Chapter 12 Chapter 6 Ancient Weightlifting

Power was the most important factor in both production and war in ancient times. In production activities powered by human and animal power, whoever has more strength can produce more crops.In war, especially in the war of the cold weapon era, strength often plays a decisive role. Whether it is drawing a bow and archery, or wielding a knife and an axe, you need to have enough strength. Therefore, the ancient military strategist Wu Qi Lifting a heavy bronze tripod is a necessary condition for selecting a tiger and cardinal ("Wu Zi·Material Enemy").The military book "Six Secret Teachings" also uses the ability to pull the crossbow of eight stones as a criterion for selecting chariot soldiers.

During the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States period, the monarchs of all countries tried their best to recruit the strong men from all over the world. For example, King Wu of Qin used high-ranking officials and rich salary to attract the famous strong men Ren Bi, Wu Huo, and Meng Shuo to serve Qin ("Emperor Century").Therefore, in ancient China, both soldiers in the army and ordinary people paid great attention to strength training, and produced many heroes with infinite strength.The father of Confucius (551-479 BC), the founder of Confucianism, Shu Lianghe [Ge Ge] was such a strong man.During a battle when the Lu army attacked Bibi Yangcheng, the people of Biyangcheng adopted the strategy of luring the enemy to go deep. They raised the city gate and let the Lu army enter the city. When the Lu army entered halfway, they suddenly lowered the city gate. , trying to divide and eliminate the Lu army, at this critical moment, Shulianghe struggled to lift the heavy city gate, and the Lu army who had already entered the city and was in danger withdrew out ("Zuo Zhuan Ten Years of Xianggong").It is conceivable how powerful a person can lift a heavy city gate.Confucius himself was also surprisingly strong. The patriarch of Confucianism was quite different from the later Confucian scholars who were weak and emaciated.According to historical records, Confucius not only ran so fast that he could catch up with the rabbits outside the city, but also was so strong that he could lift the big pole against the city gate. Of course, Confucius never wanted to show his abilities ("Liezi·Shuofu") .Literati like Confucius had such strength and quality, and the strength of those generals who were strong and sharp and charged and fought was even more astonishing.During a battle, a general of the State of Lu was able to kill for a while. He held a large armored wheel as a shield in one hand and a big halberd in the other, and led his soldiers to charge ("Zuo Zhuan Ten Years of Duke Xiang") ).Meng Ben, a strongman recruited by King Wu of Qin from Qi, can pull horns from the heads of live cattle ("Emperor Century").Xiang Yu, the overlord of Chu who competed with Liu Bang, the emperor of the Han Dynasty, also had supernatural power. In his own words, he was so powerful that he could pull up a mountain ("Historical Records · Xiang Yu Benji").

Qin destroyed the six kingdoms and unified the world. Zhang Liang of South Korea wanted to assassinate Qin Shihuang and avenge South Korea, so he hired a strongman from the people to ambush by the roadside. When Qin Shihuang was parading through Bolangsha, he threw a 120-jin (Equivalent to today's 31 kg) big iron cone smashed a car of Qin Shihuang's motorcade at once ("Historical Records Liuhou Family").On a stone portrait of the Han Dynasty unearthed in Xuzhou, Jiangsu, we can see vivid scenes of ancient Hercules pulling up trees, carrying beasts, and carrying tripods.In the second year of Emperor Sui Yang's great cause, the Turks came to the court. In order to show off his national strength, Emperor Sui Yang organized a large-scale performance. One of the performances, named after Xia Yu, a hero of the Wei State during the Warring States Period, was called "Xia Yu Carried Ding", the performer lifts the weight as if it is light, and puts some rather heavy objects such as a big wheel, a stone mortar, and a big urn on the palm of his hand, and dances while jumping ("Sui Shu·Music Records").

