"Shaolin, the father of all styles of Kung fu"

Chinese proverb

"To keep the body in good health is a duty...

otherwise we shall not be able to keep

our mind strong and clear." 

Buddha

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                

 

 

 

 

 

The Shaolin way of life is about improving the physical and spiritual well being of humanity.

Shaolin has a long history and it is our intention to preserve the tradition of the style through practice and teaching to our students.

 

The Shaolin Temple was founded in 495 A. D., during the 19th Beiwei Dynasty, by Bada, a Buddhist Monk from India, who came to China in 464 to preach Buddhism. Bada’s sincerity persuaded the Buddhist Emperor, Xiaowen, to build a temple in the Shao mountain forest in the Song Mountains.

The legend says that Bodhidarma, Tamo in Chinese, went to China, from India, in 527 A. C. and, received a poor reception by Emperor Liangwu,moved across the Yangtze River to the Shaolin Temple. Instead of residing in the temple hall, he took up residence in a cave in the middle of the Five Breasts Peaks. For nine years he stayed facing the cave wall, meditating and studying. It was said that during this period Bodhidharma reached enlightenment and from it developed a new sect of Buddhism known as Chan (Zen as in Japanese) Buddhism.

Tamo, noticing that the shaolin monks were weak because of the hours sitting in meditation, started to teach Qi gong exercises that, associated to martial arts techniques to witch the monks were continuously exposed, evolved into Shaolin Kung fu.

 

Later, the Shaolin Monastery was called to help the Emperor and  When Wen-di ascended the throne during the Sui Dynasty, he granted the Shaolin Temple hundreds of Qings of rich land widely dispersed throughout China. making the templesvulnerable to bandits and peasant armies.To defend the temples, Shaolin masters and monks organized the Monk Army, thereby introducing Shaolin Gongfu to the battlefield.

 

"It was sayd that one Shaolin monk could defeat 1000 soldiers"

 

 

An other Emperor asked the Shaolin Temple for help but at the end of the fighting they too rejected the titles he offered and returned to the Temple.  The Emperor was persuaded that it was dangerous to tolerate the existence of a center of independent people with such exceptional fighting skills. He sent an army,to burn the temple.  Many monks ran to the south of China. After houndred of years of disasters, Shaolin still stands with over 380 traditional forms and over 18 kinds of weapon forms

 

 

    

 

 

 

  THE TEN SHAOLIN LAWS:

1. Required to respect the master, honour the Moral Way and love fellow disciples as brothers and sisters.

2. Required to train the Shaolin arts diligently, and as a pre-requisite, to be physically and mentally healthy.

3. Required to be filial to parents, be respectful to the elderly, and protective of the young.

4. Required to uphold righteousness, and to be both wise and courageous.

5. Forbidden to be ungrateful and unscrupulous, ignoring the Laws of man and heaven.

6. Forbidden to rape, molest, do evil, steal, rob, abduct or cheat.

7. Forbidden to associate with wicked people; forbidden to do any sorts of wickedness.

8. Forbidden to abuse power, be it official or physical; forbidden to oppress the good and bully the kind.

9. Obliged to be humane, compassionate and spread love, and to realize everlasting peace and happiness for all people.

10. Obliged to be chivalrous and generous, to nurture talents and pass on the Shaolin arts to deserving disciples.

 

   

 

      

 

     

 

 

SHAOLIN OF THE TEMPLE RANK PROGRAM

WHITE SASH PROGRAM
White sash (3 months)
BA TUAN CHIN;
LIEN BU FA;
LIEN CHUAN FA 1, 2, 3;
LIEN FANG FA;
WU BU CHUAN (First form);
BASIC KICKS;
18 FOUNDAMENTALS OF SHAOLIN (FIRST 3);

White with stripe (3 months)
ACROBATICS: HAND STAND, BRIDGE;
Y LU CHUAN (FORM N° 2);
BASIC FALLS;
18 FOUNDAMENTALS OF SHAOLIN (3-6);


ORANGE SASH PROGRAM
Orange sash (3 months)
18 BASICS OF SHAOLIN(7-11) ;
TONZI GONG EXERCISES;
ADVANCE KICKS;


Orange sash with stripe (3 months)
XIAO MA QUAN (FORM N° 4);
LO NG STAFF BASICS AND ROTATIONS;
ACROBATICS: HAND STAND-BRIDGE;


GREEN SASH PROGRAM
Green sash (3 months)
LONG STAFF 16 WUSHU FORM;
18 BASICS OF SHAOLIN (11-15);

Green sash with stripe (3 months)
SHAOLIN 5 FORMS 16 METHOD BOXING (FORM N° 3);
SHAOLIN SABER FORM;
ACROBATICS: FLIP FORWARD;

PURPLE SASH PROGRAM
Purple sash (3 months)
TOM BEI QUAN (FORM N°5);
18 BASICS OF SHAOLIN (15-18);
Combat applications

Purple sash with stripe (3 months);
Y SHUN GUN FORM (LONG STAFF FORM);
ACROBATICS: FLIP BACK;
Combat applications

BLUE SASH PROGRAM
Blue sash (3 months)
XIAO MAO QUAN (FORM N° 6);
SPEAR 16 WUSHU;
Combat applications

Blue sash with stripe (3 months)
SHAOLIN SPEAR;
SPEAR VS BROADSWORD;
Combat applications
ACROBATICS: SOMERSAULTS;

BROWN SASH PROGRAM
Brown sash (3 months)
GREAT STRAIGHT LINE FORM (FORM N° 7);
3 SECTION STAFF BASICS;

Brown sash with stripe (3 months)
3 SECTION STAFF FORM;
CUDGEL WITH 6 UNIFICATIONS;


BLACK SASH PROGRAM
Black sash (6 months)
XIAO HONG QUAN (FORM N° 8);
SHAOLIN PU DAO;
LOHAN QUAN;
SABER VS SABER;
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