Healing Tao Institute

Articles by Jampa Stewart

Cultivating The Field Of The Elixir: The Dan Tian Revisited
Activating and working with the dan tian is one of the most vital principles in Qigong. Dan tian "cultivation" is also central to Daoist and Buddhist meditation, Taijiquan (T'ai Chi Ch'uan) and most Chinese and Japanese martial arts such as Karate and Aikido, as well as many other Asian arts, including calligraphy, painting, flower arranging and dance.

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Medical Qigong & Chinese Medicine
Early Qigong History Like the Dineh or Navajo people of the southwestern United States, the ancient Chinese saw disease and natural disasters as signs that an individual or a tribe of people had fallen out of harmony with Nature. The cure for the Navajo was to reestablish a correct relationship with Nature, with society, and within the individual through ceremony, including sand paintings, chants, prayers and dances.

To achieve a similar healing goal, the legendary Taoist emperor Yü the Great, of the early Xia dynasty (2,000 - 1,600 B.C.), ecstatically danced the movements of a bear to harmonize heaven and earth and to stop the floods and pestilence in his kingdom. His shamanic dance, known as "The Pace of Yü," is still practiced by Taoists today.

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Traditional Chinese Medicine – The New Ancient Medicine
I first experienced acupuncture in the early 1980's. It was after I got thrown in a martial arts class and landed seat down on a concrete floor. The next morning, I was extremely stiff, in excruciating pain, and could barely walk. In desperation, I called my acupuncturist friend and booked an appointment for that afternoon.

When I got to his clinic, he asked me, "Where does it hurt?" I showed him, and he proceeded to insert one needle above the painful area and one below. He twirled them for about a minute and then removed them. He then said, "Let's have you stand up and see how it feels to walk." To my astonishment, 100% of the stiffness was gone, and the pain was reduced by 95%! I could not understand how that could be possible, but I was duly impressed. This incident made me interested in becoming an acupuncturist.

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Foundations of Taoist Practice

When you try to define Taoism, you immediately run into trouble. The great
Taoist philosopher and author of the Tao Te Ching, Lao Tzu, begins his first chapter
with the warning words,

The Tao that can be described is not the eternal Tao.
The name that can be named is not the eternal name.

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