Lying at the foot of the Wuru Peak of Mountain Shaoshi to the north-west of Dengfeng County of He'nan Province, the world famous Shaolin Temple is favored by nature with circling springs, flourishing forests, competing hills and sights of quietness and elegance. The Shaolin Temple is regarded as the origin of Zen while Dharma was considered the founder of Zen in Chinese Buddhism. The name “Shaolin” is closely related with its location, meaning “Temple in the forest of Mountain Shaoshi”.
    First built in 495 A.D in the Northern Wei Dynasty, Shaolin Temple has a long history. In 527 A. D., Dharma, a famous master monk from India, came here to spread the theory of Zen. Since then, the temple started its expansion, the number of monks in the temple began to increase and Shaolin Temple became more influential. Shaolin Temple is regarded as the origin of Zen while Dharma was considered the founder of Zen in Chinese Buddhism. Since cultivation of Zen requires sitting still facing the wall in a pose of tailor-fashion, which is apt to lead to weariness, monks practices martial arts to drive the fatigue away. Legend has it that it was Dharma who created the Shaolin Martial Arts.
    Stepping into the Shaolin Temple, tourists will find themselves in a world of selected antiques and historic sites with artistic buildings, sculptures, frescos, bells as well as elegant handrails, inscriptions, stone steps and pagodas which have earned great fame for this temple and won visitors both at home and abroad.
    Generally, Shaolin Temple refers to the Changzhu Yard, the prime building of the Shaolin Temple, which is the center for the abbot and deacons of the temple to live and hold Buddhism activities. Built adjacent to the mountain, the Changzhu Yard has seven buildings including the major ones along the middle line and several others on the wings, covering more than 30,000 square meters in total.