# Straight From Shaolin ... great photos



## MA-Caver (Nov 18, 2009)

These are just wonderfully beautiful photographs of Shaolin Monks in action during training. Enjoy. :asian: 



> "Master Wu Dang", "Shaolin Temple", "Big Head", "Drunken Master", "Legend of Drunken Master," "Reservoir fist", "36 the Chamber of Shaolin" ... and this could well end today's entry. But I am afraid that not everyone remembers the days when the cassette VHS of these films could be many.
> Shaolin Temple (Chinese Shaolin si - a young forest temple) was built about 495 years for a master Buddhist Bhadry.  Administered by 28 patriarchy​ Buddhist Patriarch (ca. 525 years) monastery became a training academy.  Intense physical labor and the formation and strengthening of the spirit of nature, all monks to allow maximum control of the body. Thanks to the monks-warriors from Shaolin were and are extremely resistant to cold, heat, and asked them to shock and pain. And this is what kung fu means to achieve something through hard and persistent work
> 
> http://translate.googleusercontent.c...r6zVn8UqJKG74Q


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## Xue Sheng (Nov 18, 2009)

Say what you want about Shaolin in the 21st century...but those pictures are mighty cool. Thanks

And Believe it or not, in my younger days (MUCH younger days) I use to do stuff like he is doing in picture 17.... But people looked at me awfully strange back then...or at least more so than they do now 

Of course that was.... before... trees and I had a falling out and one tried to kill me....never trust a tree 

Thanks Caver, those are great


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## Bob Hubbard (Nov 19, 2009)

*Drools*  Awesome shots, and the quality is incredible for web shots.


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## Jenna (Nov 19, 2009)

Phenomenal piccies.. thx MA-C!  Now.. which one for my desktop pic.. decisions decisions


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## MA-Caver (Nov 19, 2009)

Jenna said:


> Phenomenal piccies.. thx MA-C!  Now.. which one for my desktop pic.. decisions decisions


How about one for each month... :uhyeah:


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## Skippy (Dec 18, 2009)

Hmmm,



I wonder when Disney is going to throw their greedy little hat into the ring & strike up a business deal with the Abbott & really get the good old money machine rolling for the Shaolin Temple? Why is it pictures like this were not coming out of the Temple say 25 to 30 years ago? ...(Hmmm, maybe it's because the Chinese Government had it on lockdown!) Anyways nice pictures but hate to tell you guys' just like Santa & the Easter Bunny are not real those people in the pictures are actors, not monks sad to say


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## Xue Sheng (Dec 18, 2009)

Skippy said:


> Hmmm,
> 
> 
> 
> I wonder when Disney is going to throw their greedy little hat into the ring & strike up a business deal with the Abbott & really get the good old money machine rolling for the Shaolin Temple? Why is it pictures like this were not coming out of the Temple say 25 to 30 years ago? ...(Hmmm, maybe it's because the Chinese Government had it on lockdown!) Anyways nice pictures but hate to tell you guys' just like Santa & the Easter Bunny are not real those people in the pictures are actors, not monks sad to say


 
Not necessarily actors, actually not likely they are actors at all if you are talking an actor like you would find in the movies but then mostly not Buddhist Monks either. They do still train at Shaolin but what they train tends to be Competition (more for show) contemporary Wushu and Sports Sanshou and some are kids looking for a way out of the countryside and into the army and they think 6 years a Shaolin is the place to start. There are also still real live Shaolin Buddhist Monks, just not the type you would have had way back when Shaolin was at its peak. But over all Shaolin is more for show today than Martial Arts or Buddhism.

Don't underestimate some of these guys coming out of Shaolin (Meaning the ones that actually train there for years) some of them can fight it is just they can't you Shaolin Kung Fu to fight, they use Sports Sanshou.


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## Skippy (Dec 19, 2009)

Xue Sheng said:


> Not necessarily actors, actually not likely they are actors at all if you are talking an actor like you would find in the movies but then mostly not Buddhist Monks either. They do still train at Shaolin but what they train tends to be Competition (more for show) contemporary Wushu and Sports Sanshou and some are kids looking for a way out of the countryside and into the army and they think 6 years a Shaolin is the place to start. There are also still real live Shaolin Buddhist Monks, just not the type you would have had way back when Shaolin was at its peak. But over all Shaolin is more for show today than Martial Arts or Buddhism.
> 
> Don't underestimate some of these guys coming out of Shaolin (Meaning the ones that actually train there for years) some of them can fight it is just they can't you Shaolin Kung Fu to fight, they use Sports Sanshou.


 

Well I've been there & believe it or not the Abbott was pretty much set up by the government. This is not just my opinion but based on fact. Yes of course there are people that dress up like monks there that can fight & I never said they couldn't but for the record they are not monks just like I'm not Frodo Baggins! The so called monks people see doing routines in shows are actually wushu performers but I do agree with you on two points #1. There are actual monks there but they are involved in the kung fu shows & #2. what people see there is for the most part for show.


