Physical fitness was prized in traditional Hindu thought, with cultivation of the body (dehvada) seen as one path to full self-realization.[2][3]Buddhist universities such as Nalanda taught various forms of physical culture, such as swimming and archery,[4] with Buddha himself having been well-acquainted with martial activities prior to his enlightenment.[5]Gurukulas focused significantly on physical education alongside academics, with Hindu epics such as the Ramayana often depicting kings marrying off their daughters to men who excelled in athletic events.[6]
A variety of ball games and war-training activities were present in ancient India,[7][8][9] with both men and women participating.[5] The traditional Indian physical culture generally used little to no equipment.[10]Ayurvedic medical treatises such as the Charaka Samhita and the Sushruta Samhita emphasized exercise as a way of avoiding conditions such as diabetes, and prescribed exercise in accordance with the seasons.[11][12] Some specialist communities were known for their acrobatic performances, such as dancing on bamboo.[13]
Hunting for recreation was common through Indian history, and was partaken in by royals; it was done for a variety of reasons, such as proving manliness, for religious purposes, or simply for thrill-seeking purposes.[14][15][16] The emphasis on hunting coincided with an overall view of the forest as being an area to be conquered and used by the state, which resulted in conflict between kingdoms and forest-dwellers.[16][17][18] Though Hindu scriptures warned against excessive hunting of animals,[15] by the end of the colonial era, some animal species had been hunted to extinction, such as cheetahs.[19] Other exercises done with animals included provoking intoxicated elephants for the purpose of building strength by maneuvering around them and escaping their wrath.[20]
Medieval era
Wrestling was common in Mughal India, with even the loser of a wrestling bout being awarded some money in order to avoid discouragement.[21]Pehlwani emerged as a fusion of Persian and native Indian wrestling traditions during this time.[22]
Kodi Rammurthy Naidu was a famous colonial-era strongman who helped counter British accusations of effeminacy among Indian men.[23]
During the colonial era, Indians felt emasculated by the British,[24] who had disarmed and demilitarized Indian society throughout the 19th century.[25] The poverty and starvation of the era reduced Indians' ability to participate in physical exercise.[26] Bengalis became particularly involved in seeking to combat British stereotypes of effeteness by pursuing physical culture and martial arts,[27][28][29] with organizations such as the Hindu Mela contributing.[30]
Influences from Western physical culture became prevalent in India, as mediated through influences from groups such as the YMCA,[31] as Indians sought to benefit from the scientific nature and European nationalistic vigor present in Western schools of thought surrounding physical culture at the time.[32][33] The British sought to impose their standards of physical discipline onto Indians, while discouraging traditional Indian games and negatively depicting Indian physiques.[34] The British also used hunting as a way to establish imperial dominance and protect Indians from attacks by wild animals.[35][36][37]
Indians used victory in sport as a method of proving themselves against the colonizer.[38] Indians also sought to standardize and revitalize their native physical culture during this time period, with institutions such as the akharas and vyayamshalas playing a role.[39][40]
Cricket, a British sport introduced into India during the colonial era,[41] has emerged as a major aspect of modern-day India, with success in World Cups and the emergence of the Indian Premier League influencing society.[42]
In 2023, cricket star MS Dhoni invested in a company called Tagda Raho (transl. "stay strong"), which is seeking to revive traditional Indian workouts and which has received significant interest from different groups in the cricket world.[43]
The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) has encouraged loyalty to India as a Hindu country in its followers through the practice of traditional Indian physical culture.[44]
In the colonial era, gyms and other physical culture institutions helped freedom fighters build their strength towards anti-colonial resistance.[45] In the modern era, some communal violence has been linked to Hindu movements that use physical culture to become more organized and strong.[46]
Dhanurveda describes the practices and uses of archery, bow- and arrow-making, military training, and rules of engagement. The treatise discusses martial arts in relation to the training of warriors, charioteers, cavalry, elephant warriors, infantry etc. It was considered a sin to shoot a warrior in the back and to fight more than one warrior at a time. The bow used in the Vedic period were called danush, and were described in detail in the Vedas. The curved shape of the bow is called vakra in Artha Veda. The bowstring was called jya, and was strung only when needed. An arrow was called an iṣu, and a quiver was called an iṣudhi.[49]
Wrestling has been popular in India since ancient times, it was mainly an exercise to stay physically fit. The wrestlers, traditionally, use to wear a loincloth, langota. In Ancient India, wrestling was most famously known as Malla-yuddha. One of the protagonists of the Mahabharata, Bhima, was considered to be a great wrestler of his time, with some of his contemporaries including Karna, Jarasandha, Kichaka, and Balarama. The other prominent Indian epic, the Ramayana, also mentions wrestling in India and Hanuman is described as one of the greatest wrestlers of his time.
During the reign of Mughal Empire, who were of Turko-Mongol descent, the influence of Iranian and Mongolian wrestling were incorporated to the local Malla-yuddha to form the modern Pehlwani, wrestling style popular throughout India, Pakistan and Bangladesh in modern times.[50]
Wrestling in India is also known as Dangal, and it is the basic form of a wrestling tournament. It is also called kushti in Punjab and Haryana. The wrestling in Punjab and Haryana will take place in a circular court with soft ground which in Punjabi is called an "akharha". Two wrestlers will continue to wrestle until the back of one touches the ground. The winner will parade the court with the loser following him.[10] The wrestlers are called Pehlwans who train with modern weights and traditional weights such as a Gada (mace). The aim of kushti is to wrestle the opponent and to block the other player.
The Hindu push-up, also known as a dand. This is the most basic version, similar to that used by Bruce Lee who referred to it as a cat stretch.
