斯坦福大學開設少林功夫課 嵩山少林寺和尚執教

"The big plus is that I'm learning real kung fu from real Shaolin Monks, whom I would have no access to if I were still in China – all under the California sun," said one Stanford staff member who is enrolled in the class.
斯坦福大學一位報名了少林功夫課程的華裔職員表示：“最大的優點是我現在是在跟真正的少林和尚學習真正的少林功夫。就算是人在中國也難有這種機會，現在在加州的陽光下，我做到了。”

Jerrie Thurman, group fitness program manager with the Health Improvement Program, said a Stanford employee contacted her about bringing the Shaolin Monks to campus. After reviewing Shaolin Temple USA which is headquartered in San Francisco, its curriculum and instructors, Thurman said she decided to offer the class for one quarter to gauge interest in the class.
少林寺功夫的課由斯坦福大學“健康改進計劃”開辦。計劃的經理傑莉‧菲曼說，一名斯坦福大學的僱員跟她聯繫，建議她開辦功夫班，並且以少林寺和尚任教。菲曼研究了設在舊金山的“美國少林寺”所教授的少林功夫的課程和老師後，決定讓功夫班在斯坦福試行一個學期，看看效果如何。

Master Yanran, a Buddhist monk ordained at the legendary Songshan Shaolin Temple in central China, striding into a Stanford campus courtyard, ready to teach a mind-body fitness class sponsored by the university. He was accompanied by six monks, ranging in age from 18 to 27, who wore light blue, belted robes, trimmed in black, bearing the embroidered logo of Shaolin Temple USA.
旨在身心健康平衡的功夫課目前正在斯坦福大學校園開班。功夫班由師出中國古剎嵩山少林寺的釋延然師傅執教，還有六位17歲至27歲的少林和尚擔任助教。少林和尚們身着淺藍色黑邊的繫帶僧服，衣服上繡有舊金山美國少林寺的標誌。

Their students – wearing T-shirts, loose-fitting pants and athletic shoes – soon converged on the courtyard for the weekly hour-long class, which takes place in a courtyard behind the Medical School Office Building on Welch Road.
上課地點是醫學院辦公大樓後面的一個庭院，上課的學生們身着T恤衫和寬鬆的運動褲搭配運動鞋，不一會兒就站滿了庭院。功夫班每週上一次課，每次一小時。

Paochen Zhang, an administrative associate in the research lab at Stanford Blood Center, carried a slender wooden staff grasped firmly in one hand.
斯坦福血液中心研究所的行政助理Paochen Zhang一隻手裏緊緊握着一根木棍。

Kathleen Guan, an administrative associate in the Department of Structural Biology, brought no weapons – only her novice self, eager to learn. Guan, who was born in Beijing and came to the United States 30 years ago, said the class represented a rare opportunity to study with Shaolin monks.
結構生物系的職員Kathleen Guan手裏沒拿傢伙，她是個初學者但學習熱情高漲。關小姐出生在北京來美國已經有30多年了，她表示功夫班是跟少林和尚一起學習的難得機會。

They were among the 17 students – 12 women and five men – who attended a recent class. Currently, 22 people are enrolled in the class.
去年冬季學期，有17人報名上課，12名女性5名男性。目前班上有22名學生註冊上課。

Master Yanran said Shaolin Kung Fu is different than other martial arts systems because it incorporates the teachings of Buddhism.
釋延然大師表示，少林功夫和其它中國武術不同，因爲它融合了佛教思想。

"The spirit of Shaolin Kung Fu includes compassion, harmony, diligence and inclusiveness," he said, "It is not a brutal fighting system. In addition to self-defense skills, Shaolin Kung Fu exercises also improve the health and overall spirit."
“少林功夫的精神，包含了慈悲、和諧、勤奮和包容，與好勇鬥狠不同。少林功夫除了將功夫用作自衛，還可改善健康和增進精神。”