internal styles have been associated historically, in legend, and in much popular fiction with the Taoist monasteries of Wudangshan in central China.
Today, only a few traditional schools teaching internal styles train martially, even though such training was originally a part of all internal styles. This is especially evident in schools located outside of China. Most schools teach forms that are practiced for the physical benefits only, as this is what most modern students are looking for and as these students seldom have the time or devotion to reach far enough in their training to start focusing on the martial aspects. To condition oneself well enough to become adept at the soft style martial arts is a long-term proposition, many simply lose interest after a few years and never finish the program. Also, many people who have not fully learned the martial aspects of their style judge themselves qualified to teach what they do know publicly anyway, leading to a further diminution of the martial applications taught in many schools. Due to the current fad for "mixed martial arts," many such instructors have an opportunity to supplement what they are teaching with elements from other schools, hard or soft, and their training becomes further removed from the original art. While this gradual watering-down of technique has made some external aspects of internal styles available for a wider audience who are interested in the purported health benefits of the internal schools, traditional schools see a complete martial syllabus as a fundamental, defining part of their art, both for health and self-defense purposes. They claim that while the students may not need to practice external applications to derive a benefit from the training, their teachers should know the applications well, to ensure that the movements are trained correctly, effectively and safely. For these reasons traditionalists feel that a school not teaching martial aspects somewhere in their syllabus cannot be said to be actually teaching the art itself, that they have "graduated themselves," and that they are much less likely to be able to reproduce the health benefits that have made complete internal systems famous in the first place.
These are styles that have evolved from northern parts of China such as Henan province and the Shaolin Temple. It is said that northern styles put more focus on legwork, kicking and acrobatics. Some say this is because the northern Chinese were generally taller than those living in southern China, and that they made their styles take advantage of their greater range of motion, especially in their legs. An example of a northern style is the modern Changquan (Long Fist) that is the most popular style in the forms division in most contemporary Chinese martial arts competitions held around the world today.
Another important part of the training, as in most other physical activities, is what is referred to as basics, such as various exercises for strengthening the body, and regular stretching.
The concept of qì (氣), the inner energy or "life force" that flows through the body of every living being, is encountered in almost all styles of Chinese martial arts. Internal styles pay more attention to this than external styles.
Many believe that one's qi energy can be improved and strengthened through the regular practice of various physical and mental exercises known as Qigong. Though Qigong is not a martial art itself, it is often incorporated in Chinese martial arts, and practiced as a complement to strengthen one's internal abilities.
There are many ideas regarding controlling one's qi energy to such an extent that it can be used for healing oneself or others: the goal of medical Qigong. There is also the practice known as Hard Qigong, which purpose is to strengthen parts of the body using qi, so one can withstand massive damage to these areas. Some styles believe in focusing qi into a single point when attacking and aim at specific areas of the human body (similar to the study of acupressure), to cause maximum damage or disable certain functions of the body. Some go so far as to think that at an advanced level it is possible to cause harm without even touching your opponent, a popular concept in Chinese martial arts movies.
