THE AESTHETIC ELEMENTS OF FAR EAST MARTIAL ARTS

Since Far East martial arts have to be perceived as an integral part of the entire culture and tradition of China and Japan, their aesthetic character is inextricably tied to the dominant traditional notions of these cultures, such as the concept of the unity of opposites, known as the yin and yang; the concept of the Way (Tao) as a symbol of constant self-perfection; the idea of Chi or Qi energy that lls the Universe as well each individual, etc. ese ideas originate and are developed mostly from religious-philosophical systems that formed and in uenced not only the martial arts tradition but all the layers of these two great cultures, performing arts included. Both performing and martial arts of the Far East have had an intertwined development, and strongly a ected each other. e aim of this study was to point out a similar base and essence in other segments of cultural tradition.


INTRODUCTION
Chinese and Japanese martial arts have a long and rich tradition.Emerged from the human need to respond to natural and social challenges of ancient times, they were cultivated and re ned by many non-combat elements, becoming thus a part of expression by movement, gesture as dance, music, the culture of food, clothing, habitation, etc.
Anyone who has at least once been witness to a public display or demonstration of the martial arts skills of the top Chinese or Japanese masters, will de nitely agree that these movements or even combating ways have a speci c 'course, rhythm, order…' in order to provide a perfect look so that they can de nitely be characterized as art.
Undoubtedly, it can be stated that when compared to Far East styles of kung fu, karate or t'ai chi ch'uan, the Western combat techniques such as boxing or wrestling, seem raw, unre ned or even rough, not because of the lack of combat e ciency, but for the lack of aesthetic components related to the delivery and overall visual impression. is study will attempt to outline basic aesthetic notions that in uenced the forming of speci c combat styles in Chinese-Japanese martial arts that enable their classi cation as performing arts.Generally speaking, aesthetics in this paper is closely related to Far East combat traditions.For example, karate as one of these Easter arts is most o en perceived as the art of self defense." is understanding raises karate above the level of common martial arts, stressing at the same time an extremely high level of movement expression in e ciency of combat technique application.e essence of karate contains a philosophical and mental improvement, which together results in a perfect balance of body and spirit, and a perfectly conducted real combat" (Jovanović,1992,:13).It may be said that the very aestheticizing of combat techniques resulted in creation of the concept of ' combat masters' as a sort of a sage of the East, artists in their trade, that accentuate the self-perfection of movement.Little of these skills is related to purely practical application in self-defense."Extraordinary use of the body is encountered not only in performing situations, but also in other situations which call for special, extraordinary behavior" (Barba,1996,:197).Such unusual and extraordinary situations are denitely imaginative or real combat that o en require patterns completely opposite to those we encounter in everyday life.
Eastern ,martial arts tend to develop a speci c human response to the challenges of life itself.Based on unity of spirit, body and movement, these skills, thanks to long-lasting exercising leading to movement and human excellence, a ect and change the natural human essence and create new motor and life skills, together with stances and judgements that should serve as a new pattern of acting in di erent situations." e mastering of martial arts by repetition of motions and movement, raises athlete's awareness on oneself, on di erent use of a body, its physical and mental capacities.One of the goals of martial arts is learning to be present at the right moment of the action.is type of presence is also important for performers that want to recreate, every evening, the right quality of energy that keeps them alive in the eyes of their spectators" (Barba,1996,:197).
erefore, it is important on one hand to shed light on the parallel development of performance and martial arts of the Far East, and on the other hand to discover how the elements of life wisdom of the traditional culture are re ected on movements within the combat systems, increasing thus their speci c aesthetic character.
e fact that the aesthetic aspect is in proportion with an attempt to include religious-philosophical concepts in combat skills is supported by the fact that the most aesthetic combat systems had not emerged before the Middle Ages (e.g.t'ai chi ch'uan, Ba Gua), when most Tao and Buddhist cults had already had complete philosophical concepts and widespread in uence.Surely, this does not mean that there aesthetics is not present in older combat forms, but instead that later systems included all the motion elements that belong to performance arts (dance, pantomime, opera, theater or ballet).
Since Japanese martial arts have a Chinese model and roots, each expertise should begin form the roots, starting with Chinese martial arts and their connection to performance arts and traditional symbols.

