Is Shaolin-Do for real?

[kwaichang]

You werent there you dont know. No marketing here if you do MA with out the "philosophical side you miss half of what is taught. If you are talking Shaolin then it originally started as a means by which the Monks could withstand the rigors of the training. As with all societies not all were violent and many did not fight to survive. Xia why do you spout off about this when all you are doing is fishing. You are missing out man. KC

[The Xia]

What Shaolin styles are you talking about? There is a long history of fighting in Shaolin based arts and not everyone that practiced Kung Fu, or Shaolin styles for that matter, was a monk. Monks are also human too. It seems that many people think that every Shaolin monk in the past was like Kwai Chang Caine. If I'm missing out on something it's this monk fetish that some people have. They can keep it. I'll stick to being grounded thank you.

[kwaichang]

The philosophical concepts of the Shaolin arts and others have alot to do with the systems them selves but many miss that aspect of the arts KC

[MasterKiller]

If you are talking Shaolin then it originally started as a means by which the Monks could withstand the rigors of the training.

Um...I don't think so. Shaolin was a rich monastary, held lots of land, and was situated in politically sensitive areas. Any martial arts they developed were to protect their assets, or to protect themselves in case they were conscripted to fight.

Your version of Shaolin comes straight of wuxia novels and poorly researched books.

[KungFu Student]

Um...I don't think so. Shaolin was a rich monastary, held lots of land, and was situated in politically sensitive areas. Any martial arts they developed were to protect their assets, or to protect themselves in case they were conscripted to fight.

Your version of Shaolin comes straight of wuxia novels and poorly researched books.

I think that I Chin Ching's were introduced to help strengthen their bodies, and as MasterKiller stated, the fighting arts were developed later to defend against bandits, protect their monastery, and to serve when conscripted.

[MasterKiller]

I think that I Chin Ching's were introduced to help strengthen their bodies.

There is no mention of ANY martial arts training at Shaolin until the 16th Century.

[KungFu Student]

There is no mention of ANY martial arts training at Shaolin until the 16th Century.

I did not specify a date, just making a statement that the fighting arts were not introduced first to help them with the rigors of monastic life.

[BoulderDawg]

the elder masters had a very serious family issue come up this year and it has changed their views on a few things. i think the schools will pass to the senior student (or the one most capable of running it) soon as the masters are spread pretty thin.

I feel for all family emergenies that come up. However no matter what happened in my family I simply could not leave my job for four months. In the real world if you service customers you simply can't say "Family emergency - I won't be around from Sept to Dec". Especially if these customers have paid for the service.

Also, passing the school to the person most qualified to take the responsiblity.......The problem with that is the person most qualified to run and teach at the school would probably not take the position.

Anyway, if the Masters are seriously considering retiring (must be nice)then they should let the present students know whats going on.

[kungfujunky]

i agree they should communicate their intentions better

[kwaichang]

Thank you psycho mantis for prooving my point, also lets not forget the teaching of HUA TO POWWWW MASTER KILLER POW KC

[BlueTravesty]

The philosophical concepts of the Shaolin arts and others have alot to do with the systems them selves but many miss that aspect of the arts KC

I think many more miss the fighting aspect. The majority of martial arts in America are trained in a very non-or-half "alive" manner. Yes MA can be spiritual, but that's still only half of it. You need the fighting aspect in order to qualify it as a martial art. If you only do one or the other though, you're still better off than someone who only does a portion of both. Who wants to be a half-baked philosopher who can do forms but can't fight?

[kwaichang]

i THINK MANY OF YOU MISS MY POINT I am saying the philosophyof CMA much like those taught to Mushashi, and thus made him a great Swordsman, until he learned the Classics as taught by the Zen Monk Takuan. This opened a new vwnue by which to train thus releasing him to strike when necessary. Those of you who think you can reach the inner "secrets" of the MA are simply fools doing something resembling the MA. That is why most martial arts worth their salt have allowed the practitioner to be released from their bondage to life. Much like the Monks of Shaolin and the Yama Bushi of Japan. KC

[The Xia]

i THINK MANY OF YOU MISS MY POINT I am saying the philosophyof CMA much like those taught to Mushashi, and thus made him a great Swordsman, until he learned the Classics as taught by the Zen Monk Takuan. This opened a new vwnue by which to train thus releasing him to strike when necessary. Those of you who think you can reach the inner "secrets" of the MA are simply fools doing something resembling the MA. That is why most martial arts worth their salt have allowed the practitioner to be released from their bondage to life. Much like the Monks of Shaolin and the Yama Bushi of Japan. KC

You seem to be hung up on the whole Shaolin monk thing. Over the years, there have been many great Kung Fu fighters that aren't monks. In fact, there are many great fighters that practiced Shaolin based styles that weren't monks. To this day, there are still great martial artists that aren't monks. Besides, if you look at the Shaolin monks of both today and the past, you'll find that they all don't fit the ideal that many people expect them to.
There are benefits from martial arts besides fighting ability. I don't deny that. But when it comes down to it, shaving your head and telling koans won’t make you a better martial artist. Training hard will. I also think that the "philosophy" that many people espouse doesn't really reflect Mo Duk anyway. I think it's mostly a hodgepodge of David Carradine-esque fantasy esotericism that many people eat up because it makes them feel cool and special.

[kwaichang]

You are right, but we are talking about the ability to understand and perform the MA and yes be a better fighter. Example : You cant always fight head on you at times have to turn and let the force flow past you or side step this is a simple example of the Taoist concept there are many more that are much more complex. I will say this and this was told to me by a great fighter "If you dont know where you are going, then you wont be a good fighter, because you are too worried about your life" KC

[MasterKiller]

Yeah yeah yeah. And Bodhidharma taught them 3 exercises so they could meditate longer and those eventually evolved into Shaolin kung fu.