Chinese martial arts
Concept Name Chinese Pinyin romanization Yale Cantonese Romanization
Courage Yong 勇 yǒng yúhng
Patience Ren 忍 rěn yán
Endurance Heng 恒 héng hàhng
Perseverance Yi 毅 yì ngaih
Will Zhi 志 zhì ji
`` Martial morality ''
Traditional Chinese schools of martial arts , such as the famed Shaolin monks , often dealt with the study of martial arts not just as a means of self-defense or mental training , but as a system of ethics . [ 40 ] [ 66 ] Wude ( 武 德 ) can be translated as `` martial morality '' and is constructed from the words wu ( 武 ) , which means martial , and de ( 德 ) , which means morality . Wude deals with two aspects ; `` morality of deed '' and `` morality of mind '' . Morality of deed concerns social relations ; morality of mind is meant to cultivate the inner harmony between the emotional mind ( 心 ; Xin ) and the wisdom mind ( 慧 ; Hui ) . The ultimate goal is reaching `` no extremity '' ( 無 極 ; Wuji ) – closely related to the Taoist concept of wu wei – where both wisdom and emotions are in harmony with each other . Virtues : Deed Concept Name Traditional Chinese Simplified Chinese Pinyin romanization Yale Cantonese Romanization Humility Qian 謙 谦 qiān hīm Virtue Cheng 誠 诚 chéng sìhng Respect Li 禮 礼 lǐ láih Morality Yi 義 义 yì yih Trust Xin 信 xìn seun
Chinese martial arts, often named under the umbrella terms kung fu (; ), kuoshu() or wushu (), are the several hundred fighting styles that have developed over the centuries in China. These fighting styles are often classified according to common traits, identified as families (; ), sects (; ) or schools (; ) of martial arts. Examples of such traits include Shaolinquan () physical exercises involving Five Animals () mimicry, or training methods inspired by Old Chinese philosophies, religions and legends. Styles that focus on qi manipulation are called internal (; ), while others that concentrate on improving muscle and cardiovascular fitness are called external (; ). Geographical association, as in northern (; ) and southern (; ), is another popular classification method.