About this site, an introduction

[draft] Taichi, Zen, and traditional Chinese healing, they all have the Chinese origin, some practices date back thousands of years. Through the history, much of the knowledge were not only preserved but further developed, and widely practiced in Chinese society today.

This website is on its mission to introduce things of this nature, in English, especially of those practices that are known to improve one’s health, longevity and wellbeing for the body and mind.

We strive to dispel the myth but deliver the essence. We invite qualified practitioners to explain the ideas, concepts and techniques in an understandable way. We intend to bridge the language and cultural divide. This is a long journey and we are taking our steps forward.

Taichi, Zen, and Healing

Taichi
Taichi may be spelled in different ways in English: Tai Chi, Taiji, or Tai Ji; the full name is Taichi Quan. Originated as a martial art, it is widely known in China from centuries ago that it has health benefits. In recent years, the West started to look into this phenomenon, please see post: “Benefits of Taichi…” words from the Health Authorities

Our website will focus on “health benefiting” aspect of Taichi and health Qigong (a specific practice for health), their forms, techniques, concepts…etc., these may overlap with other schools of martial art teaching, but overall, this site would leave the fighting aspect out from its focus.

Zen
The word Zen is derived from the Japanese pronunciation of the Middle Chinese word 禪 (pinyin: Chán), which in turn is derived from the Sanskrit word dhyāna, which can be approximately translated as “absorption” or “meditative state”.

Buddhism originally came from India, Chán was developed in China during the 6th century, blended with Taoist concept; Taoist emphasized Buddha-nature to be found in “everyday” human life, just as the Tao.

D.T. Suzuki calling Chán a “natural evolution of Buddhism under Taoist conditions.” From China, Zen spread south to Vietnam, northeast to Korea and East to Japan.

Today, Zen is seen as a collection of Eastern/Chinese philosophy, directly related to Taoism and Buddhism.

In this website, we recognize Zen as more of an attitude than a believe, we will focus on the everyday wisdom that Zen can bring to us – such as the concept of Tao, but leave the religious portion out. However, we do find many great teachers themselves are religious practitioner, we have great respect for their learnings and teachings, and appreciate when they share their wisdom with us!!

Healing
Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) has thousands of years of history; was applied to millions of people throughout China and East Asia since ancient times. Many of TCM theories are fundamentally different from the Western medicine. This site is intended to introduce practices that based on or derived from CTM, especially in the preventive, personal well-being and longevity (养生) related areas.

“Benefits of Taichi…” words from the Health Authorities

The health benefits of Tai Chi
“This gentle form of exercise can prevent or ease many ills of aging and could be the perfect activity for the rest of your life…  Tai Chi is often described as “meditation in motion,” but it might well be called “medication in motion.” There is growing evidence that this mind-body practice, which originated in China as a martial art, has value in treating or preventing many health problems. And you can get started even if you aren’t in top shape or the best of health.”
Source: Harvard Medical School
vard Health Publication Logo

Health benefits of Tai Chi exercise…
“The large and positive outcomes reported in the present study provide support for the wider adoption of Tai Chi as a health promotive activity in younger individuals, and help destroy any stereotype of such activity as an exercise exclusively for benefit in the elderly.”
Source: Oxford Journals, Health Promotion International
Oxford Press Logo

Tai Chi: A gentle way to fight stress
“Tai Chi helps reduce stress and anxiety, and it also helps increase flexibility and balance. If you’re looking for a way to reduce stress, consider Tai Chi. Originally developed for self-defense, Tai Chi has evolved into a graceful form of exercise that’s now used for stress reduction and a variety of other health conditions.”
Source: Mayo Clinic
Mayo Clinic Logo

A Comprehensive Review of Health Benefits of Qigong and Tai Chi
“This review has identified numerous outcomes with varying levels of evidence for the efficacy for Qigong and Tai Chi, including bone health, cardiopulmonary fitness and related biomarkers, physical function, falls prevention and balance, general quality of life and patient reported outcomes, immunity, and psychological factors such as anxiety, depression and self-efficacy.”
Source: National Institutes of Health – Public Access. This article was published in the American Journal of Health PromotionNIHPA Logo

Health Benefits of Taichi and Qigong
“Taichi and Qigong are two mind-body practices that originated in ancient China. Practiced widely in China for thousands of years, both Taichi and Qigong have become popular in the West….. many who practice Taichi and Qigong report heightened feelings of well-being along with a variety of other health benefits.”
Source: WebMD
WebMD Logo

Click on a tag name below to see a list of tagged articles :