One of the biggest things China is known for is Kung Fu. Kung Fu’s history is very difficult to trace. The reason is that many people believe it originated in the Shaolin Temple, but others believe that’s false. The term Kung Fu is separated into two parts. ¨Kung¨ means achievement or merit, and ¨Fu¨ means man. An Indian Buddhist priest named Bodhidharma created Kung Fu over 1.7 million years ago – 21st century BC. Most people agree that Kung Fu originated in a place known as the Shaolin Temple, and in this place Monks practiced Kung Fu for self-defense during their quest for enlightenment. Kung Fu is popularly known as one of the first institutionalized Chinese martial arts. Though many thoughts surround the topic, there at least forty known sources that provide evidence that Monks of Shaolin practiced martial arts. About the Shaolin Monks: not anyone that is a normal human can become a Monk, a human could only become a disciple under a Monk. In the Shaolin temple, Kung Fu was designed for improvement of health, control of the mind and the perception of Buddha nature. Kung Fu combines Zen Buddhism and martial arts and was originated and developed in the Shaolin Temple Henan Province, China during its 1500-year history. The system of Kung Fu formed and developed mainly as the fighting skills from the Xia Dynasty to the Yuan Dynasty, and reached its peak during the Ming and Qing Dynasties. Kung Fu started to form during the slavery society. Upon the foundation of the Xia Dynasty, it developed to be more practical and standard to better severe battles. The development of Kung Fu started during the feudal society. After the emperor Qin Shihuang unified the central plain of China, the fighting skills among the soldiers gradually developed into Guanzhong Boxing which was called Hong Fist later.

The philosophy of many martial arts encompass being extremely offensive, but many forms of Kung Fu contend that by training one’s character one can actually prolong life in a positive manner. The nature of training is based on a calm deposition and developing one’s internal force and physical attributes that work against an opponent’s aggressiveness and egotistical attitude. Kung Fu instruction highlights moral improvement, physical training, discipline, and respect for life. One of the key tenants of Kung Fu is the life long process of character development. All of these precepts are part of enjoying this form of martial arts for a lifetime.