From the Streets of Boston
to the Shaolin Temple
It all started back in Boston, MA. Charles first got exposed to fighting because of his neighborhood. Growing up as an Italian in a mixed neighborhood got him into his fair share of scrapes with the local bullies.
Like many young boys, he got his start boxing at a local gym, then moved to several different martial arts before he decided that the Shaolin Arts had everything he was looking for.
Devastating throws, laser-like strikes and kicks, crippling grappling techniques and how to use and defend against deadly weapons were all a part of his training. He was hooked for life.
He decided at a young age to dedicate his life to the Shaolin Arts and thirty seven years later, he was Grandmaster and had built the largest martial arts company in the United States.
Little did he know that by dedicating his life to the arts and building his martial arts company, he had started a chain of events that would lead him to the innermost sacred chambers of the legendary Shaolin Temple of China.
Introduction to the Shaolin Temple
While building his martial arts company, Charles had enlisted the help of one of his top students, Steve DeMasco. Steve was the East Coast President of the company Charles had started and by 1998 Steve was a Grandmaster in the Shaolin Arts.
Steve was well connected and well known in Washington D.C. and through one of these connections, Grandmaster DeMasco and the Professor were introduced via letter to the Head Abbot of the Shaolin Temple, Shi Yun Shin.
It seems that the Head Abbot of the Shaolin Temple had heard of and was impressed by all that Professor Mattera had done to spread the Shaolin Arts.
This began a relationship between the Professor and the Head Abbot where a mutual respect was built between the two men which ultimately led to a historic invitation.
In 2000, the Professor was invited by the Head Abbot to travel to China and to visit the Shaolin Temple.
From the Gates of the Shaolin Temple to the Innermost Sacred Chambers
The Professor flew to Deng Feng, China to meet the Head Abbot. For four days, the Professor was a guest of the Shaolin Temple. The Head Abbot and the Professor spent hours upon hours together, forging a friendship and sharing knowledge about the arts.
Each man exposed the other to their culture, their beliefs and ideas on the arts and other topics. Both men were impressed with the other’s accomplishments and depth of knowledge.
What was unknown to the Professor at the time was that the Head Abbot had a surprise in store for him.
During his time with the Abbot, the Professor was informed that the Head Abbot wanted the Professor to demonstrate his expertise in the Shaolin Arts for himself and all of his Warrior Monks.
The Professor agreed, both humbled and honored with the request. In an ultra-secret meeting, the Professor demonstrated his skills and mastery of the Shaolin Arts for the Head Abbot and his top Warrior Monks.
What happened next was a shocker.
Adopted Son of the Head Abbot and Disciple of the Shaolin Temple
The Head Abbot, impressed by what he had seen and by what he had become to know about the Professor, decided to do something that had never been done for an American in the history of the Temple.
The Head Abbot of the Shaolin Temple adopted the Professor as a son, gave him a Chinese name and made him an Official Disciple and Ambassador of the Shaolin Temple!
Humbled beyond belief, the Professor promised the Head Abbot that he would return to the Shaolin Temple and bring hundreds of students with him as a way of showing his gratitude and respect to the Shaolin Temple.
Passing On the Torch and a Sworn Oath
In 2001, the Professor went back to the Shaolin Temple and brought over one hundred and fifty students of the arts with him to train at the Temple and pay his respects to the Head Abbot.
One evening, the Head Abbot asked if he could join the delegation at the local hotel they were staying. He told the Professor the he wished to speak to the group and make a special presentation.
During the dinner, the Head Abbot stood and made a speech, thanking the Professor for supporting the Shaolin Temple and Shaolin Arts. To show his appreciation, he said he had a special gift for the Professor.
Professor Charles Mattera being presented the ancient box that contains the Secrets of the Shaolin Temple from the 33rd Head Abbot of the Shaolin Temple, Shi Yun Shin.
He presented the Professor with a beautifully carved wooden box with emerald and jade inlays. With the presentation, he made the Professor promise to keep spreading the Shaolin Arts throughout the world.
The Professor was speechless. He promised the Head Abbot that he would keep his word. In keeping with Chinese custom, the Head Abbot did not tell the Professor what was in the box and the Professor, having been studying the Chinese for over thirty years, knew not to ask.
Later that night, in his hotel room, he opened the box. Inside where beautiful, hand stitched cloth books. Each was hand written on thin rice paper and then tied together with a white piece of string.
He quickly called his translator in and asked him what these books were. The translator read the cover of one of the volumes and was literally shaking when he told the Professor what the Head Abbot had done.
The Head Abbot had given the Professor the ten volumes of the written recorded history, training techniques and principles of the Shaolin Temple!
Over two thousand years of martial arts knowledge. The very origins of almost every fighting system known to man all in one place.
Priceless, sacred, never before seen by the outside world information that had been the most guarded secrets of the Shaolin Temple.
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