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Healthy Longevity and Taoism

stephencmlau@gmail.

stephencmlau@gmail.com.

Best regards

Stephen Lau
http://www.longevityforyou.com

Healthy Longevity and Taoism
TAOISM

Taoism, cultivation of the self, provides guidelines to
health and longevity. According to Taoism, you are in
control of your own life, in particular, your healthy
longevity.

Taoism is a way of life. It encompasses everything –
from the universe and nature to the human body.
Essentially, it focuses on harmony of "yin" and the "yang."

Zen (which I have mentioned in several of my previous
articles) is a "practice" of Taoism, and is sometimes
interspersed with Buddhist teachings. Unlike Buddhism,
Taoism believes in the value of life, but does not focus on
life after death. Taoism is not a religion.

Taoism was initiated by Lao Tzu, a contemporary of
Confucius (both were among the greatest philosophers in
ancient China).

Lao Tzu says, "The highest virtue is achieved through
non-action. It does not require effort because virtue is
natural to people." In other words, the wisdom in doing
things is innate in every individual.

You act without doing and work without effort. You prevent
trouble before it arises. You put things in order before
they exist. The giant pine tree grows from a tiny sprout
(like the Biblical mustard seed). The journey of a thousand
miles begins with your first step.

Taoism offers a much broader concept of health and
longevity than contemporary Western medicine.

For example, most of the forms of sport and exercise
practiced in both the East and West today are highly
competitive. They emphasize strength and quick reflexes,
with strenuous training (and sometimes reinforced with
drugs) designed to increase strength and stamina for
ultimate success. If you cannot complete successfully, you
are out of the game. Taoism, on the other hand, offers
spontaneity. You do what you can, and do the best of what
you can.

Another example, many people today tend to think of health
only in terms of curing sickness, and longevity only in
terms of avoiding fatal diseases. Taoism, on the other
hand, focuses on the art of living longer and healthier,
not merely surviving into old age. The Yellow Emperor of
ancient China once asked his sage how he could live long.
The sage replied, "There is nothing to be seen, nothing to
be heard. Just hold your spirit in stillness, and your body
will be healthy. You must be still. You must be pure in
mind and spirit, not subjecting your body to toil, not
disturbing your vital force. Then you may live for long."
This succinctly expresses the art of living well according
to Taoism.

The Chinese have an ancient tradition that does not share
the limitations of the Western approach to cure. Taoism
health and practices, which affect all aspects of life,
should be embraced at an early age, and healthy longevity
is not just a problem for elderly people.

HEALTH REJUVENATION FOR HEALTHY LONGEVITY

Lao Tzu has this to say about the attainment of longevity
through the process of rejuvenation: "The way of Tao is
like a newborn baby. . . .The baby's bones may seem weak
and his sinews soft, yet his grasp is strong. He knows
nothing about sexual conjugation, yet his penis may
sometimes be erect, showing the perfection of his vital
essence."

According to Lao Tzu, when you were born, your body and
mind were in natural harmony. However, as you grow up, you
become subject to pressures and worries, undermining the
flexibility of your body and the openness of your mind; as
a result, there is disharmony.

Healthy longevity is the attainment of harmony of the
physical and spiritual aspects of human life. When you
concentrate your attention on fasting the spirit to the
body, as well as on correct and healthy breathing, your
whole being becomes flexible – just like that of a
baby. This flexibility and suppleness of the body and mind
are achieved in Eastern forms of exercise and meditation,
such as Tai Chi, Qi Gong, and Yoga.

Lao Tzu also comments: "There is no mistake greater than
that of being ambitious; there is no calamity greater than
that being discontented; there is no fault greater than the
desire for riches. Therefore, true contentment is an
enduring and unchanging happiness."

Keeping up with the Joneses, attractions and distractions
of contemporary society, personal ambitions and desires
often create tension between your physical and spiritual
aspects, making your body rigid and your mind unyielding.
You begin to lose the original integration of the body and
mind of a baby, and you deteriorate and die. This is the
way of all flesh.

Lao Tzu says, "When a man is alive, his body is soft and
flexible; when he is dead, it is hard and rigid. So it is
with all things. Trees and plants are soft and pliant when
they are growing; when they die they are dry and brittle.
Thus, to be had and rigid is the way of death; to be soft
and yield is the way of life."

Lao Tzu has shown you the wisdom of living a life of
healthy longevity. It is all within your control.

(More on Taoism and longevity living in articles to follow)

----------------------------------------------------
Stephen Lau is a researcher, writing synopses of medical
research for scientists. His publications include "NO
MIRACLE CURES" a book on healing and wellness. He has also
created several websites on health and healing.
http://www.longevityforyou.com
http://www.zenhealthylifestyle.com
http://www.chinesenaturalhealing.com

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