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武術 is Wushu or Wu Shu, the very Chinese way to express “Martial Arts.”
Some even use this word to describe Kung Fu directly. But this is a label that fits all disciplines from Karate to Kung Fu to Taekwondo.
Note: This also means Martial Arts with the same appearance as old Korean Hanja characters and is pronounced “musul” or “musur” in Korean.
While this is best if your audience is Chinese or Korean, this also means “martial arts” in Japanese, where the popularity of this term is growing (romanized as Bujutsu or Bujitsu) in Japanese martial arts circles.
武 is the essence or spirit of a warrior. 武 is part of the word “wu shu” which is sometimes translated as “martial arts” or “kung fu.”
In more modern speech and another context, this can mean military, martial, warlike, fierce, and perhaps violent but usually as a prefix for a longer word or phrase.
拳法 is a form of martial arts that can be translated in several ways.
Some will call it “fist principles,” “the way of the fist,” or even “law of the fist.” The first character literally means fist. The second can mean law, method, way, principle, or Buddhist teaching.
Kempo is really a potluck of martial arts. Often a combination of Chinese martial arts such as Shaolin Kung Fu with Japanese martial arts such as Karate, Jujutsu (Jujitsu), Aikido, and others. You may see the term “Kempo Karate,” which basically means Karate with other disciplines added. In this way, Kempo becomes an adjective rather than a title or school of martial arts.
These facts will long be argued by various masters and students of Kempo. Even the argument as to whether it should be spelled “kenpo” or “Kempo” ensues at dojos around the world (the correct Romaji should actually be “kenpou” if you precisely follow the rules).
The benefit of Kempo is that the techniques are easier to learn and master than pure Kung Fu (wu shu). Students are often taught basic Karate moves, kicks, and punches before augmenting the basic skills with complex Kung Fu techniques. This allows students of Kempo to achieve a level where they can defend themselves or fight in a relatively short amount of time (a few years rather than a decade or more).
Because the definition of this word is so fluid, I should make some notes here:
1. Purists in Okinawa will claim that “Okinawa Kenpo” or “Ryukyu Hon Kenpo” is the original and true version of this martial art from the old kingdom. It is actually little or no connection between Okinawa Kenpo and the way the word is used elsewhere.
2. In Chinese, where these characters are pronounced “quan fa” (sometimes Romanized as “chuan fa” because the Chinese-pinyin “q” actually sounds like an English “ch” sound), these characters do not hold the connotation of being a mixed martial art. It is simply defined as “the law of the fist.”
3. My Japanese dictionary oddly defines Kenpo as the “Chinese art of self-defense.” I personally don't feel this is the most common way that people perceive the word but just something you should know.
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Below are some entries from our dictionary that may match your fu shu search...
Characters If shown, 2nd row is Simp. Chinese |
Pronunciation Romanization |
Simple Dictionary Definition |
不周 see styles |
bù zhōu bu4 zhou1 pu chou fu shū |
not satisfactory; thoughtless; inconsiderate not embraced |
不來迎 不来迎 see styles |
bù lái yíng bu4 lai2 ying2 pu lai ying fu raigō |
Without being called he comes to welcome; the Pure-land sect believes that Amitābha himself comes to welcome departing souls of his followers on their calling upon him, but the 淨土眞宗 (Jōdo Shin-shu sect) teaches that belief in him at any time ensures rebirth in the Pure Land, independently of calling on him at death. |
不可數 不可数 see styles |
bù kě shǔ bu4 ke3 shu3 pu k`o shu pu ko shu fu ka shu |
uncountable uncountable |
不顧論宗 不顾论宗 see styles |
bù gù lùn zōng bu4 gu4 lun4 zong1 pu ku lun tsung fu koron shū |
One of the 因明四宗, a philosophical school, whose rule was self-gratification, 'not caring for' others. |
怖畏衆苦 怖畏众苦 see styles |
bù wèi zhòng kǔ bu4 wei4 zhong4 ku3 pu wei chung k`u pu wei chung ku fu i shu ku |
afraid of suffering |
一向怖畏衆苦 一向怖畏众苦 see styles |
yī xiàng bù wèi zhòng kǔ yi1 xiang4 bu4 wei4 zhong4 ku3 i hsiang pu wei chung k`u i hsiang pu wei chung ku ikkō fu i shu ku |
uniformly afraid of suffering |
出師未捷身先死 出师未捷身先死 see styles |
chū shī wèi jié shēn xiān sǐ chu1 shi1 wei4 jie2 shen1 xian1 si3 ch`u shih wei chieh shen hsien ssu chu shih wei chieh shen hsien ssu |
"he failed to complete his quest before death" (line from the poem "The Premier of Shu" 蜀相[Shu3 xiang4] by Du Fu 杜甫[Du4 Fu3]) |
The following table may be helpful for those studying Chinese or Japanese...
Title | Characters | Romaji (Romanized Japanese) | Various forms of Romanized Chinese | |
Martial Arts Wushu | 武術 武术 | bujutsu | wǔ shù / wu3 shu4 / wu shu / wushu | |
Warrior Essence Warrior Spirit Martial | 武 | bu | wǔ / wu3 / wu | |
Kenpo Kempo Quan Fa Chuan Fa | 拳法 | kenpou / kenpo | quán fǎ / quan2 fa3 / quan fa / quanfa | ch`üan fa / chüanfa / chüan fa |
In some entries above you will see that characters have different versions above and below a line. In these cases, the characters above the line are Traditional Chinese, while the ones below are Simplified Chinese. |
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Professional calligraphers are getting to be hard to find these days.
Instead of drawing characters by hand, the new generation in China merely type roman letters into their computer keyboards and pick the character that they want from a list that pops up.
There is some fear that true Chinese calligraphy may become a lost art in the coming years. Many art institutes in China are now promoting calligraphy programs in hopes of keeping this unique form
of art alive.
Even with the teachings of a top-ranked calligrapher in China, my calligraphy will never be good enough to sell. I will leave that to the experts.
The same calligrapher who gave me those lessons also attracted a crowd of thousands and a TV crew as he created characters over 6-feet high. He happens to be ranked as one of the top 100 calligraphers in all of China. He is also one of very few that would actually attempt such a feat.
Check out my lists of Japanese Kanji Calligraphy Wall Scrolls and Old Korean Hanja Calligraphy Wall Scrolls.
Some people may refer to this entry as Fu Shu Kanji, Fu Shu Characters, Fu Shu in Mandarin Chinese, Fu Shu Characters, Fu Shu in Chinese Writing, Fu Shu in Japanese Writing, Fu Shu in Asian Writing, Fu Shu Ideograms, Chinese Fu Shu symbols, Fu Shu Hieroglyphics, Fu Shu Glyphs, Fu Shu in Chinese Letters, Fu Shu Hanzi, Fu Shu in Japanese Kanji, Fu Shu Pictograms, Fu Shu in the Chinese Written-Language, or Fu Shu in the Japanese Written-Language.
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