The Art of Life Cultivation 04

Peaceful mind

Any bad emotions such as anger, fear, grief, anxiety, sorrow, and suspicion will give rise to a chaotic mind which is the root of many illnesses and will shorten our life. We would try to shy away from having a chaotic mind especially when we are sick. We should also keep our mind calm in our daily life.

When we are angry, it hurts our liver. When we are sexually active, it hurts our kidneys. When we overeat, it hurts our stomach and digestive system. When we are in grief, it hurts our spleen. When we are worried, it hurts our heart and mind.

The root of all illness starts from a weak and troubled mind. When that happens, the defense is down and outside elements have a chance to attack the body.

A troubled mind will lead to a weak vital force circulation giving rise to many troublesome symptoms.

If we are greedy in food, or competition, or gains, or enjoyment, they may lead to illness. When we are greedy but we are not satisfied, then we will be angry. When we are angry, our mind is shaken and our vital force flows agitated. Our gallbladder will be startled and our liver will be on fire. Eventually all our internal organs are in a chaotic state and our defense is down. Once an outside element invades our body at this point, we will be down with an illness.

If we have a mortal desire to live longer, we should first get rid of illness. When we want to get rid of an illness, we should understand vital force circulation. When we want to understand vital force circulation, we should first cultivate morality. The way to moral cultivation is through mind adjustment.

Vital Energy

As practitioners of life cultivation, we understand that a healthy person is full of vital force or energy. Vital force helps to nourish our physical body. When we have insufficient vital force, we will be prone to illness. When our vital force flow is impeded, we will also be prone to illness. In order for us to get rid of an illness, we must build up our vital force and energy flow.

Our vital force or energy pushes our blood along its path. The blood flow in turn improves the operation of our vital force. They complement each other and are usually examined as one at the same time.

We understand that prolonged sightings will hurt our blood circulation, that prolonged lying down will hurt our vital energy circulation, that prolonged sitting will hurt our muscles, that prolonged standing will hurt our bones, that prolonged walking will hurt our ligaments.

When we have excessive emotional disturbance it will hurt our natural at-birth vital force with accompanying injury to our heart and kidneys. It will lead to an increase of free or virtual fire, weakening the positive vital force of our whole body.

In order to cure an illness of the five internal organs, the top priority is for us to improve the vital-force especially that of the kidneys. The best way to improve the vital force is to have a peaceful mind. When the mind is in turbulence, the liver will fire up, followed by all other organs, leading to a loss of body fluid. The heart acts like a fan which will create a wind. An active wind will fan fire to a higher degree. With the increase in heat, fluid will be depleted. With the depletion of fluid and water, the physical body will be in danger.

As practitioners of life cultivation, we understand that a person with a peaceful mind will also have a stable emotion. Thus a sick person should strive to gain confidence to achieve a focused mind. With a solid combination of emotion and mind, a person can rule over hundreds of illnesses. He can then speedily return to health.

When we do not have a peaceful mind, we will be temperamental and in a bad mood which is the cause of illness and death. Therefore, peace of mind is a top priority for health maintenance. The mind will control all happenings.

A peaceful mind will yield smooth vital force flow which will lead to smooth blood flow. It will contribute to an energetic and bright person. When that happens, we will increase our immunity which will get rid of illness. Therefore, in order to avoid an illness, the first priority is to take care of our mind.

As practitioners of life cultivation, we seek longevity without illness. If that is going to happen, first we have to have a strong body. In order to have a strong body, we should have the correct amount and status of nutrients, vital force and mind. In order to have them, we should avoid all distractions. To avoid distractions, we should cultivate a peaceful mind.

In order to have a peaceful mind, we should be rid of the three devils (greed, anger, obsession). In order to get rid of the three devils, we should learn how to discipline our mind. However, discipline is just an empty word bringing no benefits to us unless we have Wisdom. In order for us to have Wisdom, we must learn how to Meditate. In order to do Meditation, we must learn how to Walk.

Keys to Longevity

Calmness will yield benevolence. Benevolence will yield longevity. Longevity will yield happiness.

The keys to body cultivation and mind cultivation can be summed up in two phrases: let go and turn back.
When we let go of our butcher knife, we will become a Buddha. The bitter sea is boundless, but once we turn back, we will reach the shore.

Once we can let go or turn back, the sick people will be rid of illness and lost people will find their way. This is the essence of longevity.

