Meir Shahar. “Diamond Body: The Origins of Invulnerability in the Chinese Martial Arts” in Perfect Bodies: Sports Medicine and Immortality, Edited by Vivienne Lo. London: British Museum, 2012. Introduction: The Significance of Invulnerability in the Chinese Martial Arts... Continue Reading →
Guo Xioting. Trans. John Robert Shaw. Adventures of the Mad Monk Ji Gong. Rutland VT: Tuttle. 2014. 542 Pages. Introduction: Meeting Crazy Ji Inscription on the Sarira Relics of the Recluse from the Lake, Elder Fangyuan (Square-Circle), Jidian (Crazy Ji)... Continue Reading →
Introduction: Rational Choice Theory in Martial Arts Studies This essay picks up on a few threads in my ongoing attempt to parse out whether there is a place for “rational choice theory” in martial... Continue Reading →
Introduction: Is there room for rationality in the martial arts? The study of hand combat suggests many types of questions. Following the “levels of analysis” typology I tend to mentally organize these into three categories; the... Continue Reading →
***This is the third entry in our occasional series on the Red Spear movement. For the first two parts of this project see here and here.*** Introduction The Red Spears are a forgotten moment... Continue Reading →
Introduction Most historical debates (both popular and academic) about the Chinese martial arts pit two opposing visions against one another. Sociologically informed theories tend to see the Chinese martial arts as a manifestation of fundamentally secular historical, economic... Continue Reading →
Sixt Wetzler. “Myths of the Martial Arts.” JOMEC Journal. Issue 5. June 2014. 15 pages. Introduction Increasingly a wide range of academic students are contributing to the field of Chinese martial studies. We have seen important work... Continue Reading →
Introduction Welcome to “Chinese Martial Arts in the News.” This is a semi-regular feature here at Kung Fu Tea in which we review media stories that mention or impact the the traditional fighting arts. In addition to discussing important... Continue Reading →
"For sheer contentiousness, the Zhang Sanfeng case can only be compared to the issue of racism, abortion and homosexuality in American culture. At the dawn of the 21st century, the pendulum has once again swung towards the myth-makers. Western... Continue Reading →
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