MARTIAL ARTS, PERFORMANCE ARTS AND RELIGION IN CHINA
In an attempted to chronologically lay out the parallel course of those aspects of culture that developed similarly to martial arts in Ancient China, one should start with those movement to be included in performing arts.In that sense, "warriors' dance" (Jiaodi) is very interesting -it owes its origin to a ritual performed by early armies during their inspection of troops at the time of the Warring States period ((475-221 BC), and its particular expansion occurred during the Han dynasty (206 BC -25 AD).During that period, the warriors' dance became a show performed in the palace but also before ordinary people (Chongshen,2010,:181-182).
During the Sui (581 -618 AD) and Tang (618 -907 AD) dynasties the warriors' dance evolved into war games held annually during the Lantern Festival.On those occasions large cities hosted motion arrangements consisting of various animal imitations, acrobatic demonstrations, demonstrations of strength and endurance, swordsmanship, etc. (Chongshen,2010,:181-182). Motion techniques used by those acrobats and demonstrators, such as jumping, spinning, rolling, falling and hitting were adopted by all combat systems referred to today as WUSHU (warrior skills). is did not only substantially enrich the technique, but it also added a new dimension of expression and virtuosity leading to respecting the audience.Since then, Martial arts have combined not only deadly motion techniques, but also skills and methods of performance that will attract the spectators .
Besides the "warriors' dance", throughout centuries Wushu remained inseparably linked to dancing."It's di cult to identify di erce between Wushu, Wushudance and modern dance" (Chongshen,2010,:183).Many forms of modern dance originate from Chinese Wushu (Chоngshеn, 2010).rough time, dance separated from Wushu.Ancient annals recorded a type of dance practiced a er victory by soldiers on the battle eld, as a sort of "dance with sword" or "dance of joy" to honor their victory.During the Sui and Tang dynasties a sort of three-act opera was composed under the name "Emperor Qin defeats warring armies".It had all the elements of a combat spectacle with different armies taking turns (Chongshen,2010).For this analysis from the "warriors' dance" we should emphasise the dance with a sword, as especially important because it is the most suitable for expressing complex feelings.Motion as expression of feelings is contained in delicate transformation of strength and so ness of movements (Chongshen,2010).Generally, the sword is used in Chinese martial arts as well as in classical theater in order to express a very complex and subtle symbolism of feelings and understanding of the world.T'ai chi ch'uan as a form of combat system is de nitely the closest to full aestheticization and the most similar to dance.
e form of t' ai chi ch'uan is a story told through movement in which every movement possesses its own symbolism and name (e.g."white crow spreads its wings" or "bringing a tiger to a mountain" and others) (Liu,2004).e entire style of tai chi comprises not only barehanded forms without the use of weapons, but also forms with a sword, sta etc.
Besides dance, we must mention the essence of motion and expressive traditional Chinese opera which has borrowed many of its elements from Chinese martial arts."Wushu concepts, as yin and yang, the eight trigrams, and tai chi are stage adapted, which brought to the creation of one of the mail rules like Zi-wu, a type of yin-yang form, one of the basic, performed in the shape of the letter S, etc. " (Chongshen,2010).All these in uences have substantially enriched martial arts and performance arts alike, giving them a unique combat touch.
On the other hand, one should discuss the religious-philosophical background that makes the conceptual framework for understanding the practice of Chinese origin martial arts.ere are three dominant religions in China: Confucianism, Taoism and Buddhism.All three were equally e ective in their in uence on martial arts.Additionally, some Taoist and Buddhist cults eventually included regular training and perfecting martial arts in their religious life.To reach the response to the subject of this paper (basic aesthetic notions in martial arts), only the basic terms originating from these philosophical systems that have formed modern martial arts but also the entire sports movement (conditionally Olympic values as well) should be mentioned." e moral ideal of Confucianism is personal perfecting, a tireless 'surpassing oneself ' (ke ji), the Path (Dao)."(Maljavin,2008).Personal perfecting is a process of individual e ort to reach a high level of perfection, making the person aiming for it morally and aesthetically sublime. is will especially a ect the development of the samurai ideal in Japan as a " idealized knight, at the same time educated philosopher, artist and supreme warrior (Filipović,1999:42). is sublimity of a noble person in a purpose in itself -"a re ned person is not a tool" for a speci ed purpose, he is broadly educated, in one word, "complete" -kijin tse (gentleman) (Veber,1997).
