Dragons in the Mist

 Dragons in the Mist

By Andrew Miles

The Dragon is said to be the ancestor of the Chinese people.  Certain long lived fish were said to become dragons.  Crocodiles, dinosaurs and overly large serpents are also said to be dragons.  Dragons represent spring and the idea of upward movement.  Water evaporating would be equated with dragons while rain could be described as the white tiger. 

Qing Cheng Mountain

When I lived in Sichuan I would go to Qing Cheng Mountain to meditate.  It is rich with ions and the electricity in the air is palpable.  Rather than feeling tired as you ascend up the mountain you are rather invigorated by the quality of air which seems to pull you upward.  At the very top of the mountain the air was pure and I was completely secluded.  I dropped into a horse stance with the moon holding posture and began to meditate.  Every few minutes meditating at the top of Qing Cheng Mountain is like meditating for an hour in other places so I enjoyed feeling the rush of qi permeate my body.  I felt as though I was floating in my stance.  Afterwards I saw the spirit or ionic field around the plants which seemed to vibrate and glow vividly.  This may be a visual disturbance, but what I saw afterwards lead me to believe that it wasn't. 

Qing Cheng Moutain

I saw a column of this mixture of what I assume to be some kind of ionic halo and vapor in a large tubular column rising up forty to fifty feet in the air and I felt that it had a presence like a creature.  I believe this is what the ancients called a dragon.  As with any wild animal I did not stare at it or engage it, but respectfully and slowly walked away.  It was extraordinary.  It was as if the mountain was alive and the collective spirit of the mountain was rising from that point to heaven.  It was like a snake that was flying.  I thought at once to Quetzalcoatl, the flying dragon of central America.  I believe that dragons are some kind of electric phenomenon which mimics the bio electric field of a living animal giving the presence or a large and powerful animal.  I'm not saying that is is an animal, but perhaps there is something within animals relating to their bio electricity that other animals can feel.  If this is true, then other electrical occurrences might randomly mimic this giving people a feeling of the supernatural.  The earth's electrical field is lower now than it was two thousand years ago.

Every so often the electrical fields gets low and the poles shift. 

Perhaps events like this were more common in ancient times due to changes in electrical activity between the planet and ionosphere.  If this was the case, it may have created more sensations such as this which were attributed to supernatural phenomenon.  Around this time, misuse of common acupuncture points was said to lead to death.  Currently there are thousands of acupuncturists use random points and no dies from applying the technique at the wrong time of year.  Acupuncture was originally said to come from the coastal areas of China.  Acupuncture in China is not as effective in every region.  In the smoggy cities of China you see herb pharmacies and massage, but its rare to find an acupuncturist.  Its possible that this environment with its positive bulk and low ion content is not as affable to acupuncture.

Dragon lines

The Earth's electromagnetic lines are called dragon lines.  Ancient Chinese builders developed cities along these lines to tap into the Earth's energy flow.  Prosperous cities in China such as Hong Kong fall along these lines. 

Dragons were said to be in charge of lightning and clouds.  People prayed to dragons to bring rain.

Was there a relationship between dragon lines and the ionosphere that might lead to rain?

How did the ancient Chinese know where these dragon lines were?

Northern lights..Yep...looks like a dragon. 

Changes in the electric field of the Earth may have caused the northern lights to extended farther South creating heavenly illumination which made following these lines pretty easy.  If they did fall on these lines and animals follow these same lines as part of there migratory patterns, then these areas may have been richer with game.

Recent solar storms: 

 If we unlock these answers, then there is a good chance bringing the myth and magic of the ancient world into a modern context and further lead us to new heights of discovery.

6 climate theory

 Six Climate Theory

Grandmaster James Shyun  

Shifu Andrew Miles

The six external factors are wind, cold, damp, dryness, heat, and fire.  These relate to the six climates.
6 Climate theory is given a cursory explanation relating to external pathogenic factors in modern TCM, but it is a crucial aspect to understanding how to climates and food chains operate.

Each animal has adapted to different climates and will hold strength over other animals based on its attribute.

