The Origin and Development of Shuttlecock

Shuttlecock kicking is a national sports activity with a long history in China. Known as "the butterfly of life". Shuttlecock kicking and Cuju are of the same ancestry and a branch of Cuju. According to the textual research of cultural relics, Cuju originated in the Yellow River valley of Neolithic Age more than 5,000 years ago, and its original form was to hit a stone ball with its feet on the ground.

In ancient times, it was one of the so-called "miscellaneous operas", "miscellaneous operas", "extensive operas" and "hundred operas". Shuttlecock, in ancient books, is also written as cymbals, dice and badminton. In the Qing Dynasty, Zhai Hao's "Popular Compilation" Volume 31 "Zi" article says: "Wu Ci Bu": "Throwing your feet is a joke." Shuttlecock is divided into two parts: shuttlecock thallium and shuttlecock feather. Shuttlecock thallium is made of round lead, tin, iron sheet or copper coins, and shuttlecock hair is made of feathers. The book "Story of Yanjing at the Age of Years" says: "The rower will pad the leather money, line the copper money, tie the feathers and tie the belt." There are many ways to kick shuttlecock. "Kicking shuttlecock" in Ruan Kuisheng's Tea Idle Guest Talk said: "Among them, there are hundreds of shuttlecocks." It is said that during the Guangxu period of the Qing Dynasty, there was a hundred-year-old scholar in Chengde who could kick out 108 kinds of fancy styles such as magpie climbing, golden dragon probing claws and lion rolling hydrangea.

According to historical documents and unearthed cultural relics, kicking shuttlecock was formed in Han Dynasty, and prevailed in Six Dynasties, Sui Dynasty and Tang Dynasty. In the Song Dynasty, Gao Cheng recorded shuttlecock kicking in detail in the book The Origin of Things: "Today, children use lead and tin as money to install chicken feathers, which are called shuttlecocks. They kick shuttlecocks in groups of three or four people, with various colors such as being cheap inside and outside, dragging and grabbing, bowing their knees, bulging their bellies and beads.

Shuttlecock kicking has a long history, but there is no exact record showing when it started. Famous ancient scholars believe that kicking shuttlecock originated from Cuju. For example, Song Gaocheng called kicking shuttlecock "the legacy of cuju" in Shuo Yuan. As for "Cuju players, it is said that they were played by the Yellow Emperor, or during the Warring States Period" (Biography of Historical Records of Su Qin quoted Pei Zhi and Liu Xiang's Bielu), so the history of kicking shuttlecock can be traced back to the Warring States Period and even the distant era of the Yellow Emperor. In the era of the Yellow Emperor, historical events were far from being found. It is not reliable to say that kicking shuttlecock was made by the Yellow Emperor, which means that all the achievements of invention and creation are attributed to the Yellow Emperor alone. Speaking of the Warring States period, there may be some basis, but because kicking shuttlecock is a fine thing among fine things, it is almost impossible to find conclusive evidence of the origin time. Therefore, it is better to start from the Warring States period. Although this still belongs to the traditional historical shadow, the bow before the Tang Dynasty was a "tangled hair" (a beginner's book), similar to the shuttlecock feather, and also a kind of "plaything", so the bow and shuttlecock did have some blood relationship. According to the textual research of cultural relics, the image of kicking shuttlecock has been found on the portrait brick of Han Dynasty. Accordingly, kicking shuttlecock originated in the Han Dynasty 2000 years ago at the latest. By the Northern and Southern Dynasties, people had been able to kick shuttlecock skillfully and skillfully. The Biography of Monks, a Taoist priest in the Tang Dynasty, records: "When 12 years old, Shaman Huiguang kicked shuttlecock in Tianjie Well for 500 years, and everyone watched it with great noise. The Buddha was offended and said, "The child has a job." (Biography of Tianzhu Monk in Shaolin Temple, Volume II, Song Yue, the Zen Guardian of Xi) Shuttlecock is shuttlecock, and counter-kicking is kicking with the outside of the foot, which is also called "turning". Kick 500 times, which shows the kung fu on your feet. Shuttlecock kicking even influenced the martial arts of Shaolin Temple, and Shaolin monks used shuttlecock kicking as an auxiliary skill in martial arts.

During the Tang and Song Dynasties, kicking shuttlecock became more popular and the skills were more superb. According to the records in Shi Jiyuan, "Today's children are wearing chicken feathers with lead and tin as money, and they are called" whip saws ".They walk and kick in groups of three or five, dragging guns, bowing their knees, bulging their bellies, beads, scissors, kidnappers …" It can be seen that kicking shuttlecock can be done while running, and not only with their feet but also with their knees. In the Song Dynasty, due to the large number of people kicking shuttlecocks, there was also a small business selling shuttlecocks for a living. There are six "small brokers" in the notes carefully written by the poets in the Southern Song Dynasty, listing the small businesses that operate various toys in the capital Lin 'an (Hangzhou), such as kites, sticky sticks, badminton, pigeon bells, chess and slingshots. And pointed out: "There are dozens of people in every situation, and everyone is committed to providing food and clothes."

