Information Thinking in the Manipulation of Chinese Martial Arts ^†

Abstract

Manipulation is an important technique of Chinese martial arts, and it is the primary content of martial arts in people’s talking about boxing techniques. In Chinese martial arts, the main martial arts methods like “ hit, throw, take, stab” , except for “kick”, require corresponding manipulation to achieve. Tips to learn the secrets of the practical manipulation application from “the Twenty Tactic Songs” in the book Preparation for Martial Arts Methods are up to ten types. As a concept, manipulation has a very rich and complicated information thinking way in literature, painting, dance, the military, and other fields, which opens a broad space for the theoretical study of manipulation. The research takes manipulation in Chinese martial arts as the breakthrough point and its information thinking as the main research object, and interprets the information thinking of manipulation in martial arts theoretically through the methods of literature materials, expert interviews, information philosophy theory, and logical analysis, etc.

1. Chinese Martial Arts Manipulation Information Has Quality, Characteristics, and Functions

From the existence of social information, manipulation in martial arts is information and material entities as well. Martial arts information is a three-state and three-quality information that is a concrete and unified manifestation of social information with multiple characteristics and functions. Due to the richness of the subject’s cognitive structure, the subject always places the corresponding information content in the context of the previously constructed cognitive framework to grasp, thereby revealing the varying complicated relationships in martial arts manipulation information. On the one hand, while the concretely presented martial arts manipulation information is identified and grasped, the master reveals the second-level qualitative information content of the corresponding martial arts manipulation based on the relevant experience information he has grasped beforehand. On the other hand, while grasping the information of martial arts manipulation, the main body will inevitably carry out general attribution and specific symbols for the information of martial arts manipulation, such as boxing, palm techniques, and the names of different manipulation styles of martial arts, tactic songs, etc. The generalization and symbolization of martial arts manipulation information in people’s cognition is a certain kind of artificially agreed information, which is the qualitative content of the third level of information. Therefore, the conscious reflection of the martial arts manipulation activity itself not only contains the qualitative and intuitive content of the first level of information, but also reveals the objective and natural relationship condensed in the martial arts manipulation information. In addition, it also makes the two levels of martial arts manipulation information, universally generalized and symbolized. Therefore, all the information of martial arts manipulation reflected in people’s consciousness must be a unified whole of three qualities.

The martial arts manipulation information has multiple characteristics, among which the following six are more typical. The information of martial arts manipulation is dependent on the carrier and has the replaceability of the carrier; It is compound and reorganized in the application and exercise process; It has compound reorganization in the attack and defense of martial arts; It has the characteristics of deformity and innovation, the ambiguity in the understanding, and dissipation.

Martial arts manipulation information owns following functions: the display function; the enlightening function; the function of displaying ; the function of eliminating uncertainty and the organization function.

2. The Complexity of Chinese Martial Arts Manipulation Information Mainly Includes the Following Aspects

2.1. Information Complexity of Hand and Technique

Interpretation and realization of hand. In the ancient Chinese dictionaries, the general theory of the hand gives a detailed description: Hands can be divided into two types, nouns and verbs. Nouns refer to the hands, such as hands, palms, fists, fingers, and thumbs. Verbs refer to the actions of the hand, such as handle, hold, exercise, lift, and support, etc. In the book Origin of Chinese Characters, the Chinese characters with the radicals of “hand” in the whole book have a total of 9353 characters, which shows the ancient people’s understanding and importance of “hand” [1], revealing the role and status of “hand” in human history. In American scholar Colin McGinn’s Grasp and Understanding: The Emergence of Hands and Human Nature” [2] and French scholar Fauciyong’s article [3] (p. 58) ”The Praise of the Hand”, the explanation and understanding of the hand have formed extensive and profound reproductive information, showing the informational characteristics of the existence and status of the hand, and achieving the unification of the three states of information, giving the “hand” multi-field and multi-level complex information representation.

The term manipulation is applied to different levels in our lives (literature, art, traditional Chinese medicine, etc.). It is necessary to have an in-depth understanding of its interpretation. Manipulation is the process of constructing a complex multi-level intermediary of phenomenon information, previously constructed technique information and mental cognition information matching, and integrating certain general information and symbolic information application and social life practice.

2.2. The Complexity in the Actual Offensive and Defensive manipulations of Martial Arts

The actual offensive and defensive techniques of martial arts are a process of dynamic change, evolution, and self-generation in information. In the interaction of martial arts manipulation information collisions, the continuous matching construction generates different technique information, which shows the basis of the technique information that the offensive and defensive subjects have constructed before. Different understanding of dynamic changes of information, such as yin and yang, rigidity and softness, flexion and extension, virtual reality, movement and static, etc., has formed a different style of attack and defense system. These are all present systematic, non-deterministic, and complex self-organizing thoughts.