" e Confucian ideal of constant perfecting in things that make a noble and sublime person will eventually become an ideal of perfecting in all types of art, and subsequently in martial arts that at an individual level were not practiced only for their practical use in self-defense, but the perfecting itself became an ideal.It did not possess an immanent boundary, because in time the practical and utilitarian values increasingly gave way to aesthetic ones" (Filipović, Jovanović,2012).
Taoism may well be de ned as philosophical and religious course contributing most to the development of martial arts in China, providing them with its speci c philosophical base on which they developed into what we today consider Chinese KungFu.More importantly, Taoism together with some older traditions of Chinese culture (Yi Jing -the book of changes) is the source of a multitude of terms that will play a key role in forming the non-technical segment of martial arts, for example: Tao -the way (Japanese Do); Wu-wei -spontaneous, non-disturbing activity; yin-yang -unity of opposites, etc. e last of the teachings related to martial arts, and the only one 'imported' to China is Buddhism.Chan (Japanese Zen) Buddhism represents the highest phase in the evolution of Buddhist ideals.e name of this school derives from the Sanskrit word diana -meaning meditation, playing an important role for all representatives of Buddhism, but for representatives of Chan it became a goal in itself.(Maljavin,2008).
e founder of this school, according to legend, is an Indian preacher and the patriarch of Buddhism from the VI century, Bodhidharma, who arrived in China in 520 AD. at school, according to tradition, completely abandoned the study of sutras (Buddhist texts), rituals and warship of Buddha, and began interpreting meditation in a new manneras a spontaneous self-discovery of "the true nature of man" in his everyday life, thus coming closer to the basic Taoist ideals than any other Buddhist cult (Vats,1984).Physical work was highly respected by Chan teachers, especially collective work, and was nearly equal to meditation.
Bodhidharma himself is accredited with the "canon of muscle and tendon perfecting" (Maljavin,2008),which is actually a treatise on gymnastic exercise.A legend says that Bodhidharma had taught Shaolin monks a more direct and immediate approach to Buddhism, implying long hours of meditating in a seated position.To facilitate these long hours of meditation, Bodhidharma taught the monks breathing techniques and exercises, which developed strength.According to some authors, Bodhidharma himself was the son of the South Indian king Sugandha, his third child, and as a member of the warrior race was familiar with warrior training and the skills of ancient Indian warriors (Simić,2005), only to later embark on the way of Buddhism.at may be the reason why nearly all styles and schools of martial arts refer to Bodhidharma, especially Japanese Karate.rough his teachings, meditation and movement expressed in martial arts become one, in many styles and schools.blended into a whole and got today's appearance

MARTIAL ARTS AND PERFORMING ARTS IN JAPAN
"Japanese martial arts -like many others throughout east and southeast Asia -have a serious art dimension -an explicit aesthetical character -that makes them an important part of Japanese cultural tradition."(Ben-Ari,2005).e emphasis of ethical, aesthetical and meditative components over pragmatic ones was especially apparent in Japan at the age of the Late Shogunate in the XVIII and XIX centuries, when "warrior skills" (Bugei) give way to "the way of the warrior" (Budo) .(Filipović,1999).In that period of relative peace the necessity for combat readiness decreased, so alongside combat systems -jutsu, in which a certain spiritual inclination served toward increasing the system's e ciency, various paths (dō) emerged, for which exercising the skill was a means for reaching a certain spiritual inclination or self-perfecting.
e art of swordsmanship -kenjutsu, becomes way of the sword -kendo, the art of archery kyujutsu, becomes kyudo -way of the bow, and bare-handed combat techniques jujutsu become the gentle way -judo, stand equal to other famous skills raised to the level of art as the tea ceremony -cadō, a special way of arranging owers called ikebana -kadō, calligraphy -shodō, thus creating a type of DO culture.All this testi es about a strong in uence of Chinese Taoist philosophy which stresses Tao -the way, in Japanese -DO.
e in uence of religion, especially Zen Buddhism, was crucial for this transformation of combat systems towards arts.e paci cation of Japan meant that swordsmanship and other combat skills shi ed their focus from self-defense towards self-perfection.us, at least in Japan's more recent colonial history, the potential for further militarization, symbolized by combat tradition, is transformed from a tool of repression into a path of deliverance by the process of aestheticization and deeper connection with religious concepts (Ben-Ari,2005).
