The Chinese conception of the afterlife has been gradually formed over centuries by mixing indigenous and foreign ideas, the latter coming from Indian Buddhism. Despite referring to the other world, these ideas profoundly affect the lives of the living and condition behaviours, rituals and daily festivities.
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The city of Cháozhōu 潮州, in Cháoshàn 潮汕, is one of the cradles of Chinese tea culture, where some believe the gōngfū chá (工夫茶 or 功夫茶) ceremony originated several hundred years ago, and from where it would have spread to the rest of China. But the Cháozhōu ceremony has some peculiarities that reflect the values and hospitality of its inhabitants.
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We offer our perspective on some aspects, first, clarifying the relationship between martial arts and violence; second, briefly exposing the differences that exist in the learning and training of a kid and an adult and, finally, exposing what we consider to be the most important benefits that martial arts bring to the child.
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The Tea Classic or Chá Jīng 茶經 is a work of literature of the eighth century that deals with various aspects related to tea, from the cultivation of the plant to the preparation of the drink. This work, written by Lù Yǔ 陸羽, known as “Tea Sage”, had a tremendous impact in his time on the spread of the custom of drinking tea in China.
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Lù Yǔ 陸羽 was a scholar of the eighth century, known for being the author of the Chá Jīng 茶經 or Classic of Tea. In this first article dedicated to him we will see how the life of this eccentric character was, a life dedicated to investigating and experimenting with tea in all its aspects.
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Chinese martial arts have not been classified into styles except for a relatively small part of their history. This stylistic diversification seems to have its origin in the entertainment arts during the Sòng 宋 dynasty.
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The Chá Jiǔ Lùn 茶酒論 (Discourse of Tea and Wine) is a satirical text of the Táng 唐 dynasty, representing a dialogue between the personified substances of tea and wine or liqueur. This text gives us information about the customs of the time, and is also a metaphor that represents a discussion between philosophical currents.
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Although currently no Chinese martial arts system boasts of making use of muscle strength, in ancient times, physical strength was more valued as an attribute of any man of arms. As a way to show this strength, competitions such as “cauldron lifting” (扛鼎 kāngdǐng) were organized, which we will talk about on this occasion.
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Although some have intended to see in the biānshí 砭石 (polished and sharp needle-like stones) the proof that acupuncture was already practiced in Neolithic times, the primitive methods of puncture with stones lacked a theoretical corpus that described the circulation of internal energy (qì 氣) through channels and meridians (jīng luò 經络) and puncture at specific points (shùxué 俞穴), a theoretical corpus that would not develop until much later.
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Hong Kong cinema has undoubtedly influenced the current Western view of Chinese martial arts, a romantic view in which Kung Fu training is motivated by high values. But is this a vision adjusted to reality? Has there been a similar view of martial arts in China before the modern era?
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