Cold/Water

 

Polar climates are very cold and dry throughout the year. They encompass the South Pole, the extreme northern latitudes and the interior of Greenland. The polar region is attributed to water.  The king of the polar region is the polar bear.  Bears belong to Earth.  Earth holds water so the polar bear reigns.  The ocean is attributed to water, the kings of the water are mammals which are from Earth.  Dolphins will easily kill sharks.  The largest ocean creatures are whales.  Earth holds water.

Wind/Wood

The temperate region experiences cold winters and mild summers, and covers much of North America, Europe and the northern parts of Asia. Temperate forests grow in soil fertilized by leaf litter, producing a rich diversity of plants like oak, maple, elm and willow, and animals like deer, bear, rabbits, squirrels and birds. Temperate grasslands are dominated by flowering grasses, and are rules by animals which live in caves.  Earth produces metal.  Animals such as the wolf with its mournful howl is metal.  Metal chops wood so these animals rule the forest.

Arid/Metal

Arid zones are hot and dry all year.  The rough soil contains little surface water and supports mostly shrubs. Animal life includes birds, reptiles, insects, and rodents.  Arid relates to metal.  Fire controls metal.  Birds come from the sky and like the phoenix relate to fire.  Fire melts metal and so birds of prey rule this climate.  Fire controls metal.

Damp/Earth

The tropical region is hot and wet.  This area contains the greatest diversity of plant and animal life. Tropical forests experience about 12 hours of daylight daily, with only a rainy and dry season.  Tropical climates relate to Earth.  Animals which relate to wood such as snakes rule these climates.  Wood controls earth.

 

 

Heat

Hot regions such as in Africa are devoid of water so animals must compete for scarce water supplies.  Because of this the most fearsome creatures are of water.  In Africa hippos are the most feared animal.  The other feared animals adapt to take on the qualities of water such as being nocturnal. Crocodiles and hippos rule these kind of climates.  Water controls fire.

Fire 

The ancient explanation is that phoenixes are from fire and controlled by dragons.  Dragons in this sense are the collective water wapors which rise and appear to coil on mountain tops.  They form clouds and block the sun which is represented as a phoenix.  The deepest parts of the ocean are geothermic vents which support small organisms which are eaten by fish. 

Four Directions

 Four Directions

Shifu Andrew Miles

Qi raises, descends, enters and exits.


The way of nature is to balance the four directions and the way to unbalance is to go against this natural equilibrium.

Within the human body if energy is stuck you must first move it out before new energy can come in.  If you tonify (add energy) into an excess condition it will make the condition far worse.  The first step is to release the stuck energy and draw in fresh qi.  Often people have a common cold and take ginseng.  This is rarely the correct thing to do.  The cold is often due to inefficiency rather that simple weakness.  Adding ginseng in this case is exactly like throwing money into a poor investment.  If the body process is efficient, but low on resources, then ginseng is very useful.

A business that is inefficient will lose money.  If the answer is to invest a large amount of money into an unbalanced process the result will be waste.  The right thing to do in this scenario is to review the system and let go of any processes that create waste.  After this has been achieved money will easily flow into the company.  A company may be growing quickly as money travels outward.  This is the equivalent of using ma huang (herba ephedra )or causing sweating within the body.  The energy goes upward and outward.  If you do this too much the interior becomes weak.  Within business these fast growth markets burst.  A company may shrink and become more profitable or grow and become less.  The key is balancing the four directions.  All companies have wasted effort, just like every human body also wastes effort.  They key is to study the laws of nature and change to achieve a greater degree of grace and efficiency.

 
In combat there is offense, defense, rising and sinking.  If I go forward and the opponent goes forward and we become locked up we lose flow.  At this stage we may both expend great effort which will be wasted.  If I release the power, I can regain flow and easily change their direction to achieve victory.  Rising I can defend and sinking I can attack. 

A person's nature may be introverted or extroverted and their spirits may be high or low.  A person with a large ego may be uprooted by praise.  This is why praise should be reserved for those with low spirits while criticism best serves those who are feeling pride.  Neither pride nor lowliness are good, the only goodness is a balance between the two. If you feel that you are outgoing and in high spirits, make a conscious effort to have time alone and be still.  In this way you won't burn out.  If you have been alone and in low spirits, get out and focus on other people.  In this way the four directions can achieve harmony.

Qi can go to ones head and get stuck leading to narcissism, leaving the interior bankrupt.  Self destructive behavior eventually brings people down.

