Feature Articles:
The Tao of Daily Living: Part 4
As we deepen our experience of union with the Tao, flowing effortlessly with life’s transformations while acting spontaneously from our own inner nature, we discover the power or force that comes from this attunement. This is the principle of te which is intimately connected with the Uncarved Block. Te arises from the Uncarved Block and enables us to manifest the power of the Tao in our daily lives.
Tai Chi: A Personal Breakthrough
After eighteen years of struggle, practice, stopping practice for a month or two, and some outward success with my Tai Chi, this fall brought a breakthrough. One morning, not initially more unusual than other daybreaks, there was a formidable sensation of energy coming from the thigh area and being directed by the waist and flowing into my arms. The feeling of power and control was initially mind-boggling. It was so beyond anything previously experienced I was in awe of what was happening. I just kept doing set after set and used the energy to answer questions of how a move should correctly be done.
A Journey into the Chinese Healing Arts
My own healing story is not unusual or remarkable, but I made a decision to change and deliberately set out on a course that gave me an opportunity to grow. It was Boxing Day, 1979 when my family was told to prepare for the worst as I lay in hospital in intensive care, attached to a life support system. They were told that, if I lived, the injuries I had sustained in a head-on collision meant I might never be able to lead a normal life. This accident marked the start of a new stage of my life and an awakening to a new reality.
Physician as Placebo
How do we explain the phenomena of positive results in the patient through the physician/patient relationship? Why do some patients respond better to treatment and medications, real or placebo, with some doctors and fail to respond with other doctors? And of course not just doctors, but healers from the full spectrum of health care providers? Philosophers for centuries have pondered why some people heal and others do not, but there has not been universal agreement for this. Many books have been written on the subject; in 1998 Caroline Myss attempted to answer this question with her ‘biography becomes your biology’[1] theory, explaining that some people do not want to get well because their illness or health issue gives them power over others. We have had our fair share of these clients!
Events:
IFT Wellness Conference 3/28 – 3/29 (CHICAGO)
IFT will be hosting the fifth Wellness conference March 28th and 29th. The conference will offer attendees a unique blend of unbiased perspectives, news about emerging trends, and information on how organizations within the food industry are penetrating the health and wellness sector. Wellness 12 will offer professionals involved in developing, producing, and bringing healthy foods to market with a unique combination of the latest advances in the healthful foods arena and the practical knowledge to apply these advances to their own product development initiatives.
Two Year Self-Cultivation & Teacher Training Program (Portland)
The next cycle of Ling Gui International Healing Qigong School’s two year Self-Cultivation and Teacher Training program begins the weekend of May 5, 2012.
One Thousand Eyes Qigong & Taoist Nutrition (Seattle)
Kick off the Year of the Dragon with this life-changing workshop! The New Year brings new intentions and perspectives; we invite you back to yourself through this workshop to reinforce your healthy life style choices and habits. This workshop will bring new vision to your life. One Thousand Eyes Qigong: To support your new vision of a healthy lifestyle, this form, based on the Three Secrets – Body Secrets, Language Secrets, and Mind/Concentration Secrets – may be practiced alone or combined with One Thousand Hands Buddha. Working with the Three Secrets you allow the opening of your 84,000 pores – your Buddha eyes – to universal awareness, just as you would open your eyes to see the world around you.
Medical Qigong for Self Heatlh (Leechburg, PA)
This two day seminar is extremely valuable for students who seek to understand and command their own energy fields. This course is appropriate for anyone who has an interest in QiGong for health and those wanting to more deeply understand the roots of oriental medicine. The information provided assumes no previous knowledge of QiGong or Chinese medicine, but fully and deeply describes traditional Chinese medicine practices and teaches how to compliment your existing health care program.
Briefs:
New Theory Explains: “The Earth is alive”
The earth is alive, asserts a revolutionary scientific theory of life emerging from Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine. The trans-disciplinary theory demonstrates that purportedly inanimate, non-living objects—for example, planets, water, proteins, and DNA—are animate, that is, alive. With its broad explanatory power, applicable to all areas of science and medicine, this novel paradigm aims to catalyze a veritable renaissance.
In Search of an Authentic Voice: 10 Questions for Anthony Guilbert
Together with a strong Twitter and FaceBook pressence, IMOS has been steadily pushing back the barriers for the intertnal arts, drawing practioners and theorists together to debate some of the most topical and undying debates about practice, about authenticity and application.
This week I interview the man behind IMOS, the eclectic Anthony Guilbert: publisher, lecturer and writer. I ask him just 10 Questions.
UC Berkeley study finds a culture of compassion more prominent among non-affluent Americans.
A UC Berkeley study found that individuals in the upper middle and upper classes were less able to detect and respond to the distress signals of others. Overall, the results indicate that socio-economic status correlates with the level of empathy and compassion that people show in the face of emotionally charged situations.
Wudang Mountain Tai Chi Amusement Park
WUHAN, Nov. 16 (Xinhua) — China will build a theme park showcasing the traditional martial art of Tai Chi in Wudang Mountains area, legendary home of the marital art and a UNESCO World Heritage Site renowned as a center of Taoism. The administrative office of Wudang Mountains and American company Landmark Entertainment will cooperate to set up the Tai Chi theme park in the central province of Hubei, said an official with the administration on Wednesday.
