The Táng 唐 dynasty (618-907) was the time of greatest diffusion of tea consumption within China, and in it there were great changes that defined not only the way of consuming tea, but also the way of thinking about it during the rest of the history of China.
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Despite the existing legends about its origin, it seems that the first uses of tea were not as a drink but as an edible for medicinal purposes, in the form of pickles, fries or condiments. Certain ethnic groups in the Yúnnán 雲南 region still consume tea in this form today.
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The traditional Chinese martial arts salute (bàoquánlǐ 抱拳禮) is formed by closing the right fist and covering it with the left hand open, and extending both arms slightly forward in front of the chest. There are multiple theories and stories about the meaning of this greeting.
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After the tenth trial in the last of the courts of the underworld, the soul is free, ready to be reincarnated in one of the six realms of existence (liùdào 六道). But to do this it must cross the so-called River of Oblivion (忘川 Wàng Chuān)…
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One idea that has troubled the Chinese mentality throughout its history is that of wrongful death or “death in vain” (枉死 wǎng sǐ). It is an premature death in which the soul of the deceased cannot follow the normal course of transit to the underworld.
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Upon arriving in the dark regions (yīnjiān 陰間), the soul of the deceased is to pass through the Ten Courts of the Underworld (十殿閻羅 shí diàn Yánluó), and submit to trial for his actions in life. These courts originate around the ninth century as a crystallization of a series of ideas that appear before gradually.
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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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