Chapter 23 Chapter 9 Main Features of Ancient Chinese Sports

After reading some of the main content of ancient Chinese sports mentioned above, people may ask, what are the main characteristics of ancient Chinese sports with such rich content?A brief discussion on this issue follows. Ancient Chinese sports have gone through a long process of development. It germinated in the fishing and hunting activities in the primitive society where human beings struggled with nature to survive, in the primitive religious dances praying for the blessing of the gods, and in various primitive medical physical activities. In the primitive war between tribes.It also went through the long slave society of Xia, Shang and Zhou.However, on the whole, ancient Chinese sports were mainly developed in the feudal society that lasted for more than 2,000 years.Due to the long history of China's feudal society, sports adapted to this social form have also been given enough time to develop.If it is said that ancient Greece and Rome provided human society with the culture of a more typical slave society, we can say that ancient China has shown the world a typical colorful picture of the culture of a feudal society.Ancient Chinese sports have the following main characteristics:

Ancient China was an agricultural country. Due to the strict seasonality of agricultural production, ancient Chinese sports also showed a relatively distinct seasonality.People often carry out various physical activities according to a certain chronological order.Such as dragon boat races on the Duanyang Festival, mountain climbing on the Double Ninth Festival, swinging before and after Qingming, outings, Cuju, kite flying, etc. Although ancient China was a highly centralized country politically, it was highly decentralized economically.The self-sufficient small-scale peasant economy limited people's activities to different regions. Therefore, ancient Chinese sports had strong regional characteristics. The southern water network was criss-crossed, which was the place for water sports; Thousands of miles of snow is an ideal place for various ice and snow activities; mountainous areas are suitable for climbing, and plains are easy to walk.Differences in climate, geography, and cultural background have enabled various forms of sports to find a place suitable for their survival and development in China, a country with a vast territory and a vast territory. The situation is like the colorful flowers and flowers in a hundred gardens, competing for beauty.

Generally speaking, ancient Chinese sports were highly entertaining but less competitive. Because Chinese feudal society had a highly hierarchical social structure, generally speaking, there was a lack of a social environment for fair competition, which was not conducive to competition. Development of sexual physical activity.The development process of ancient Chinese sports is also a process in which the competitiveness of sports gradually weakens and the entertainment gradually increases.The evolution of ancient football is a typical example.Although this feature made it difficult for ancient China to have a large-scale competitive sports phenomenon similar to the ancient Greek Olympic Games, it promoted the diversification of sports and produced a variety of sports forms.

Physical activities are always associated with certain philosophical ideas, and we can find corresponding philosophical ideas in the sports of all ancient civilizations in the world.However, it is very rare in the world that ancient Chinese sports are so closely integrated with traditional philosophical thoughts and such perfect sports forms.Ancient Chinese sports introduced a large number of traditional philosophical concepts, such as "Yin Yang and Five Elements", "Bagua", "Qi", etc., forming a unique ancient Chinese sports theory, which was used to explain and guide sports practice. It is most fully manifested in the art of health preservation.Under the guidance of this sports theory, ancient Chinese sports have the characteristics of the unity of the inside and the outside, and the combination of form and spirit, that is, not only paying attention to the physical activities outside the human body, but also paying attention to the exercise of the internal functions of the body, and treating people as a part of nature. The components are used to adjust the balance of the internal and external environment of the human body according to changes in nature.This practice of overall exercise is also a prominent advantage of ancient Chinese sports.

Ancient Chinese sports put great emphasis on the cultivation of moral character in sports activities. Almost all sports activities, such as archery, Cuju, Chui Wan, health preservation, martial arts, etc., put forward moral requirements.Of course, many of them are feudal morals that should be criticized today, and many of them should still be inherited and carried forward today, such as not being arrogant in victory, not discouraged in defeat; respecting opponents; being open and aboveboard, and being strict with oneself, etc. The splendid sports in ancient China should not and cannot be attributed to any nation. It is the result of the cultural integration of various ethnic groups in China.The history of the Chinese nation for thousands of years is also the history of the continuous collection and integration of various national cultures.The same is true of ancient Chinese sports, such as polo, swing, riding, martial arts, health preservation, etc., are the results of the joint creation of people of all ethnic groups, reflecting the wisdom of people of all ethnic groups.