Many hundreds of monks gained outstanding results and brought fame to Martial Arts of Shaolin for ever. All of them attained such unusual abilities thanks to special secret practices traditionally called "72 Arts of Shaolin." They are the base and essence of the Shaolin Combat Training.

Chronicles of the Shaolin Monastery (Shaolin Si Zhi) preserved for us many names of monks-warriors from Shaolin who attained mystic heights of mastery and obtained superhuman abilities thanks to indefatigable training and diligent observance of true methods.

For instance, monk Hong Wen who lived in the XIII-th century sat into the stance MA, put a stone slab weighing 50 kg on his head, stood a man on each knee and stayed so until a huge incense candle, as high as a man, half burned off.

His disciple Jue Yuan could dodge several spears thrown at him, broke stone slabs with his fist, knocked a hollow in a wall with his finger, ground pebbles into powder in his palms, handled all kinds of Shaolin weapons with skill.

Monk Zhi Yin who lived in the XV-th century came to Shaolin at the age of sixteen. He gained such a mastery that he could easily move a stone weighing 500 kg with a push of his leg, break trees with kick, drive piles into ground with his heel, knock down several people at once with a kick.

Monk Shu Ran who lived in the XVII-th century perfectly mastered the art of "Light Body" QING GONG, jumped out of one pit into another, could jump up a wall or a high pole, and for it he was nicknamed "Genuine Master of Gong Fu". His contemporary, monk Shu Qing mastered the art of "Diamond Finger" to perfection, with his finger he could pierce a wooden board as it were a straw mat and crush stones into sand with blows of his elbows.

The XIX-th century also knew a lot of true masters. Monk Ji Hui gained outstanding success in exercises for hardness YING GONG. He crushed huge stones with his elbow like with a diamond pestle and broke thick wooden beams with an arm blow. Besides, he was proficient in the art of "Golden Bell", blows of a big iron hammer did not hurt him at all.

Monk Hai Fa beat off arrows shot at him, was able of dodging spears pointed at him from a few sides. Besides, he mastered the method "A Leg Weighing 1000 Jins", he could crush a stone with a "trampling" blow and kill a man with the "Iron Fist".

Monk Zhen Yue ran up a sheer wall of three meters high and mastered the art of "Light Steps". His disciple Ru Bi achieved some success in "Hard Art" YING GONG and additionally he perceived the "Luohan's Art" LUOHAN GONG and could fight against several armed enemies in pitch darkness.

Shaolin Kung Fu OnLine Library - Canonical Texts of Shaolin Monastery - Old Chinese books, treatises, manuscripts

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