| （School of Physical Educaiton，Henan Polytechnic University，Jiaozuo 454000，China) Abstract: The author collated and analyzed the instrumental rationality of Taijiquan, which is actually the product of technological development and human rationality ideas. Taijiquan development nowadays shows intense instru-mental rationality, is an indispensible historical stage in the process of Taijiquan development, also an important support for Taijiquan to maintain its vibrant vitality. Since the Ming and Qing dynasties, Taijiquan evolved from folk martial arts needed by life, to a political tool needed by society, and lastly to the return to scientific value of instru-mental rationality. As for such an ideological evolution, its cultural intrinsic cause is Taijiquan’s keen Confucian world philosophy representation: a world sentiment that says custom will last if successful and gentlemen should never fight for anything; its historical cause is national crises in specific periods: changing from Barbarians’ har-assment to western colonists’ invasion, nation weakening and national wearing out during the Opium War, political choice of survival by fighting, the blasting fuse of Wushu improvement.
Key words: traditional national sports；Taijiquan；ideological evolution；cultural representation；instrumental rationality |
