How dare you: the formation of courage in Chinese martial arts

Background. All over the world forms of martial arts emphasize the importance of courage. However, the understanding of courage varies from culture to culture.Problem and aim. The main goal of this study is to discuss the concept and formation of martial courage in Chinese martial arts.Material and methods. This paper analyses the influence and contributions of Confucianism, Buddhism, and Taoism, which constitute the pillars of traditional Chinese thought.Results and Conclusions. The core of Confucian courage is benevolence, justice, propriety, and wisdom. Its main function is to govern the country by establishing an ideology to normalize people’s martial activities, namely people’s choice to fight or not. The core of Taoist courage is non-action, non-contention, and being like water. Its main function is to govern the body by highlighting the philosophy that the unity of human and heaven is what the Chinese people have long been yearning for. The core of Buddhist courage is compassion. Its function is mainly to govern the mind by using either lowered eyebrows or angry eyes. Chinese martial arts absorb the essence of the three thoughts on courage and construct its own martial courage system, which facilitates the formation of martial arts techniques, and also acclimatizes Chinese martial arts practitioners’ behaviour to the construction of the Chinese national spirit.