| The
Martial Arts are the military or fighting arts which were developed
largely by those who were forbidden to bear arms. It is believed
that a fighting art (called vajramushti) was first practiced in
India prior to 1000 B.C. The martial arts then traveled from India
to China where, in Hunan Province during the T'ang Dynasty (approximately
650 A.D.), monks practiced various exercises at the Shaolin Temple.
Over a period of 2000 years, Buddhist monks in China, Japan, and
Tibet first developed Jujitsu as a weaponless system of self-defence.
Judo, created in 1882, is subsequent modification of the many jujitsu
holds that were considered too dangerous for sport competition.
A futher modification which is emphasizes blows with the side of
the hand, known as atemi in Judo, evolved into a separate development
called Karate. |