How did ancient people practice strength?At that time, there were no barbells, dumbbells, tensioners and other equipment dedicated to developing strength that we have today.The strength of the legs depends on long jump, high jump and jumping with various weights; the strength of the upper body relies on throwing stones, drawing bows, and weapon exercises; and the overall strength of the whole body mainly depends on weightlifting besides wrestling.At the beginning, there was no special equipment for weightlifting, and all the utensils that were common in daily life were lifted. There were two kinds that were used the earliest and recorded the most in historical records. One was the big tripod used to cook meat in ancient times.It is reasonable for the ancients to choose the tripod as a weightlifting utensil.First of all, a tripod is made of bronze, which is quite heavy, ranging from a few hundred catties to over a thousand catties. It is very effective for developing strength, especially explosive power; secondly, a tripod generally has three legs and two ears for grasping There are many points and it is not easy to let go; again, Ding is everywhere, easy to find, and more convenient to practice.In addition, the tripod is a living utensil that people are very familiar with, and its weight is also known to everyone. Being able to lift such a utensil can better show one's ability.So lifting the tripod became a must-do homework for the ancient Hercules.During the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, King Wu of Qin, the king of the State of Qin, was a man who was addicted to lifting a tripod. He often held a tripod with his warriors.Once, he competed with the famous Hercules Meng Shuo to lift a tripod. Unexpectedly, due to lack of strength, the tripod fell and broke his kneecap.Until the end of the Qin Dynasty, lifting a tripod was still a means of strength training. Xiang Yu, who was famous for his courage, also had the ability to lift a tripod ("Historical Records · Xiang Yu Benji").Since the Han Dynasty, lifting the tripod has gradually evolved into a performance item for the strongmen in the "Hundred Operas". Zhang Heng mentioned this kind of program of carrying the tripod in his "Xijing Fu".

Another commonly used heavy lifting object is the large and heavy bolt used to close the city gate.In ancient times, people called this kind of weightlifting "Qiaoguan". "Qiaoguan" has been continued. When Wu Zetian, the empress of the Tang Dynasty, established the martial arts system in 702 AD, Qiaoguan was also included in the official examination items of martial arts, but at this time Qiaoguan was specially used for martial arts examinations. The standard wooden pole made is one foot seven feet long and three and a half inches thick, and it is considered qualified to lift it 10 times (Volume 15 of "Tong Dian").

Pulling a hard bow is also a way for people in ancient times to carry out strength training and strength testing.In historical records, we can often see records of warriors pulling strong bows.For example, Yang Kan, the general of Emperor Wu of Liang in the Southern and Northern Dynasties, had extraordinary physical strength and could pull a hard bow of more than ten stones ("Liang Shu·Yang Kan Biography").Yue Fei, a famous patriotic general in the Song Dynasty, could "draw a bow of three hundred catties and a crossbow of eight stones" ("Song History · Yue Fei Biography").In the Ming and Qing martial arts exams, pulling a hard bow was also listed as a test content.Drawing a hard bow was an important symbol of a man's bravery and strength in ancient China. Not only did the soldiers who charged into the battle use it as a daily homework for strength training, but many shrewd and powerful princes and nobles also had the extraordinary ability to draw a hard bow, such as Tang Taizong Li Shimin (599 A.D. -649) was able to "pierce an arrow through seven scorpions, and a bow through six Jun", that is, it can penetrate seven layers of armor leaves, and can pull a 180-jin hard bow ("Zhenguan Zhengyao·Conquest").

In the Tang Dynasty, there is already a record of the combination of weightlifting and hard qigong: during the reign of Emperor Dezong of Tang Dynasty (780-805 AD), there was a man named Wang Jie in Taiwei Village, Jixi County, who had great strength.One day, Wang Jie came to Chang'an, the capital, and saw a stone lion beside the Donghua Bridge, so he told people that I could pull this guy up and throw it aside.No one paid attention to him, thinking he was talking crazy, because this stone lion weighed more than 1,000 catties.Wang Jie smiled coldly, walked over and picked up the stone lion, turned around and threw it more than a foot, which surprised the onlookers. Later Wang Jie became an officer and often performed his stunts in front of the emperor.One of the performances is to lie down on the ground, ask someone to press a stone mill on the back, grind a two-foot-high square log, and build a bed on the log, and then invite a musician from Kucha to sit on the bed. , play a piece of music.Under such heavy pressure, Wang Jie looked as usual, calm and composed ("Shezhou Tujing").It is precisely because of his excellent hard qigong skills that Wang Jie has such strength beyond ordinary people.Hard qigong reached a certain level in the Tang Dynasty. Han Wan of the Tang Dynasty recorded the story of another qigong master Botong with supernatural power in "The Records of Yushitai".Once, Broadcom wanted to show off its strength in front of three extraordinary men in the capital, Wei Hongzhe, Song Lingwen, and Feng Shiben. He lay on the bed and asked these three men to grab the pillow under his head together. With all the strength of breastfeeding and concerted efforts, there was a loud noise, and all the legs of the bed were broken, but the pillow was still firmly under Botong's head.At that time, there were so many good-natured people who came to watch after hearing the news that Botong's house was crowded out, and the news spread throughout the capital.Not only that, Botong also has a unique skill. He often holds a table with both hands at banquets, and walks up and down the steps briskly, without spilling the wine or dishes on the table.

