Hakuda Ryu Kempo Jutsu Essex

The term Chinese Kempo:
It should be noted here that Kempo is the Japanese term for an art that originated in China or a Japanese art that has been heavily influenced by Chinese teachers and their methods. The term Chinese Kempo is used here solely to distinguish the Kempo that originated in China from much later American and European style developments often spelt Kenpo.

Kempo and Chaun Fa in China:
In this section is outlined a skeletal history of the development of Chinese fighting traditions, from the early Chou (1125-255 BC) through the Han (206BC-220AD) and San Kuo periods (221-265AD). It was around 150AD that the first Buddhist missionaries arrived in China from India. They brought with them Knowledge of Ayurvedic medicine , Yoga and its corresponding theory of the Nadi’s which are similar to the Chinese Meridian system, although more complex.

During the later period when China was divided into the three kingdoms, one of which was the Northern Wei Dynasty (386-534 AD),  it is claimed that Bhodidharma during this period arrived from India, the usual date being given as 527 AD. It is said that Bhodidharma founded the Shaolin temple in Honan province shortly after.

It is fairly clear that Buddhism in China did not reach any degree of prominence until the war torn 4th Century, and Bhodidharm's arrival from China when many Taoist scholars  converted to or integrated Buddhist concepts into their own belief system, through the translation of Buddhist teachings which eventually formed the basis of the Chan sect, that was transported to Japan where it became known as Zen. 

See below for the influences on the develoopment of Chinese Fighting arts in each period:

The earliest recorded form of Chinese boxing is to be found in the ‘Book of Rights’ published during the Chou Dynasty (1125-255 AD) between 770-481 BC. This work gives reference to the various martial arts that were practices during the dynasty and includes wrestling of a primate nature in which the participants wore horned helmets and butted each other.

This form of wrestling was popular among peasant farmers and is believed to have evolved from a fight between the legendary Emperor Huang Ti, the Yellow Emperor and a Chi’h Yu a horned monster. This method of wrestling in all probability evolved into a more sophisticated system during the warring states period (403-221 BC) when military organisation took place requiring infantrymen who wore breast plates, waist and shin guards along with helmets.

The main weapons used by these early Chinese infantrymen were the Bow and arrow, spear and sword.

Sometime between 206 BC and 220 AD attempts were made to unify China and modernise the state, the Chinese body dynamics came to reflect the process of industrialisation and the body organs were organised into a hierarchy of positions were corresponded with the organisation of the new industrial state.

It was during this same period that the Yellow Emperors Classic of Internal Medicine, the ‘Huang Ti Nei Ching’ was popularised and modified through the various dialogues that took place between Confucian and Taoist Scholars in a period of social change and upheaval. This period was marked with the building of canals for transportation throughout China. It has been argued that the meridians in the Chinese body reflect the development of state in this period and that this is why the various organs in the Chinese body are given positions of state (Unschuld 1986).

Huang Ti, the Yellow Emperor, for Taoists was said to have descended from heaven is regarded as the founder of early Taoism, before the writings of Lao Tzu were adopted.

Taoism is not one single, but several different philosophies based on the way of nature which were united by the principle of Wu Wei, meaning non intervention.

Taoism has been subject to the principle of diffusion, meaning that it has been divided into a number of sects with a single tap root and some sects of Taoism have absorbed elements of Confucianism and or Buddhism. Taoism like most East Asian Religo-Philosophical systems has been subjected to syncretism (The combining of various traditions into the main corpus of its original canon).

Confucianism,is based on a work by Confucius called the Analects, the teachings of which were popularised by Confucius’s disciple Mencius,who rose to prominence during the Han dynasty as he created the Han Bureaucratic system of State. Central to Confucianism is the principle of filial piety, this means to honour and serve ones elders, the parents and the family. The parents of all families was the Emperor and the Emperors own Mandate came from heaven. It is tehrefore possible to gain an insight into the type of social structure that existed in this early period by looking to the ranking of the plethora of deities of the Chinese people.

It was during the Han period that the martial arts ceased to be the exclusive province of Nobles and their military servants in individual states. Instead the martial arts began to became more widely practised among the populace.It was during this same period that the Chinese army began to be organised on a national rather than the previous regional basis, This it can be speculated was the origin of Wu Shu Kwan (Chinese Military Martial Arts)..

During the Han Dynasty, a great literary tradition emerged, this was also the beginning of a Chinese Educational System. Confucian scholars began to engage in debates with the Taoist’s and these debates found there way into the great literature of the period. Whether the Yellow Emperor's Classic of Internal Medicine emerged before the Han or during it, what is certain is that the debates between Confucian Scholars and the Taoists are reflected in what we have of this work today..

Another work published during the Han went by the name ‘Han Shu I Wen Chih’, the ‘Han Book of Arts’, contained six chapters on Shou Po (Hand Fighting). Unfortunately these six chapters of Shou Po were separated from the Han Shu I Wen Chih’ and their actual contents remains unknown.

There is little doubt that the study of martial arts during the Han dynasty was further enhanced by the study of the body in early Chinese healing methods, we see this is most Chinese Martial Arts to this day.

It was during the late Han period between 25-220 AD that there lived a Chinese surgeon by the name of Hua To, who is said to have developed some exercises based on the movements of the Tiger, Deer, Bear, Monkey and Bird. It is worthy of note here that the Shaolin fighting system which developed much later was based on the movements of three of Hua To’s animals: Tiger, Monkey and Bird, the latter in the case of Shaolin was the Crane. It is therefore now time to look at one of the many versions of teh history of the martial arts in China from Shaolin. It should be recognised that East Asian History is not always chronologically told and may be weaved with myth and legend serving as parables in the story

The Shaolin temple plays an important place in the history of the establishment of Buddhism and martial arts in China. Many sources believe that the shaolin temple located in the Sho Shih mountains of Honan province in Northern China was built sometime in the Northern Wei Dynasty (386-535AD) at the request of Emperor Hsia Wen.

In 527 AD Emperor Wu Of China invited the Indian Prince and famous Monk Bodhidharma, also known as Dua Mo (Japanese: Daruma) to visit China and teach his brand of Buddhism. When Bodhidharma arrived at the shaolin temple he found that the monks were not able to undertake his methods of training as they had failed to keep up their Yogic practice and would easily become fatigued and fall asleep during instruction and meditation.

Legend states that Bhodidarma remained in China at the Shaolin temple and engaged in a nine year long meditation facing the wall listening to ants scream, a phrase which means deep contemplation. When Bhodidarma out of his meditation he is said to have devised a series of exercises to make the monks stronger and bring them closer to what they were meant to be trying to achieve.

The exercises that Bhodidarma devised were written down and published in a book called the ‘I Chin Ching’, the ‘Muscle Change Classic’ which depicts eighteen exercises that were callisthenics in nature and function utilising static tensing postures.