As it was underlined in the previous section, it was in China that martial arts started introducing an observer as an element to be taken into account when assessing performance technique.Furthermore, the observer does not have to be another person, but can be the performer himself (Klens-Bigman, 2002).So, in absence of an observer, the performer himself can observe and adjust his performance according to an idealized image that he possesses in his mind of how each movement should ideally look.at is why Japanese kata and Chinese forms can be practiced individually.It may be the idealized image which the performer holds in his mind -a visualization of kata -that has been developed over time and transferred from master to a pupil, that makes it easier to establish clear aesthetic concepts that dominate Japanese martial arts.e origin of these concepts is de nitely Chinese, but adapted and processed through the Japanese cultural matrix since the Heinan period (710 -1185 AD) when the largest in ux of Chinese culture occurred.
All concepts included in this analysis are in identical form and traditional performance arts of Japan, like dance and drama.e foremost on the list of terms is de nitely the Chinese equality of opposites concept of yin and yang.Symbolic qualities attributed to yin and yang among others are cold, the moon, femininity for Yin; warm, the sun, masculinity for Yang.It is important to understand that this symbol above all represents the unity of these two opposites, one unimaginable without the other, and that everyone needs both in order to achieve balance. is balance is at the core of Japanese, just as Chinese, martial arts, so a weak person must rst develop strength in order to perform kata well, whereas a strong person must develop so ness and exibility.e ideal kata must be a combination of rmness and so ness, speed and slow movements, exibility and contraction, etc.
e creator of the short form Yang-style t'ai chi ch'uan,Cheng Man-ch'ing, was asked on one occasion, about how quickly his form could be performed."As long as you can discern yin from yang", he said, "you may perform as quickly as you can." e older pupils nally agreed that master Cheng had meant the total separation of weight shi ed from one side of the body to the other while performing the form step by step, and the change of position from one side to the other that has to be smooth and complete, balance but not blending."(Klens-Bigman, 2004).
e next concept that we must mention is the Japanese term for interval, also used to describe the quality of motion through time and space -Ma (gap, pause, space, interval).e symbol that represents Ma is a gate, through which the sun is visible.is term also represents the distance between us and our partner, which is also the rst way to experience Ma. (Klens-Bigman, 2002).e best way to see this aesthetic quality in practice is to observe two practitioners performing the same kata.e di erence in their delivery illustrates their respective possession of Ma.One of them may perform the kata awlessly in the technical sense, but at the same time mechanically and soullessly, so he is said to have bad Ma. e other might perform movements with elegance and harmony, "bringing to life" the story that the kata carries, thus he is said to have good Ma. is quality makes the di erence between a correct yet "lifeless" performance of a form and the exceptional and beautiful one that evokes excitement.
When two or more people with a good Ma perform the same form, their harmony and timing evoke a visual pleasure for the observer, which is also one of the indicators of a good Ma. is quality contained in motion content di erentiates an accurate but "lifeless" form performance and an exceptional and beautiful which provokes delight.
When two or more persons with good Ma performs the same movement form, their compliance and sense of duration and timing is what inspires a visual delight in observe, which is also an indicator of a good Ma."A famous Japanese dance instructor that I once interviewed told me that Ma cannot be learned.As a talent, it is inconceivable, it is a quality easy to recognize, you either possess it or you don't."(Klens-Bigman, 2004,:4).
e Jo-ha-kyū concept is another one that exists both in performance and martial arts.It is closely related to the previously mentioned concept of Ma.Roughly translated it can be represented by three phases (slow -quicker -swi ) (Klens-Bigman, 2004).It belongs to the quality and change of movement expression of an actor or dancer or whoever is performing a twist, a strike or a movement in a combat form.
" e rst phase is determined by one growing force and another force opposing the rst one (Jo meaning to suppress).e second phase (Ha, to break) is the moment when the resisting force is overcome, until it reaches the third phase (Kyū,rapid), when the action culminates -it releases all its power and stops unexpectedly, as if encountering an obstacle, a new resistance" (Barba,1996).is is how it manifests in classical Japanese theater.On the other hand, we have the same course in Japanese martial arts. is concept has a cumulative characteristic of collecting energy in order to explode (catharsis) in a single impact, throw, or a blow in sword ghting.Similarly, the form of training mostly follows the same sequence of actions obeying the Jo-ha-kyū concept.Initially, warming up serves as an introduction, followed by techniques or kata, ending the training with sparring or kumite in which the accumulated energy is "burned".
