The Chinese martial arts are an important and unique component of the Chinese cultural heritage with centuries of history. They embody the entire Chinese cultural characteristics from one aspect. The Chinese martial arts is generally called Wushu, where Wu means military and shu means art, thus Wushu means the art of fighting . The Chinese martial arts not only include the physical exercise but also Chinese philosophy, meditation, military, strategy, techniques, education, aesthetics, etc, and mirroring the character and sagacity of the Chinese people.

The Chinese martial arts contain the traditional cultural spirit of Chinese people and pay great attention to mental activities in fighting. They stress that mind should guide breath ,breath should guide the motions of the body , that hands , eyes and pacing , spirit , breath and force , ferociousness and agility , the external and the internal , all should be harmonious , and that motions should be changeful and rhythmic . Furthermore, they advocate winning the opponent artfully and through taking advantage of the opponent's momentums. At the same time, the martial arts practices do not mind to retreat a step first so as to be justified, advantageous and well controlled. In fighting, the players strive to hit surely, accurately and forcefully, and put sureness in the first place.

Settling the relationship between the body and the mind is the top concern of the Chinese martial arts which emphasize the "the external exercises for bones and muscles and the internal exercises for breath." All the schools of the Chinese martial arts stress "presence of mind, breath and strength", so as to equilibrate Yin and Yang, regulate breath and blood and build up body and strength. By settling the relationship between mind and body and the relationship between oneself and the opponent, they also settle the relationship between "form and content" of the martial arts. In fighting, it is very important to achieve "changing according to different opponents", and "getting opportunities through defending".

The Chinese classic philosophy is the principle of the Chinese martial arts. Generally speaking, theories of the Chinese martial arts have been influenced mostly by Chinese philosophies; while the technical progress of the Chinese martial arts corresponds with the development of the classic culture and technique, especially with the development of combating methods, artistic interests and hygiene. They underwent three phases. The first phase was the phase of bravery, based on strength and bravery; in the second phase, martial skills are developed, ground on tactics and skills; the third phase is the phase of martial arts exercises which are based on standardization and stylization. On the level of philosophy, the marital arts stress "unification of man and nature", i. e. the unification of existence and nonexistence, acting and stopping, Yin and Yang, mind and things, the subjective and objective. And on the social level, the martial arts emphasize cultivation of mind and personality, awareness of the natural law and complacency. They thus break all prejudices with regard to winning and losing and to successes and failures, and take a calm attitude. In fighting, the practitioner of the martial arts plays calmly as in a game, with a free and initiative attitude. Therefore, the Chinese martial arts are not simply a sport event or a fighting technique, but are thinking, life attitude and personality cultivation. In a contest with an opponent the Chinese martial arts exercisers not only take a great care about the moves , and exertion of force , but also take a great care about his own temperament and mind , with a martial arts spirit transcending mere technique.

Chinese food holds a popular place among the entire population of the world. You can find a Chinese restaurant in every major city and in many smaller areas of the world as well. Why is Chinese food so popular? Is Chinese food healthy? What is the history of Chinese food?

The History of Chinese Food The history of Chinese food is an interesting one. Unlike many cultures the Chinese believe that the preparation of food is an art and not simply a craft. The art of cooking Chinese food can include dishes and food preparation techniques which are difficult to develop and may require the expertise of a chef with lots of experience. One such technique is noodle pulling (scroll down to the bottom of the page to learn more about this technique). Noodle pulling requires skill and lots of practice and results in a delicious noodle dish. This article will refer to noodle pulling later on, but for now, let's go back to the history of Chinese food.

Chinese food and the way it is prepared is very much influenced by the two major philosophies, which influence the entire Chinese culture. These dominant philosophies are Confucianism and Taoism. Both have these philosophies have influenced the way that the Chinese people cook and the way that they enjoy their food.

Confucianism and Chinese Cuisine Confucius was the man behind the Confucianism beliefs. Among many other standards Confucius established standards for proper table etiquette and for the appearance and taste of Chinese food. One of the standards set by Confucius (you might have noticed this at an authentic Chinese restaurant) is that food must be cut into small bite size pieces before serving the dish. This is a custom that is definitely unique to the Chinese culture.

Knives at the dinner table are also considered to be a sign of very poor taste by those who embrace Confucianism beliefs. The standards of quality and taste that Confucius recommended required the perfect blend of ingredients, herbs and condiments--a blend which would result in the perfect combination of flavor. Confucius also emphasized the importance of the texture and color of a dish, and taught that food must be prepared and eaten with harmony. Interestingly enough, Confucius was also of the opinion that an excellent cook must first make an excellent matchmaker.

Taoism and Chinese Cuisine Those who follow the Taoism beliefs focus on the health benefits of particular foods vs. the presentation of the same. Taoists search for foods that will increase their health and longevity. They search for foods that have healing powers. Many times these benefits were often referred to as 'life giving powers'. For instance, the Chinese found that ginger, which can be considered to be a garnish or a condiment was found to be a remedy for upset stomachs or a remedy for colds.

Is Chinese Food Healthy? Chinese food, when authentic is probably the healthiest food in the world. Some restaurants, which are not authentic, prepare their menu with highly saturated fats or with meats that contain unhealthy amounts of animal fat. These Chinese restaurants are not recommended and they are both neither authentic nor healthy.

Good Chinese food however, is prepared and cooked with poly-unsaturated oils. Authentic Chinese food does not require the use of milk-fat ingredients such as cream, butter or cheese. Meat is used, but not in abundance, which makes it easy for those who love authentic Chinese food to avoid high levels of animal fat. Many believe that authentic Chinese food is really the ideal diet.

Chinese Restaurants in Every Part of the Nation Whether it is in a Tennessee Chinese Restaurant to a New York Chinese restaurant you are going to find culinary dishes that are both healthy and delicious. Savor the flavor with Chinese food! Did you find this article useful? For more useful tips and hints, points to ponder and keep in mind, techniques, and insights pertaining to Google Adsense, do please browse for more information at our websites.