In the Ming and Qing Dynasties, shuttlecock kicking became more popular and the technology was greatly improved. Pan Rongbi, a poet in A Qing, described the activities of kicking shuttlecock among the people in Beijing in Ji Sheng of Emperor Wu of Jin Dynasty: "Doumen people are very skilled in kicking shuttlecock and dancing, and many people have stopped. If their heads are on the water, if their backs are on their chests, this group of people will turn and collide with each other, so that they can compete with each other, move with the machine, avoid falling, and they will learn the stunts in the play. " The popular version of Kicking Shuttlecock said: "Today, Beijing is the most skilled in this play. If a person can count the enemies at the same time, he won't be around him all day. " Because kicking shuttlecock is interesting and pleasing to the eye, it has become the creative theme of artists, especially folk artists. There are pictures of shuttlecock kicking painted by craftsmen on the vase, and the painter also painted the scene of shuttlecock kicking. The picture of kicking shuttlecock in the collection of customs paintings in Qing Dynasty "Hundred Pictures of Beijing Folk Customs" is an existing one.

Shuttlecock kicking is fun, and the amount of exercise can be large or small, so it is available to men, women and children. Especially in Qing dynasty, women kicking shuttlecock attracted more attention. A poem from Zhi Zhu in Beijing sings: "Green spring is flying in the sky, you can use your boots and jacket. Forget the jade bow and smile, and the flowers will never return. " At that time, girls loved to play a shuttlecock game called "Save the Flowers", that is, "Several people turned over and kicked". In order to have fun, they took off their skirts and put on their jackets, kicking and laughing, and often didn't return at sunset. Chen Weisong, a famous poet in the early Qing Dynasty, wrote a poem "Qinyuanchun", in which the boudoir kicked shuttlecock and said, "The yard is clear and charming, and nothing can be done. To the end of the corolla, it is a jade feather; Foster mother, test Zhu body. Wrap it gently, let it rotate at the same time, and winnow out the shadow of the wall. Ying Ying people, stunned and cuju, are good at playing chess. The vamp is only a little, and the condition is slippery and loose. Always boast, stand on a golden well, be used to waves and be afraid of flowers. I suddenly recalled the spring suburbs, turned back to yesterday, and helped the railing to pick up my temples. It is really thought-provoking to have a son-in-law outside Yang. " (See Famous Sentences in Qing Dynasty by Chen Naigan) We seem to see a girl in Qing Dynasty kicking shuttlecock in a quiet and deep courtyard. The elaborate shuttlecock dancing up and down is more varied than kicking a ball and more interesting than playing chess.

kicking kiko

Jin Fei, Emperor Guangxu of Qing Dynasty, liked kicking shuttlecock very much. Her nephew Tang Hai recalled the scene of Jin Fei kicking shuttlecock: After lunch break, "Jin Fei personally took us for a walk in the Imperial Garden after lunch, but more time was spent kicking shuttlecock in the front hall. When kicking shuttlecock, Jin Fei will pull up the hem of the big skirt and put it around her waist, and kick with me and each other. When she kicks herself, the more she kicks, the more energetic she becomes. Sometimes she kicks shuttlecock behind the plaque in the front hall. At this time, the maid-in-waiting came over and took the shuttlecock off with a bamboo pole, and then kicked it. My aunt kicked the shuttlecock in a beautiful posture. She kicked forward, backward, left and right, and the snow-white shuttlecock spun back and forth at her feet. Eunuchs and ladies-in-waiting cheered: "Fei played well!" " In this way, if you don't have dinner, you can't stop "(Selected Works of Literature and HistoryNo. 18, edited by Beijing Literature and History Information Committee of CPPCC, p. 177).

In the history of China, many cities and rural areas had the custom of kicking shuttlecock, which even became a "New Year's Day" activity. For example, in the Qing Dynasty, Peking man kicked shuttlecock mostly in autumn and winter, which was regarded as "one of the pastimes in cold weather". The Chronicle of Yanjing Years Old says that kicking shuttlecock is "enough to promote blood circulation and keep out the cold". There is a nursery rhyme in Ji Sheng at the age of Emperor Jing: "Yangliuqing, an empty clock. Willow, La sudra. Yang, it's a fight. Liu died and kicked the shuttlecock. " There is a poem in "A New Day in the Sun" written by a layman in the Qing Dynasty: "Willow green and yellow, the town of Tong is like a crazy gathering every day. As soon as the empty clock is off, winter is near and there are rackets kicking around. " Whenever the willows wither and the weather is cold, kicking shuttlecock becomes lively. Chengde beyond the Great Wall has the reputation of "the hometown of kicking shuttlecock". In the past, almost every family had a shuttlecock and everyone could kick it. As soon as the new year comes, people get together and play badminton in the street. At this time, colorful butterflies are flying and seem to smell the news of spring. There was a shuttlecock kicking meeting in Guangzhou on the fifteenth day of the first month of the Qing Dynasty. According to Qu Dajun's Guangdong Xinyu, a writer in the early Qing Dynasty, during the Lantern Festival, "Wudang Five Immortals Temple kicked people during the day, and the size was large. Those who kicked big were ordinary people, while those who kicked small were expensive" (Guangdong Xinyu, Volume 9, The Story of Guangzhou Time Series). The lively shuttlecock kicking activities add icing on the cake to the Lantern Festival.

