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From the USA Martial Arts Moo Do Hwe Student Handbook-Nottingham, Roth, Rudolph
Since the dawn of the human race, people have had to develop fighting skills  to obtain food and survive. Thus, martial arts have existed, to some degree, all over the world. In some areas, martial arts developed beyond mere survival and into a way of life.
We present a general discussion of its origins here. It is our hope that USA Martial Arts students will respect all martial arts regardless of the style or system.
Recent evidence indicates that a complete martial arts system with origins in Africa may predate any other. This art included weapons, empty-handed combat and other tactics.
In India, statues of temple guardians, believed to date back prior to 1000 BC, can be seen in poses similar to latter-day warring arts. A fighting art, known as Vajramushti, was believed to exist in this period as well.
Some Historians believe one of the first "complete" fighting disciplines originated with the Greek martial art of pankration (pronounced pan-krah-tee-ahn). Evidence indicates that pankration or pankratium, meaning "all powers", combined boxing and wrestling using hands, feet, mind and spirit for unbridled combat. They also had an ancient dance referred to as the Pyrrhic dance, which resembles (forms/patterns/shadowboxing/kata/hyung) of other martial arts. In 648 BC, pankration was officially entered in the ancient Olympics.
The first material evidences for practicing of martial arts in Korea were found in 1935 by archeologists in two of the royal tombs of the Koguryo Dynasty. These were frescoes showing two men practicing Tae Kyun and two others wrestling. The murals belong to the period between 3 AD-427 AD - knowing this, the conclusion may be drawn that Korean martial arts were evolving at that time.
Around 520 AD, an Indian Buddhist priest, called Bodhidharma (TaMo or Dharamba), traveled to China. He spent nine years at Shaolin (Hsialin) temple, introducing there a series of techniques for self-defense and physical exercise. This is believed to be one beginning of Kung Fu (Wu Shu) or Shaolin Boxing, said to be one of the first organized systems to spread to the rest of the world.
All martial arts continuously evolve and have history and roots all their own, as diverse as the cultures themselves. Understanding history and trade routes, human anatomy, and experiences from battle, it is also apparent that they are all intexplicably intertwined and share many concepts and influences.
Over the centuries, martial arts has served as a means of survival, self protection and battle field strategy. Throughout the years it has maintained its common heritage and tradition of personal excellence and self empowerment. In some areas Martial Arts developed into more than just a means for survival but a way of life. Each martial art has evolved to reflect the diversity, beauty, needs and expression of their masters and cultures in which they developed. Its spirit lives on today in the many diverse martial a rts available to the public.
"They say that history is the greatest of all teachers, and the tales of the past deeds define who we are in the present, and we shall be in the future. It is said that such tales, with each telling, will illuminate us all with the light of the truth."
Thoughout history, the greatest warriors and leaders trained mind, body and spirit. They were scholars, historians, poets, philosophers, farmers, engineers, musicians, monks, priests and kings. Martial arts has a proud history of preserving freedoms, protecting life and defending the weak. It has served to unify nations, create peace, as well as preserve traditions, values and to inspire entire cultures. It has been a form of recreation, competition and military training. In its highest order, it has inspired its practicioners to adopt a healthy, moral lifestyle and a method of personal achievement that has lasted generations and contributed toward a more peaceful world. Warriors, Kings, Nobles and Peasants, through unique martial traditions like ours at USA Martial Arts, all strove for excellence.
We teach martial arts for self-protection, but all the same skills that allow a person to succeed in martial arts can also help them solve problems, create harmony and excel in life. This is the way of the USA Martial Arts Warrior. This is our proud heritage.
The journey of a thousand leagues
beginswith but a single step.
Lao-Tzu Chinese philosopher (604 BC-531 BC) p.
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