Qi can go down when people get depressed and get stuck.  Self cutting is the body attempting to move qi out through the blood.  In these cases the liver is treated as wood is the transition upward between yin and yang. 

Within every endeavor human face we may rise, fall, take and give.  Everything depends upon this balance.

Martial Arts Medicine Rennaisance

Martial Arts Medicine Rennaisance

Abimoxi is a term coined by Master Peter Ray M.D. in 2004 combining the greek επούλωση  with Moxibustion, the practice of burning artemis vulgaris 艾叶 for medical benefit.  The etymology of moxibustion comes from the Japanese word for the 艾叶Ai ye herb.  The application of moxibustion is the oldest known form of Chinese Medicine.  Master Ray used this term to pay homage to both the Eastern and Western medical traditions which have strongly influenced each other throughout history.  The Chinese word for abimoxi is 武醫 "wu yi"  Wu means martial and yi means medicine.  The complete Chinese name would be 崂山武醫 or "Lao Shan Abimoxi"

The opening of abimoxi marked the first time in history that this medicine was open to the general public.  The first open classes of this ancent tradition were taught in South Dakota  http://www.8step.com/abimoxi/


In 2007 The Shaolin Temple followed suit opening their medical tradition and offering basic textbooks.  http://www.chanwuyi.com/   While in Taiwan,  I met several monks from Shaolin who told me that only 18 disciples will be chosen at Shaolin to learn the complete system of martial arts and medicine.  Another source, a  named Wang Jian is the son of a Chinese government official who grew up on Shaolin  said "Basically Shaolin is a factory for showmanship, they still have the true tradition including medicine.  This only goes to 18 students each generation."  While he is an exceptional martial artist, he claimed to only know some pieces of the traditional art.

Abimoxi tests are open to Shaolin monks for official licensure within the US.

The System of Lao Mountain

The System of Lao Mountain

Lao Shan Mountain

Lao Shan is a Mountain in Shandong province about 30km outside of Qingdao.  It is unique in the contrast 1132.7m above the sea that laps at its base.  It is famed as being the land of immortals.  In Chinese history  many have traveled to these mountains looking for the physical immortals.  In the Qin Dynasty (BC 221-BC 206), the first emperor Qinshihuang make a pilgrimage to visit the immortals.  In the Tang Dynasty ( AD 618 – AD 907), the great emperor Lee Longji to Laoshan to find herbal medicines for eternal life.  What he didn't realise is that the immortality training of Laoshan mountain is more what psychologists call "self actualization" and not physical immortality.  For those well schooled in Taoism the nature of myth or reality was all subjective and only as true as it was useful.  If the framework was not useful, then the construct was thrown a way.  Zhuang Zi, a famous Taoist poet said that you use a fish to catch the trap, once the fish is caught then the trap is thrown away.

Restored Temple at Laoshan

Laoshan Mountain area was home to one of the Quanzhen school of Taoism in history. At the height of its prosperity, there were 9 palaces, 8 temples, and 72 nunneries. These temples were destroyed durring the cultural revolution and very little of Lao Shan Pai remained in China.  The Taoists from Laoshan Mountain were well known for their religious knowledge, medical and martial arts skill and the land of the immortals which had served to train resistance troops in the Qing dynasty was seen as a primary target.  Those educated and schooled in critical thinking were seen as a threat to the communists who were trying to brainwash the masses under a new state religion. 

Statue of Wang Lang on Mount Lao

Wang Lang had a foundation in Lao Shan Pai (Lao Mountain System) martial arts before he went to learn the 17 styles of Shaolin before eventually founding Praying Mantis.  He learned many of the medical and martial arts theories of the 17 styles and brough them back to Lao Shan.  The first two generation inheritors of Praying Mantis kung fu were Yu zhou Dao Zhang and San Jian Dao Zhang.  The title Dao Zhang means Daoist Master.  The "Zhang" has the same meaning as "Zhang Men".  This can be translated as Master Gate.  He is the keeper of the system.  Today we use the term "Grandmaster" because it is similar to the position of grandmaster in medieval guilds.  The "Dao Zhang" was the master of several Taoist arts including medicine, feng shui and agriculture, music, religious duties,endocrine-psychology, martial arts, music and medicine.  These disciplines were taught together as they all stem from Taoist scientific theory.  Over time  the varying aspects of this system became fragmented and scattered due to time, untimely death and persecution during the cultural revolution.

