Chinese Shaolin monk runs on water for 125 metres… breaking his own record

Running on water and wearing only a pair of black shorts and with his arms outstretched for balance, Shi Liliang sprinted across a wide river in front of a large, cheering crowd who were willing him to succeed.

Describing his technique, Shi Liliang told reporters that the discipline required both speed and patience, adding: ‘You need to be fast but you should take only small steps’

Shi Liliang is a member of the Buddhist Quanzhou Shaolin Temple, which is world famous for the incredible feats of skill and endurance its monks have displayed over the years.

Also known as the Southern Shaolin Monastry, the facility is the birthplace of kung fu, which steadily had spread throughout east and south Asia since the Middle Ages before being embraced by Americans and Europeans in the 20th century.

Built around a strict daily routine of exercise, contemplation and lessons on Buddhism, Shaolin monks often challenge themselves to complete incredibly difficult tasks requiring months of highly repetitive training.

The reason for such monotonous routines is simple. The monks believe the human strength is purely a matter of the mind and that there are no limits to what can be done with a human body once it is trained to do something automatically.