MantisQuarterly F 6 Tanglang Quan practitioners, the Shaolin Temple has special sig- sane, lb ol Deg refer to Shaolin when exp the ay chalga Reape nd ede tion, Here we wl rill examine the oi- in ofthe Shaolin Temple, outline its his- tory and introduce its connection 0 mar sil ars and Mantis Boxing. An under- sanding of Shaolin origin and history can provide contex for Tanglang prac tioners co beter understand thei on history However, cis important wo bear nnd chat the Chinese concep of his tory is nor the same asthe relay objective practices of Wester hisrrians (Chinese historical accounts not only record the fice of vents in general terms, bu alo ase them to instruct o inspire the reader and to extol che vires of ‘movement, rcigning emperor oat For. ‘The history of Shaolin, lke Chinese his tory in general, i lled with grand fas, heroic exploits and adventures. When caluating thee store, itis esenial thar ‘one verify information using more than ‘one source because ofthis practice of ‘lending fac and fiction. Shaolin and Buddhism ‘The Shaolin Temple owes its existence ro the spread of Buddhism in China. Bud- adhe it came t9 Chia in AD. 65 during the Han Dynasty Gee Mantis Quarter, Vol. 4 Lane 3) when Emperor Ming invited ro Indian monks to establish a monastery. The White re Temple, named for che hors that carried the ‘Buddhisescrpeues on thir journey from India, bbecame the first Buddhist erple in China ‘Despite this auspicious beginning, Buddhism acrualy did not have much influence in China ‘when ie fs arived because of che prevailing Chi- se philosophies of Conficiansm and Taos. Sinatons that arose er in che wake ofthe Han Dynasty ili A.D. 220 and the chaotic times of the Theee Kingdom period (A.D. 220-589) allowed Buddhism ifluence in China to increase ‘During this period. China became divided imo roughly oo regions. The northern region ‘was governed by peoples who were not ethnically Han, which we have come ro recognize as "Chi ‘one ofthe mo ions thot guard the obbat’s quarts atthe ‘Shao Tempe. nese," such asthe Xiongnus of Central Ait, 4 Siberian branch ofthe Mongolian people. Many ofthese groups already practiced Buddhism. At the same time, the Han rulers in the south Wet ‘growing dissatisfied with Confucian belies and took an interest in Buddhism, In this climate, Buddhism spread rapidly among common people and rulers alike, In he northwest rion of (China, the area closes tothe Silk Road and Cen- tail Asia, 90 percent of the people were Bud- diets, and records indicate that by A.D. 477 there were 6,478 Buddhis temples and 77258 monks and uns in northern China. The south ‘was reporced to have 2,846 temples and 82,700 monks and nuns a dat time Shaolin and its Founders Te was during this time, in abour A.D. 464, har Batou, a Buldhis monk, began teach- vwiZThe White Horse Temple wes @ major canter of Buc this in China hundreds of oor elore Bodiam: (atid ot Shon, ing in Deng Feng County. In AD. 495, the ‘emperor, Wei Xiao Wen (A.D. 471-500), buile the Shaolin Temple in the mountains of Deng Feng for Barou to continuc his work. Though not reputed to be a martial artis, Batou is con- sidered he fis abbot of che Shaolin Temple ‘There is no record of what typeof Buddbism Batou taught. In AD. 327, Bodhidhaema, the bestknown abbot of Shaolin, reportedly traveled from India to the imperial court of Xiao Yan (posthumously named Wadi), of the southern Liang Dynasty. ‘who ruled fom A.D. 502-530 in Nanjing. ‘According to legend, Bodidhatmas radical teachings differed greatly from the emperors belies. Asa result Bodhidharma left he royal ‘court forthe lands of the Northen Wei Dynasty, ‘eventually seeing atthe Shaolin Temple. He i credited with reaching martial exercises ro the ‘oaks, who were not fc enough to fllow his ‘rigorous religious discipline, "Though well known, there ate many ques tons concerning Bodhidharma and his