Culture
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Stories from Ancient China: How He Chang Ended a Locust Plague
2004-04-06
He moaned, “How can I be impervious to the locust plague in Wu County and still focus on my Taoist cultivation in seclusion?” He travelled to the Wu County on foot and moved into a local home. After the arrival of He Chang, the locusts in Wu County either died or disappeared. A story of how pests such as locusts flee from a Taoist cultivator shows that a genuine cultivator will bring people around him tremendous good fortune. -
Archaeological Studies and Myths
2004-04-01Do you still remember the myths about God making humans, the Chinese legend of Nuwa making humans and Pangu opening the sky, as well the story of Noah’s Arc? When the theory of “man evolving from apes” took over the view of gods making humans, these myths were either gradually forgotten or regarded as ancient human beings’ fantasies from their lack of scientific understanding of nature. But what is the nature of a myth? Many unearthed relics and ancient books show that, no matter whether East or West, ancient human beings believed in and adored gods. -
Ancient Dietary Wisdom
2004-03-31Why does Chinese food have such universal appeal? Granted, most of the delectable food served in Chinese restaurants in the U.S.A. is actually festival food and not representative of the daily Chinese diet. But what makes Chinese food so tasty? Why has its popularity lasted so long, and why have the types of food served and their methods of preparation not changed much for hundreds of years? Quick cooking of seasonal foods over an intense heat source, flavored and perfectly spiced, makes for tasty, healthful meals. -
Looking at Festive New Year Paintings
2004-03-31During the Han dynasty (25-220 A.D.), the paintings featured not only images of gods and tigers, but historical heroes as well. One such hero was the king of Guan Chuan, Liu Yue, who was well known for his bravery. His image was commonly used as a motif in Nian Hua to keep away illness. The most popular door god characters during the Han dynasty included Shen Tu and Yu Lei. -
I Was Striking The Tyrants Jie and Zhou, Not My King
2004-03-30One day, while Shi Jing was playing the Chinese zither for Marquess Wen of the Wei State, the King was very happy and started dancing and singing with the music. Gradually he got lost in exhilaration, and shouted, “Everyone must obey me! Whoever dares to go against me will be punished!” Upon hearing this, Shi Jing stopped playing the music and threw the zither at the King. The zither hit the King’s crown and broke the jade tassels on the crown into pieces. The King was very angry and ordered Shi Jing executed right away. Shi Jing said, “Please let me say something before I die.” The King granted his wish. -
The Origin of the Chinese Idiom: An Owl Plans to Move to the East
2004-03-28Liu Xiang, a scholar from the Han Dynasty, once told a fable to illustrate the moral: A man who seeks inward for his flaws does not blame his problems on others. “An owl plans to move to the East” is a metaphor that one must face the root cause of one’s problems to truly solve the problem. -
The Origin of the Chinese Idiom: "Drinking Zhen to Quench the Thirst"
2004-03-25When he was fifteen years old, his uncle on his mother's side, Song Guang, was falsely charged with tampering with an imperial edict and sent to prison because he impartially enforced the laws and offended some influential officials. Huo Xu knew that his uncle was a righteous person and would never commit such a crime. So he wrote a letter to General Liang Shang to plead the innocence of his uncle. -
Stories From Ancient China: Wei Sigong’s One Sentence of Kindness Saved His Life
2004-03-24One day in mid-July, the three of them went to get water during their leisure time. Standing by the pool, they saw a giant snake slowly rolling and crawling in the rock basin. It measured dozens of feet in length and had a jet-black body with glittering white patterns all over it. The three men were very frightened. After watching for a long while, Wang and Dong brought up the idea of taking it home to eat. Wei Sigong said, “No, we can’t do that. How can you be sure that no dragon hides on this famous mountain and in this big town? -
The Origin of the Chinese Idiom: You Are My Second Guardian
