Much of what was recorded had been going on since at least the Song, if
not earlier. Local styles of armed and unarmed martial arts were every-
where. Violence and violent menflourished in the absence of a strong
government presence, and martial arts were as likely to serve the interest
of local thugs as ordinary citizens defending themselves and their com-
munities. Powerful landlords or institutions, including temples, main-
tained their own security forces to defend and enforce their interests.
Sometimes those forces contributed to state security efforts, suppressing
bandits, for example, and were rewarded by the state. At other times those
selfsame lords or institutions sheltered bandits, men of violence, and other
criminals because it suited their own interests. It was often useful to be able
to draw upon the large pool of violent men in a conflict. And, of course, the
state acted similarly when it recruited soldiers from thefloating population
of violent men to suppress bandits, bolster its army, or otherwise enforce
its interests.
Military martial arts were, as always, the most straightforward of skills
and kept a narrow group of weapons–sword, spear, bow, crossbow, and
gun–at their core. Boxing and staff skills were useful only as training
practices to improve physical endurance, agility, and strength; teach
proper stance and balance; and develop the right mental attitude.
Practice-fighting with real weapons was much more likely to result in
serious injury or death than sparring with staffs or empty-handed. A larger
group of more elaborate weapons was available for specialized martial
artists, but these were more theatric (and used in theater andfiction) than
practical. The“Eighteen Martial Arts”changed in the Ming, by one
account, to“bow, crossbow, spear, sword, long sword, mao-spear, shield,
fu-axe, yue-axe, ji-halberd, whip, metal tablet, truncheon, shu-spear, fork,
claw head, silk corded lasso, unarmed striking.”^18 Archery had been
restored to its more usual place, and the ordering of spear and sword
made practical sense. The gun had been removed, but unarmed striking
was added.
Another real change was the connection of long sword fencing with
literati spirit. The long sword became the refined weapon of the gentleman
or superior martial artist. It was a weapon of skill and subtlety, not raw
power. A long sword was truly effective in individual combat or for self-
defense in the hands of an expert; otherwise, it was simply a defense
weapon appropriate for a gentleman. Having abandoned archery, literati
still apparently needed a form of martial expression. At least from the
perspective of some biographies, a“heroic”youth practicing long sword
balanced a conventional life of literary or bureaucratic service.
Conclusion 183