• September: SCC course breaks September 1st - 29th for the annual Return to Shaolin Monastery 2011, hosted by Ven. Shi Deyang.
  

          For the month of September, Master Le Fujun will stay as a guest of Venerable
          Shi Deyang at the Shaolin Monastery in China. In addition to further studies with his
          master, several projects will be undertaken by Le Fujun during the stay, including
          the production of a special documentary covering several Traditional Shaolin Culture
          topics filmed on location at the at the monastery and reserve base.

          As the Fall Semester resumes back in USA in October, all the news, updates, and
          photos from the trip will be published.

• June 20th: Academic year-end exams were held at SCC for eligible students. Most participants exceeded the requirements of standards at their respective levels. Nearly all showed mastery of the programs studied. Congratulations to all students from Grandmaster Shi Deyang in China and Master Le Fujun.

         

• May 28th: SCC successfully conducted the 3rd Shaolin Monastery Cultural Immersion Program, a 13 hour training day lasting from 6:00am to 7:00pm. The event was held in St. Louis' Forest Park and followed the traditional training schedule of the Shaolin Monastery warrior monks. Male and female participants of a variety of ages, experience levels, and martial arts backgrounds attended, making for a successful 2011 event!

         

• May 10th: A great assembly of monastic and lay followers gathered at Shaolin Monastery to participate in the Buddha Bathing Festival to celebrate the birth of
  Śākyamuni Buddha. The tradition involves pouring water over a statue of the newborn while reflecting on one's inner defilement and eliminating greed, anger, and delusion of the mind, thus allowing one's innate awakened-nature to be revealed. The significance of the Buddha Bathing Festival lies greatly in the purifying of body and mind, rather than a worship ritual.
  
  
  
  
  
• March 26th: A seminar was held at SCC, led by Le Fujun, on the 400 year old Shaolin set Seven Star Boxing (Chin.: 七星拳 Qīxīngquán), a boxing set that uses unique rooster style hand-shapes, body mechanics, and combat techniques. A forthcoming article by Le Fujun will cover this set in detail and its place within theShaolin subsystem of Mind-intent Boxing (Chin.: Xīnyìquán 心意拳).

          More published articles on Traditional Shaolin Culture, History, Philosophy, and
          Arts written by Le Fujun can be read online at the SCC Blogsite:
          www.shaolinchancity.blogspot.com

         

• March 25th: A commemoration was held at Shaolin Monastery in observance of the birthday of Bodhisattva Samantabhadra (Chin.: 普贤菩萨 Pǔxián Púsà), the Bodhisattva of meditation and practice, who teaches that wisdom exists only for the sake of putting it into practice; that it is only good insofar as it benefits all living beings.
  
  

• March 18th & 19th: SCC Founder & Director, Le Fujun acted as guest instructor during the two-day Chinese "Language and Culture Immersion" course at the University of Missouri- St. Louis (UMSL), where students engaged in cultural activities using only the Mandarin language. In the morning, Le Fujun led students, speaking Chinese, through the Shaolin Qigong sets Eight Section Brocade (Chin.: Bāduànjǐn 八段锦) and Muscle/Tendon Changing Sutra (Chin.: Yìjīnjīng 易筋经). In the afternoon, Le Fujun trained the students in Shaolin Wugong and demonstrated compelling links between the Taijiquan (Tai Chi) of today and ancient Shaolin Soft Boxing (Chin.: Róuquán 柔拳).
  

         

• March 9th: A memorial was held at SCC for the Shaolin Monastery Elder, Ven. Shi Suxi, to mark the 5th anniversary of his passing. Coinciding with ceremonies held at the Shaolin Monastery organized by Ven. Shi Deyang, his closest disciple, as well as in Italy and elsewhere around the world, a commemorative ceremony was conducted by the director Le Fujun.
  

          The story of the Grandmaster's life was told, followed by a discussion on the
          meaning and philosophy of the Shaolin Chan Culture our center represents as
          inherited through Ven. Shi Deyang. Also presented was a commemorative
          photo book Ven. Master Shi Deyang made for his master entitled 守望少林
          Watching Over Shaolin, in which Le Fujun is also photographed.

         

• February 17th: Shaolin Chan City Founder & Director, Le Fujun, taught Shaolin Qigong and meditation at Washington University School of Medicine as part of an Alternative Medicine/Wellness workshop. Le Fujun is an active promoter of Qigong practice as an alternative form of Health Preservation and Natural Healing in the West where it is becoming more popularly accepted.