Today it is difficult to find a person unfamiliar with the Shaolin Monastery. For centuries, this place has been a haven of monks trying to combine physical perfection with spiritual accomplishments. This magical place is located at the foot of Songshan Mountain, in the southwest of Beijing. Today, martial arts fans from all over the world come here to learn Wushu wisdom and to know themselves through meditation. But it was not always so. A new round in the history of the Shaolin monastery began recently, after its restoration in 1980, when the authorities decided to turn this place into a tourist center. And this idea worked - today thousands of people flock to Songshan Mountain to feel the spirit of this legendary place.
The history of the monastery
The history of Shaolin has grown with countless myths and legends, so it is difficult to say for sure when it was created. It is believed that the cult monastery was founded around the 5th century AD. The first rector was Bato. He had many students who helped lay the foundations of this legendary place. It is generally accepted that the Shaolin monk is an invincible fighter with tremendous physical power.
However, one of the legends says that Wushu did not arise immediately in the monastery near Mount Songshan. The history of Shaolin martial arts began when a Buddhist monk from India came to the territory of present-day China. His name was Bodhidharma. It was he who introduced the mandatory physical exercises for the Shaolin monks, since at the time of his appearance in the monastery they were so weak that they fell asleep during meditation. Tradition has it that Bodhidharma had a huge impact on the development of Buddhism and Chinese martial arts. Let's get to know the story of this incredible person.
Bodhidharma
The person of Bodhidharma, whom the monks called Damo, has overgrown with many beautiful legends. Today it is difficult to say what kind of person he was, but it is believed that he brought Wushu to Shaolin. Prior to his arrival, the abbots of the monastery believed that meditation was the best way to know the world and achieve enlightenment. They treated the body rather disdainfully, considering it an unfortunate obstacle to perfection. Therefore, the monks were physically weak, which prevented them from meditating for a long time.
Damo was convinced that the body and consciousness are closely interconnected, and it is impossible to achieve enlightenment without developing a physical shell. Therefore, he showed the monks a complex called the “Movement of the Hands of Eighteen Arhats”, which then turned into a Shaolin Wushu. There is a legend that once Damo sat for 9 years in a cave, contemplating a wall. After that, his legs refused to serve him, which forced Bato to create a complex for changing muscles and tendons “Damo Ijingjing”, which laid the foundations of Shaolin qigong. The methods of nurturing vitality developed from these simple exercises were so effective that they were kept secret for a long time.
Further history of the monastery
In subsequent years, the Shaolin Monastery experienced repeated ups and downs. He was burned down more than once, but he, like a phoenix, always revived from the ashes, continuing his important mission. Another of the beautiful legends associated with the son of the military commander Li Yuan. His name was Li Shimin, he led one of his father's armies. In one of the battles, his army was defeated, and he fell into the river, the turbulent waters of which carried him along the course. Fortunately, the inhabitants of the Shaolin monastery saved the man from certain death, cured and gave protection of 13 monks who protected him. It was a loyal and useful retinue, because in those days a Shaolin monk could deal with a dozen bandits who abounded in local forests.
After Li Shimin came to power, he thanked his saviors. They received land as a gift, and the rules of the Shaolin monks were changed - now they were allowed to eat meat and drink wine. This beautiful story gives an idea of what life was like in those distant times. Obviously, the monks repeatedly had to participate in battles and defend themselves against robbers, who at that turbulent time were more than stars in the sky.
Shaolin these days
Today, the Shaolin monk remains the same as hundreds of years ago. However, few people know that northern Shaolin was restored only in 1980. Before that, he lay in ruins for a long time, after it was burned in 1928, when a civil war was in full swing in China, and all power was concentrated in the hands of the militarists. Each of them wanted to own as much land as possible, without disdaining any methods.
Then came the cultural revolution, after which traditional martial arts were on the verge of destruction, and the monasteries were considered a useless relic of the past. Only in 1980 did the Chinese government realize that there was no point in destroying its cultural heritage, and the monastery was rebuilt. Today he is visited by hordes of tourists who bring good profit and contribute to the spread of Chinese culture. Also, the Shaolin Monastery performs the old function - monks study here. Today, everyone can try to become a monk in this legendary place, regardless of nationality.
Shaolin Monk Fighter
Unfortunately, these days there is such a situation that traditional wushu is not considered a martial art. Many fighters consider him dances that are not connected in any way with a real duel. And they are not far from the truth: most people who practice Wushu today are focused on the study of formal taolu complexes. Competitions are held on them, where participants show an imaginary battle, and judges evaluate their performance. Imagine how boxers enter the ring one at a time and show a shadow fight there, according to the results of which one of them is awarded a victory. Absurdity, not otherwise. But the situation with traditional Wushu is just that. Full-contact fights are practiced only in Wushu Sanda, but this is a purely sports direction.
And now, when Wushu was already written off, a man appeared who blew up the Internet with his incredible fighting skills. His name is Yi Long and he is a native of the Shaolin Monastery. He does not hesitate to fight by the rules of kickboxing with the strongest athletes of our time. People were finally able to see what a Shaolin monk can do against contact martial arts fighters.
Technological differences
Yi Long's fights against kickboxing and Muay Thai champions are interesting in that he uses a kind of technique that is unlike the usual manner of fighting athletes. The fights of the Shaolin monk are distinguished by a huge number of throws and tackles, for which modern adherents of shock martial arts were completely unprepared. Some Yi Long's fights with champions of sports martial arts looked so one-sided that for some time he was considered invincible.
But not without defeat, most of which was the result of defiant behavior of an adherent of the Shaolin Wushu. His habit of exposing his chin to the opponent’s blows, showing his superiority over him, has played against him more than once. When the Shaolin monk felt his superiority over the opponent, he simply dropped his hands and took a few clean blows to the chin. The result of such disrespectful behavior was a heavy knockout from a Thai boxing fighter.
Yi Long - a monk or just a fighter?
Of course, every martial arts fan is interested to see what a Shaolin monk can do against a boxer or karate. But the behavior of this ushuist in the ring leaves a lot of questions. Can a humble monk flaunt his superiority in such a way and show clear disrespect to his opponent? Yi Long is more like a badass from MMA than a humble Buddhist.
Be that as it may, this fighter shows the wonders of owning his body and excellent fighting skills. Perhaps his daring behavior is due to the specifics of contact martial arts, or maybe this is just a competent marketing move to foster interest in his person. The main thing - Yi Long showed that Wushu is really a serious martial art, giving real fighting skills.
