What Really Happened at the Shaolin Temple

The Real Shaolin History That Nobody Tells You!

The real Shaolin History is one of those animals that’s difficult to pin down. One reason for this is that the communist regime controls all history, and rewrites it to suit the state. Another reason is that the current history is of an oral tradition, and therefore quite open to mythicizing.

The real history starts with Bodhidharma taking the long journey to China to see the emperor. This tends to build up Bodhidharma at the expense of the emperor, and this isn’t right. The Chinese ruler, you see, was encouraging Buddhist monks to translate texts from sanskrit to Chinese.

The emperor believed that if he saw to the translation of these religious texts the general public would be enabled to study this religion. He believed this would allow him to enter nirvana. Bodhidharma told the emperor otherwise, which gained him nothing but a swift kick in the pants right out the emperor’s doors.

Bodhidharma then sought refuge at a local temple to meet up with other monks, and was turned away. The head abbot apparently thought him a trouble maker, or maybe he just didn’t want to rub elbows with somebody the emperor found wanting.

The temple he was refused entrance to was constructed in an area which had been razed, or burned down, and the emperor’s gardeners had planted new trees. Thus, the temple was named Shaolin (young forest). Nowhere to go, Bodhidharma began living in a cave.

Eventually Bodhidharma gained admittance to the temple, and legends have it that it took nine years, he bored a hole in the cave with his eyesight, he cut off his eyelids and planted them, and all sorts of other rather ludicrous legends. No one knows why he was admitted to the temple, but it was a good thing he was. The monks were in bad physical shape.

The Shaolin monks spent all their time hunched over books (scrolls, etc.) and were a sickly lot. So Bodhidharma taught them a series of movements based on hatha yoga and raja yoga. These movements were based on the 18 main animals of Chinese-Indian iconography, and this was doubtless the source of the five Shaolin animals.

This was the true origin of shaolin kung fu, though it is difficult to say when body conditioning was transformed into actual martial arts. The region was preyed upon by bandits, and it can be safely assumed that somebody whose body is in good physical condition is going to stand a better chance of survival than somebody whose body is not. At any rate this real Shaolin history has more legitimate sources than the various myths and legends which currently abound.

The Shaolin Butterfly is very true to the fighting principles of the Shaolin Temple. Check it out, and get some free martial arts books, at MonsterMartialArts.com.

The Real Shaolin History That Nobody Knows!

The real Shaolin History is one of those animals that’s difficult to pin down. One reason for this is that the communist regime controls all history, and rewrites it to suit the state. Another reason is that the current history is of an oral tradition, and therefore quite open to mythicizing.

The real history starts with Bodhidharma taking the long journey to China to see the emperor. This tends to build up Bodhidharma at the expense of the emperor, and this isn’t right. The Chinese ruler, you see, was encouraging Buddhist monks to translate texts from sanskrit to Chinese.

The emperor believed that if he saw to the translation of these religious texts the general public would be enabled to study this religion. He believed this would allow him to enter nirvana. Bodhidharma told the emperor otherwise, which gained him nothing but a swift kick in the pants right out the emperor’s doors.

Bodhidharma then sought refuge at a local temple to meet up with other monks, and was turned away. The head abbot apparently thought him a trouble maker, or maybe he just didn’t want to rub elbows with somebody the emperor found wanting.

The temple he was refused entrance to was constructed in an area which had been razed, or burned down, and the emperor’s gardeners had planted new trees. Thus, the temple was named Shaolin (young forest). Nowhere to go, Bodhidharma began living in a cave.

Eventually Bodhidharma gained admittance to the temple, and legends have it that it took nine years, he bored a hole in the cave with his eyesight, he cut off his eyelids and planted them, and all sorts of other rather ludicrous legends. No one knows why he was admitted to the temple, but it was a good thing he was. The monks were in bad physical shape.

The Shaolin monks spent all their time hunched over books (scrolls, etc.) and were a sickly lot. So Bodhidharma taught them a series of movements based on hatha yoga and raja yoga. These movements were based on the 18 main animals of Chinese-Indian iconography, and this was doubtless the source of the five Shaolin animals.

