ALL THE CHI IN MARTIAL ARTS
My concept of martial arts was turned on its head.
Buddhist monks, who are some of the fiercest warriors in the world?.
with a long, colorful history of heroic roles in major wars centuries ago.
Transported, or was it teleported, up the ever-steepening mountain road to the famous Shaolin Temple, established over 1,500 years ago on the slopes of Mount Song, one of China's five sacred mountains. Yensoon pointed into the far distance, where I could see numerous caves carved into a rugged mountain face where Taoist hermits had retreated centuries ago to immerse themselves in contemplation and meditation.
I entered the Temple, one of the most important Buddhist temples, known for its' unique balance of Shaolin Kung Fu and Buddhist practices, paying respects to, and slightly intimidated by, the statues of the two giant, fierce warrior deities protecting it.
'Skanda and Wei Tuo' represented the temple's connection to martial arts, and its commitment to preserving the virtues of bravery, and dedication to the path of enlightenment of Buddhist teachings. Strength and grace intertwined, warriors with hearts rooted in enlightenment. A sanctuary not just of stone and timber, but of spirit and tradition, where Shaolin Kung Fu and Buddhist philosophy dance in perfect harmony.
Giant Cyprus trees, centuries old, surrounded the grounds.
There are seven main halls along its axis, with seven other halls arranged around them. Again, many of the buildings are crafted from timber and stone with red-painted exteriors with green accents. These include the Gate of the Temple, the Bell and Drum towers, the Heavenly King Hall, the Dharma Hall, the Abbot’s Room, the Mahavira Hall, and the Sutra-Keeping Pavilion. The largest building is the Thousand Buddhas Hall, which is decorated with exquisite, well-preserved murals.
With Master Cheng's 'insider knowledge', we were 'privy' to some inner knowledge of the Temple. We paused in front of the statue of a very formidable-looking monk. Have you heard of 'Zen' or 'Chen' Buddhism? Master Chen suddenly asked? I had heard of it, but knew very little, thinking it was of Japanese origin.
Master Chen gave a warm smile as he told me how Bodhidharma, an Indian Buddhist monk, had been instructed by his teacher to go on a mission to China to teach Yogic concentration. Around 520 A.D., he crossed the ocean to eventually reach the Shaolin Temple.
However, on arrival at the Temple, he was refused entry, and so he entered a small cave high above the Temple.
Legend has it that Bodhidharma sat in deep meditation on the wall of the cave for 9 years.
In the last year, he cut off his eyelids to prevent himself from falling asleep, and his meditation was so intense that his image was burned into the wall, almost like an X-ray.
"The Zen Buddhism is as tranquil as still water,
while the martial art is as fierce as fire.
How could the water and fire be
integrated in perfect harmony.
This is an eternal riddle Bodhidharma left to us."
In one of the courtyards, there is a huge display of meticulously crafted statues. Many statues illustrate some of the history of the Temple, including the battles they featured in, while others are sculpted perfectly to demonstrate many of the kung fu postures to be used as 'teachers' for the monks in replicating and perfecting their form in traditional martial arts stances or training postures.
Through direct insights in his meditation, he became the first patriarch of Zen, the Cha'an or meditation sect of Chinese Buddhism... a stripped-down meditation verified by personal experience, not doctrine, but passed from master to disciple,
hand-to-hand, through hard, intimate training.
"A special transmission outside the scriptures.
No dependency on words and letters.
Pointing directly to the human mind.
Seeing into one’s nature and attaining Buddhahood."
After nine years, he was invited into the Temple and saw how the monks 'non-action' negatively affected their physical well-being. The monks needed to learn how to fight for protection against marauding bandits and wild animals. He taught them exercises to connect the internal and external energy to develop internal, external strength, and agility.
Some of the Indian yoga practices some based on the fluid movement of animals, including the tiger, deer, snake, and leopard. Using these principles and practices, they evolved Shaolin Martial Arts into the form of the martial arts of modern China.
Deep depressions in the cobbled floor of the Hall of a Thousand Buddhas, the Training Hall, were created by monks over hundreds of years, pounding the floor with such energy in their practices that it wore the floor down. Standing in these imprints, I felt they were symbolic of the impression Shaolin Martial Arts leave on the world.
Master Cheng took us aside and pointed to a stone carving of a face, which is often overlooked by most visitors.
At first glance, it looked like a carving of the Buddha.
“This is the Buddha obviously” he said. Then he placed one hand over the Buddha's face and another over one side of the body, he said “This Lao Tzu” and I could see a profile emerge, and then putting his hand over the other side said “This is Confucious”, both sides looked quite different to each other, but when viewed as a whole formed a complete balanced 'one', a hidden message showing the how Bodhidharma fused China’s three major spiritual, philosophical traditions – Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism – into Zen, or Ch’an.
We walked a half-kilometer through a wooded path to the Pagoda Forest. Along the way, I was able to put my finger into the deep poke marks on the trunks of 1000-year-old Ginkgo trees and ancient pine trees left by monks practicing finger punching the trunks to build callouses on their knuckles. I didn't try it. This is where the monks also hang by their necks from tree branches to make their 'necks of steel'. I instantly decided not to try that, too.
The Pagoda Forest is literally a forest of Pagodas, a really beautiful, tranquil place where nearly 250 Masters and Abbots of the Temple rest in eternal peace. There are nearly 250 stone and brick pagodas like headstones ranging from the Tang, Song, Jin, Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties (618-1911 )
In this incredible setting, I reflected on the knowledge and compassion interred here and absorbed the strong chi permeating the atmosphere.
The iron shirt”, “the iron crutch”, “the iron head “
the man of steel really exists through the practice of martial arts.
The power to walk on fire, burning coals, spiky nails,
sleeping on a spiky bed, being buried underground or under the water,
having a steel bar passed through the arm without pain,
or the tongue speared by a hanger.”
We could have spent many more days further exploring Shaolin Temple.