teach- ings. For example his version of Buddhism, known as Chan, has no knowin branches in India, Many believe that i isa result ofa blend ing of Taoism and Buddhism thae may be native ‘to China and thatthe iguee Bodhidharma may actually bea creation to legitimize ie existence. ‘Chan adherents a Shaolin didnot parscipare in an ascetic lifestyle, nor did they place a great emphats upon reading the scriprures of thei ful. The ‘Shaolin Temple’ rules only probibived Killing, looting, obbing and sx. (Other activites such as drinking ea, cating meat and drinking wine were ‘not forbidden, as they were in other Buddhise sects. Chan emphasized st- ting in medication every day a8 the path to enlightenment. Shaolin and Martial Arts Although many believe it was the fl- lowers of Bodhidharma who began the ‘arial ars tradition at Shaolin, sccording to Shaolin historians, the temple atraced martial artists beginning. Even during Ba Tuo' time, decades before Bodhidharma arrived there were two monks, Hui Guang and Seng Chou, who were very tlenved practitioners. Ar cat time there was ‘no “Shaolin” syle of martial are. Every new monk who had martial ats expe” rience shared the knowledge he had with the other. Because ofthe popularity of Buddhism with the court, Shaolin continued to enjoy royal favor afer its creation. Emperor Wen Di, of the Sui Dynasty (581-618), granted Shaolin sttendanes, employees and more than 1,648 acres of land. As the temple grew in wealth, the monks with mar- tal sills began serving as guards and protectors of the temple. In addition to thae development, the martial culture at large began to asocite with che monks of Shaolin, making ita comer for martial activity in general Because ir supported the ruling dynasties, ‘Shaolin enjoyed increasing privileges and greater material wealth. From the Tang Dynasty (618: 907) onvard, Shaolin had a standing monk semy to protect its holding. By the Song Dynasty (960-1279), Shaolin was both mila ly and politically fully volved in che secular Chinese culate The Shaolin Temple experienced it enith at political and military entity under che patron- age of the Ming Dynasty (1638-1644), Accond- ing to tradition, nearly ll rhe monks 2 Shaolin ‘were martial monks during that time. Shaolin hha a standing army of more chan 2,500 wartior monks. These monks were called upon many ‘mes to deft invading Jpanese pirates and defend the borders of the empie. ‘With the defeat of che Ming by the Qing (1644-1912), however, Shalin found its patron au 2005age by oyaly greatly reduced. Qing era murals ‘onthe walls ofthe remple indicate that there ‘were sl performances by monks fr che enjoy ment of Qing visitors, and ic would appear that in the beginning, the Qing were toleranc of Shaolin, iF not as supportive as earlier dynasties However, as Shaolin increasingly participated in movements overthrow the Qing, thee toler ance ended. Under Emperor Yongzheng ofthe Qing Dynasty (1727), both the Shaolin temple and the people living inthe area were forbidden co prac tice martial arts. Ie isd hae the pretce did nt cease but went underground in that ate, and ‘many martial aris lee Shaolin to spread the art throughout China, Conflcing stories about the destruction of the temple itself and accounts of surviving monks traveling co diferent parts of the country and spreading che arts of Shaolin begin o rie at this point in the histor. Ie is aleo at this point chat the cory of the Ming- Mantua | 9‘Shit Sowomir aezorek ‘and his teacher Shit Toncheng,protce waton ‘21 Qiang Tonglang Quen ighting techniques The Posh Praying Mant ‘ung Fu Soci te found. ing ember o the Polish To- tonal Marl Arts ion ‘ond 4 member ofthe aae- ng Sooty Yantai and the ‘rerntonel Tong tong non in Yor. Cure t= ‘natal ganization regis: teredin the Warsaw Vero: hp Court with branches 9 severe! Posh ates ncudng Wersow Suva Kee ‘Busko-Za, Taran, Osi, ode