Tag Archives: shaolin temple

meditation, religious martial arts, yoga martial arts

Church of Martial Arts Is About to Open!

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Monkeyland is Almost Here!

The physical reality of Monkeyland is happening. Over the next ten days we are making the move to 120 acres in Nipomo, California.

I have included a couple of overheads here, for your pleasure.

The first is a close up of the property. A trailer, a cabin, an open faced, tin garage, a few cargo containers. The perfect canvas for a dream, eh?

monkeyland martial arts

This second shot is higher up, shows the lack of neighbors. The squiggley line at bottom right is highway 166.

birdseye2

Not bad, eh? We’re off grid, have plenty of soil for planting, plenty of raw materials, and lots of space for working out. Heck, I’ll probably spend a few weeks just picking out places to work out and assessing whether they are good sites for permanent work out structures.

And, did I mention the garden for Tai Chi and pa kua and that sort of thing?

Wel, I will. Give me time.

Or, better yet, come up and find out how you can help create this. I’ll open the doors officially for visitors probably within the month.

Make sure you check out ‘The 24 Neutronic Principles.’ it is a hard core look at the concepts underlying everything, not just in the martial arts, but life! Now, off with you. It’s time for your workout!

martial arts scripture, meditation, religious martial arts, taoist martial arts, yoga martial arts, zen martial arts

Want to be a Kung Fu Student at the Shaolin Temple?

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It always amuses me when I find out what people think kung fu at the shaolin temple, or any temple, was like.

walking the circle image
Walking the Circle has Subtle Applications!

 


Usually these thoughts come from fellows who find their way into my martial arts school. They grill me mercilessly, then, no matter what I have told them, they tell me that they want to go to a temple and sit at the feet of the masters. They want to swing swords with the monks and experience all the bizarre training routines that will enable them to beat up elephants and dragons, and pound their fists into unbreakable lumps of death.

Now, the truth of the shaolin temple is this: it had to support itself. That means the monks had to feed themselves, and this means every day.

Yes, they did martial arts, but, only after a day in the fields, or after building and repairing the walls and roofs, and even after sweeping up the leaves.

And, yes, the martial arts they did study after that were absolutely incredible…wing chun, preying mantis, hung gar, and so on.

But they worked before they did the martial arts.

Now, do you think the fellow who comes into my school, who usually  isn’t working and who didn’t get through school, is going to have the stick-to-ivity, the necessary amount of muscles and concentration, to make it through the daily work at the Shaolin temple?

Is he going to be able to fix picks and shovels that broke? Repair the brickwork of crumbling walls? Get up on that roof and stop the rain from pouring in?

Is he going to be able to saunter twelve miles to the local village to sell vegetables from the temple gardens, and walk back, and then feel like doing a three hour workout in the martial arts?

And, is he going to be able to pick up a sword and fight bandits successfully?

Is he going to have the ability to help sick people from the neighboring village?

Is he going to be able to listen to long (boring?) lectures about religion?

Is he going to be educated enough to study the sacred scrolls,and maybe copy them for future monks?

I hope you see what I am getting at here. The real kung fu of the Shaolin Temple was more than just a good work out, it was a commitment of soul that most people would be in awe of…if they could even understand it.