Worlds first Seismoscope was based the theory of the preheaven trigrams.

First compass was based on the philosophical principles of polarity, eight trigrams and seven stars. 

The neuroendocrine system was symbolized by the Turtle, Dragon,  Phoenix.and Tiger.

 The Taoist framework brought incredible breakthroughs in science such as the compass, the telescope and gunpowder.  They created major feats of construction and an earthquake detection machine.  With a firm root in the past and an open awareness for the future we have come to embrace the knowledge base and methodology of the scientific framework.  Where the past holds grandmasters,  the future of Lao Shan Pai is with academic deans, MRI machines, and lab tests.  Modern firearm training and psychological research complement this ancient tradition which has continued to grow and evolve over time.  From the stone age to the information age change remains one of the ruling principles of the universe and the study of change continues to fuel the growth and development of this ancient.tradition.

Laoshan Taoist Music may have been preserved in China

Modern monks learn in religious colleges and are paid government workers.

ACMAF Testing committee reviewing applicants in 1999

Zhang Men James Shyun teaches Lao Shan Pai through the ACMAF.  His clinics focus on stroke recovery.

Daniel Finlay continues the tradition as a doctor specializing in headaches.

Andrew Miles also practices Chinese Medicine focusing on Andrology and endocrine disorders.

Master Peter Ray M.D. specializes in Surgery and coined the term "Abimoxi" to describe Lao Shan Medicine.

As a clinical pharmacist Master Cimino has been instrumental in publishing books on Lao Shan Pai.

Know Thyself: 5 Pillars of Self Diagnosis.

 Know Thyself: 
5 Pillars of Self Diagnosis

Shifu Andrew Miles

Daoist internal viewing meditation is simply a systems check of the five movements.  This is the ultimate do it yourself guide to health.  The body is filled with nerves and channels, these allow you the best diagnostic system available.  Even an MRI isn't as useful to doctors as a patient who can carefully observe the changes within their own body.  Every day ask yourself about the following five systems.  Feel how they become a part of you and leave you.  Feel yourself connected through air into the sky and through water to the deepest parts of the ocean.  By studying the five movements in the body, you can understand how you connect to other people, the environment and how you interconnect through your major organ systems. 

Air 

 How are you breathing?  How deeply are you breathing?  Is the breath making sound?  Is it easier to inhale or exhale?  How does the way you are breathing make you feel?  What parts of your body could use more ventilation?  How do you breathe in?  Which nostril do you primarily breathe through?  Do your cells want more or less oxygen?

Water

Water:  How thirsty are you?  How much water do you need?  Where is your body's water?  How do your kidneys feel?  Is your water in the cells or outside of them?  Try to feel  water going through your system and even evaporating off of your skin.  What color is your urine?  What temperature of liquid feels best for you?

Blood

Feel your blood flowing throughout your body.  Feel how your pulse is flowing.  If you feel an obstruction, relax and imagine the blood flowing through to the tips of your toes and fingers.

Emotions

 Emotions: Consider which emotions you are holding onto and where they originated.  Just as yawns spread unconsciously, so too do emotions.  Emotions cause chemical changes in the body and playing certain emotions in a continual loop may be poisoning the body.  Emotions serve to us to get the body's needs met.  Imagine emotions coming in like email and being deleted when the message has been dealt with.  We often wrap memories in stress to remember them.  Write it down, make a time to deal with it and move on.  The heart should be clear and open like the sky.  Serenity isn't an accident, it comes down to choices.

 Food

Where in your body is the food you last ate?  As you eat feel the food traveling all the way through.  Feel which parts of your body are most in need of this food.  Let those areas of the body signal the foods that you need to eat.  You should pay more attention to the messages your body tells you than what advertisements say.  Feel how certain food affect your body.  Which ones make you feel stronger or more relaxed.




These five methods of self diagnosis are a way to bridge meditation with daily life and ultimately lead to a healthier and happier lifestyle.

The Divine Farmers guide to Gardening Earth.

