mao's shaolin bodyguard

[oasis]

question for the history buffs...zhang li peng states that shi xuyu, as mao's bodyguard, probably had a major influence on mao's decision to forbid traditional wushu. is there any other information on this figure?

[GeneChing]

I've heard this tale a few times before, but have been unable to trace it. There were a lot of major Chinese Generals and Shi Xuyu is a monk name, probably not what he went under in military life, especially not under Mao. There was a General Zheng Xuyu, but that's as much as I know so far. I'm still chipping at this...

[David Jamieson]

It was the nei gong that was most feared.

Hard to strike force a populace that pwns in h2h.
You know, what with the shaolin big on empowering everyone who sought it out with diligence. That's just dangerous for any government commie or otherwise.

[xiao]

I found this on doc's site

"The most dizzy career was made by Xu Shiyou (monk's name Youniang). He entered a Communist party, became a Head of Guanzhou's military district and fellow-campaigner of Mao Jiedong.

Information about him can be found even in the book of Li Zhisui "The private life of Chairman Mao" (Random House, New York, 1994)."

[r.(shaolin)]

According to Dr. Li Zhisui (Li was Mao Zedong's personal physician) Xu Shiyou was born in 1905 and passed away in 1985. He joined the Communist party in 1927. Because of poverty he was put into Shaolin to become a monk when only a child and apparently stayed for 8 years. I'm wondering aloud who his martial arts teacher was at Shaolin.
Xu came from a family of peasants and was never educated. He never learned to read until he joined Red Army. He is discribed by Li, who knew him personally, as "a coarse and ignorant man." Li mentions that Wang Dongxing, the director of Mao's bodyguards and a bodyguard himself, said that "Xu Shiyou could take on twenty men singlehanded and beat them all." So no doubt he was a formidable man.

r.

[WanderingMonk]

I'm wondering aloud who his martial arts teacher was at Shaolin.
r.

贞绪和尚

I got this off a mainland forum a year ago. the forum had shutdown, but here is some highlight.

you probably can get your own copy by google these excerpt.



为此，笔者专程前往少林寺，同几位高僧一番畅谈，疑团才算得到了排除。原来，当年许世友将军——永祥大师， 同另一位法名德根的僧人，一连八年同师习武，友谊至深。德根大师九岁那年，天遭大旱，五谷不收，父母几经周 折才把他送进少林寺，做佛门杂役。当他哭哭啼啼被送进童行僧棚时，有位法名永祥的沙弥，走来给他亲切的安慰 。言谈中德根知道了，这位难友比他大一岁、是河南、湖北两省交界的大别山区的人（在现在河南省背后县境内） 。两年前，因父母养活不了他们兄妹七人，才在逃荒的路上把他（指永祥）送进了少林寺做杂役。进寺之后，就整 天为师父们端茶送水，铺床叠被，扫地抹桌，有时事情干不好，免了要受师父的责备。但有一条使他高兴，就是师 父天天教他学拳练武，虽然苦些，但觉得这就有了盼头儿。只要有朝一日，把师父的浑身武艺学到手，就一定会挣 来出头之日。德根有了这位好心的师兄作伴儿，也就安下心来。（永祥、德根不是一辈数，因他们都跟当时名僧贞 绪和尚习武，所以，他俩就师兄师弟相称。）

从此，两人在少林寺内一起待奉师父和当家各尚，一起同时练武学艺，吃饭同一只菜碗，睡眠同一条薄被，朝夕相 处，形影不离，结成了知心好友。永祥睡觉枕的那块石头，德根大师一直保存到他圆寂之时。它不仅被永祥枕得油 光发亮，还是他习练“金钟罩”的砧石，每晚他要用头“咚咚咚”地在石枕上撞上一阵子，才能安然 入睡。

平时，只要一有功夫，永祥就领德根同师兄师弟们，一起按照师父的安排去习练武功、站桩、摔棍、跑滑板、跑立 砖，练插沙，练空功、练运气，练贴壁，练空打梅花铜桩等等。就祥练功，刻苦认真，不怕流血、流汗。撰，他功 底深夺取，臂力过人，刀、枪、剑、棍，十八般武艺样样纯熟。只要他不带练功“重身”，寺内丈余高的围墙，几 步开外就可飞跑而上；九间九檩千佛大殿，他手抓屋檐的椽头，一口气可顺转三圈；窜墙、越脊、飞檐走壁，轻来 轻去不叫瓦碎；跳下时，能在空中翻三个筋斗轻轻落地；飞马身边过，他能手抓马尾飞身而上；只要运足气，对着 尺二见方三寸来厚的大方砖，转身一掌，相距寸余，砖就碎裂；双手向后一背，从尺宽厚的青石条上踏过，一步一 块，可一连踩折数条；……他的功夫在师兄弟当中，总是高人一筹。他对德根来说，既是至心的师兄、好友，又是 忠诚的辅导教师。
师兄师弟们在练“吊臂”、“贴壁”时，三年没满，永祥已能手攀屋梁，悬空吊起睡觉，或嵌在墙壁中的木桩上过 夜进，德根还不能坚持燃烧一柱香的时间。在练两手插沙的排缸前，永祥伸手“嚓”的一声，手插盐炒铁砂子已进 深尺余，德根却手插豌豆的功夫还不到家。永祥常劝他“强忍疼痛，用力苦练，只要练得满手长出老茧来，就什么 都不怕了”。

一次，几个师兄弟从白马寺回来，跑了一百多里路程，天快黑时，才到了圜辕关下，还有十多里步步登高的十八盘 山路，师兄师弟们深怕一步走慢，误了师父晚课前的点卯。这时，小腿上的铁沙袋，又好象专门与人作对，越来越 觉沉重，上山确实困难。当时永祥大师每条腿上已绑到十五斤重，德根还不到七斤，而他却不听永祥劝阻，私自解 下了沙袋。哪知，刚解沙袋头重脚轻，走在路上尽栽筋斗，上山路窄，又坎坎坷坷更难行走。永祥抓起沙袋，又给 德根绑了上去，挽起德根的胳臂，就一口气拉上了十八盘。

回到寺里后，不知哪位师兄把德根解沙袋的事告诉了师父，师父发怒就惩罚德根跪香。早已混身酸疼难忍的德根， 面前两步开外的那柱火香，这时，竟象专门与他作对一样，燃烧极缓。二更鼓响了，那柱香还没烧够一半，砖楞已 早陷进两个膝盖内，疼入骨髓。德根头上正在冒汗，永祥看师父已经睡熟，便悄悄走来拔起火香折扔了大半，把剩 下的一点点火头儿又插进香炉。不多一会儿，火香就烧光了，他带着如刀剜的双腿，回到了僧棚。当冰冷的身躯， 躺进被永祥暖热了的被窝时，一双亲切轻柔的手，抚摩着他那双膝上的伤痕时，德根的眼泪象涌泉似 地淌了下来。

当年寺内养了不少练武用的高头大马，那根两米多高的拴马石桩上，蹲着一只抱仙桃的石猴。马缰绳又必须拴在那 个石猴的腿上。有一段时间，永祥每次练武回来，拴马时就为难，因师父在他小腿上才绑上的铁沙袋太重，个子矮 、跳不高、拴不上去。一次永祥连跳几次，还没把马缰拴牢，便上了火，飞起一脚，就趄拴马桩踢去。这一脚，不 仅把拴马桩踢歪了，还把石桩根部踢碎了一个脚窝。为了此事，师父发怒，也罚永祥跪香，德根也悄悄跑去学着永 祥的方法，依样画葫芦，减少了永祥的痛苦。