This was the true origin of shaolin kung fu, though it is difficult to say when body conditioning was transformed into actual martial arts. The region was preyed upon by bandits, and it can be safely assumed that somebody whose body is in good physical condition is going to stand a better chance of survival than somebody whose body is not. At any rate this real Shaolin history has more legitimate sources than the various myths and legends which currently abound.

Real Shaolin History means nothing if you don’t study the martial art itself. Head to Monster Martial Arts for the most efficient Shaolin Teaching in the world!

New Tai Chi Chuan Expert!

The Real Way to Do Tai Chi Chuan!

Congrats to Justin Harris!
Justin just submitted a truly spectacular video
of himself doing Five Army Tai Chi Chuan.

Now,
this is Justin’s third promotion,
which means he has two different arts
and the Master Instructor Course,
which puts him at 3rd black!
Well done Justin!

He’s getting better at the videos,
one video,
his expertise shining,
and he passed.

Once you struggle through one or two,
it starts to get easy.
Knowledge accumulates,
and it is like falling off a log.

And,
i would be remiss if I didn’t mention
a clever trick Justin utilized.

Don’t have a work out partner?
Simply film yourself teaching class.
He gathered a few people together,
and his applications
were like giving a seminar,
and he just free flowed through them,
translating the form quickly and easily.

Again,
well done,
Justin!

And,
you may have read his win
I might have posted it earlier,
or at least the trick he utilized
to help himself pick up the Five Army TCC.

Al,
Working through the fifth army of the Tai Chi form and I have to say wow. I took your advice and played the forms like a tiger, a dragon, a crane, a snake, a leopard, the whole bloody menagerie. I did the Karate forms like Tiger, Dragon and Crane. This is such a unique experience that I just had to tell you that one section of the Tai Chi course can make 20 some odd years of Tai Chi training something revolutionary. I can play all the Shaolin five animals regardless of forms and I think really that is what the Shaolin monks actually meant. Bravo Sir. Good stuff.

Justin Harris

Makes it sound easy,
doesn’t he?
Well, it is,
and it gives you deeper understanding of the motions,
and emotions,
involved in martial arts.
And you can apply this training trick
to any martial art!
Just change the motion
and emotion
of your moves
and you start to understand things.

Understanding can come from twenty or thirty years
of diehard dedicated practice,
or it can come in a few months
by simply learning how to shift your viewpoints
of the martial arts…
and of yourself.

And,
just to let you know,
one more martial art
and it is fourth black,
the first master’s level.

And you can see it happening in Justin,
the sheer joy he experiences
is written not just on his face,
but in his body motions.
And he speaks in concepts.
It’s a very interesting thing
to hear somebody speak in concepts,
the explanation is there,
you see,
but the concept is stated in a single sentence.

Well,
I could go on and on,
but I think I’ll just compliment Justin again,
and point out that it is him.
I open the door,
but he built the house,
he put in the work,
he applied his mind,
he’s the one doing it,
and I certainly encourage everybody…
do it.
Measure your life by
the education of your work.
Don’t waste it doing what others want you to do…
live life to the fullest
by doing what you want to do,
and especially if it is the martial arts,
because that is the path to the self.

Okley dokley…
here’s the link

Five Army Tai ChiChuan

Have a Tai Chi Day,
and the best work out in the world!

Al

Shaolin Kung Fu, a Faster Way to an Old Martial Art

Shaolin Kung Fu Can Be Learned Online!

Shaolin Kung Fu, the popular myth states, takes lifetimes to learn. You have to go spend three days sitting in front of the temple to be accepted for teaching. You have to undergo bizarre training rituals that will enable you to do handstands on one finger, rip the bark off of trees, break tones of concrete with your head, and…and that’s not the truth.

Those are myths spread by people who want to impress people; by TV programming like the Kung Fu series starring David Carradine.