                                               Grandmaster James Shyun and Andrew Miles

Shen Nong the divine farmer taught farming and medicine and is regarded as a god for his contributions to Chinese society.  Health and environment are inseparable.  The application of feng shui, was originally used to harmonize the environment so that humans could live.  Draining swamps to kill mosquitos is seen as a larger application of draining “dampness” in the body typically done with diuretic herbs to reduce extra cellular fluid.  History has taught us that humans achievement and knowledge is cyclical and societies tend to come to ruin for failing to harmonize with their natural environment.  There may be a time when our descendants find themselves in caves as stone age people.  Holistic agro-medicine is essential not only for our own adaptation, but for those of future generations.  For these reasons methods of Shen Nong have been carefully preserved within Daoist temples so that people can harmonize with the climates of Earth with the Changing seasons of Heaven. 

Feng Shui means wind and water and these refer to heaven changes and earth sustenance.  Wind is said to come from heaven and water is said to come from Earth.  By living in an ecosystem which is balanced one can farm and be clothed.  When we look at the Chinese character for “fortune” this is the ancient Chinese ideal of success.  Every farmer who plants crops that do not freeze or wither has already done so according to feng shui principles.  They have observed the nature of the climate and the changing of the seasons.  Chinese fortune telling is likewise geared toward farming.   Certain blocks of 2 day periods predict things such as when insects will hatch and optimal days for harvest.  This is based on 60 year cycles and is remarkably accurate, particularly within the Chinese landscape.  These predictions will vary in accuracy depending on the distance from the equator and be reversed in the Southern hemisphere.

Every pestilence is related to the one of the six climactic factors: dampness, wind, heat, dryness, cold, and fire.  An ecosystem which is balanced for humans to dwell in is ideal for preventing diseases.  Stagnant water will create mosquitoes which may spread pestilence.  Rather than attempt to treat a pandemic it may be more useful to drain marshland to prevent mosquitoes from over controlling a region.  Another solution may be to use bats.  According to five phase theory, earth produces metal and so rocks produce bats.  Metal relates to dryness and can combat wetness.  Lizards are likewise produced from rock and eat mosquitoes.  By allowing dwelling places for those animals by piling up rocks one may also lessen a mosquito problem.  Birds are also attributed to metal and so restrictions on killing creatures attributed to metal may aid in keeping a mosquito population in check..     Rock is used to control water.  Water is used to moisten a dry climate.  Trees are used to control Earth.  Fire is used to control trees and produce fresh soil, metal is used to prune trees and to dig wells to find water.  Slash and burn agriculture also has its place.  We may look back at the Australian aboriginals and their slash and burn tactics as foolish, however it may be the only reason why Australian aboriginals are still around.  In a region which was damp and filled with some of the most treacherous creatures on the planet, fire was a way to check the dampness and carve out an environment suitable for human survival.  

This balance is critical for the survival of humans.  In accordance with yin and yang principles extreme climates contain an aspect of their opposite.  In icy climates the fire within ice is sought.  Geothermal heat makes lands like Iceland inhabitable.  One may also find snow in the equatorial regions on high mountain peaks.  Each climate produces creatures of its own nature and those creatures from other regions may keep them in check.  Snakes are from wood.  They look like roots and wrap around trees like vines.  Birds are from the white sky which is metal and can eat them just as metal can cut wood. 

Centipedes are attributed to metal due to their ominous exterior and prevalence in dry regions.  A snake of comparable size will be killed by a centipede because metal can control wood.  Frogs are from the damp regions.  Dampness can control dryness so frogs can eat centipedes which are double their size.  Frogs, however are afraid of snakes because the wind (associated with wood) can control dampness (earth), so wood controls earth.

This aspect of biological control is an important aspect of agriculture and medicine.  We can point to instances of failed biological control in the modern era such rabbits in Australia or foreign catfish the US that take over, but this is due to not introducing a species holistically and having a framework for understanding the checks and balances in nature.  In those cases humans created an environment with more food that they could keep in check and caused problems within that ecosystem.  In recent years the Chinese have forgotten the teachings of Shen Nong.  Looking for quick advantages they have fallen into the same trap.  Taken too far these advantages have always lead to the collapse of society and chaos.  When the dust settles, those who know how to live in harmony with their ecosystem will prosper.