2.3. The Complexity in the Dynamic Changes of the Rigid and Flexible Information in Martial Arts Manipulation

The dynamic change of the rigid and flexible information of martial arts manipulations demonstrates the personal wisdom of the martial arts’ rigid and flexible approach. Its application in martial arts manipulation embodies complex and comprehensive dynamic changes. The changes in the rigidity and flexibility of martial arts contain the interactive operation of subtly tactile information, so that the rigid and flexible changes of the two sides between offense and defense can achieve a very subtle recognition process. The rigid and flexible changes of any method are the hands, eyes, body, steps, and steps. The overall subtle interaction and coordinated operation of information, such as qi in the body, reveal the concept of complex overall unity.

2.4. The Complexity in the Dynamic Changes of the Information on the Flexion and Extension of Martial arts Manipulation

The dynamic change of the information about the flexion and extension of the martial arts manipulation contains the unique thinking mode of the yin and yang way of bending and stretching in China. The flexural and extensional changes of martial arts manipulation are more delicate and subtler than the body techniques. The hands can turn around, which is the basis of offensive and defensive techniques. Attentive appreciating of the flexion and extension changes of the technique is the dynamic structural selection, matching and construction of the rapid offensive and defensive change information regardless of the combat confrontation, the technique drill, and the reasonable grasp of the “flexion and extension” in the assessment of the situation.

2.5. The Complexity in the Dynamic Changes of the Virtual and Actual Information of Martial Arts Manipulation

The dynamic changes of the virtual and actual information of martial arts manipulation show the soldiers’ tricks of martial arts techniques and tactics. In the offensive and defensive process of the interaction between the two parties, each attack and defense change of the technique is the result of the instantaneous technique information detection and feedback. It can detect the opponent’s tactical tactics and the changes of hands, eyes, body, movement, rigidity, flexibility, flexion and extension, virtual reality, movement, and static transformation, which is full of the complexity of martial arts technique information detection and identification.

2.6. The Complexity of Information Detection in the Application of Martial Arts Manipulation

The process of offensive and defensive martial arts and the exercises of routines are full of interactive processes of information detection. In the process of offensive and defensive interaction between the two sides, every change in the attack and defense of the manipulation is the result of the detection and feedback of the information of the instant technique, from which the opponent’s tactical tactics and the changes of hands, eyes, body, movement, rigidity, flexibility, flexion and extension, virtual reality, movement, and static transformation can be detected. This is full of the complexity of information detection and identification of martial arts manipulation. The arrangement of the routine highlights the meaning of offense and defense, using the previously constructed information to select, match, and construct virtual offensive and defensive information, which is displayed through routine exercises. Among them, the methods of virtual attack or defeat, ups and downs, and others reveal the fictitious and true, strange, and positive changes, and at the same time integrates, matches, and constructs information of body style, footwork, and eye style, highlighting the multiple synergy and integral characteristics of information detection in martial arts manipulation.

2.7. The Complexity of Yin and Yang Dialectical Information in Martial Arts Manipulation

Martial arts manipulation deals with the yin and yang dialectical information of decision. The response and decision of martial arts techniques is not simply a collision of information between the offensive and defensive parties, but to offend and defend the purposeful information output by both parties based on the previously constructed information and form an information feedback loop. The traditional Chinese yin and yang are mutually opposed, penetrated, and transformed, and the unified structural relationship is fully reflected in martial arts. This article illustrates the trend, action methods, and usage of offensive and defensive martial arts by the application of yin and yang and pays attention to the dialectical information of yin and yang in martial arts manipulation from the perspective of development and change and the unity of opposites. For example, the palm of the hand is upward as the yang hand, and the palm is downward as the yin hand. In martial arts, the relationship between yin and yang evolves into rigid and soft, virtual, and solid, flexion and extension, movement, and static relations, and constructs a martial- arts manipulation system. In the application, each punching technique transforms from being virtual to being real. The changes in flexion and extension give rise to rigidity and softness, and methods are changed in motion and static. These yin and yang relationships form an organic complex information unity. In the exercises, different types of martial arts have different changes in rigidity, softness, virtual reality, flexion and extension, movement and static. It shows the complex unity of Chinese martial arts manipulation of mutual growth and integration.