Martial Arts takes its name from the Roman god of war, Mars and refers to a series of rules and codes that standardize a particular fighting styles that come from all around the world. In addition some martial arts are part of a religious and traditional lifestyle. These are more often East Asian practices like Buddhism, Hinduism and Daoism.They are recognized as not just a way of life but also a code of honor and sometimes, combat sports.
Methods of martial arts lessons in Singapore also include sparring, simulated combat and form or kata where students practice specific routines and movements as part of a training technique. Martial arts can be classified into different categories that depend on the techniques they utilize. Some of these techniques are punching, striking, kicking, and grappling, in which practitioners throw down and hold an opponent. Another kind of martial arts is one that uses traditional or modern weapons.
From its earliest origins martial arts have adopted a mystical series of rules, of conduct, things like humility, respect and discipline became essential components. A mix of Indian and Chinese attitudes influenced many of the fighting styles. Much of this is described in Sun Tzu famous book on war from 350BC.
As European influence spread throughout the world many codes were banned, or ceased to be effective ways of fighting against modern firearms, while some evolved into performance dances and sporting events. The Olympics has included in its games some popular martial arts such as judo, taekwondo, wrestling, boxing, and fencing.
The 19th century trade between the east and the west opened up renewed interest in the traditional eastern master arts by the many diplomats, raders and engineers who witnessed the romance in the eastern fighting styles. Hollywood became obsessed with martial arts in the 60′s with the arrival of legendary Bruce Lee. Today Jackie Chan and Jet Li help keep the interest in martial arts alive outside of China.
All martial arts lessons in Singapore have a system of testing and evaluating where students are graded and periodically assessed by their teachers. When an exam is hurdled successfully, a belt of new color is awarded the student to signify his level of expertise. Competitions are usually for different levels or forms of martial arts and are either light, medium or full. These forms describe the amount of contact involved. Some sparring sessions require protective equipment to be worn for safety, and some moves might be banned if found to be dangerous or too violent.
Chinese Martial Arts lessons, Wushu and Kung Fu training consists of differing components. They include basics, forms, weapons and applications. All these have elements of medicine, ethics and philosophy.The basics are adapted as the main part of many of the disciplines whether internal or external.Stances, the postures or position adapted when fighting. Meditation is essential in mastering breathing and concentration. While practicing forms gives the student knowledge of the flow and pattern within the discipline.Complete understanding of techniques is validated and demonstrated through a series of sparring with different partners.
