Shaolin kung fu/wushu: a treasure of the Chinese Nation

The history of Chinese martial arts is both turbulent and interesting as the history of China itself. They played a crucial role during turning points on many occasions. This treasure of national importance almost vanished due to the events of the Cultural Revolution. The article presents a shortened history of the traditional Shaolin kung fu. The role of Bodhidharma – an Indiam Buddhist who settled in a temple is also explained. Additionally, there is an attempt of explaining the terminology, precisely kung fu or wushu, what is correct? Also the characteristics of Shaolin martial arts are given. All is concluded with the description of imitative boxing and its technical principles. Namely, they are the Five Animals style including the crane, tiger, leopard, snake and dragon, mantis, monkey and others. A very peculiar example of this kind of styles is the drunken one. This technique is explained in details. When dealing with traditional wushu one must be aware of the fact that it is an endless and hard way of self-improvement and development. And the final success is not only connected with sport achievements