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Archery Open sheds light on ancient culture
By:Wu Qiong   |  From:english.eastday.com  |  2019-11-26 16:37

As an annual sports event for the common citizens, the Shanghai Amateurs Games 2019 is in full swing for the entire month. Except for modern sports, ancient Chinese culture is also being shed light on and has become a new highlight of the event.

At the Archery Open Tournament of this year’s Shanghai Amateurs Games, which took place on November 23, the ancient game attracted many participants due to its zero threshold for competition. Dressed up in Han costumes, people wielding ancient Chinese bows seemed to time travel to the olden times.

Shen Yilei is a contestant of the Archery Open Tournament. He also volunteered to introduce Han costume culture to the others on the field. “I’ve liked Han costumes since my school days. Through the traditional competition, I hope more people can pay heed to the sport and understand this traditional costume culture.”

Besides doing archery, people could enjoy a tea ceremony or read classic books, to have an immersive experience of the ancient literati’s cultivated lifestyle.

Archery is one of the six arts of ancient China. During the Zhou Dynasty (1046–256 BC), students were required to master the Six Arts (“liu yi” 六艺 in Chinese), which included rituals (礼), music (乐), archery (射), chariot racing (御), writing (书) and mathematics (数). In modern times, archery is a good way to release pressure, nourish one’s mind and gain peace. What fascinates people about the sport today are the wisdom, concentration and perseverance it requires. It is also a process to learn traditional Chinese culture. To experience the distinctive culture of archery, people sometimes even ride horses while wearing Han clothes in the wild and shooting arrows. The scene reminds them of the era when chivalrous people lived to the pleasure of their own tune, daring to love and hate.


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