Who are the Shaolin Monks ? It would seem that the answer is obvious - these are people who live in a monastery called "Shaolin." But when a person asks such a question, he wants to get a slightly different answer. He is more interested in miracles that
show tourists the
monks. Shaolin is truly one of the
Tibetan monasteries, which is located in central China. But of all the mansions, only he became legendary. In many ways, if not in everything, the monastery owes its fame to its "residents." There are legends about them, Europeans retell stories about miracles that monks willingly show. Shaolin is not just a place on the map. This is a household word. But what is the secret of the famous brothers? After all, they themselves do not see anything strange in what they are doing. For them, this is not a miracle, it is a foam on the waves of learning. Yes, many come precisely for this beautiful foam. But such people, as a rule, simply sweep the floors for a very long time. And yet, in order to slightly open the veil of secrecy over the secret of the monks, let's look at their daily routine.
The day of the monk minister begins at five in the morning with meditation. At this time, of course, the most difficult for beginners. They are not only forced to struggle with the numbness of the body, but also with drowsiness. If someone suddenly dozed off during morning meditation, the brethren woke him up very harshly - someone hits a sleepyhead on the shoulders with a stick. The unfortunate person should thank everyone for their concern and bow. Next is morning gymnastics and hygiene measures. And all this happens in the yard, whatever the weather. Monks believe that harsh conditions contribute to hardening. Then - spiritual satiation. The fraternity goes to the common room, where the abbot gives a semblance of lectures on Buddhism, talks about enlightenment. The monks also analyze different situations and interpret them from the perspective of the teachings of the Buddha. Of course, these are not life situations, but myths and stories about the life of Sithartha.
The training of the Shaolin monks goes like this: the older brothers repeat the five learned styles, while the novices only study them. What are these directions? First of all, the style of the Dragon. He imitates
smooth and fast movements of this mythical animal. In addition, the Dragon-style combat technique allows you to attack in five different directions. Here dexterity is much more important than brute force, so a little time is devoted to building muscle mass. Next is the Tiger style. As the name implies, it imitates the movements of a strong and predatory beast. It also aims to strengthen bones. Therefore, there is just a lot of attention paid to the development of muscles. Leopard's style did not go beyond Shaolin, so relatively little is known about him. But this beast is smaller than a tiger, even in the animal kingdom. Therefore, these classes are usually aimed at strengthening the tendons and ligaments.
Shaolin monks also practice Snake style. As the name implies, it also imitates smooth dangerous movements with the help of ligaments, which end with sharp attacking elements, similar to a reptile bite. The fifth style is the Eagle style. He develops
coordination and agility. It is also interesting that the Shaolin monks give photos to everyone. This surprises tourists, because for them all the tricks are very similar to a miracle. But for monks, this is foam on the waves of teaching, even if someone comes to the monastery only after it.