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## Xue Sheng (Dec 19, 2009)

Skippy said:


> Well I've been there & believe it or not the Abbott was pretty much set up by the government. This is not just my opinion but based on fact. Yes of course there are people that dress up like monks there that can fight & I never said they couldn't but for the record they are not monks just like I'm not Frodo Baggins! The so called monks people see doing routines in shows are actually wushu performers but I do agree with you on two points #1. There are actual monks there but they are involved in the kung fu shows & #2. what people see there is for the most part for show.


 

In other words we agree


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## Skippy (Dec 19, 2009)

Not too sure where you live but I'm out here in Southern California. There are many so called Shaolin Temple schools/centers all over the Los Angeles area. Most of the so called monks that run them are mere kids & believe it or not have all been sent out here by the CEO Abbott so my point is they all come out of China's version of Las Vegas aka ... The Shaolin Temple. Most of them have pages on Myspace & Facebook & most of them also are involved in cheap #D rated Hollyweird low budget martial art flicks. The most pathetic part is they all have their little followings of wannabe monks in training ...(The same crowd that flocks to the Home Depot Center to pay homage to David Beckham & the Los Angeles Spice Boys') all decked out in their bright orange monk uniforms. It's kind of funny but at the same time also sad as Kung Fu is moving in the same direction as Taekwondo. It's all about the money.


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## Tensei85 (Dec 19, 2009)

Skippy said:


> Not too sure where you live but I'm out here in Southern California. There are many so called Shaolin Temple schools/centers all over the Los Angeles area. Most of the so called monks that run them are mere kids & believe it or not have all been sent out here by the CEO Abbott so my point is they all come out of China's version of Las Vegas aka ... The Shaolin Temple. Most of them have pages on Myspace & Facebook & most of them also are involved in cheap #D rated Hollyweird low budget martial art flicks. The most pathetic part is they all have their little followings of wannabe monks in training ...(The same crowd that flocks to the Home Depot Center to pay homage to David Beckham & the Los Angeles Spice Boys') all decked out in their bright orange monk uniforms. It's kind of funny but at the same time also sad as Kung Fu is moving in the same direction as Taekwondo. It's all about the money.


 
That may be true but there still has to be un-intelligent consumers that buy into it, in order for these Temple's to thrive. So for the record in most styles that are approached as businesses by there respected Teachers, they all utilize the name for there own benefit. Like Ip Man Wing Chun, most of us have never met or trained under Ip Man but we still utilize the name because in some part no matter how small or large a part our respected styles of Yip Man Wing Chun at one time did come from Ip Man. So we use the name it self to sell our product or in this case Gong Fu. 

It's not much different with Shaolin, though may be more of a Contemporary version (Maybe a product of People's Republic of China) it still stems its roots in Shaolin therefore trademarking the name & utilizing it for there own business transactions. This approach is nothing new especially in America. That's like what a few Shaolin Shifu's had told me, you won't find Traditional Shaolin anymore at Shaolin, in fact you may be better off going to Taiwan but thats a whole different discussion. 

And lets face it everyone wants to bust out there favorite Shaolin Monk Robes & sashes for there Halloween parties or just because it looks so Cool! Shave a head or two & finish it off with some super spiffy boots & your guaranteed to pick up all the chicks. ; )

So my point is instead of complaining that all these Temple's & or representatives are spreading b.s. we should instead try to get a general consensus built of what Traditional Shaolin is all about to the Public. 

Just my opinion, not saying your statements don't have any validity but I just wanted to add my thoughts as well.

Thanks again for your opinion it is a valuable contribution.


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## Skippy (Dec 19, 2009)

Tensei85 said:


> That may be true but there still has to be un-intelligent consumers that buy into it, in order for these Temple's to thrive. So for the record in most styles that are approached as businesses by there respected Teachers, they all utilize the name for there own benefit. Like Ip Man Wing Chun, most of us have never met or trained under Ip Man but we still utilize the name because in some part no matter how small or large a part our respected styles of Yip Man Wing Chun at one time did come from Ip Man. So we use the name it self to sell our product or in this case Gong Fu.
> 
> It's not much different with Shaolin, though may be more of a Contemporary version (Maybe a product of People's Republic of China) it still stems its roots in Shaolin therefore trademarking the name & utilizing it for there own business transactions. This approach is nothing new especially in America. That's like what a few Shaolin Shifu's had told me, you won't find Traditional Shaolin anymore at Shaolin, in fact you may be better off going to Taiwan but thats a whole different discussion.
> 
> ...


 

No problems, your opinion is just as valuable as mine.



