Shaolin Special 2003

[GeneChing]

For Subscribers, we shipped out to you late last week. You should be receiving your issue very soon.

For Newsstand, expect to see it onstand in two weeks.

For the rest of you, order here

I will be very eager to hear your response to this issue on this forum.

[wall]

OUCH!! Just tried to order but it charges me $3 for the mag and $27 for shipping!! Ok, I'm in Italy, but $27 to ship a mag? I send whole packs of photos and mags to friends in the US for about $12 shipping, air mail (1 week approx).....

Gene, in the past I've see the mag around Milano, Italy, in some international bookstores and such: any chance you have the list of who sells it here, and when will they get their copies?

Thanks heaps!!

Wall

[norther practitioner]

I'm looking foward to getting it.

[GeneChing]

Unfortunately, our shipping is set up for gear, not for magazines, so it's pretty high for internationals because its labor intensive here. And even more unfortunately, we don't know anything about where our foreign distributors place us. They just order a bunch. Foreign magazine distribution is really weird. But FWIW, we couldn't evenpublish a list of our outlets anywhere, because it's so subject to change that it wouldn't be meaningful. I hope you can find an issue in Italy. Best of luck and do let us know if you suceed.

[Vash]

I want one! I want one!

[GeneChing]

You'll have to give me your reactions after you get one and read it through. This one is a bit more penetrating then any of the past specials.

[Vash]

I hope so

As cool as the cover was, the T'ai Chi in-depther kinda bored the bejeesus outta me. No offence to the taijiquan players out there, but dang. Hats?

Now, this Shaolin stuff oughta be good. Them darn monks with their "Hai-Yaws" and "Kung Fu Grips" and stuff.

The cover looks cool, too.

Soon as Wal-Mart gets them jokers in down this way, it's gonna be MINE!

30 Minutes till I fail a history test! Yay!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Judge Pen]

Great! I just subscribed to the magazine, and just in time!

[GeneChing]

...and the cover story, although without the Chinese characters. Enjoy!

[canglong]

Shaolin wing chun

[ngokfei]

Hey got it yesterday in a Borders here in GA.

Nice addition to the shaolin collection. Really should be called Gene's Shaolin Adventure since you wrote I think 8 of the articles.

Some insightful stuff on the development that Shaolin is taking to reclaim its place as a "Traditional Temple oh and yes teach traditional MA as well".

Hey gene, do you plan to do indpeth biographies on the top 10, 18 etc.? Or (I presume you taped it) the various performances at that conference of traditional artist. Be interest to see.

Besideds all the politicing articles there are only 2 with actual info on the style and training methods: Guo Lin's The Wisdom of Our Ancestors/The wWay of Shaolin Kung Fu Training and Shi Xing Hao and Dieter Wagner's "The Roof of Shaolin's True Power".

Gene: not to stir up things but who elected Yong Xin as Abbot. I think you said there reallybeen only three for the last 3 1/2 centuries. Guess this has to do with getting all of the parties together to research and recognize a potential candidate. Do you know what the requirements are in order to hold an election?
As I see it really has to do with politicing just like in any organization.

All in all a great issue, hats off.

eric

[GeneChing]

Yeah, I did do a lot, but I felt I had to hit some of the research that was really fresh like the Abbot interview, the Symposium, the relocation, Dengfeng today and the new compulsories. Plus I've always wanted to present the top three masters together so people could see the folk treasures. Everything is moving to Dengfeng where martial arts is concerned, so I directed a lot of my energies to that. Forgive my indulgence.

I do not plan to do the Shaolin top ten or the 18's. I may do a few more of them, but it's too many and I have other stuff I'd rahter present. I still have over half a dozen other interviews with different Shaolin masters that I didn't get to for this issue.
I intentionally invited all the monks to present technical articles. Only Guolin, Lipeng and Xinghao came in before deadline. Hopefully we'll get more next time.

I covered some of the requirements of Abbacy and the process of becoming Abbot in my previous interview with Yongxin in our 2000 Shaolin Special. A lot of it is internal though - it is a temple after all.


See Vash? hats 'r cool.

[ngokfei]

ohyeah that car/corvette looks kind of weird.

But again I've attended quite a few chinese funerals and they burn many mock up items like cars, houses, watches, computers, sneakers, cell phones, etc. Something to do with having these items in the after world...

I've do hve to find time to get to shaolin again. I was there in 1988 and boy was it a slum. But hey that brought out the intrigue into the falling down buildings, etc. Now with a guided service I think it will be better because I didn't know anything about the temple since I couldn't really communicate too well except pointing for food and finding the toilet.

Gene: This service from that travel agency. Do they set up private tours with a translator. Want to meet some specific teachers in various provinces and will need a translator, etc.

eric

[GeneChing]

True, their are many unusual afterlife offerings at funerals - hell notes are no hell cell phones, hell atm cards, all sorts of stuff. But that is more a southern China thing. Also, the pagoda forest is a major archeological treasure. A lot of people don't realize what a spectacular collection it is. Of course, a lot of martial artists don't know squat about chinese culture, much less ancient calligraphy and stupas. So Suxi's stupa is pretty harsh there, at least for some.

As for CITS, I'm sure they could set you up. Are you planning to go alone or with a group? If you're going solo, I'd avoid them except for in Dengfeng. I can only really speak for the Dengfeng branch personally, but they've always done well by me. You can read more about CITS in a China Lonely Planet Guide. Some branches have rather poor reputations for ripping tourist off, particularly the Beijing branch, but I've only had really positive experiences with the Dengfeng branch.

[jun_erh]

he should join 50 more commitees THEN i'll accept him. nice article