Ep. 14: Dirty Thirty

India has a deep cultural heritage full of mythological and historical battles fought for power and supremacy. The Hindus even have Kshatriya warrior clans, who dedicated their entire lives to honing battle skills and fighting wars. Contrary to the popular belief that martial arts originated in China, martial arts have strong roots in Indian history and Hindu mythology. Bodhidharma, a Buddhist monk from South India, is even credited to be the first to teach Kung Fu at the Shaolin Temple. In Shastra Ke Shaastra – The Indian Legacy, delve deep into the roots of the different indigenous weapons that originated in India and continue to be used in various martial arts and performance arts around the country.

India has a deep cultural heritage in mythological and historical battles fought for supremacy. The Hindu culture has a warrior clan called Kshatriyas whose main job was to practice the art of war and might. The Mahabharata war tale describes various forms of fighting with weapons such as maces, swords, lances, bows, arrows and even hand to hand combat like Mall yuddha or Dwand yuddha. Dhanurveda, a section found in the Vedas 1700 BCE - 1100 BCE contains references to martial arts. Around the 3rd century BC, the yoga sutras of Patanjali presented the technique of meditating single-mindedly on points located inside ones body, which were later used in martial arts. While various mudra finger movements were also taught in Yogacara Buddhism. These elements of yoga, as well as finger movements in the nata dances were incorporated into various Indian martial arts. The art of fighting is prominently mentioned in various ancient texts. From antiquity to the middle-ages and the modern era several techniques were indigenously developed in parts of India which are known as the Indian Martial arts. Indian martial arts refers to the fighting systems of the Indian subcontinent in South Asia. This now includes India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Nepal. Indian martial arts were an important influence in the development of a number of modern Asian martial arts, particularly within the Indian cultural sphere countries outside India influenced by Indian culture and religion of Southeast Asia. Contrary to the popular belief that Martial Arts were invented by the Chinese, it actually has deep roots in the Indian History and Hindu Mythology. Bodhidharma, a Buddhist Monk from South India, is credited with first teaching Kung Fu at the Shaolin Temple. Through the show, Martial Arts – The Indian Legacy, delve deeper into the roots of the sport in India and the different types of martial arts that continues to exist even today in various parts of the country and how they have affected history.