PERFORMANCE - TEACHING - EXCELLENCE

 

1) Can you introduce yourself for us?

I am Shi Yan Xu from China’s Songshan Shaolin Temple, a 34th generation disciple and inheritor of Kung Fu.

 

2) What was your childhood like?

I was born in a small village close to Shaolin Temple, it was an impoverished place and because of the conditions, you can say that every kid in that area had a pretty tough life growing up.  Many of us believed in the workings of karma, so from an early age, we began to look for things that could improve our life.

 

This curiosity for better things drove me to leave my hometown, and by the age of 11, I began wandering China for a period of about 2 years. After accumalting a fair share of life experiences, I eventually made it to Shaolin and settled my life down. 

 

3) You established the Shaolin Temple Cultural Centers in 2007, for what purpose?

As Shaolin Disciples, we both disciples of Buddha and of Shaolin, in 2007 the venerable Abbot Shi Yong Xin sent us overseas to help share our historical knowledge with people living in America. In China, Shaolin history spans over 1,500 years and we believe that these things must be passed on to the next generation. With that being said, times are different in comparison with 1,000 years ago, now in coming overseas our goal is very clear - we must clearly establish principles for healthy living and help bring clarity to the mind  using methods that are in accordance with Shaolin Temples 1,500 years of understanding. 

 

4) What is unique about Shaolin Kung Fu in comparison to other Martial Arts?

I personally love Kungfu a lot, but I've had the chance to study a number of other syles such as Tai Chi and Okinawan Karate. But overall, I am a Shaolin student for sure. With that being said, I feel that the fundamental difference of Shaolin Kungfu and other styles of martial arts is the emphasis of the mind with every move. In this way, training serves as a way type of mental cultivation that is deeper than physical action.

 

5) What is signifigant about Zen (Chan) and Martial (Wu)?

Zen and Wu (Kungfu) they are actually the same thing, in China there is no specific way to present Zen it’s a wisdom that let us understand ourselves and the relationship between human beings and Universe. Shaolin Kungfu is a way that help us understand our Zen. Shaolin Kungfu is Zen. So in Martial Arts of in Kung Fu the best is not the (Gong) but the Zen (Chan). Kungfu is a way that we train ourselves to open our mind and become aquantied with the heart.

 

6) What was one of your most memorable experiences in your practice?

When I was younger, I travelled with Zen master Hui Tong to Yu Mountain which is located in Jiangxi Province to study how to live in seclusion. While staying there, a lot of interesting and strange things happened to us, some of them you wouldn't believe. We lived on a high peak of the mountain, our water came from natural springs, our food came from wild plants and we even harvested our own rice and carried it all the up to the top of the mountain. Sometimes we were visited by snakes and other, larger animals.

 

7) What are your feelings about the pace of life in America?

In these last few years the largest thing I feel is, after arriving it is very busy. Everyday there are many things to finish, and there are many new things in general, different people, different tasks, and while living here I’ve studied and learned how to do many things. In Shaolin Temple there is no sense of disruption and confusion. Here in america there is a strong almost overbearing feeling of busyness, a feeling that is first met with difficulty and over time one grows accustomed to it. 

 

8) What is something that you strive to maintain in your life?

Mercy, we are Buddhists, mercy is one of the most important things for our belief and hope it can effect other people as well.