CHAN WU  YI

Shi Ji (Reality)

Thirteen warrior monks fought valiantly with wooden staffs and defeated an entire army!

Such is the legendary history of the Shaolin Temple. The narrative states that to express his gratitude the emperor assigned the Shaolin Temple as the ‘Supreme Temple’ status. It is this history of the monastery that the current abbot Shi Yongxin has endeavored to re claim. After nearly twenty years of dedicated efforts this unusual young monk from modest background has made the Chinese government recognize the Shaolin Temple as a heritage sight. 

‘It is more than just a building, it the spirit (reality)that propels it forward.’

Shi Yongxin

Shaolin Temple

Much of the history of the monastery is intertwined with its myth. Shaolin Temple was the first established in the 19th year of the Taihe reign of the North Wei Dynasty (495 AD) to house the Indian monk bhadra. Thirty-two years later, another Indian monk Bodhidharma, who was known as the twenty-eight Buddhist patriarch, came to Shaolin to teach the Ch’an Meditation Technique of the Mahayana school. Shaolin has since then been recognized as the ancestral monastery of Ch’an Buddhism.

Bodhidharma ( Da Mo )

It is believed that he was the son of the King of Kanicipura from a small tribe from the South of India. The place he was born in is famous for the Indian martial arts of Kalaripayattu. He was brought up to be a ruler and much later came in contact with his teacher Prajnatara who was the 27th Buddha after Mahakasyapa, the first disciple of Sakyamuni Buddha. Here in he began his spiritual journey. It was on his bidding that he left for China.

Once he reached China, it is said that Da Mo sat in meditation for nine years in a cave, near the Shaolin Temple. This cave can still be visited and is simply know as 'Damo Tong', which means Damo's cave. When he surfaced from his meditative state he went to the Shaolin Temple and actively participated in the daily routines of the monks.

He introduced the exercises of Raja Yoga and Prajna Yoga to the monks. As Dhyana featured long and quiet sitting, the monks took up exercising (Wushu) to limber up their bodies after meditation. The exercises Damo taught them can be seen as the fundaments of the martial arts, for which the Shaolin temple grew to be famous for. He is also acknowledged as the writer and creator of two manuscripts titled Yi Jin Jing and Xi Sui Jing. In the text of Yi Jin Jing you can find 18 exercises of Luohan. The exercises noted, in detail, in these books are static and rhythmical postures. He combined these with fighting techniques and the results were far reaching.

Till date the methodology practiced for conditioning different body parts are derived from these texts. Amongst these to name a few are Iron Palm, Iron Body and Iron Head technique.