You don’t have to go to the Shaolin Temple to learn Kung Fu…you can learn this ancient martial art online!

//

// The truth is actually quite a it more simple, yet even more powerful.

The first Shaolin Kung Fu book to hit the shores was ‘Secrets of Shaolin Temple Boxing’ by Robert W. Smith.

In that book Mr. Smith stated that Bodhidharma brought Kung Fu to the Shaolin Temple. Actually, he brought a system of calisthenics to help the dilapidated monks get strong enough to listen to his lectures without falling asleep.

The monks used this method to get stronger, and ended up defending themselves against bandits, and changed the simple calisthenic into a self defense system.

The monks realized five principles of combat (animal fighting modes), eventually expanding the five principles into 72 techniques.

So Shaolin Kung Fu shouldn’t take a lifetime to learn. It should be able to be learned within a few months.

The original Shaolin monks learned it within months; why can’t you?

The reason is that for over 2,000 years well meaning people have been adding things to the once simple system. These things have confused Shaolin Kung Fu, mushed concepts all together, put techniques out of order, and even slanted it for tournaments or other personal interest.

In Shaolin Kung Fu the five animal fighting modes have been redefined. The original five animals were the tiger, snake, crane, leopard, and dragon.

But the tiger and the leopard are similar; why should you learn two animals that ae pretty much the same?

In the system called the Shaolin Butterfly the five animals are the tiger, snake, crane, dragon, and Monkey.

Actually, the monkey has been held to be one of the original five animals by many schools of thought.

So, we have a revised and better definition of the five animal fighting modes.

Now, each of the five animals has a specific attribute; one gives strength, one gives balance, and so on.

The problem is that these attributes are mere descriptions, tactics, at best, and not real martial arts techniques.

However, if you assign a stance to each animal, you suddenly come up with the five original concepts of the Shaolin Kung Fu monks.

The tiger is aggressive, and he uses the front stance for charging.

The crane is delicate and balanced, and he uses the one legged, crane stance to achieve this.

The Dragon twines and writhes, and he uses a cross kneeling type of stance.

The snake is flexible clinging, and he uses such stances as the one legged squatting stance.

The monkey is agile, and he uses the back stance to build this agility.

Now, these are still mere approximations of techniques. But one can see how the five stances could be used to begin the animal emulation process. But, how does one expand upon these stances/characteristics into a simple list of techniques?

Well, there is only so much that can be put into an article.

But, if you really want to learn this stuff, and I mean in months instead of lifetimes ~ if you want to figure this stuff out and be able to use it in real life ~ then you’ll find another great article on Shaolin Instruction at Monster Martial arts. Or, you can take a look at the Shaolin Kung Fu Butterfly course itself.

Shaolin Kung Fu, From Hung Gar to the Butterfly

Shaolin Kung Fu Gets a New Set of Wings!

Shaolin Kung Fu is one of the oldest of the Martial Arts. It was started back about the time of Buddha, rode through many changes, and is still pertinent and powerful. The question we ask in this article is: can anything new be added to Shaolin Kung Fu?

The original Shaolin Kung Fu dates back to the time of Buddha. Buddha came to the Shaolin Temple from India and began to instruct the Shaolin Monks in sacred scripture. Unfortunately, the monks were of weak constitution. They fell asleep, they were easy pickings for bandits, they just couldn’t cut it.

Symbol of the Shaolin Butterfly

Buddha began teaching the monks traditional exercises to help strengthen them. These were chi developing exercises, and the exercises he was teaching them bears strong resemblance to martial arts exercises. Thus, the exercises slowly turned into forms and techniques that we now know as Shaolin Kung Fu. The bandits in the area around the Shaolin Temple began to finding that the monks were no longer easy pickings, began to leave the area.

Time passed, and Shaolin passed through many trials and tribulations. Emperors came and emperors went, but Shaolin persisted, and people who studied the traditional Shaolin Kung Fu lessons came to be in great demand. They would leave the temple and train people to protect themselves, train bodyguards how to fight off bandits, and even became involved in training warriors for battle.

