The Martial Arts in History

Every martial arts system and each school within a system has its own traditions and history. In the Western mind the martial arts are always connected with the East Asian cultures, due in large part to half a century of movies starring Bruce Lee, Jackie Chan, and Jet Li. In truth they are not unique to any one group of cultures, however, as all human cultures the world over have developed weaponless methods of fighting to defend themselves against attack. For example, Savate evolved in France as a form of kickboxing. Capoeira's athletic movements were based on techniques slaves brought with them from Africa.

Unique forms of the martial arts are likely to have been developed in every class, ethnic group, and level of society, from families to villages and cities. One example is a northern Chinese kicking style, t'an t'ui, practiced by Chinese Muslims. In Indonesia and the Philippines many different fighting systems are still practiced.

Every martial arts system and each school within a system has its own traditions and history. History is divided into the two categories of recent and ancient. Recent history is history that can be verified. Who is the teacher and where did he study? What else has the teacher studied and how has he incorporated this into his current teaching? Did the teacher’s teacher give him permission to teach? What are his goals in teaching? Goals differ from teacher to teacher and include self-defense, sports competition, preservation of a traditional system, and self-cultivation. The goal a teacher has in teaching determines the practical details of training and instruction.

Ancient history is composed of the oral tradition, including the legends and myths, of a system. This history is generally not verifiable, though there may be evidence that some events or people did exist. The value of the oral tradition does not lie in its truthfulness or accuracy, but in the power of its legends and myths to inspire and direct. It is through myth that human beings create fact. A myth is like a central vision or focus around which a school can organize a system that is coherent with the myth. The myth might be about extraordinary warriors, for example, and teach offensive battlefield techniques and weapons use against highly skilled opponents, or it might be about great masters of self-defense with techniques for reacting to surprise attack and multiple opponents.

The history of the martial arts all over the world is a complex blend of historical truth and myth. Each system of martial arts that has survived to modern times has its own unique history. Preserving a martial arts system requires the preservation of a line of good teachers to pass on the tradition from generation to generation. Even though all human cultures developed fighting systems to protect themselves, today many of these systems are obsolete given advanced military technology. Today attack is more likely to come from men armed with rifles than armed with swords or poles. The martial arts that have survived to this day have individual and group applications that go beyond the scope of warfare.

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