The Shaolin Monastery. History, Religion and the Chinese Martial Arts

28 Origins of a Military Tradition for Liangzhou, Supreme Pillar of State (shang zhuguo), Prince of Qin, [Li] Shimin, To: The Cy ...

Serving the Emperor 29 Therefore I am sending to you the Supreme Pillar of State, the Dynasty-Founding, Commandery Duke of Degua ...

30 Origins of a Military Tradition sion of the religion, Li Shimin did issue a series of unprecedented anti-Buddhist laws. In 62 ...

Serving the Emperor 31 summarized in an official letter (die), signed by the Dengfeng County vice magistrate, and dated July 21, ...

32 Origins of a Military Tradition Texts 5 and 6: The Emperor’s Gift of 724 The Shaolin monks’ assistance to Li Shimin guarantee ...

Serving the Emperor 33 monasteries, and in 727 he ordered the dismantling of all village chapels. Evi- dently, his support of th ...

34 Origins of a Military Tradition Overseer (duweina), monk Huiyang. General-in-chief (da jiangjun), monk Ta n zong. With them, ...

Serving the Emperor 35 the vice magistrate of Dengfeng County to the president of the secretariat— examined the details of the m ...

36 Origins of a Military Tradition tains (in central Asia), the person who has attained the highest understanding of meditation ...

Serving the Emperor 37 Before they recovered their senses, the Dhyâna Master said, “I will give you a demonstration,” whereupon ...

Fig. 6. Vajrapâÿi wielding a flower- like vajra in a ninth-century painting from Dunhuang. (© Copyright the Trustees of the Brit ...

Serving the Emperor 39 weapon (figure 7).^64 “Vajrapâÿi’s images,” notes an art historian, “carry but scanty dress, no doubt in ...

40 Origins of a Military Tradition Golden chain armor of splendid luster; Bright helmets and wind-blown sashes of silk.^66 Guard ...

Fig. 8. Twelfth-century Shaolin stele of Nârâyaÿa (Vajrapâÿi). ...

42 Origins of a Military Tradition According to the scripture, this deity (Nârâyaÿa) is a manifestation of Avalokitešvara (Guany ...

Serving the Emperor 43 portrayed fighting monks as meat gobblers (and usually wine guzzlers as well). From the Tang period all t ...

44 Origins of a Military Tradition him eventually to the heroic band of rebels who live by the “Water Margin” at the Liangshan M ...

Serving the Emperor 45 dozens of fighting schools around it. Thus, reality imitated fiction, as the suc- cess of a movie on Shao ...

46 Origins of a Military Tradition As to Buddhist dietary laws, they are kept by the first type of Shaolin- residing clerics onl ...

Serving the Emperor 47 the monastery’s vicinity. When he assumed his leadership position in 1999, Yongxin expelled from the mona ...