Although shuttlecock kicking is regarded as an "unpretentious skill" in history, it is healthy and interesting. More importantly, it is rooted in the Han people, so it has gained strong vitality and has been a favorite sport for thousands of years.

The Birth and Development of Modern Shuttle Movement

Began in the middle of 20th century, including shuttlecock and shuttlecock. Modern shuttlecock has been actively advocated and strongly supported by the government and all walks of life since it was launched.

By the 1980s, modern shuttlecock was rapidly popularized and widely carried out in factories, schools, institutions and institutions. With the vigorous development of shuttlecock, national and local shuttlecock organizations have been established.

Shuttlecock Kicking —— A Simple Fitness Exercise

Xia Chuanshou

First of all, shuttlecock is easy to make. Just use a small piece of cloth, wrap a copper coin and a small goose feather tube with a cross at the lower end, and sew it with needle and thread to form the base; Then insert seven or eight chicken feathers into the upper end of the uncut goose feather tube. Chicken feathers should belong to roosters. They are long, beautiful and easy to kick. There are ready-made badminton in shops or booths, but its base is often rubber, which is elastic and has poor stability after heavy kicking.

Secondly, activities are easy to carry out. It doesn't have high requirements for the site, just a small flat open space, five or six square meters, three or four square meters, and the higher the technology, the wider the requirements for the site. I only need one square meter or even stand on the bench, and I can kick dozens of times.

Secondly, there are many kinds of kicking methods. You can compare the number of times, the time of continuous kicking and the mode of kicking. Here are some common kicking methods-

First, pure comparison of kicking techniques.

One foot landed and the other kicked. The foot touching the ground can move or not (commonly known as "piling"); The kicked ball can land or not (commonly known as "hanging"), which is often used before the official start of the game. Participants can kick in turn, and the winner is the one who kicks more continuously or finishes the task first. You can also "add pagodas", that is, the first person kicks once, the second person kicks twice ... and so on until one of them kicks "death". The "dead" can "throw hair" at the "living", that is, throw the shuttlecock to others by hand until others stop kicking the shuttlecock or you receive it. The game will start again.

Second, the pattern of playing both.

The most common is "jumping", that is, when throwing shuttlecock, both feet jump at the same time and kick with one foot. You can jump continuously or jump and kick at the same time. There is also "stealing", that is, one foot touches the ground and the other foot "sneaks away" from behind; "Ring", the foot jumps, one leg bends and the other leg kicks; "Beat up", two feet jump, one leg stretches forward and the other leg kicks; "Cut", jump up with your feet, cut scissors with your legs forward, and kick the shuttlecock with one foot. In addition, you can also deliberately kick with your back foot (note: some people are left-handed, and your right foot is your back foot), or kick with your feet alternately. ...

Finally, two playing methods of children's songs are introduced.

1, Li He, crooked, across the ocean

Sing eight words and kick them eight times in turn. Among them, when singing the five syllables of "inside, outside, floating, outside and crossing", kick with your right foot, kick with your back foot inward when singing "harmony", kick with your back foot outward when singing "turn" and make a jump when singing "sea". Turn around and see who plays more.

2. A pot bottom, two pot lids, three small handles, four-toothed chopsticks, five nails, six steamed dumplings, seven orchids, eight handfuls, nine noodles and ten dozen flowers.

Sing, kick and do an action. Let the shuttlecock fall in turn: first, straight hand; Second, on the back of the straight hand; Third, there are five fingers in a small handleless wine cup; Fourth, aim at two straight fingers (Chinese food); 5. On a clenched fist; Sixth, in the palm of your hand; Seven, fingers bent and stretched out on the "blue petals"; Eight, grab the hand; Nine, upturned cheeks; Ten, hop. Those who play more are also winners.

According to Ci Hai, kicking shuttlecock "has a good effect on moving joints, strengthening ligaments, developing agility and balance". I hope interested friends will come to play, and male and female lovers are more welcome to learn from each other here.

(Originally published in China Sports Daily 1996 on June 28th)