and Lubin During year history seve tou {and Chinese morta on cents hve quent the soy esses. For more infront vwoyenetonlang.pl or ‘email mantshioapl In. 1996 and 1997, Sif Mil carck went 10 Shanghai wo study internal Kung Fu soyles, including the Yang Shi Taji Quan of Master Feng Rulong (Shanghai Wishit Xie Hui) and the Xingyi Quan of ‘Master Yang Chende (Gui Ting Nei fa ‘Quan Xie Hui From Augast 1999 to Sepremier 2000, and again from June 2001 to August 2002, one ofthe senior stu dents of the sociery, Marcin Jacoby, studied Eight Step Praying Mantis (Ba Bu Tanglang, (Quan) in Taiwan under master Liu Zhizhong, a sudent of Master Peng Hanping. Since the exeablishmene of the sociry. is students have competed in many prestigious ‘events, and they have won numerous national land international medals and cites. Polish National Champion is only one ofthe society's ‘many national medals and ties. One of the Sock cyt mort impressive intemationl sucesses was participating inthe Seventh International Tra ‘ional Kung Fu Tournament in Perugia in 1998, where society competitors won one gold and one bronze med. A yea later in che Second World ‘Championships in Traditional Kung Fu, society ‘competitors won nine medal, five of them gold In the Eighth World Championships in Sanda (sadicional fighting) in May 2000, the society ‘won one siher and rwo bronze medals in the sen- jor division and ten gold and nine silver inthe junior division, In 1998, wo society competitors panicipared in the Intemational Washi Tournament i Jina, China, and in 2000, four competitors represented the society atthe Tanglang Men tournament in Qingsto, where they won four gold medals in the brand and weapon forms categories. Ie was also ‘valuable opporsunity to look atthe Tanglang Men taught in Qingdao, where che mos widespread wariey of Tanglang Quan is tha eughe by master Li Zhanyuan, a student of maser Hu Rongf In 2002, the society competitors took pati the “Tanglang tournament in Yanai. They won so gold medals and two silver medals Among the soceey’s mose succesful compet- tors ar its instructors, including Mare Piechorka, profesional fv fighting championship competi- tor and gold medalist a Yantai in 2002; Marele Bordwek, a double onze world medalist in Fee fighting: Keysrof Krysacaik, a double world champion in Pushing Hands and world free fight ing champion in 1999; Tomas Zelk, Posh rational champion and double gold medalist a ‘Qingdao; and Piotr Jeleniewsk, 2 gold medals at ‘Qingdao and fequene medals at national evens Among the more junior society members, the rast worthy of notice inchude Barer Pony, Witold Wysoe, Allsandra Smolen and Pauling Kowal, who have all won modal ar national vents, and Rafal Adamowski, who holds 2 word championship bronze medal in free fighting “The Polish Praying Mantis Kang Fu Society ‘no only participates in spore rournaments, i also ‘organizes sporting evens. In 1998 in Lod it hosted the ist Open Praying Mantis Champi- ‘onships of Poland, with moce than 100 compet: tors from various lube around the county. In 1999, i became the fst cub in Poland 10 “organize a tradicional fre sparring competition and held two others in 2000 and 2001. The fevent was cun according ro the sanda rules of ‘Yantai, China, In 2001 snd 2002 in Warsaw, the society orpanized the Polish Cup in Tiadtional Kang Fu, which had more than 150 competion. Tn addition, che Polish Praying Mantis Kung. Fu Society organizes summer and winter Kung Fu camps each yore ‘Along with its lasses in eraitional Praying, ‘Mancis (chuan tong Tanglang Men), the Polish Praying Mantis Kung Fu Society holds classes in traditional fee fighting (chuan tong sanda), ‘competition fre fighting (bi sai anda) and the teadtional Yang Shi Taiji Quan form of master Fu Zhongwen. MQ etre Nereis ema sata ea garam a mB sane Boat ee ee ee i esate eer ee oe cadet cs eames. secrete