***As I mentioned earlier this week, I am currently preparing for the upcoming Martial Arts Studies conference in Cardiff. As such I have decided to revisit one of the earlier major essays that I wrote for this blog (all... Continue Reading →
The Assignment Interested readers will have to wait a little longer for the article promised in the title. A few months ago I was contacted by an editor for a new ABC-CLIO encyclopedia (on popular culture in Asia)... Continue Reading →
Introduction: Gender and the History of the Chinese Martial Arts Women are a challenging subject in Chinese martial studies. One the one hand traditions about female boxers, nuns, bandits and heroes abound in the folklore of the “Rivers and Lakes.” ... Continue Reading →
Introduction How should we understand the traditional Chinese martial arts? Are these practices really intended to be a form of practical self-defense, or are they actually some other sort of social performance? Are the arts that we practice today “authentic?”... Continue Reading →
Kung Fu and Religion: The Emergence of the Modern Debate. For most of the 20th century western academics paid little attention to the Chinese martial arts. Popular culture did not elicit much interest from scholars who were more engaged with... Continue Reading →
Introduction As I mentioned over at the Facebook group, I need to take a week off from Kung Fu Tea. My father, who is also a college professor, is recovering from surgery and has asked to me cover some of... Continue Reading →
Introduction This is the third and final installment of our in-depth review of Meir Shahar’s groundbreaking work, the Shaolin Temple. Today we will be looking at the evolution of unarmed boxing in late Ming and Qing era China. I... Continue Reading →
Lately I have been thinking about the role of religion in the Chinese martial arts and the different (though related) question of its place in Chinese martial studies. I blame Stanley Henning. I should preface this post by saying... Continue Reading →
Stanley Henning: Yongchun, Baihe and Wing Chun Boxing In issue #38 (Vol. 2 No. 15) of Classical Fighting Arts Stanley Henning published a wide-ranging paper entitled “Thoughts on the Origins and Transmission to Okinawa of Yongchun Boxing.” (pp. 42-47). Henning... Continue Reading →
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