by Mangers M. Magners

Created on: August 01, 2008

Kung Fu is not important today unless you happen to like practicing Kung Fu. It is not widely used for military hand to hand combat training. It's not legal to use the weaponry for self-defence. It's not a part of mainstream culture, even in China and Hong Kong. It hasn't been popular anywhere since the 70s.

Let's get one thing straight Kung Fu is not art. Kung Fu was designed to kill people. A weapon designed to raise killing hands, to train armies and to win wars with. More efficient tools have been developed over the last century guns anyone? Sure there are many people on the streets still carrying concealed blades (also very effective) but for most cases a fast pair of legs will serve you better than Kung Fu. If you can't run, you're going to have to fight but is Kung Fu going to be any more effective than boxing, wrestling, Judo or any other martial art? Typically, due to the number of techniques employed, it is quicker to become proficient in boxing much more quickly than a Chinese striking art.

The health benefits may be numerous most physical training is to humans under the right conditions. Sport science has also come a long way in the last couple of centuries. Good health is not the sole preserve of a Kung Fu practitioner. I have been a Kung Fu student for many years. I train hard every week. The workout it gives you is varied, and it trains more than just muscles. Tendons, ligaments, even bones can strengthen through traditional Kung Fu practice. Yes, it is supposed to be difficult. It is character building, great for self defence and health. These practices are steeped in ritual, and some schools also combine it with religion or moral best practice to promote a positive way of life. You could even (misguidedly) view it as art, if that's your bag, and get something out of it that way.

All the traits and characteristics I've described above are not the sole preserve of Kung Fu. They can all be gained elsewhere you could take up a sport to stay healthy. Just because Kung Fu is hard work, that doesn't mean that an Olympic freestyle wrestler is lazy. Just because you can use Kung Fu to win wars (and it was used, centuries ago), that doesn't mean it is as effective as bombs. One could argue that, picked apart, you could get everything Kung Fu has to offer from alternative sources in today's society. You want religion? There's plenty to choose from. You want human movement as art? Dance has been around for a while. So have action films, should you perceive fighting as art. I hear Bruce Lee did a nice line in them. You want to physically hurt someone? Take your pick! There's plenty of blunt instruments to choose from.

Is Kung Fu a worthy investment of your time? Of course it is. Is it important in the modern day? Not unless you're in the tiny percentage of the world's population who trains Kung Fu. How many Kung Fu masters do you know?

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