It wasn't all vacation. I worked over Labor Day going as a witness for Dr. Yang Jwing Ming's discipleship ceremony. Figures Gigi would call that vacation.
After that I went to Disneyland.
Toronto documentary gets real about kung fu dream
TORONTO (Reuters) – They went to kick butt and gain enlightenment, but what the men in new documentary "The Real Shaolin" found in China was loneliness, pain, bad food and angry kung fu teachers.
For aspiring martial artists, movies about kung fu fighting are the stuff of which screen legends are made. The stars' names are well-known: Bruce Lee, Jet Li and Jackie Chan.
But the reality, as told in "Real Shaolin" which debuts at the Toronto International Film Festival this week, has little to do with flying fists and more with hard work.
"The difference between movies and the reality I try to show is that in the movies when they experience hardship, it's romanticized," director Alexander Sebastien Lee told Reuters.
"In China if you go to a master and tell them I want to learn to beat someone up and kill somebody they'll tell you to go somewhere else," he added.
"Real Shaolin" follows two Chinese and two Westerners who journey to the Shaolin Temple in central Henan province, inspired by the mythical feats from film heroes Li and others.
Glorified images of warrior monks effortlessly breaking spears with their throats and withstanding brutal body blows inspire many to learn the deadly art form at its birthplace.
A Korean-American, Lee decided to make his documentary after venturing to Shaolin to see if he could survive the excruciating training. Lee, 29, a black-belt in tae kwon do and a first-time director who wrote, produced and shot the film, found something else.
Since hardly anyone actually studies kung fu at the Shaolin Temple (it is mostly a tourist attraction now after surviving 1,500 years of wars and revolutions), Lee follows the four students in the nearby rural city of Dengfeng, dubbed "Kung Fu City" for its 40,000 students and 100 martial arts academies.
He spent about 18 months filming two Chinese, Yuan Peng and Zhu Hao Shan, American Orion Lee and Frenchman Eric Guillou, as they spent 8 to 10 hours-a-day kicking, punching stretching, and just as important praying and meditating.
But their initial excitement and dreams -- Eric wants to become the first non-Chinese Shaolin monk -- are tempered with squalid living conditions, isolation and not always training with strong rivals but with children.
"I was almost mystified by the kung fu warriors, by the Shaolin monks, training in the mountains and being in this beautiful temple where people have dedicated their entire lives to the pursuit of kung fu and Buddhism," said Orion Lee, a blond-haired and blue-eyed man from Connecticut, who was just 19-years-old when the documentary was filmed.
"The lesson I learned was really to appreciate everything you have and everything that you stand to lose."
For the two Chinese subjects, one 9-year-old Yuan Peng who was abandoned by his parents at the Shaolin Temple, their path is equally trying but it can transform their lives.
Martial artists in China can hope to escape poverty with a career as a policeman, soldier, kung fu coach or bodyguard -- and if they're really lucky, a chance to work in the movies.
Gene Ching
Publisher www.KungFuMagazine.com
Author of Shaolin Trips
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shaolin do not perform for money... wonder who does...
come on guy's... where's your sense of perception and observation of the fine details? as martial artists, ones mind must compensate for physical losses in the event of a confrontation... the ability to discern fine details and subtle deviations of energy should be second nature. all i did was simply scramble the same words from the original response... thats all. awareness is the key...
there is a difference between
Aoccdrnig to rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoetnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be at the rghit pclae. The rset can be a toatl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit a porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe.
and pure babble.
Uki is correct. There is no real Shaolin left in China. Most of the temple priests had left China even before the communists took over. In 1933 the communists, though not in power yet, burned and looted the remaining temples. The remaining monks and priests scattered, some to Hong Kong, but most to North America.
Those who have been to Honan, including myself and distinguished masters such as Jon Funk can attest there is no evidence of a single genuine Kung Fu style being taught today. The communists replaced Kung Fu with Wu Shu, which de emphasizes the martial aspects. Wu Shu can best be described as a combination of dance and aerobics. It looks good, is difficult and can give you a real work out, but it is not Kung Fu. It is lacking in chi development among other things.
The communists have reinstituted many of the traditional temples, filling them with actors and aerobats in order to draw tourists and hard cash. They continue to suppress Buddhism - and remember Shaolin is a form of Chuan Buddhism sprinkled with Taoism. Don't believe me, then take a look at what's happening in Tibet to the Buddhist monks and priests. Or consider this. Would a true disciple of Shaolin, or Buddhism for that matter, perform for money? Monks are taught to divulge themselves from worldly possessions and to carry a begging bowl. Would they sell "Shaolin Cola" at a religious temple? Would you ever see a monk or priest at a traditional Shaolin Temple smoking a cigarette? You'll find all of this and more at the newly reconstituted Communist Tourist Trap at Honan that masks as a Shaolin temple.
Go in peace and stay true to the faith.
Bok
May Peace Be With You
I think that's what Lueb is saying. IE: You are unaware if you think there isn't any buddhism or wu seng at the shaolin temple in spite of the tourism. the world is not so black and white as it's made out to be and certainly Shaolin temple is not either.
Notre Dame cathedral in Paris for instance is a working Religious center. But it is filled with Tourists daily. It doesn't stop religious observance and mass and teaching from occurring there. Commercialism doesn't stop the esoteric practices at Shaolin either.
the only thing I would say is that it is not necessary to go all the way to shaolin to learn good kungfu. I guess that's what the folks who go there learn as well.
Kung Fu is good for you.
i think you are in denial... the truth of this fact is because this magazine operates most entirely on the belief that there is infact real shaolin in the china temples... imagine what this place would turn into once the truth comes out... talk about being hoodwinked.
hahaha... religion is a sham aswell.Notre Dame cathedral in Paris for instance is a working Religious center. But it is filled with Tourists daily. It doesn't stop religious observance and mass and teaching from occurring there. Commercialism doesn't stop the esoteric practices at Shaolin either.
true, but it's the false advertisement that is irksome.the only thing I would say is that it is not necessary to go all the way to shaolin to learn good kungfu. I guess that's what the folks who go there learn as well.