e Wabi-sabi concept itself is not so much present in the delivery of movement and the forms of Japanese martial arts, but it lies in their spirit.On one hand the term Wabi aesthetically means simplicity and stripping down to basics.On the other hand the term Sabi refers to the feeling of loneliness and retraction (Klens- Bigman, 2004).e examples of this concept are easiest to nd in the manner of conducting the tea ceremony and in Japanese interior and exterior design.e tea ceremony begins with a walk down a short path, through simple scenery to the tea ceremony house which represents the separation from everyday life.e house entrance is so small that those entering must bow and thus show their humility.A samurai entering the tea house is unable to draw his weapon because of the con ned space, and is likely to leave it outside.e purpose of this is to state that one's status should not be emphasized inside the tea house.e tea house interior represents simplicity and minimalism in decoration.Its walls might hold a few scrolls or a vase with a single ower.Such a room should not be luxurious, or contain objects that might distract from the tea ceremony itself.e tea house should be a haven and a retreat for contemplation.
e most a ected concept by this principle is the Dojo, the place for practicing the path of martial arts -i.e.training room.e training kimono is also an example of simplicity and minimalism, the white color represents the will and readiness to sacri ce, etc.Japanese martial arts, especially karate as the Japanese counterpart to Chinese barehanded combat, has been considerably changed under the in uence of this concept.Compared to Chinese forms, Japanese kate are much simpler, and their movements do not blend with each other, as is the case with their Chinese counterpart, but are accentuated as separate units with a clear end point between two movements.
Last of the concepts that we will mention here is Yūgen.Zeami Motokiyo, actor, aesthetician and Noh drama playwright from the 14 th century described yūgen as a kind of beauty with elements of sorrow (Klens-Bigman, 2004).It eludes young performers whose talent and performance are based on physical appearance and charm, but lack what age and experience bring.Experienced performers possess a certain melancholy in their performance, which comes with the life that person led, with all their ups and downs, giving a unique note to their delivery which in turn becomes strong and distinct.Yūgen is a very rare quality, and as such is encountered in a small number of great masters, that are able to leave a strong impression on the audience.is quality in martial arts is not re ected in the physical component through the delivery of a speci c technique that might be delivered more correctly by a thirty-year-old, but in the perception of unity possessed by old masters whose technique transcends the style itself and becomes "the art of movement".is is why demonstration by older practitioners and masters is very important in martial arts, contrary to sports to which the concept of old athletes is almost unknown.

CONCLUSION
e importance of studying aesthetics in martial arts goes hand in hand with the increasing interest of anthropologists, sociologists, and psychologists in studying occurrences such as moments in everyday life -religious rites, weddings, funerals, graduation ceremonies, etc.On the other hand there are mass entertainment events such as reality shows, festivals, circuses, parades, television shows, video games and, of course, large sporting events, tournaments, championships, Olympic Games.In this wide corpus of public events under the scrutiny of researchers studying the performative aspects of each of these occurrences, it is interesting to mention and raise the question of studying the performative and aesthetic character of Far East martial arts, which today are not just a local occurrence, but are practiced throughout the world.
ey are unique for comprising several di erent aspects in their appearance.On one hand every observer or analyst has to pay attention to their practical function -they are a highly stylized and channeled form of physical aggression, packaged into a culturally acceptable form, tending to return the attackers energy to himself, i.e. to pacify the very tendency towards violence, thus removing the concept of violence from society.On the other hand, the removal of violent tendencies bene ts from the choice of cultural concepts that have been transposed into combat systems from the religious-philosophical realm, furthermore transforming them in the direction of paci cation, and emphasizing the practice of physical perfection as a means of individual self-realization and personal self-cultivation.For all these reasons, the combat aspect is pushed aside, it has marked the path for a very developed body culture that is highly aestheticized and stylized, with a rich spiritual background.
Performance has played an important role in martial arts, and the audience has been taken into account from the earliest days of combat system creation, not just movement application in battle.So, the aesthetic aspect is very strong and plays an important role, even if subconsciously, in the creation and practice of martial arts.It seems that this aesthetic in uence has caused the weakening of aggressive and violent elements, which initially motivated people to create movement to be used as defense or for attacking oth-ers.In order to obtain the most comprehensive answer for the subject of this paper, it was important to emphasize all terms and concepts woven into the ne structure of of Far East martial arts, and consequently to decode martial arts in uenced the reduction of violence in societies whence they originated, and why the people from those parts of the world where life is o en harsh, China and Japan, are considered by others to be models of calmness and life satisfaction.