Confucius Institute Chinese Culture Exploration: Martial Art
On February 22, a fantastic Chinese Culture Exploration activity was brought to students of Confucius Institute by a special Kungfu artist from Latvian Wushu Federation.
At the very beginning, Mr. Zhang, the martial artist demonstrated Shaolin Boxing, Five-Step Boxing, Taichi Quan and Taichi Fan to the students. Vigorous and flexible movement and humorous instruction attracted the students and won their applause. After warm-up, the martial artist introduced and tutored 5 basic footwork and Five-Step Boxing techniques. All the students, from pre-teenagers to university students to parents, followed closely to the instructor, tying their best to internalize all the movements.
The 2nd period started with Taichi Quan study. Featuring the spirit of floating clouds and flowing water, Taichi Quan neutralized the opponent’s assault into counter reaction. Slow motion and relieved atmosphere of Taichi relaxed body and soul of every student. Straight after Taichi Quan, Taichi Fan study, the climax of the lesson came. Taichi Fan combines Taichi movements with fan dancing, forming a perfect integration of hardness and softness, strength and flexibility. Students made progress bit by bit. Under tutorial, they were eventually able to conduct actions smoothly and clearly.
The martial art exploration won students’ affection. They were amazed by the extensive and profound spirit of Chinese martial arts, and would like to experience more and learn more about Chinese culture.
