Master brings years of kung fu training to Costa Mesa

Within the Shaolin Temple, in the mountains of China’s Henan province, Shi Yanqing lived regimented, disciplined days.

He generally woke up around 5 a.m., prayed for an hour, ate, studied, cleaned around the temple, ate, took an afternoon nap, meditated and practiced.

“It was a routine life,” he said through a translator Monday.

Now the 31-year-old Shaolin kung fu master — one of only a few hundred such masters throughout the world — finds himself in a far different scenario: teaching at the Orange County Shaolin Temple Cultural Center in Costa Mesa.

At the Bristol Street studio, which Yanqing opened in September, he teaches tai chi and chan meditation methods, Shaolin kung fu and culture, and lessons in the Chinese language and culture.

The studio has around 60 students. Inside, a small Buddhist shrine sits in a corner. Ancient symbols that describe concepts such as meditation, inner peace and the balancing of body and mind line the walls, as does a picture of Shaolin Temple’s abbot, Shi Yongxin.

Yanqing’s journey to the United States was officially endorsed by Yongxin, who appointed him to teach Shaolin kung fu and culture in America.

Yanqing, who lives in Irvine, considers Yongxin one of his greatest influences, a man he credits with helping him in his personal transformation.

“I want to devote my time and energy to other people,” Yanqing said.

Yanqing grew up in Handan, in the Hebei province, where he says he had a penchant for fighting as a child. At 8 years old, he channeled that energy into studying martial arts and was accepted a few years later into the prestigious Shaolin Temple, first built in 495 A.D. He stayed there for 17 years and plans to return a few times a year when he can.

About the United States, he said he appreciates how creative and broad-minded his students are. And even though he’s a bona fide Shaolin kung fu master, he said never stops learning.

Before securing his spot on Bristol Street, Yanqing had looked at other locations but was unable to secure a space for various reasons.

In Costa Mesa, everything came together. English speakers might describe Yanqing’s startup success as the stars aligning.

In Mandarin, Yanqing called it yuanfen — loosely translated as a series of events, “meant to be.”