The Entrance to Enlightenment

This will be my last photo of the Shaolin Monastery (ironically, it was also the first photo I took while there). Can anyone translate the Chinese symbols on this stone?

Everything you see in this photo is actually outside of the monastery... they've definitely built up the entrance to make it look/feel more like a theme park. There are shops to the left & right, a couple places to eat, and an area to buy tickets and hire a tour guide. Nonetheless, I thought this photo came out pretty well... gives a peaceful atmosphere to the location.

Hope you enjoyed the Shaolin Monastery! 

A Spitting Tiger

In this image, a tiger is spitting into the mouth of a frog (water sporadically came out of the tiger's mouth). I'm not too sure if this is supposed to symbolize something... or where the water was coming from (although, I had a few unsanitary ideas). However, I thought it was best to NOT drink the water... or touch it. 

Enter At Your Own Risk

I saw this stone carving in front of one of the temples with a closed door. I have no idea what the writing means... but I would like to think that behind the closed door are monks having kung fu battles. Perhaps the writing means, "enter at your own risk"?
I really loved the details in this photo... heavy texture on the stone carving, bright red door in the background, a dusty floor in the foreground, two different types of bricks stacked together, a shiny surface reflecting light...

**UPDATE**
Thanks to a Chinese friend, I found out that the word means "a kiosk where someone stands in the snow"... it comes from a story in Ming Dynasty which tells a monk consult Buddhism to Buddha someday was snow.

A Confused Tree

Temples at the Shaolin Monastery

The temples at the Shaolin Monastery are very beautiful... bright/vibrant colors, intricate carving details, and textures aged to perfection. Each building has its own unique features, but is in unison with its surroundings. These are a few photos I took while walking around.

Stone Creatures

At the top of each building at Shaolin Monastery, little stone creatures stand guard. Each creature has unique features and they are positioned at the building's four corners. I couldn't quite understand why they were there or what their significance was... but they appeared to be acting as guards to scare away evil spirits. 

Burning Incense

Burning incense at the Shaolin Monastery. People would make a small donation, grab an incense stick, and then walk into the temple to pray. The group I was in tried to do the same thing... but we were blocked by the monk from entering the temple. I think there was a non-white people policy (or at least they didn't believed we were buddhists).

Selective Focus

Getting a close up of some of the textures that have been created over the last century. In the top photo, a woman peaks through a narrow passage way.

Kung Fu Masters in Training at Shaolin Monastery

This was a pretty impressive site to see as I was departing the Shaolin Monastery... 1000s of students were quietly sitting at attention and listening as their masters gave instruction. I was surprised that not a single student looked distracted by the tourists (such as me) walking by. It was like we did not exist. 

Finger Punching Tree at Shaolin Monastery

The little "divots" you see in this tree are caused by monks that are practicing "finger punching". I didn't quite believe it at first (sounded like something out of a Kill Bill movie)... however, when you get up close, the divots are definitely the size of a finger. I'm not quite sure what else could have caused it (wikipedia also confirmed this information). In this photo, one of my work colleagues decided that he needed some practice. 

So You Want to Learn Kung Fu... Statues at the Shaolin Monastery

During a work trip to Northern China, I was lucky enough to take a detour to the Shaolin Monastery (aka Shaolin Temple) in Henan province. The Shaolin Monastery is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is famous for Shaolin Kung Fu! It was a pretty awesome place to visit (apparently, it's every Chinese kid's fantasy to learn kung fu here). These are a couple photos I took of the various statues on the property.