Interview with former Shaolin monk, Zhang Lipeng, by Barbara Malvik
BM: Why do people ask you "Is wushu kung fu?"
Zhang Lipeng: So many Europeans and Americans think wushu is kung fu - kung fu is wushu. Wushu translates to English as "martial art." Fifty or sixty years ago, China's president, Chairman Mao, changed kung fu to become something that looks like gymnastics - like dance, and just beautiful - not form or fight.
Because Chairman Mao didn't want people to train for fighting because he was so worried about people trying to...
BM: ...to take his power away.
Zhang Lipeng: ...to take his power away. That's why they say kung fu is very dangerous. Chairman Mao's real bodyguard was from Shaolin Temple.
…
His martial arts were so amazing. So I think that's why Chairman Mao wanted martial arts ended. He saw his bodyguard, Shi Xuyu, was so good at training in martial arts. Can you imagine if somebody else - in China there are so many people who can do training very well - if somebody else used him, then what? So that's why he changed them to martial arts.
BM: Chairman Mao made it illegal to train in martial arts?
Zhang Lipeng: Yes. All martial arts. You could not have swords or anything. He's the one who changed everything. That's why right now they have the modern martial arts and the history martial arts. In history martial arts you train one form for twenty years. In modern martial arts you jump up and down, you flip around; beautiful, nice movements-that's not kung fu. That stuff is only for looks.”
From: http://ezine.kungfumagazine.com/ezin...hp?article=591