Editing History of martial arts (section)

====Middle Ages====
In the [[Tang dynasty]], descriptions of [[sword dance]]s were immortalized in poems by [[Li Bai]] and [[Du Fu]]. In the Song and Yuan dynasties, xiangpu (the earliest form of [[sumo]]) contests were sponsored by the imperial courts.<ref>The ''customary [[Bowing]] of martial arts'' is thus due to the "transmission of the task or work to be carried out", in ancient times precisely for the reigning [[Empire]]</ref>

In regard to the [[Shaolin Kung Fu|Shaolin]] fighting system, the oldest evidence of Shaolin participation in combat is a stele from 728 CE that attests to two occasions: a defense of the [[Shaolin Monastery]] from bandits around 610 CE, and their subsequent role in the defeat of [[Wang Shichong]] at the [[Battle of Hulao]] in 621 CE. From the 8th to the 15th centuries, there are no extant documents that provide evidence of Shaolin participation in combat.