The strength shown by the artists of the Tang Dynasty in some performances of Baixi is amazing.For example, in Tang Qianfu, the artist Wang Haiyou easily carried a boat with 12 people on his back in a performance of Baixi ("Bei Meng Suo Yan").In the Tang Dynasty, there was also a horse dancing performance. After the knights and horses boarded the painting bed, the wrestlers lifted the bed together with the horses and men. The Sanyue artist in Anfu recorded in "The Deeds of Anlu Mountain" also has supernatural power. In the program of carrying people on the pole, he lifted up to 24 poles. Artists also need to have a lot of strength.

After the Tang Dynasty, the content of weightlifting became more and more diverse.In the Song Dynasty, all kinds of weightlifting equipment made of stone appeared, such as lifting stone balls and stone pier ("Old Things in Wulin").The emergence of stone weightlifting equipment is a major event in the history of weightlifting in ancient my country.Stones can be found everywhere, and can be processed according to the weight and shape you need. Therefore, weightlifting has become popular among the people. Lifting stone locks and stone shoulders has become a traditional physical exercise activity for Chinese people.The shape of the stone lock is taken from the copper lock of the Zhan Dynasty in my country. The upper part of the stone is hollowed out, leaving a stone handle suitable for grasping by hand. It can be used for strength exercises in various postures with one hand or both hands.The stone load is to drill holes in the center of two round stones and insert wooden sticks and bamboo poles. It is the same as the barbell in modern weightlifting and is suitable for lifting with both hands.Stone locks and stone shoulders are of different sizes and weights, suitable for people of different ages and physical conditions.In order to prevent waist injuries during weightlifting, there is also a specially designed cloth belt similar to today's weightlifters' protective belts. It is about 10 cm wide and has a hard lining inside, commonly known as "waist hard".

The stone pier is to beat larger stones into a pier shape, and hold or lift them to practice strength.Sometimes smooth stone surfaces are left untreated to increase difficulty.For example, Tibetan folks have such a very difficult stone-lifting activity. The difficulty does not lie in the weight of the stone, which weighs about 60 to 70 catties.This kind of weight is no problem for strong Tibetans. What is difficult is that the big rock to be lifted has no edges and corners, "smooth as an egg", and is as smooth as a big egg. You can have a thousand catties There is nowhere to display the power.This stone lifting requires strength and skills.Those who can lift it can get Hada ("Qing Barnyard Banknotes · Skills and Bravery").

Due to the popularization of stone weightlifting equipment in society, when the Ming and Qing dynasties conducted the strength test of martial arts, they replaced the Qiaoguan in the Tang Dynasty with rocks, and used knives, rocks and bows to test strength.The knife dancing mentioned here is actually a kind of weightlifting that requires considerable strength, because it is not an ordinary knife, but a rather heavy big iron knife. There are three kinds of weights, the heavy one is 120 catties, and the light one is 80 catties.During the exam, examinees are required to hold such a heavy knife and dance sword flowers on the front and back of the chest. The stone utensils used when picking stones have clasps at both ends, and are also divided into three weights, namely 200 jin, 250 jin and 300 jin.It is required that the stone must be lifted more than one foot from the ground, on the knee or upper chest.The bow is also divided into three different strengths, including eight strengths (one strength is equivalent to 10 catties), 10 strengths and 12 strengths.