The most basic form of Hindu push-up starts from the downward dogyoga position (hands and feet on the floor with the posterior raised) and transitions to an upward dog position (hands and feet on the floor with the torso arched forwards and the legs close to the floor). It is also known as a dand, and is still widely known by this title especially in India where it originated from. It is a common exercise in Indian physical culture and martial arts, particularly Pehlwani.[51][52] The famous martial artist Bruce Lee also used it in his training regime and referred to it as a cat stretch,[53] influenced by The Great Gama.[54] It is an effective core strength exercise because it dynamically involves both the anterior and posterior chains in a harmonious fashion. There are numerous variations of the Hindu push-up although most incorporate the two postures used in the most basic version. It may also be known as a Hanuman push up, judo push up, or dive-bomber push-up.
A baithak, also known as a Hindu squat or a deep knee bend on toes, is performed without additional weight and body weight placed on the forefeet and toes with the heels raised throughout; during the movement, the knees track far past the toes. The baithak was a staple exercise of ancient Indian wrestlers. It was also used by Bruce Lee in his training regime.[55] It may also be performed with the hands resting on an upturned club or the back of a chair.
The gada is one of the traditional pieces of training equipment in Hindu physical culture, and is common in the akhara of north India. Maces of various weights and heights are used depending on the strength and skill level of the practitioner. It is believed that Lord Hanuman's gada was the largest amongst all the gadas in the world. For training purposes, one or two wooden gada (mudgar) are swung behind the back in several different ways and is particularly useful for building grip strength and shoulder endurance. The Great Gama was known for extensive use of gada. Winners in a kushti contest are often awarded with a gada.[citation needed]
A pair of painted Indian clubs from the late 19th century as used in rhythmic gymnastics.Indian clubs, or meels, are a type of exercise equipment used to present resistance in movement to develop strength and mobility. They consist of juggling-club shaped wooden clubs of varying sizes and weights, which are swung in certain patterns as part of a strength exercise program. They can range in weight from a few pounds each to special clubs that can weigh as much as up to 100 pounds. They were used in carefully choreographed routines in which the clubs were swung in unison by a group of exercisers, led by an instructor, the way it is still practiced in Varzesh-e Bastani in Iran and similar to 21st-century aerobics or zumba classes. The routines would vary according to the group's ability along with the weights of the clubs being used. When the 19th-century British colonists came across exercising clubs in India, they named them Indian clubs.
^Mujumdar, Dattatraya Chintaman, ed. (1950). Encyclopedia of Indian Physical Culture: A Comprehensive Survey of the Physical Education in India, Profusely Illustrating Various Activities of Physical Culture, Games, Exercises, Etc., as Handed Over to Us from Our Fore-fathers and Practised in India. Good Companions. p. 296. OCLC14652803.
^Mujumdar, Dattatraya Chintaman, ed. (1950). Encyclopedia of Indian Physical Culture: A Comprehensive Survey of the Physical Education in India, Profusely Illustrating Various Activities of Physical Culture, Games, Exercises, Etc., as Handed Over to Us from Our Fore-fathers and Practised in India. Good Companions. p. 22. OCLC14652803.
^Rosselli, John (1980). "The Self-Image of Effeteness: Physical Education and Nationalism in Nineteenth-Century Bengal". Past & Present (86): 121–148. doi:10.1093/past/86.1.121. JSTOR650742. PMID11615074.
^Topdar, Sudipa (April 2017). "The Corporeal Empire: Physical Education and Politicising Children's Bodies in Late Colonial Bengal". Gender & History. 29 (1): 176–197. doi:10.1111/1468-0424.12259.
^Chowdhury Sengupta, Indira (1993). Colonialism and cultural identity : The making of a Hindu discourse, Bengal 1867-1905 (Thesis). doi:10.25501/SOAS.00028888.[page needed]
^Fischer-Tiné, Harald (March 2019). "Fitness for Modernity? The YMCA and physical-education schemes in late-colonial South Asia (circa 1900–40)". Modern Asian Studies. 53 (2): 512–559. doi:10.1017/S0026749X17000300.
^Watt, Carey (2021). "Physical culture and the body in colonial India, c.1800–1947". Routledge Handbook of the History of Colonialism in South Asia. pp. 345–358. doi:10.4324/9780429431012-33. ISBN978-0-429-43101-2.
^Mani, Fiona (May 2012). Guns and shikaris: The rise of the sahib's hunting ethos and the fall of the subaltern poacher in British India, 1750-1947 (Thesis). doi:10.33915/etd.594.[page needed]
^Mandala, Vijaya Ramadas (13 December 2018). "Hunting as 'Sport' in Colonial India: Codes of Sportsmanship, Firearms, Race, and Class in Hunting". Shooting a Tiger: 161–219. doi:10.1093/oso/9780199489381.003.0004.
^Maddox, Callie Elizabeth (2012). Postcolonial play: Encounters with sport and physical culture in contemporary India (Thesis). ProQuest1314798814.[page needed]
^McDonald, Ian (December 1999). "'PHYSIOLOGICAL PATRIOTS'?: The Politics of Physical Culture and Hindu Nationalism in India". International Review for the Sociology of Sport. 34 (4): 343–358. doi:10.1177/101269099034004003.
^Heffernan, Conor (5 July 2016). Indian club swinging in nineteenth and twentieth-century India and England (Thesis). Faculty of History, University of Cambridge. doi:10.17863/CAM.7166.[page needed]
^Burtt, Jon (2010). Mallakhamb: An investigation into the Indian physical practice of rope and pole Mallakhamb (Thesis). p. 32. In the 16th century, another northern wrestling influence was brought to the Indian sub-continent by the Persian Mughals. This practice combined with the indigenous form to create the pehlwani wrestling style popular throughout India, Pakistan and Bangladesh today.
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