When we are mentally overworked we will have a heart that is weak and a liver that is on fire. An overworked heart will be full, not null. A full heart will not be capable of absorbing fire from the liver. When the liver is full of fire, it will damage the stomach and spleen, leading to indigestion, malnutrition, and insomnia.

It will also lead to insufficient water in the kidneys. This insufficiency of water will lead to more heart fire. The heart fire will further weaken the heart. This in turn leads to a dysfunctional lung giving rise to lung disease.

All internal organs are interconnected. When one organ is shaken, all will be shaken. When one organ is damaged, all will be damaged. All bad things arise from a troubled mind.

In order to remove an illness, we must calm our mind. In order to calm our mind, we must stop wishful thinking. In order to stop wishful thinking, we must control our mind. In order to control our mind, we must be self aware. The best way to maintain health is through walking.

Walking is a way to mind resting. When the mind is rested, it soothes the nerves. When the nerve is soothed, vital force will increase. With an accumulation of vital force, blood will be activated and blood and vital force circulation will be smooth. When this happens, illness will be gone if we are sick. If we are not sick, illness will be prevented. However, this is secondary to other benefits.

Here is the primary benefit. When our mind is rested, our consciousness will be clear. We become more intelligent. Also, once our mind is rested, we can think of more possibilities. We will be good at observation. We become very clear in logic. We are now better at reasoning. We now have clearer vision.

We are not shocked by chaos now. We are not confused by bad situations. We see things clearly. We will not become obsessive or blind-sided. This opens up the Way to Big Opportunity and Big Usage. We are not limited to narrow vision anymore.

When we are sick, the worst thing is for us to be annoyed. At this time, we should accept the situation that we are sick, and strive to have a calm mind. Our body will then try to make adjustments. We will then recover from our illness faster.

When we have a peaceful mind, we will have a smooth vital force flow. We will recover from illness faster. If we are irritated, the fire will flare up, and our liver will be damaged. The illness will get worse. With a peaceful mind, the blood and vital force flow will be smooth, leading to speedy recovery.

Mind and Performance

As practitioners of life cultivation, we understand that our mind can be classified into two states. One is a sincere mind. The other is a delusional mind. A sincere mind is just like water. A delusional mind is just like a wave. When a wind comes along, a wave is produced. When the wind stops, the waves will calm down too, but the water will always be at rest.

Our performance depends on our mind. The state of our mind, whether it is weak or strong, originates from the calmness of the mind. Once the mind is in a state of chaos, it will hinder all of our performance.

Life is critically dependent on blood and vital force flow. A stagnant vital force flow will lead to blocked blood flow. Blocked blood flow will eventually lead to poisonous sputum, cancer, or tumor. They are all results of blocked blood and vital force circulation.

Vital force circulation must be smooth. Blood circulation must remain unblocked. All illness originates from uneven vital force flow. When vital force flow is not smooth, it first leads to a dysfunctional liver.

In order to remedy the situation, we must find a way to eliminate it. One way is to find the root cause which rests with the mind. Once the mind is void, the problem will be gone. Another way is to apply Mustang Tuina Technique to physically help the flow of blood and vital force circulation so that the flow will be smooth again.

When we try to recover from an illness, we should not try to speed up the process. When we try to speed it up, it will help to raise the fire. When the fire flares up, vital force circulation is harmed, which does not help with the recovery.

Also, we should not be greedy and want more. When we are greedy, we are in a hurry. Also, most illness originates from greed. If we are greedy while being sick, it will only increase our suffering.

If we are not afraid of being in an unfavorable situation, or being taken advantage of by another person, we will be alright. In other words, if we can be taken advantage of by another person, we are willing to give up our life even if someone wants it. It also means that we will not want to take advantage of another person. If that happens, will our mind still be chaotic? But, who can do such a thing? The Buddha did it.

When a person has a vast knowledge, his mind will be calm, smoothing his vital force flow. His facial expressions will be slowly changing to reflect his mind. An enlightened person will be in a position to make correct observations of him from his facial expressions.

We are born to be encumbered by The Five Desires. The most difficult desire to break is Reputation or Honorary. Next in line is Beauty. Next in line is Wealth. Next in line is Food. Next in line is Sleep. If we cannot break away from the desire of being famous, we can never achieve Enlightenment.

What is a despicable person? He is the one who has lost control. He is not restricted by humility. He will ultimately go the way of disappearance. On the other hand, a person cannot be depressed forever. He will have lost the power of achievement.