中国武术、拳术 Chinese Martial Arts,Free-hand Boxing

说起中国“功夫”，大家都很熟悉。
Most people are familiar with the Chinese “Kung fu”.

李小龙、成龙、李连杰，都是大家耳熟能详的功夫电影明星。
They know the Kung fu movie stars Bruce Lee, Jackie Chan and Jet Li.

而且很多人从功夫电影中也了解到了许多中国武术的元素。
Also, many people have learned a lot of elements of Chinese martial arts from the Kung fu movies.

但仅凭从电影上看到的那些漂亮招式，是很难了解到中国武术的精髓的。
However, it would be hard to understand the essence of the Chinese martial arts merely from those beautiful movements in the movies.

李连杰的成名电影《少林寺》，僧人们练习的是少林拳。
In the film that made Jet Li famous, “Shaolin Temple”, the monks practice Shaolin boxing.

中国武术大致分为拳术和器械术。
Chinese martial arts are generally divided into free-hand boxing and armed boxing.

器械术，顾名思义是手中有武器的，拳术则是徒手的。
Just as the name implies, the armed boxing refers to the boxing with weapons in hands while the free-hand boxing refers to the one without.

少林拳，传说是由护卫少林寺的武僧们在长期的练武过程中慢慢积累发展出来的。
It is said that Shaolin boxing was accumulated and developed for a long time by the monks who protected the Shaolin Temple.

它的套路短小，但动作快速勇猛，有威力逼人的气势。
Its movements are short and small, but fast and valorous, and have the forceful and imposing manner.

如果说器械术更多地带有攻击性的话，那么拳术则更多地是出于健身、防御的目的。
If the armed boxing has more aggressiveness, then the free-hand boxing is for the purpose of body building and defense.

例如有一套拳术叫“五禽戏”。
For example, there is a series of free-hand boxing named “Exercises of Five Animals”.

相传是东汉时期的医学家华佗创制的。
It is said that it was invented by the medical scientist Hua Tuo in the Eastern Han Dynasty.

其招式就模仿了五种飞禽走兽的动作。
Its movements imitated the motion of five kinds of birds and beasts.

“熊戏”模仿熊走路。
The Bear Exercises imitate the walking of bears.

练习时要表现出熊的沉稳彪悍。
While practicing, the steadiness and doughtiness should be displayed.

“虎戏”中眼随手动。
In the Tiger Exercises, the movement of one’s eyes should be coordinated with one’s hands.

反复的虎扑动作表现出老虎威武勇猛的神态。
The repeated springs show the tiger’s mighty and valorous looks.

而“猿戏”则要模仿猿敏捷灵活的特点：脚步轻灵。
The Ape Exercises imitate the ape’s nimble and flexible features with agile footsteps.

“鹿戏”的动作模仿鹿，如鹿转头顾尾的姿态，体现鹿的静谧恬然。
The movements of the Deer Exercises imitate the posture of the deer when they turn back to look at their tails which shows the quietness and calmness of the deer.

“鸟戏”中挥舞双臂，表现出欲展翅凌云之势。
In the Bird Exercises, people are shaking their arms, showing the gesture of extending their wings in flight.

中国武术中有句话：“内练精气神，外练筋骨皮”。
There is a saying in Chinese martial arts “Internally, spirit and breathing are practiced; externally, bones, muscles and skins are practiced”.

要求把内在精气神与外部形体动作紧密结合。
So Chinese martial arts require the close combination of the inner spirit and breathing with the outer body movements.

像“形意拳”，它的主要套路多是摹仿一些动物的捕食及自卫动作而成。
Like “Shape and Thought Boxing”, its main skills and tricks mainly copy the movements of some animals’ preying and self defense.

讲究以意领气、以气导力、形意一体。
Particular attention is paid to the breathing led by one’s thoughts, the strength guided by the breathing and the organic whole of one’s shape and thoughts.

在应敌时要求以意念调动出体内的最大潜能，在触敌前的一瞬间发劲。
When striking blows at the enemy, it is required that the utmost potential abilities should be brought into play by the thoughts and strength is burst at the instant before touching the enemy.

不过，现在看到的这个“醉拳”是个例外。
However, the currently seen “Drunk Boxing” is a special case.

看他像是醉汉，跌跌撞撞，连路都走不稳，但实际上他只是模仿醉汉的动作。
He seems to be a drunkard and stumbles, but in fact he is imitating the movements of the drunkard.

形醉意不醉，用醉态迷惑对手，出奇制胜。
He confuses his opponents with his drunken shape and defeats his opponents by surprising move.

中国武术作为一种文化形式，在长期的历史演变中倍受中国古代哲学、医学美学等方面的渗透和影响。
As a kind of cultural form, Chinese martial arts have been increasingly permeated and influenced by the Chinese ancient philosophy, medical science, aesthetics and so on in the long-term historical evolution.

大家熟悉的太极拳，它接受了道家 《易经》的思想，主张阴阳、虚实是在不停变化的。
Taijiquan, which is familiar to all, has absorbed the thought of the Taoist School, “Book of Changes”, advocating the unceasing change of yin and yang, false and true.

所以它的动作轻柔、舒缓，如行云流水。
Therefore, its movements are gentle, slow and unhurried, like floating clouds and flowing water.

当对方的力量打过来时。因为及时的变化，而使对方的力量落空，像打在棉花上。
When the counterpart’s strength strikes forward, the prompt change reduces the counterpart’s

strength, like hitting on the cotton.
所谓“四两拨千斤”。

This is the so-called “Four liang pulls out one thousand jin”.
不过，一旦自己的力量得到了先机，它也依然可以给对手造成严重打击。

However, when one’s strength gets the preemptive opportunity, it can still cause severe blow to one’s opponent.

各种徒手拳术的套路，主要是由手上的拳法，腿上的步法及腿法组成。
The series of skills and tricks in various free-hand boxing is mainly composed of the coordination of the positions of hands and the foot work of legs and the positions of the legs.

因此如果一个人只会摆出漂亮的姿势，却不能结合内在的力量和精神，我们会说他是“花拳绣腿”，没有真功夫。
Therefore, if one can only make some beautiful poses but without combining the inner strength and spirit, his martial arts are showy but not practical and he has no real Kung fu.

而真正的功夫，其实都是从日常最基本的行为习惯上开始练习的。
However, the real Kung fu in fact begins with the most basic daily behavior habits.

中国人练武要求“站如松，坐如钟，卧如弓”。
When the martial arts are practiced by the Chinese, it is required that people should stand like a pine trees, sit like a bell, and lie like a bows.

你是不是也能做到呢？
Can you do that?

花拳绣腿
showy but not practical martial arts

站如松
stand like a pine tree

坐如钟
sit like a bell

卧如弓
lie like bows