Five Elders of Shaolin
Painting of Shaolin Warrior Monks in Training “Because of Shaolin’s relative anonymity during the reign of the Qing, it became a natural recluse for anti-Manchu activity. Hundreds (if not thousands) of men took refuge at the temple, shaved their heads and became “monks;” warriors, perhaps, but not Buddhist priests. And so, a large number of men, forming a core of resistance against the Manchus, were living, and hiding, within the gates of Shaolin.