Here in the States we live in a fastfood culture & what's unfortunate it's spread to all four corners of the globe. The only thing Shaolin about the Shaolin Temple in China is the name ... Shaolin. The last real Temple Boxing by Shaolin Monks left with those Monks starting in 1901 all the way through the 1940's when the Chinese Government was not playing very nice with anything, be it a religious order or whatever they felt was a threat to them.


The world has changed. Our lives have become so boring that we have reality shows to show us what living life is like because we are for the most part married to our jobs', careers' etc. Living to work & not working to live. Think about it. Like myself my wife is not American. When she had only been here maybe 3 months she asked me ... *Wheres all the freedom I've always heard about that is susposed to be here*? I had to tell her that freedom is just a word but that's another story.

Some of you might ask what my rant has to do with Shaolin, well it all ties into the fastfood culture I've already mentioned. Say I want to purchase  a Rolls Royce well then I want to purchase a Rolls Royce & I do not want the person selling me the car attempting to sell me a Toyota under the pretense it's a Rolls Royce. Same thing if I walk into a cafe if I order steak well then, I want steak, not hamburger! A cat's a cat & a dog's a dog. It's all about being honest. If a person cannot be honest then that person has no honor period!

I teach Shaolin Kempo & I also teach Uechi Ryu as well as White Crane & Chi Gong as well. I also am open & honest about the historic backgrounds of these arts so students understand where the arts come from, meaning the cultures & artist that created them in the first place. Noticed I've used the word honest as it's something very important & rare to find in this world as most people are anything but honest. I'm not going to take advantage of a perspective student & feed them all kinds of mumbo jumbo just to make a buck. What's going on at the Shaolin Temple & with the Starbuck like Temples being opened up all over the place is not my cup of tea with that being said they should be up front about how they are & what it is they are actually teaching that way perspective students can make an informed choice as to if they want to buy into whatever it is these Starbuck Monks peddle. I'm sure none of you folks here like to have somebody pull the wool over your eyes in an attempt to take advantage of you & that's my real point ... Honesty it's the highest form of respect we can show one another. Just something to think about as we all move through this fastfood world of ours.


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## Tensei85 (Dec 19, 2009)

For the OP, thanks for putting up the photos. Pretty cool!


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## Tensei85 (Dec 19, 2009)

Skippy said:


> No problems, your opinion is just as valuable as mine.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


 
I agree with your post but it cuts both ways, you can eliminate most of the mcdojo-ness or in this mckwoon by better research before one buys into what is being sold.

I feel that's what is truly important, as for your analogy I think the problem is that general consumers don't know the difference between a Rolls Royce as opposed to a Toyota. (Just a general term Shaolin that is associated with monks that can fly & robes w/ shaved heads) So that's where better research should come into play, not saying what they are doing is not un-ethical in some senses. 

But its nothing new under the sun. Besides everything comes from Shaolin, even the Chinese government's version of Wushu! Haha, just in case that was a bit of sarcasm not meant to reflect the actual truth, but back to the topic if people are happy with what they are buying into then the more power to them & I wish them the best in that endeavor. 

But I can understand your peeve, its something I had issues with in the past maybe not to the same extent. But again if you feel strongly about it maybe you should advocate a new consensus among consumers in America maybe by publishing articles, videos, whatever... the sky is the limit. 

Good luck,


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## Xue Sheng (Dec 21, 2009)

Skippy said:


> Not too sure where you live but I'm out here in Southern California. There are many so called Shaolin Temple schools/centers all over the Los Angeles area. Most of the so called monks that run them are mere kids & believe it or not have all been sent out here by the CEO Abbott so my point is they all come out of China's version of Las Vegas aka ... The Shaolin Temple. Most of them have pages on Myspace & Facebook & most of them also are involved in cheap #D rated Hollyweird low budget martial art flicks. The most pathetic part is they all have their little followings of wannabe monks in training ...(The same crowd that flocks to the Home Depot Center to pay homage to David Beckham & the Los Angeles Spice Boys') all decked out in their bright orange monk uniforms. It's kind of funny but at the same time also sad as Kung Fu is moving in the same direction as Taekwondo. It's all about the money.


 
I live close to the right coast as opposed to the left coast that you speak of 

There are a couple of Shaolin guys in NYC but I pay little attention to them since I am a few hours away form them. Much of Shaolin today would make a nice sub-area of the Chinese part of the world at Disneyland in Florida right next to the Chinese Acrobats.

However Shaolin is not all of kung fu and there are other styles that are still a bit closer to their roots but sadly those too, IMO, are slowly going away. Just not as fast as the Martial Arts of the Shaolin Temple. 

There are only 2 schools near me that teach something called Shaolin. One is contemporary Wushu (Shaolin Long Fist) for performance only and the other comes out of Chin Woo (Northern Shaolin) but Neither is associated with the Shaolin Temple and the second has nothing to do with Orange Robes but the first is a showman so he wears them for his videos


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