four major phases: The age of ancient military arts and entertainment, the age of northern Shaolin, the age of dispersion; and the modern age of kungfu and wushu. The notes below record the milestones of these phases.
Phase I: The Age of Ancient Military Arts and Entertainment
Shang Dynasty (c. 1600–1000 B. C.)
The first reliable records of kungfu, both external and internal forms, are made on oracle bones and turtle shells. Combat sports are primarily exercises for military preparation and include both wrestling (unarmed) and combat with weapons. Later in the dynasty, government schools are established to train soldiers.
Western Chou Dynasty (c. 1000–770 B. C.)
Wrestling, archery, chariot racing, and swordplay are popular; fighting methods are performed as dances accompanied by music.
Spring and Autumn Period (770–475 B. C.)
The martial arts, known as chuan yung, flourish. Swords are used in warfare for the first time. In 512 Sun Tzu writes a treatise on military strategy, The Art of War .
Confucius encourages his disciples to learn both literary and martial arts. Lao-tzu, legendary author of the Tao Te Ching, the classic Taoist gospel, lives in the sixth century B.C. In India, Buddha is teaching (c. 560–483 B.C .).
Warring States Period (475–221 B. C.)
Ch’in Dynasty (221–207 B. C.)
After centuries of war the Ch’in emerge victorious, unify China, and give it its name. Emperor Shih Huang-ti (who ordered the terra-cotta armies made for his tomb in Xian) undertakes grand projects, including the unfication of the Great Wall and the standardization of script, coinage, weights, and measures .
Western and Eastern Han Dynasties (206 B. C.– A. D.200)
The Old Silk Road opens; trade with Rome southern and western Asia flourish. Paper is invented. First Buddhist missionaries reach China from India, C. A. D. 65
Hua Tuo, a renowned medical doctor considered to be the father of acupuncture, creates the Five Animal Exercises (Wu Chien Shi)—based on the characteristics of the deer, bird, monkey, tiger, and bear. Supposedly Taoist in origin, these revolutionary exercises will influence many martial arts styles and health exercises and will become integral to the Shaolin martial arts system.
Phase II: The Age of Northern Shaolin
Six Dynasties (220–589)
During the Three Kingdoms period (c. 220–265), three rival states contest fiercely, spawning many legendary heroes and tales to be recorded later in the classic novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms .
In 495 a Buddhist temple is built on Mt. Songshan near Luoyang in Henan Province and named Shaolin.
In 520 the monk Da Mo (Bodhidharma) arrives to teach the Chan (Zen) practice of Buddhism at the Shaolin Temple. Finding that the monks lack the physical stamina to meditate effectively, he develops exercises to strengthen them, namely, the “Eighteen Buddha Hands.”
Two famous classics, of which there are no surviving copies, are written: the Sinew-Changing Classic (Yi Jin Jing) and the Washing Marrow Classic (Xi Sui Jing). Some attribute these classics to Bodhidharma. Due to the health benefits and Buddhist influence, from this time on the martial arts are widely practiced by citizens, not just by the nobility and military professionals.
For the first time Chinese martial arts spread outside China when soldiers sent to Korea teach there.
Tang Dynasty (618–906)
In this warring period intense persecution of Buddhists batters the monasteries. Gunpowder is introduced, changing forever the nature of war and fighting.
A court examination system is initiated, and all officers and soldiers must pass martial arts tests for recruitment and promotion.
Northern and Southern Song Dynasties (960–1279)
During this period of relative social and political stability, both military sports and “folk” wushu flourish. The first emperor, Song Tai Zu, creates a long fist style (Tai Zu Chang Quan), which will be called the grandfather of present kungfu styles. General Yue Fei converts a spear form into a hand form and then into xingyiquan (“mind and intention” boxing), which is the beginning of soft or internal styles. He also teaches an external style, which becomes the basis of eagle claw styles.
After 1126 martial arts spread south of the Yangtze and west, even into Thailand.
In 1224 Pai Yu-feng joins the Shaolin Temple. Appalled at finding both the spirit and artistry of the monks in serious decline, he expands the Eighteen Buddha Hands to the 128 Buddha Hands and divides it into the five fist system: dragon, tiger, snake, leopard, crane. Each animal represents a different quality that should be developed to maintain overall health. This system epitomizes the fundamentals of Shaolin kungfu and survives today, particularly in forms of the Hung Gar style.
Yuan Dynasty (1271–1368)
Mongols from the north under Kublai Khan conquer northern China. Marco Polo visits (1275–1292) .
The Yuan rulers encourage their own people to practice martial arts but forbid the Han from practicing or keeping weapons. Operatic troupes flourish, and more than 300 scripts are written, many featuring fighting scenes using weapons as props. Hence the level of wushu technique improves, and the martial virtues (fighting injustice, eliminating evil) spread. Five more Shaolin temples are established in various parts of northern China.
Arabian and Persian Moslems move to China and adopt the martial arts exercises. They will continue to practice, develop, spread, and preserve the martial arts, even up to the present.
Ming Dynasty (1268–1644)
The Golden Age of Chinese Martial Arts. Schools flourish, and training is widespread and vigorous. A Shaolin temple is established in Fukien Province in southern China. Wang Long of Shantung creates the famous Praying Mantis Style.
In 1387 Romance of the Three Kingdoms, the oldest surviving novel in the world, and Outlaws of the Marsh are published. Both recount heroic tales of legendary martial arts masters. In particular, Outlaws has many scenes of wushu, providing an accurate glimpse into the state of the martial arts at the time. Subsequently many books on wushu technique and strategy appear.
Toward the end of the dynasty, Cheng Yuanyun goes to Japan to teach chin-na and Chinese wrestling; from these roots jujitsu develops.
Phase III: The Age of Dispersion
Ching Dynasty (1644–1911)
The Ming dynasty comes to an abrupt and violent end when Manchurian troops storm the capital, Beijing. Fierce hatred between the Han and the Manchurian intruders means a constant threat of rebellion and constant efforts to root out Ming loyalists. During the 1800s, thousands of Chinese emigrate to the United States, seeking work and establishing communities (“Chinatowns”) where Chinese cultural traditions, including the martial arts, thrive.
In 1700 Manchurians burn the Shaolin Temple in Henan, as a potential haven for rebels; the monks disperse, and the development of the martial arts will never again be centralized. Some monks move south, teaching and developing the art privately. Some migrate to other parts of Southeast Asia.
In 1901 military exams are discarded; “folk” wushu becomes the principal practice for health, sport, and entertainment.
Especially toward the end of the dynasty, secret societies become active, practicing martial arts for rebellion; foreigners call them “Boxers.” Some societies teach their members that their kungfu will protect them from bullets, which is proven tragically false in the Boxer Rebellion of 1911.
Phase IV: Modern Age of Kungfu and Wushu
Republic (1912–1949)
Political turmoil erupts. In 1912, led by Sun Yat-sen, the Republic of China is founded; in 1921