I Want to Be a Kung Fu Master

Liu Xiaoyun’s passion for martial arts began at a young age. Surrounded by martial arts practioners in his hometown of Dangshan in Anhui province, Liu began practicing wushu at the Shaolin Kung Fu School at the age of 7. At the age of 11, he moved to Shaolin Temple, where he lived for three years. Afterwards, he went to the Shaolin Tagou Kung Fu School, continuing his kung fu studies and learning sanda (Chinese boxing). After years of disciplined studying, Liu spent a few years in the entertainment side of martial arts, touring the world with the Shaolin Tagou International Kung Fu School. He has since returned to traditional training and has appeared on national television in the US, the UK, Japan, South Korea and Italy. Currently based in Beijing, Liu runs kung fu classes through Jinghua Wushu at various international schools and clubhouses. Bitten by the travel bug, Liu also makes regular overseas trips, teaching fung fu to students all over the world. Before conducting his next class, Liu visited The International Montessori School of Beijing to give the students a kung fu demonstration and talk about the importance of discipline.

Helen Meng, 11, UK
Why did you dream of doing kung fu, but not other things?
Because my hometown is one of the Chinese martial arts towns, I started practicing kung fu when I was young. It became my dream.

Laurence Brahm, 9, US
When you were learning in Shaolin, how come you never gave up?
When I went to Shaolin temple, my parents said, "After one week, he will cry and come back home." But I wanted to prove to them [I would not give up]. So one week became one month, half a year, one year, and then 15 years. Kung fu teaches you not give up easily. If you do not work hard, it’s not just you that will lose what you are doing; what you are doing will forget you.

Cailin Booth, 12, Canada
When you were younger did you want to do something else besides kung fu?
Yes. When I did three years of kung fu every day without studying at school, I realized that kung fu is not enough for me. Then I started studying at a Chinese martial arts college. I majored in English. Whatever you do, you need knowledge – it’s the most important thing.

Laurence Brahm, 9, US
How do you keep your balance when you do difficult positions?
I ran along a wall shaped like an "s." It is not high, around 50cm. We ran on the wall every day to have good balance.

Jasmine Chui, 10, Australia
Why does tai chi have lots of positions where you balance on high platforms?
In tai chi, you have to be relaxed. Relaxing the body starts from the mind. The power is not power from the muscle – it’s internal. If you’re tense, your body is very tense.

Niklas Jaakola, 11, Finland
When you were doing tai chi on the Great Wall, were you scared to fall off?
I’m not afraid, because I trust myself and I’m full of confidence.

Daniel Walton, 11, Canada
How do you jump so high?
[Laughs.] The photographer is very good.

Niko Pehkonen, 13, Finland
How many hours do you train a day?
In Shaolin, I was training nine to 12 hours every day.

Erica Guo, 10, Canada
How long does it take to learn how to do splits in the air?
Everybody has a different kind of body. For me, my body is flexible. So it took me around one month, but it was a really hard month that felt like one year. At that time, there was only one way to do it: Two people hold your arms, one holds your leg and another one pushes. And if you cry, nobody cares. The most important thing is that you do it every day; even just two minutes every day.

Hugo Dujat, 12, France
Do you ever train in the rain or snow?
Yes we do. But when there is a very big rain and the floor is too slippery, we go back and read.

Johnny Hu, 11, China
Have you ever shaved your head as a monk?
Yes. This is one of the rules in Buddhism. Monks cannot eat meat or drink wine, and they have to shave their heads.

Owen Keogh, 9, US/Italy
Can the swords cut or kill people?
Sorry, they are for training only.

Daniel Walton, 11, Canada
Can you do a front flip?
I was doing jumps in my twenties. I stopped eight years ago, because they look fun but they’re also very dangerous.

Maikah Bulpitt, 11, US
Do you think your son is going to carry on doing kung fu?
It’s his choice, but I believe he would like to. Now he’s very excited. Last year, he competed in a Beijing competition for children and placed fifth.

Kirstine Melsen, 10, Denmark
Do you travel a lot?
I’ve been to about six different countries. About 12 years ago, I traveled with a team around the world doing performances while training teachers. My dream is to explain Chinese traditional martial arts to the world. I go to different countries to explain kung fu every year. Next month, I will go to London for two weeks to train some students.