Vietnamese martial arts have also assimilated
elements of traditional Asian medicine, Confucianism and other Asian
philosophies, as well as systems of ethics, military arts, and aesthetics. The
practice of martial arts expresses the concept of a perfect whole embodied in
yin and yang and also the notion of the five basic elements that make up the
universe.
Since the early days of Viet Nam's history, the
Vietnamese have always had to fight against invasions, especially from the
armies of various Chinese dynasties. The bronze weapons exhibited in the
National Museum of History help give an insight into the weapons the Vietnamese
used during the first millennium B.C. These include daggers, axes, swords, and
spears. All are weapons employed in hand-to-hand fighting. Handling these
weapons required courage, endurance, dexterity, and skill, which in turn made
it necessary to develop forms of fighting that could facilitate their
effectiveness.
Subsequent historical circumstances facilitated
further development of martial arts among soldiers and generals as well as
among common people. In 938, Ngo Quyen achieved victory over the Southern Han
invaders on the Bach Dang River. Viet Nam regained its independence after over
a thousand years under Chinese domination. A series of patriotic struggles
against foreign invaders followed: against the Song (981 and 1077), the Mongols
(1258. 1285. and 1288), the Ming (from 1418 to 1428), and the Qing (1789).
Buddhism was the official national religion during
the Ly and Tran Dynasties (eleventh to fourteenth centuries). In addition to
religious study, Buddhist monks were often adept at martial arts because the
monks had strict methods of self- control and personal improvement and trained
themselves in the mysteries of spirit, reason, energy, and strength. During the
Ly Dynasty, monks organized temple and pagoda festivals which included
activities imbued with the martial spirit, such as wrestling and martial arts
tournaments (bare-handed or with weapons).
The training for tournaments allowed common people
to improve their physical strength and sharpen their senses and their
reactions. During 1293, Chinese Special Envoy Chen Fu visited Viet Nam. He
observed that the Vietnamese went barefoot without fear of thorns. They could
run and leap rapidly, climb mountains like the wind, and row boats quickly. The
men shaved their heads. They could dive under water for several khắc (an
ancient unit of time) and swim as fast as they could run on land.
From the fifteenth to the nineteenth centuries,
martial arts existed at two main levels: the popular level (at festivals) and
the royal level (specialized martial arts training and examinations).
Common people organized popular martial arts
activities both to provide entertainment and to perfect their martial spirit,
discipline, efficiency, and self-defense skills. Popular martial arts
performances took place throughout the country, primarily at training centers
(Iò võ) and at annual traditional festivals.
Each Iò võ
or local festival had its own identity and specific characteristics. One of the
most famous for its martial spirit was the Lieu Doi Wrestling, Festival in Nam
Dinh Province. The martial arts and wrestling events there attracted people
from Lieu Doi and from the region. The villagers of Lieu Doi still sing a song
that dates back to this festival:
Ngàn năm võ vật đua tài
Vạn năm sông rộng, núi dài tổ tiên
(People have competed in martial arts for thousands
of years
They can protect their country for tens of thousands
of years)
Village festivals were the martial-arts examinations
of the masses. Villagers bestowed the title of "First Laureate" (trạng
vật) on talented local wrestlers in much the same way as the royal court gave
titles to scholars.
Many of these men later became leaders of peasant
insurrections. Examples include Nguyễn Hữu Cầu and Nguyễn Cừ, who fought
against the Lê-Trịnh Court in the late eighteenth century, and Lía, who fought
against the Nguyễn Lords. The most famous of these martial artists were
undoubtedly the Tây Sơn brothers (Nguyễn Nhạc. Nguyễn Huệ, and Nguyễn Lữ. They
and their gifted commanders, all of whom were martial artists, led a peasant
uprising in the late eighteenth century: they overthrew the harsh domination of
the Trịnh and Nguyễn lords, ending the century-long division of the country.
Those heroes trained in Iò võ with famous masters, many of whom are deified as
village tutelary spirits.
During the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries,
martial artists who had declined titles in defiance of the Nguyễn Dynasty led
many of the anti-French insurrections. During this period, the martial arts
rose in popularity. Masters secretly transferred their skills to students even
when the anti-French movement was less active. They preserved their techniques
and practices in books on warfare and military art and in proverbs. These books
and proverbs gradually became a martial arts training curriculum for the masses
and co-existed with the court's martial arts canon.
The royal martial arts system also trained soldiers
to fight invaders and protect the court. The content was divided into three
parts: martial arts for the army, martial arts for study, and martial arts for
examinations.
At the end of the nineteenth century, the
traditional strategies, tactics, and combat techniques of Viet Nam's military
science began to show certain weaknesses when posed against Western military
technology. Canons could destroy strong fortifications, and pistols and rifles
could overwhelm swords and spears. The new "hot weapons" (hỏa khí)
were superior to the old "cold weapons" (bạch khí). Suddenly, martial
arts no longer played a decisive military role; its practice continued but on a
much smaller scale.
Under French domination, the court army ceased to
train in martial arts. Western sports and gymnastics dominated at schools.
However, the Vietnamese remained proud of their martial art masters,
who preserved the traditions
and developed martial arts among common people. Practitioners from different
regions networked with each other and set up numerous new Id vd and new martial
arts schools. Centres of martial arts gradually emerged: Thang Long-Ha Noi in
the north: Thanh Hoa. Nghe An and Binh Dinh Provinces in the centre: and Sai
Gon and the Mekong River Delta Provinces in the south.
Since the late nineteenth century, boxing and
schools of martial arts have also entered Viet Nam from other Asian countries.
These include judo, aikido, and karate (Japan): wushu. shaolin, and wudang
(China): tae kwon do (Korea): and pencat silat (Malaysia). Vietnamese have
accepted these schools, which have transformed, enriched, and enlivened
indigenous martial arts.
Traditional martial arts are not only sports but
also part of the nation's culture, embracing a heritage accumulated across many
generations.