China's world famous kung-fu masters at the Shaolin temple in central China's Henan province have surprised the country's information technology gurus by their knowledge and use of the computer and cyberspace.

The monks at the Shaolin temple hosted top leaders of China's IT industry yesterday for a meeting to discuss how to help the country's fledgling IT industry and build a good image abroad.

At the meeting, the Shaolin monks revealed their hidden side - as skilled users of computers and the internet.

Master Yongxin, head of the Shaolin temple, also delivered a key-note speech at the meeting, Xinhua news agency reported from Zhengzhou, capital of Henan province.

The Buddhist monk made a powerful presentation, with the help of a projector, about the website of his temple. "The IT leaders were surprised to learn that Shaolin's website came into operation in 1997, before China's major portals had started business," the report said.

The IT leaders were also told that many Shaolin monks use the internet to gather information and communicate with the outside world.

The Shaolin temple is internationally famous for the dazzling martial arts of its Buddhist monks in "The Legend of Shaolin" and other movies and publications.