Time:20:00, November 9, 2006

20:00, November 10, 2006

Venue:ARTSCAPE Theatre Centre, Cape Town

 

Programme:

Shaolin Wind

Shaolin Muyu KongFu

Shaolin Virgin Boy KongFu

Shaolin Iron Head KongFu

Shaolin Taiji KongFu

Breaking Armor Plate with One's Head

The 18 Martial Arts of Shaolin

Shaolin Fire Wand

Shaolin Golden Bell

Shaolin Overlord Spear

Four Spears Thrust One's Body

The Arhat Battle Array

 

Break

 

Shaolin Baduanjin

Lying on Iron Forks with One's Abdomen

Shaolin Escort the Temple Kongfu

Shaolin Weapon Versus-fight

Shaolin Nine- loop Sword

Lying on Nail Bed

Shaolin Quintuplet Versus-fight

The Spear Sticks One's Throat

Shaolin Flying Needle

Shaolin Dragon Sword

Shaolin Drunken Boxing, Drunken Sword, Drunken Wand

Adsorb Bowls with One's Abdomen

Shaolin Twin-finger KongFu

The Work of God's Image Quincuncial Pile

Shaolin Pictographic Boxings

Shaolin Soul

 

Brief Introduction of the Programme

Shaolin Muyu KongFu is developed by Shaolin martial monks through the combination of Chan and martial art skills. "Muyu", literally "wooden fish", is a Buddhist wooden beater in a form of a fish or a crab without feet. Shaolin monks are hitting the Muyu (wooden fish), a way of meditation.

Shaolin Virgin Boy KongFU is one of the major exercises of Shaolin KongFu. It combines the basic martial art skills and the internal practice, which can prevent aging and keep the practitioner youthful and vigorous.

Breaking Armor Plate with One's Head is one of the Rigid Qigong. Channeling Qi(breathes) to the head makes it capable of splitting bricks and slates. This art requires the practitioner to do both the inner exercise and outer exercise. Head is the most vulnerable part of human body. Due to its special position, it is hard to gather breathes there and build up the force.

The 18 Martial Arts of Shaolin include spear, sword, lance, shield, axe, whip and hand-to-hand wrestle. In fact, they are only a glimpse of the whole picture. The ancient Chinese martial arts and weapons had many more varieties than those listed above. Today, "the eighteen martial arts" has become a set phrase. It is an official program in martial art competition.

Shaolin Golden Bell is the Shaolin rigid Qigong that practices bodily defense. As it is integrated with the essence of rigid Qigong, practitioners can stand kicking, boxing, and even strikes of sticks. It can therefore boast the top martial art in defensive rigid Qigong.

Shaolin Arhat battle array

There is a rule in Shaolin Temple, saying that if a person who learned Shaolin martial art wants to leave the temple, he must outfight the monks who keep the gate. This is called "Fight at the gate of the mountain". Those who are not able to beat the gate keepers cannot leave the temple. This array is grand and spectacular and is practiced by many people.

Shaolin Baduanjin is one of the earliest Kong-fu practiced by Shaolin Temple monks. It is said, as early in the Tang Dynasty. Lingqiu, a Famous monk of Shaolin Temple, was good at Baduanjin and lived to be 109. In the Song Dynasty, Monk Fuju compiled Baduanjin into Shaolin Kong-fu manual. Baduanjin has the Functions of stimulating blood circulation and causing muscles and joints to relax, regulating vital energy and blood, promoting metabolism. Practising Baduanjin permanently can make one healthy and strange, dispel pestilence or illness and have a long life.

Shaolin Flying Needle is among the 72 tour de forces of Shaolin Temple. It requires good hand power in channeling Qi(breathes) to the needle in your hand and combining your inner energy with the outer weapon. Only then could you thrust the needles through the glass. This is a very rare art in the Chinese martial art circle.

Adsorb Bowls with One's Abdomen is among the 72 Shaolin tour de forces. The practitioner channels Qi(breathes) to the cinnabar field and swells the belly to suck the bowls tightly on it. Several people could not pull the bowls off the belly.

Shaolin Twin-finger KongFu is one of the major exercises of the 72 martial art skills of Shaolin. It combines the bone-strengthening practice and the internal practice and integrates the body, the mind, and the Chi. It is also one of the methods of Zen meditation of Shaolin martial monks.

Shaolin Pictographic Boxing is developed by Shaolin martial monks through the combination of Zen and boxing. The base of the boxing art is the survival skills of animals. During the practices of martial arts, Shaolin monks observed the movements and actions of birds, beasts, fish and insects, digested and summarized the essentials from them, and created a number of pictographic boxing actions. For example, Shaolin monkey boxing, dragon boxing, tiger boxing, leopard boxing, crane boxing, snake boxing and rearhorse boxing etc. are all well-known Shaolin pictographic boxing.

 

Organizers:

The State Council Information Office of the People's Republic of China

Department of Arts and Culture of the Republic of South Africa

Embassy of the People's Republic of China in the Republic of South Africa

Consulate General of the People's Republic of China in Cape Town