At last, the emperor had had enough, these Shaolin Kung Fu people were causing too much trouble, and he ordered the temple burned.

Five monks manage to flee the destruction of the temple, and they began to teach martial arts on a broader scale. Some of the systems that came about as a result of these monks teachings were Hung Gar, Fut Ga, Wing Chun, and so on.

That brings us to modern times, and state of modern Shaolin Kung Fu. While the art persists in some areas, under the hands of dedicated teachers, all too often it has been transformed into tournament arts, flowery styles that mean little, and, of course, the Wu shu of the People’s Republic of China, which is not true to the original Shaolin Kung Fu, but was made up by physical education coaches after the Great Revolution, and spread for the glory of the state, and not because of a desire for understanding the spiritual teachings originally taught at the Shaolin Temple.

One of the modern styles of Shaolin, a trim and tight system that yet encompasses the majority of the original teachings, is the Shaolin Butterfly. This art holds to the original concepts, such as animal modes of fighting like the tiger, the dragon, the snake, and so on.

It is begun with a study of six basic steps, which steps take on a twining, mixing character, and which are then place upon standing bricks. Thus, the student has to keep balance, all while learning how to kick and punch, how to cling to an opponent, how to entrap and take down with a variety of locks and throws.

There is a logic to this approach, a blessing of western culture, that enhances the eastern origins, yet enables the student to learn much faster than ever before.

That is the history of Shaolin Kung Fu to the present, and while it is a rich history, it manages to avoid the degrading of the art due to influences such as tournaments, commercial interests, and so on.

Here’s a good article on Shaolin Kung Fu. If you would like to actually learn how to do this incredible art, check out the course at Monster Martial Arts.

The Real Shaolin History That Nobody Knows!

The real Shaolin History is one of those animals that’s difficult to pin down. One reason for this is that the communist regime controls all history, and rewrites it to suit the state. Another reason is that the current history is of an oral tradition, and therefore quite open to mythicizing.

The real history starts with Bodhidharma taking the long journey to China to see the emperor. This tends to build up Bodhidharma at the expense of the emperor, and this isn’t right. The Chinese ruler, you see, was encouraging Buddhist monks to translate texts from sanskrit to Chinese.


The emperor believed that if he saw to the translation of these religious texts the general public would be enabled to study this religion. He believed this would allow him to enter nirvana. Bodhidharma told the emperor otherwise, which gained him nothing but a swift kick in the pants right out the emperor’s doors.

Bodhidharma then sought refuge at a local temple to meet up with other monks, and was turned away. The head abbot apparently thought him a trouble maker, or maybe he just didn’t want to rub elbows with somebody the emperor found wanting.

The temple he was refused entrance to was constructed in an area which had been razed, or burned down, and the emperor’s gardeners had planted new trees. Thus, the temple was named Shaolin (young forest). Nowhere to go, Bodhidharma began living in a cave.

Eventually Bodhidharma gained admittance to the temple, and legends have it that it took nine years, he bored a hole in the cave with his eyesight, he cut off his eyelids and planted them, and all sorts of other rather ludicrous legends. No one knows why he was admitted to the temple, but it was a good thing he was. The monks were in bad physical shape.

The Shaolin monks spent all their time hunched over books (scrolls, etc.) and were a sickly lot. So Bodhidharma taught them a series of movements based on hatha yoga and raja yoga. These movements were based on the 18 main animals of Chinese-Indian iconography, and this was doubtless the source of the five Shaolin animals.

This was the true origin of shaolin kung fu, though it is difficult to say when body conditioning was transformed into actual martial arts. The region was preyed upon by bandits, and it can be safely assumed that somebody whose body is in good physical condition is going to stand a better chance of survival than somebody whose body is not. At any rate this real Shaolin history has more legitimate sources than the various myths and legends which currently abound.

Real Shaolin History means nothing if you don’t study the martial art itself. Head to Monster Martial Arts for the most efficient Shaolin Teaching in the world!