Shaolin history, politics, martial arts, current events, personalities, all with a unique perspective. With a selection of other traditional martial arts, including Muay Thai, Sanda, Seidokan, and others.
A web site that finds its origins back in 1995, with initial publication in early 1996. Millions of viewers, thousands of members, hundreds of pages, hundreds of multimedia presentations, and a large group of dedicated contributors. All from a group of people with diverse relevant contacts and interests. A site distributed over three separate domains, and multiple hosting servers.
It started as a personal look at the inner workings of the Shaolin Temple, from the perspective of a solitary individual, an "insider". It has evolved into a compendium of information from diverse scholastic sources, all dedicated towards bringing forth an honest perspective of all things Shaolin.
No bullshit. No pomp. No grandmaster worship. Just an honest and occasionally irreverent perspective of the Shaolin Temple and its keepers.
Welcome to russbo.com. We hope you enjoy your stay here.
Recent Videos
Navigating russbo.com
How to get around
russbo.com is made up of various domains, all distributed over multiple servers. The main part of the site can be found via the menu links found on this page. Some of the links will open a new window in your browser. Have your browser "allow popups" for russbo.com so that these new pages can open...
Getting to Shaolin
We can help you get to Shaolin to train with the various monks that we are familiar with. More information in the Site FAQ area of the site.
Browser Suggestions
The site is best viewed with the latest Firefox, Opera or Safari; Internet Explorer 7 works ok with some minimal issues. Older browsers distort the layout of the pages and make them unreadable. JAVA should be enabled and Adobe Flash installed so that you can experience the various features.
russboTV
russboTV: a new aspect of the site where you can view the hundreds of Shaolin and China related videos from russbo.com. You can also join and upload your favorite videos to this YouTube type of site at www.russbo.tv.
Submitting Articles
You can submit articles and other information to be used on russbo.com. Become a russbo author, and help contribute to the community. More information can be found in the Site FAQ; through the link in the Site Menu.
Submitting Events
Want to advertise your Shaolin based events and seminars on russbo.com? We can publish your advertisment on the front page of the site, and even send out mailers to our community for special occasions. Contact us for more information.
Submitting Links
It's easy to submit links to your favorite and relevant sites. You need to successfully register with the site first; after that, log in, and a new menu will appear, the User Menu. In that, will be a link for you to submit your sites to our Links section.
Discussion Forum
Our Forum / Library hosts multiple features, including a Photo Library and a Video Library. There is also an Archive from past discussion forums, and a slew of other features. Join now, and get to know the rest of the gang!
docBooks Section
The docBooks section is a Flash enabled book section, which has, and will have, some interesting Shaolin historical features. At present, a booklet from the Shaolin Chan Wu Xue Yuan, a successful and then failed attempt at opening up a Shaolin based school in Las Vegas. Also, a t...
Shaolin School Advertising
Advertise your Shaolin based school on russbo.com, in the Shaolin Schools Section. Create your own school web site here. Just register and contact doc about getting Author privileges. It's easy, and it's fast.
Webhosting
In order to better serve our community, we are now offering members the opportunity to host their material and websites on russbo.com's servers, either in russbo.com or in a subdomain of russbo.com. More information in the Site FAQ.
There has been a recent rash of liver related problems and deaths in Yunnan province this past year, more so than usual. There have been a lot of theories as to why Chinese citizens are being diagnosed with Acute Liver Failure (ALF), but one potential cause seems to be the most prevalent.
Bad mushrooms.
The Chinese in Yunnan province, and in the western part of China, tend to not farm mushrooms, but go out into the wild and pick them. The consequences of these actions can be fatal.
Keep in mind, that about fifteen years ago, a group of well accomplished mushroom aficionados and specialists, some of them university professors, went scavenging for wild mushrooms in the Pacific Northwest of the US. As I remember, seven of them got very ill (ALF), one or two died, a few required liver transplantation. The moral of the story is, even the best minds make mistakes with these things. The wrong mushroom can be deadly.
A discussion about hepatotoxins and acute liver failure is in order.
