Pure Shaolin Kung Fu
Pure Shaolin Kung Fu’s teaching stems from the way of the Shaolin monks in Henan China.
“There is Western, contemporary wushu, which is more art and show based. But traditional wushu is founded on traditional foundations and elements. Our school teaches traditional wushu and is based on northern Shaolin teachings,” Yan said.
“Every strike, every kick can be used in real-life situations. The philosophy is that in self-defense and martial arts, one prevents self-harm, yet does not harm others. “
Pure Shaolin Kung Fu's wushu team warming up, at Pong Planet Tennis Club in San Carlos (where they rent space). During COVID-19, Pure Shaolin started renting space at Pong Planet and their wushu team goes to two-hour practices a few times a week.
"I really like the wushu team, even though some of the kids are younger, I think they are pretty mature for their age," said Aidan Yang a recent member of the team.
Philosophy
“Every strike, every kick can be used in real-life situations. The philosophy is that in self-defense and martial arts, one prevents self-harm, yet does not harm others, ” said Yan.
“For example, Ba Gua Zhang [also known as the eight trigram palm]- it's a style which is different from other martial arts- normally when the other opponent strikes, the other blocks, but one still absorbs the impact and gets hurt. If you fight you will get hurt too. However, in one of our teachings- Ba Gua Zhang, one strike and moves in curves, so that the opponent’s strikes slide off and neither person gets hurt,” Yan said.
Nationalism and Culture
Kung fu, as it originated in China holds a lot of Chinese traditions, values, and culture. It started in 221 BC and was developed into what it was today in 1911. After unifying the central plain of China, Qin Shi Huang, the first emperor of China, his soldiers developed kung fu. The fighting skills of the soldiers were developed into Guanzhong Boxing, now called Hong Fist.
“I am so proud of being Chinese. I have the chance to have such good Chinese and to learn traditional kung fu. I have the chance to live through five thousand years of culture. If you look at history, the greater power one gains, the better kung fu one practices, then the more one becomes humble. The greater your power, the heavier your responsibility, ” Yan said.
Life-long Kung Fu
Unlike most sports that are played in the prime of youth, such as how Micahel Phelps participated in the Olympics at age 15, kung fu is a life-long practice.
“Kung fu has no age limit and doesn’t need any special equipment or grounds or such. If one has a basic foundation, no matter what walk of life one is in, kung fu can be a long life exercise. For example, when I’m on a cruise, I can do tai chi along with the tides of the ship,” Yan said.
Student View
“I still go to Pure Shaolin Kung Fu. I take a boxing class with them every week. I still go because I want to support Shifu Grace and Shifu David because they have helped me so much throughout my life and I want to keep in touch with them before I move away for college,” said Alex Flood, a junior at Carlmont.
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“I think Pure Shaolin has made me more physically strong and capable in many sports and activities, but it has also taught me many values such as leadership, respect, and patience. I have also learned many things about Chinese culture in my 10 years at the kung fu school,” Flood said.
“During my time there, it gave me lots of self-discipline, made me more fit and stronger; you learn to respect your elders. I stopped going before high school — I just didn’t find it interesting anymore, ” said junior Nick Cheng who also went to Pure Shaolin.
“Pure Shaolin was how I met some of my friends and I learned how to socialize with many adults since we were at the same level of skill. I don't go anymore due to COVID-19 and I’m focusing more on lacrosse right now,” said junior Sebastian Avants Hagan.
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Pre-Covid
Due to the global pandemic COVID-19, about â…“ of American businesses have closed. Even though Pure Shaolin remained open, there were still huge changes that will hopefully go back to what once was.
“Before covid, students would participate in at least three different worldwide and national competitions. Due to covid, the competitions have stopped, and now we have zoom classes, but that's not for everyone; so we have an outdoor class for those children. The kids who didn’t stop during COVID- 19, their improvement was very evident,” says Yan.
Student Views (cont'd)
In addition to the culture that students are emerged in, kung fu in college is common for Pure Shaolin students.
“Many colleges nowadays have wushu teams, such as Stanford and UC Berkeley. Our wushu team greatly helps children get into wushu teams at those colleges, ” said Yan.
Pre-Covid
Some students have stopped their training and then have returned to study martial arts.
“One of our students, he’s a transfer from a different martial arts studio — Aidan, he’s currently relearning our form and he’s taking private lessons to build foundation. He’s very passionate, and kung fu will definitely be present throughout his whole lifetime. He is a good leader and has brought up team morale for the wushu team during his time here. Aidan has great improvement and he’s one of the kids who don’t need parents to push them and that can work hard on their own.” Yan said.
“I left another kung fu studio a few years before. I transferred [to Pure Shaolin] because I was looking to get back into kung fu. As a student, I think it has helped my mental health, it's a great form of exercise and helps with flexibility. Since I have a lot of stress this year with homework, it helps with some of the stress,” said Aidan Yang, a Carlmont sophomore.
“I'm staying largely because I enjoy it, I like the forms and it helps my Chinese improve. As for the long-term effects, it has helped me get more flexible and fit, ” Yang said.
Shifu Grace Yan
Shifu David Xu
Shifu and Student
