TY - JOUR AU - Wile, Douglas PY - 2012/07/19 Y2 - 2024/03/28 TI - Taijiquan and Daoism. From Religion to Martial Art and Martial Art to Religion JF - Revista de Artes Marciales Asiáticas JA - Rev. artes marciales asiát. VL - 3 IS - 1 SE - Articles DO - 10.18002/rama.v3i1.345 UR - https://revpubli.unileon.es/index.php/artesmarciales/article/view/345 SP - 8-45 AB - <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; margin: 0cm 0cm 6pt;"><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;" lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">This study explores the ways in which the construction and deconstruction of a martial arts-Daoism connection has figured in political ideology, national iden-tity, and commercial interest during the past 400 years of Chinese history. Focusing on the taijiquan-Daoism-Zhang Sanfeng nexus, it traces the wrapping of a martial art in indigenous religious garb during the periods of Manchu rule, Japanese occupation, and post-Mao 21st century. It concludes by reporting on a contemporary movement in China to revive the cult of Zhang Sanfeng and to cast taijiquan as a form of religious practice. In this light, taijiquan emerges as an important site of constructing “Chinese-ness” in the face of state appropriation and Western cultural imperialism.<strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"></strong></span></span></span></p> ER -