CHINESE ARCHERY 101DAVID QIXIANG CHEN

UTCMAC 2013

ARCHERY IS INTERESTING

Archery is one of the oldest martial art in all civilizations.

ESSENTIAL SKILL

Archery has been an essential skill for warriors of all cultures.

Essential for hunting and survival

More important militarily than any other types of weapon.

BOWS

COMPOSITE BOW

君子無所爭。必也射乎！揖讓而升、下而飲，其爭也君子。— 論語 • 八 佾 第 三

The Superior Man has no desire for conflicts. If he must, he does it through archery! He bows in humility as he takes his position, and drinks upon the conclusion, this is the conflict of a gentleman.

- Confucius

ARCHERY AND CHINA One of the oldest skills of a warrior

Knowledge: 知 : 矢 + 口 Archery ( 射 ) is one of the essential skills of a Confucian

gentry ( 君子 ).

The 6 skills: 禮、樂、射、御、書、數 The 5 archery skills ( 五射 )

白矢 : arrow penetrates the target 参连 : fire one arrow, then fire another 3 before the 1st arrow

hits the ground 剡注 : accurately fires arrows as soon as it’s nocked. 襄尺 : keep one shaku (0.3 m) from each other 井仪 : accurately hits 4 targets in a 井 pattern

RITUAL ARCHERY

Archery was ritualized as religious and social functions.

Used as rituals and competitions for selecting officials.

Principals described in “Ritual Of Archery” ( 禮記•射義 )

故射者，進退周還必中禮，內志正，外體直，然後持弓矢審固，持弓矢審固，然後可以言中，此可以觀德行矣。

Therefore for the archer, his movements in all directions must adhere to the ritual; internally the spirit is righteous, externally the body is erect, and the bow and arrows are held firmly; Once the bow and arrows are held firmly, then can accuracy be considered; from these the virtue can be observed.

射者，仁之道也。射求正諸己，己正然後發，發而不中，則不怨勝己者，反求諸己而已矣。

Archery, is the way of virtue. Right shooting depends on the self, when the self is ready, then should the shot be fired; if fires and misses, then do not shift blame on to the opponent; reflect and correct the self, in order to overcome the self.

故男子生，桑弧蓬矢六，以射天地四方。天地四方者，男子之所有事也。故必先有志於其所有事，然後敢用穀也。飯食之謂也。

Therefore when a male is born, using a mulberry bow and six arrows of Erigeron stalk to shoot towards the heaven, earth, and the four directions; heaven, earth and the four directions are where the will of a man is aimed. Therefore first the will is established, then do we dare to feed him grains, such is the way of nourishment.

ASIAN/COMPOSITE/HORSE BOWS

Shorter length

Allows archery on horseback***

Composite material allows greater pull weight in a smaller package

CHINESE BOWS

HAN LONG SIYAH BOWSPopular during the Han dynasty until Ming dynasty

Long siyah

No contact between string and siyah

Still found in many areas in the near east

• Hungarian• Avarian

MING SMALL SIYAH BOW Small Siyah

Short

Fast projectile speed

Lighter draw weight Less penetration power

Best modern example: Korean bows

QING (MANCHURIAN) BOW What is commonly

referred to as “Chinese” bow

Characteristic string ridge

Heavier bow allows heavier arrows

More penetration power

Slower projectile speed

ARCHERY

Chinese archery is adopted for mounted archery

Aiming is instinctive

Focuses on the spirit of shooting

Acquire the target, project the intentDeliberation of action, no hesitationMove slowly, to ensure fast movements later are

reliable (sounds familiar?)Release of arrow must be calmAfter release, internally reflect

MONGOLIAN RELEASE East Asian archery technique is

distinctly different to Mediterranean technique.

Referred to as “Mongolian” release, presumably the earlier contacts with this technique is from the Mongols.

Nock on the RIGHT side of the bow

Pull and release with the THUMB

Requires the use of a THUMB RING

THUMB RING Found as early as

Zhou dynasty (2000 BC)

Allows pulling of heavy bows with the thumb

Faster and smoother string release

READY THE ARROW Everything should be done

WITHOUT looking away from the target

Pull the arrow by the body from the quiver

Raise the arrow and put the tip on the right side of the bow, above the thumb

Secure the tip with front index finger

NOCK THE ARROW Everything should be done

WITHOUT looking away from the target

Gently glide the back hand along the arrow shaft, until the arrow nock can be found

Feel the nock for feather orientation

Pinch the nock with index and thumb, push the string between them, then nock the arrow onto the string

READY TO PULL Hook the string with

the thumb behind the ring

Press securely the 2nd segment of the index finger over the nail of the thumb

Touch the other fingers to the palm.

PULL TECHNIQUE Push the front hand,

brace the bow

Pull straight back, past the chin

Body is erect

Elbow is secure and in line with front arm

Back leg is pointing <45 deg backwards

Front leg is slightly pointing to the side

RELEASE TECHNIQUE Elbow move slightly lower

Hand open up as if shooting at the sky “cowboy” style

The 3 other fingers still touch the palm

Front hand will have a natural outward turn, and the bow will turn towards the outside

Try not to blink

Breath out and hold this posture for a few seconds

ADVICES

Arrows tend to fly to the right

• Pull and shoot while holding something in pinky and ring finger

• Qi JiGuang advocates holding a blade of grass between the ring finger and pinky and try to keep it touching the palm. ( 紀效新書•射法篇 )

SUMMARY

Archery is an important part of Chinese warrior tradition.

It’s inseparable from Confucianism, and as an extension to the Chinese culture itself.

Encourages internal focus and mental acuity that strengthens one’s character.

Chinese archery was close to extinction in the past 100 years, now is the time to revive this time honored practice.

FINTHANK YOU

QUESTIONS?