“You can’t take Zen out of Shaolin.”
Unlike schools of Zen which place a primacy on seated meditation, the “warrior monks” of Shaolin treat their training as meditation, constantly developing their bodies and minds through intense training. Although their physical exploits are legendary, what is equally as impressive is the intense focus and self-control that serves as the foundation for their skills. Shaolin Temple, the subject of movies, documentaries and folklore, is a Cha’an (Zen) Buddhist Temple located in China’s Henan Province. Shifu Yan Lei is a 34th generation fighting disciple of Shaolin Temple. He currently teaches authentic Shaolin Kung Fu in London, while also authoring several books, DVD’s and making training and meditation aids available to westerners here. He was kind enough to answer some of our questions for the blog (italics added by the author):
DaoDeSport: How and why did you start training in martial arts?
Shifu Yan Lei: I saw the kung fu movies and my older brother was already training at the Shaolin Temple. I was a very angry teenager, and I thought that if I could learn kung fu then I’d be able to beat people up who angered me.
DDS: What was training at Shaolin Temple like?
SYL: It’s not the fantasy that people think. We don’t have as much guidance from our master, there’s a lot of self-training and drills. It’s hard work. I had the job of getting up early and preparing water for my master so he could brush his teeth. I also had to wash shoes for the older students, one of them being Shi Guo Lin who is now based in New York.
DDS: Did you enjoy your training overall? What part did you enjoy most?
SYL: I love training. It transformed me and through transforming me it transformed my life. I hope to give that gift to my students. Not just the ones I see in London and China but everyone who trains with my books and DVDs.
DDS: What brought you to the UK?
SYL: I was asked by the abbot to help open a Shaolin Temple in London.
DDS: What differences do you see in the attitudes or expectations of Westerners that practice martial arts vs. Chinese students?
SYL: Westerners ask lots of questions and they also expect more guidance with teaching. They’re not keen on figuring things out for themselves. They want to know why instead of letting the experience unfold so that they can answer that why from their own experience.
DDS: How does Shaolin Temple incorporate the teachings of Zen Buddhism into the teaching of martial arts?
SYL: You can’t take Zen out of Shaolin. Everything we do, whether punching or running or kicking or eating is done as a meditation. We take Damo as our teacher. He founded Zen and Shaolin Martial Arts. He inspires us that it is possible to access the wisdom of our minds and we can do this through our body.
DDS: Do you believe that this focus on spirituality could be effectively integrated into Western sport as well?
SYL: I think that some of the great coaches like Wooden have a Zen-like approach in that they take the focus off winning. They focus on the doing. Be the best you can be. Even if you lose the game, you haven’t lost because you’ve performed at your best and you’ve performed in the spirit of Zen. Being in the zone in your sport, it’s such a powerful feeling and no one can take that away.
DDS: In all of your training videos, your whole being remains completely in the moment. What mind/attitude do you bring to your training? How does one develop this mind?
SYL: To train and master the training is to train over and over again. There’s an element of boredom to it if you train with an everyday mind. But this is Zen. This has meaning. I once spent an afternoon with a Zen master who took three hours just to have a cup of tea. It’s not about what we do, it’s how we do it. The only point of power is now. Now never returns to it. Mindfulness has become popular because it’s been shown to relieve stress. Whenever our mind goes anywhere else, it’s mainly fantasy. The only place to be is here, now.
DDS: Western athletes often reach a peak in their 20’s before their health slowly declines. Often, injuries pile up in their 30’s and it is rare to see competitive athletes and fighters in their 40’s. You have said that you still train with the same intensity as you did when you were younger. What do you attribute to your longevity?
SYL: A cook sharpens his knife. Athletes train and train but they don’t sharpen their knife so they wear themselves out. Qigong is the key to longevity. This is the sharpening of the knife. I’d love for athletes to do this. They would also get sharper in their training.
DDS: You train a particularly grueling skill from Shaolin Temple, Iron Shirt Qigong. What insight have you gained from this practice?
SYL: First of all, I didn’t believe that Qi existed so I wanted to find out. It is pushing my body to its absolute limit. You need to have a high level of fitness in order to do Iron Shirt as well as a knowledge of Qigong and an instinctive understanding of how your body works.
DDS: How has your perspective on training changed over the years?
SYL: I’m 42 now so I do less external training and more internal training. I appreciate Qigong more now than I ever have. It’s a way to recalibrate my body. It brings the body into harmony so even tight muscles or an injury can be relieved even though I’m not training for that reason.
DDS: What is one thing that you wish you knew when you started training?
SYL: I wish I’d taken Qigong seriously at a younger age.
For those interested in reading more, I highly recommend his blog (older articles here).
