RZA - The Tao of Wu

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Table of Contents

FOREWORD

by Sifu Shi Yan Ming

Amituofo.

I congratulate the world for this beautiful gift, wisdom from the life and travels of RZA, wisdom I truly believe draws from the deepest pools of human thought and spirit.

I was born in Chinas Henan Province, and when I was five years old, my parents left me at the Shaolin temple. There, I grew up and became the most handsome of the thirty-fourth generation of Shaolin warrior monks, the worlds oldest practitioners of the Chaan Buddhist philosophy and martial art known as kung fu. In 1992, on a Shaolin U.S. tour, I defected to the United States to share Shaolin wisdom with the world. With no money, no possessions, and no English, I made my way from San Francisco to New York, where I founded the USA Shaolin temple. Not long after that, I met the RZA, whose life I found very similar to my own. In fact, I felt I had known him forever.

We met in 1995, at a party for the release of Liquid Swords. RZA was dressed very simply, but when we were introduced, I could feel a profound presence. To a Chaan Buddhist, wisdom is expressed in the physical as well as the mentaltheres no differenceand its the same with the RZA. You feel his wisdom in what he says, how he stands, how he moves. We shook hands and huggedlike a hip-hop hugand began to talk.

At that time I didnt know much Englishand he speaks very fastbut, as strange as this sounds, I completely understood what he was saying. We talked about the Shaolin temples history and philosophy, and I was very impressed with his knowledge. We talked about music, film, and science, and I could feel such understanding, such intelligence. I had met many Americans by this time, but the RZA was different. He was Americanborn in the United Statesbut he had truly absorbed Buddhist and Taoist philosophies in his own way, with an open mind and an open heart. Thats how we communicated thenmind-to-mind, heart-to-heartand its how we communicate to this day.

I travel to many countries, meet many people from around the world, but most of them cannot have that kind of open mind and open heart. A lot of people think that if they believe in Buddha, they cannot go to church. If they believe in Muhammad, they cannot be in a monastery. But theres no difference. You are the monasteryalways, wherever you areand this is something the RZA has understood for a long, long time.

Before I met him, I mostly listened to Buddhist music. Now I listen to the Wu-Tang Clan every chance I get. (Whasup! Represent!) Wu-Tang is known as the most famous group ever to practice rap as a martial art, which, in the RZAs case, happens to be the absolute truth. In kung fu, martial art and philosophy are the same, no difference. When the RZA makes music, its just like thathis philosophy and music are as one. Some of his sounds and lyrics might seem simple, but theyre not. Hes a very funny guy, but his understanding is also very deep. And even when hes not making music, that philosophy is in everything he says and doeslike a true Chaan Buddhist.

In Buddhism, the highest and most valuable number is seven. When a wise monk passes away, the monastery builds a pagoda in his memory. Some pagodas get one floor, some get two or three. But if the man was known as the wisest and most enlightened of all monks, his pagoda gets seven. I believe the seven pillars of wisdom in this book are like the seven floors of an exalted monks pagoda. They represent the wisdom, knowledge, and enlightenment of a soul that has never stopped training, never stopped learning.

At my temple, I give my disciples, students, and followers around the world a few basic messages: (1) Life is beautiful; (2) More Chi! Train harder! (3) Be honest with yourself and be honest with others; (4) Respect yourself, respect others; (5) 100% express your beautiful life. When the RZA began studying with me, I never had to tell him this. He already knew.

In case youre wondering, How is his kung fu? Fantastic! Beautiful! How could it be otherwise? Hes the RZA: different from the others. His spirit drives his actions, and those actions change the world.

Amituofo,
Sifu Shi Yan Ming
Founder and Abbot of the USA Shaolin Temple
New York City, 2009

All Praise due to Allah, Lord of all the Worlds.

Supreme Peace and Blessing. This Book of Wisdom is Volume Two of the Wu-Tang Manual and a second installment to the chambers of ideas of the Wu-Tang as told by the Abbot.

In the Divine Mathematics, Knowledge is 1: the foundation of all things. Wisdom is 2: the manifestation of Knowledge. It is knowledge in action. Manifestation = Man Fest = Speak Action is action.

Wisdom is the separation that begins life. It is the explosion that created the universe. It is the division of every cell that multiplies to form a single life. It is the partition God renders when he says, Let there be Lightseparating light from dark, sky from ocean. It is the detachment of man from his rib to create woman.

Wisdom is woman. It is the womb one must pass through to become mentally born. Knowledge and Wisdom give birth to Understanding just as man and woman give birth to a child.

Wisdom is the word. It is the way to make Knowledge known. In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the word became flesh. Gods Knowledge was made manifest through words to create life.

Wisdom is reflection in time. Knowledge is static and timeless. It is the moment before the Big Bang, the explosion brings and borns Understanding through the fourth dimension, which is time.

Wisdom is water. It is the flood that drowned the wicked in the time of Noah. It is the sea that drowned the Pharaohs army when Moses used it to part the waters. It is the universal solvent into which all things dissolve in time.

WISDOMn.

1: the effectual mediating principle or personification of Gods will in the creation of the world... 2a(1): accumulated information: philosophic or scientific learning... (2): accumulated lore or instinctive adaptation... b: the intelligent application of learning : ability to discern inner qualities and essential relationships... 3a: an embodiment of wisdom... b: a wise attitude or course of action... c: a person of superior intellectual attainments... 4: the teachings of the ancient wise men (as of Babylon, Egypt, or Palestine) relating to the art of living and sometimes to philosophical problems concerning the universe, man, or God and forming a class of literature represented in the Hebrew books of Job, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Ecclesiasticus, and the Wisdom of Solomon

Websters Dictionary, THIRD NEW INTERNATIONAL EDITION

INTRODUCTION

TRAVELS

The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.

L AO - T Z U

If you live in the projects, you dont leave them much. Everything is right there: laundry, grocery store, check-cashing placeall set up so you can live your whole life in a four-block radius. Ive lived in at least ten different projects in New YorkVan Dyke in Brownsville, Marcus Garvey in East New York, Park Hill and Stapleton in Staten Islandand they all taught me something, even if they were lessons no one would choose.

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