58 Systemizing Martial Practice
Since my youth I was determined to learn the martial arts. When-
ever I heard of a famous teacher I wouldn’t hesitate to travel far to gain
his instruction. Therefore I gathered the necessary travel expenses, and
journeyed to the Shaolin Monastery where I spent, all in all, more than
ten years. At first I served Master Hong ji, who was tolerant enough to
admit me into his class. Even though I gained a sketchy understanding
of the technique’s broad outlines, I didn’t master it.
At the time Master Hongzhuan was already an old man in his
eighties.^9 Nevertheless his staff method was superb, and the monks
venerated him the most. Therefore I turned to him as my next teacher,
and each day I learned new things I had never heard of before. In addi-
tion, I befriended the two Masters Zongxiang and Zongdai, and I gained
enormously from practicing with them. Later I met Master Guang’an, one
of the best experts in the Buddhist technique. He had inherited Hong-
zhuan’s technique in its entirety, and had even improved upon it.
Guang’an tutored me personally, and revealed to me wonderful subtleties.
Later I followed him out of the monastery and we traveled together for
several years. The marvelous intricacy of the staff’s transformations, the
wonderful swiftness of its manipulations—I gradually became familiar
with them, and I attained sudden enlightenment (dun). I chose this field as
my specialty, and I believe I did have some achievements.
As for archery, riding, and the arts of sword and spear, I paid quite
some attention to their investigation as well, however by that time my
energy of half-a-lifetime had already been spent. My great uncle, the
military student Yunshui and my nephews Junxin and the National
University student Hanchu had studied with me once at Shaolin. They
pointed out that so far the Shaolin staff method had been transmitted
only orally, from one Buddhist master to the next. Since I was the first to
draw illustrations and compile written formulas for it, they suggested I
publish these for the benefit of like-minded friends. At first I declined,
saying I was not equal to the task. But then illustrious gentlemen from
all over the land started commending the supposed merits of my work.
They even blamed me for keeping it secret, thereby depriving them. So
finally I found some free time, gathered the doctrines handed down to
me by teachers and friends, and combined these with what I had
learned from my own experience. I commissioned an artisan to execute
the drawings, and, even though my writing is somewhat vulgar, I added
to the left of each drawing a rhyming formula (gejue).
Together these drawings and formulas constitute a volume, which I
titled: Exposition of the Original Shaolin Staff Method. Just casting a glance
at one of the drawings would probably suffice to figure the position
depicted therein. Thus the reader will be able to study this method
without the aid of a teacher. Despite an apparent simplicity, each
sentence captures the secret of victory and defeat, each drawing harbors