What’s up with the all bowing and kowtowing

Many Westerners do not understand and often push against the idea of bowing to another person or teacher. When we look behind the traditional Asian greetings we come across the concepts of honour and respect. In the west people often say that respect needs to be earned. But this runs counter to the Eastern notions of respect and honour. Confucianism has been the dominant philosophical system in China for over 25 centuries. Confucius stressed “Jen” or concept of humanity or love which runs through all his teachings. Confucius urged people to strive for virtue and righteousness, to adhere to a code of conduct, and to always work towards self cultivation. Buddhism too places a high value of humanity and extends this to all life. Life itself is honoured and hence people are honoured for being… well people. In the west psychologists often say that we cannot love others until we have learnt to love ourselves. In Eastern philosophy however, the loving others is put ahead of loving yourself… and so in honouring others you honour yourself.

Honour and respect are central to the study and practice of martial arts. When we show someone respect we demonstrate that we value or honour them. We show honour and respect through the proper acknowledgement of our fellow students, and of our instructors and teachers. One of the main ways to show acknowledgement is through the formal greeting.

Place the right fist is into the palm of the left hand without striking the palm. The fingers of the left hand should be held tightly together and the finger tips point diagonally upwards. The elbows should be held up and should not be sagging. The right fist represents Yang (or active) and the left palm represents Yin (or passive). These Taoist concepts of Yin and Yang represent the unity of Yin and Yang and therefore signify respect. This is a greeting used by students and masters of Chinese martial arts across the world.

When greeting one should stand upright in formal posture with feet together, bring the hands from the sides to the centre of the chest and then extend the greeting towards the person being greeted (extending the greeting from the heart to show appreciation). To show respect while greeting, greeted each person individually. When greeting stop on the spot to put down any bags or other items in their hands. This is so that we can be present and give our full attention and respect to greeting properly.

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