For example, the Chinese martial art of wrestling, Shuai Jiao, predates the establishment of Shaolin temple by several centuries.

[1] Since Chinese monasteries were large landed estates that made a considerable regular income, monks required some form of protection.

[3][4] This is, however, a misconception,[5][6] but even the fact that such a mistake could be made helps to show the historical importance of Shaolin kung fu.

There are historical records that Batuo's first Chinese disciples, Huiguang (慧光) and Sengchou (僧稠), both had exceptional martial skills.

The idea that Bodhidharma founded martial arts at the Shaolin Temple was spread in the 20th century, however, this idea came from a debunked apocryphal 17th century legend that claimed Bodhidharma taught the monks philosophies of Chan Buddhism, in which the monks were then able to use these philosophies to create their own combat techniques of Shaolin kung fu.

This is when a Taoist with the pen name 'Purple Coagulation Man of the Way' wrote the Sinews Changing Classic in 1624, but claimed to have discovered it.

The first of two prefaces of the manual traces this succession from Bodhidharma to the Chinese general Li Jing via "a chain of Buddhist saints and martial heroes.

"[9]: p165  The work itself is full of anachronistic mistakes and even includes a popular character from Chinese fiction, the 'Qiuran Ke' ('Bushy Bearded Hero') (虬髯客), as a lineage master.

"[9]: p168  Even then, the association of Bodhidharma with martial arts only became widespread as a result of the 1904–1907 serialization of the novel The Travels of Lao Ts'an in Illustrated Fiction Magazine:[11] One of the most recently invented and familiar of the Shaolin historical narratives is a story that claims that the Indian monk Bodhidharma, the supposed founder of Chinese Chan (Zen) Buddhism, introduced boxing into the monastery as a form of exercise around a.d. 525.

As a result, it has enjoyed vast oral circulation and is one of the most "sacred" of the narratives shared within Chinese and Chinese-derived martial arts.

That this story is clearly a twentieth-century invention is confirmed by writings going back at least 250 years earlier, which mention both Bodhidharma and martial arts but make no connection between the two.

The oldest evidence of Shaolin participation in combat is a stele from 728 that attests to two occasions: a defense of the monastery from bandits around 610 and their role in the defeat of Wang Shichong at the Battle of Hulao in 621.

Overlooking Luoyang on Mount Huanyuan was the Cypress Valley Estate, which had served as the site of a fort during the Jin and a commandery during the Southern Qi.

[13] Emperor Wen of Sui had bestowed the estate on a nearby monastery called Shaolin for its monks to farm, but Wang Shichong, realizing its strategic value, seized the estate and there placed troops and a signal tower, as well as establishing a prefecture called Yuanzhou.

[14] Stele and documentary evidence shows the monks historically worshiped the Bodhisattva Vajrapani's "Kinnara King" form as the progenitor of their staff and bare hand fighting styles.

Martial arts historian Tang Hao traced the Shaolin staff style Five Tigers Interception to Yú's teachings.

Meir Shahar lists the martial arts tai chi, Chang Family Boxing, Baguaquan, Xingyi quan and bajiquan as originating from this region and this time period.

There is recorded documentation of more than a thousand extant forms, which makes Shaolin the biggest school of martial art in the world.

Some say that there is no differentiation between the so-called internal and external systems of the Chinese martial arts,[5][17] while other well-known teachers hold the opinion that they are different.

For example, the Taijiquan teacher Wu Jianquan: Those who practice Shaolinquan leap about with strength and force; people not proficient at this kind of training soon lose their breath and are exhausted.

[19] Martial arts traditions in Japan, Korea, Sri Lanka and certain Southeast Asian countries cite Chinese influence as transmitted by Buddhist monks.

[22] Japanese Shorinji Kempo Group received recognition in China in 2003 for their financial contributions to the maintenance of the historic edifice of the Song Shan Shaolin Temple.

His Pao Chui, Choy Lay Fut, Monkey Fist, and Dragon moves derive from Shaolin kung fu.

The ABC TV series Kung Fu (1972-1974) starring David Carradine as a fugitive Shaolin monk traveling the Western United States in search of his brother helped to popularize Shaolin Kung Fu with the general American TV audience.