Bedbugs have feasted on sleeping humans for thousands of years. After World War II, they were eradicated from most developed nations with the use of DDT. This pesticide has since been banned because it's so toxic to the environment.But if you're thinking of going to Shaolin, or anywhere in China in general, you're more than likely going to become intimate with these little critters. Here's some information that you might find helpful.
Ever wonder what the process was for training in Shaolin? Well, it's different for everyone; people come from various countries and circumstances, and things can be distinctly incomparable at times. But, overall, the questions tend to be similar. Over the years I've helped many people find good training opportunities in Shaolin, and over the years, generally, it's the same questions and answers. I've created some areas in the FAQ sections to help answer those questions, but I thought that if I posted a thread of questions and answers that was fairly within limits of the norm of what I get over the years, it might prove helpful to those of you who want to make the journey. So, I've put together some messaging with one of the latest members of our community who has made the trip to Shaolin to train. The thread is rather extensive, but within it lies answers to some commonly asked questions, and some pearls of wisdom that all travelers to Shaolin really need to know.
The initial question was, as usual, "How much does it cost to train in Shaolin?" The question was more specifically asked about Shi De Cheng's school in Dengfeng, right outside of the Shaolin temple area. The comments in italics are my responses, the type in normal font are the potential student's questions.
Dear doc I'm interested in training with Shi De Cheng at his school in China later this year. Can you give me more information? How do I do this? Sorry to bother you! xxxxx
With the advent of Mixed Martial Arts, and the increased use of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu in the martial arts world today, one has to remember that sometimes there are consequences to having close physical "skin on skin" contact with other athletes. Well known in the high school and college wrestling world, Herpes Gladiatorum, a herpes simplex viral infection, is something to be acutely aware of when practicing close contact sports as is done in some of the martial arts. Here's a brief synopsis from the medical journals about the condition.
"Outbreaks of herpes gladiatorum have occurred countless times during the last decade; several outbreaks of herpes gladiatorum have occurred among wrestlers across the United States. It is critical that health care providers, athletic trainers, coaches, and athletes recognize the threat of herpes gladiatorum skin infection to minimize the risk of outbreaks. Vigilant surveillance and appropriate antiviral treatment will curtail the transmission of herpes gladiatorum among wrestlers.
Herpes simplex virus is a double-stranded DNA virus. About 80% of adults have antibodies to HSV-1, and about 20% of the population has antibodies to HSV-2. HSV-1 is commonly known to cause herpes labialis and keratitis. Most childhood herpes simplex virus infections are caused by HSV-1. HSV-2 is commonly known to cause genital herpes infections, which is one of the most common sexually transmitted diseases in the United States. HSV-2 is transmitted primarily by direct contact with lesions, and it is most often transmitted venereally. Generalized or localized cutaneous and mucosal lesions characterize initial infection by herpes simplex virus. Recurrent infections are milder because fewer viruses are shed and a stronger immune response is elicited. Herpes simplex virus remains dormant in the nerve ganglia; febrile illness, stress, immunosuppressive drugs, and ultraviolet light can precipitate recurrent eruptions. In rare cases, the initial replication of herpes simplex virus can lead to meningitis or encephalitis. Herpes simplex virus persists for life in a latent form. The virus is sometimes confused with herpes zoster because the site of latency for herpes simplex virus is the trigeminal ganglion. Herpes simplex virus may also manifest as a severe and/or life-threatening infection in immunocompromised individuals and in newborn babies. Specifically, disseminated infections can result in esophagitis, pneumonitis, encephalitis, hepatitis, and adrenal necrosis.
The forum software is being upgraded with all sorts of new features including new Chat software, Classifieds, Media Libraries, Video Libraries, the ability for our members to create their own articles and web sites, and, well, a lot of other features, all hosted on russbo.com.
Check it out at Forum / Library.
More additions coming soon! The forum area is constantly being improved upon.
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"Outbreaks of herpes gladiatorum have occurred countless times during the last decade; several outbreaks of herpes gladiatorum have occurred among wrestlers across the United States. It is critical that health care providers, athletic trainers, coaches, and athletes recognize the threat of herpes gladiatorum skin infection to minimize the risk of outbreaks. Vigilant surveillance and appropriate antiviral treatment will curtail the transmission of herpes gladiatorum among wrestlers.