Arts Training
Is there any truth to the whole secret monastery martial arts training trope?
In many forms of media, there are parts where the characters might enter the company of (Chinese) monk brotherhood for hardcore training. Is there any truth to that? Are there tales of actual people who have been able to go into remote places and come out a better trained athlete? Please let me know anything you have heard about this.
I know there are schools where you pay to get in. They mostly seem like a business venture and not completely true to the real Buddhist monk training methods.
Simple answer: Nope.
Since you specified "Chinese", I can take that to mean the supposed "Shaolin" that perform at various venues around the world. You are right to be skeptical because while great martial artists and acrobats in their own rights, they are merely a troupe of actors employed by the PRC for the sole purpose of generating revenue and tourism for the PRC.
True Shaolin are Buddhists first and foremost; their martial arts training is a means to an end, not their sole attribute. Since the teachings of Buddha as they interpret them conflict with the idea of Communism, most true Shaolin vacated the country with the onset of Communism - if there were any left, they would blend in and likely never mention their identity, much less offer to teach others for payment.
There are several books on the subject, but one for which I have recommended often in the past is entitled "Shaolin Grandmasters Text". It is the best recorded resource I have found. Here is a link for it on Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Shaolin-Grandmasters-Text-History-Philosophy/dp/0975500929/ref=sr_1_1/187-0025835-4318604?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1260977499&sr=1-1
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