2004-03-23The Magistrate was extremely attentive to Su Zhang and was boastful to the other banquet guests about his friendship with this high ranking official who he believed would cover up his crimes. The Magistrate was very nervous at the beginning of the dinner. But as the dinner went on, he became more and more relaxed because Su Zhang didn't say anything about his wrongdoings. Instead, he just recollected their good old days together as old friends. The Magistrate even bragged, “Everyone has his own guardian above him to protect and watch over him but I have two.” He implied that Su Zhuang was that second guardian from saving him from a fate of death for his crimes, and he was expressing his deep gratitude to Su Zhuang. -
The Root Cause of a Recurrent Liver Tumour
2004-03-21Next, the patient saw the general leading his men in ramming the gate of the city. The general also ordered the soldiers to lay ladders against the outer wall of the gate and made them climb up the ladders to raid the city with spears and shields. The enemy’s force guarding the city was very brave, and the battle turned into a stalemate. Suddenly, an arrow flew through the air and hit the general in his stomach, piercing the lower part of his liver, which was the exact problem area of his liver tumour in this life. As my patient witnessed in the hypnosis the general suffering from excruciating pain, he also felt a sharp, intense pain in his own liver. Because the general commanding the army was badly wounded, the attack on the city was suspended. The entire army retreated to its base camp, and he was placed in a clean tent. -
Stories from Ancient China: Han Que and his Dream
2004-03-13Han Que had loved to eat fish since he was a child. He often bought fish from a low-level official. One night Han Que had a dream that he was a fish. Unaware of the net cast into the water by two fishermen, Han Que the fish swam traight into the trap and was caught. They then threw him into a barrel, and covered him with hay. Soon he was laid on a cutting board and he then felt the knife chop his body and remove his scales. It wasn’t until they chopped off his head that Han Que woke up from the nightmare. -
Stories from Ancient China: The Difference Between “Being Loyal to Your Emperor” and “Loving Your Emperor”
2004-03-11I used to be one of these Chinese who misinterpreted much of ancient China’s concepts and values, and regarded them as dross. Later, I had the opportunity to read many ancient Chinese classics with a peaceful, unbiased and non-judgmental mindset. Then, I realized that I actually knew nothing of ancient Chinese culture. My prior knowledge of ancient Chinese culture was the twisted version that the Chinese Communist Party had planted in the minds of the Chinese since it took over China in the 1949. I realized that the genuine, ancient Chinese culture was immensely profound. The ancient Chinese culture has been distorted, leading to the disappearance of many precious Chinese traditions. -
Karmic Retribution is Closely Associated with Ones Actions
2004-03-09 “Good is rewarded with good, and evil is met with evil” is an old maxim passed around by Chinese people. People in ancient times also recorded such examples to caution people in the world. Those who believed in and followed the maxim were called “families who accumulate virtue and will be prosperous.” Those who didn’t believe it were called “families who accumulate karma and will face tribulations.” There is also another ancient Chinese saying, “Blessings and misfortunes never come without reasons, they only come to the people themselves; karmic retribution is closely associated with your deeds.” The following story should serve as a reminder to today’s people. -
Origin of the Chinese Idiom, “Even if I Wanted to Stop, I Couldn't Do It Now”
2004-03-05Yan Hui was born into the warring state of Lu. He and his father Yi Lu went to study under Confucius. After studying under Confucius for a while, Yan Hui said with a deep sigh, “The more I looked up at IT-the Master’s word, the higher IT soared. The deeper I bore down into IT, the harder IT becomes. I saw IT in front; but suddenly IT is behind. Step by step the Master skillfully lures one on. He had broadened my thinking with ancient and modern classics, restrained my actions with ritual. Even if I wanted to stop, I could not do it now. And when at times I have exhausted all of my powers, still something seems to stand majestically before me; yet though I long to pursue IT, I can find no way of getting to IT at all.” -
Stories from Ancient China: Jiang Jiao
2004-03-02When he was younger, before he attained power, Jiang Jiao enjoyed hunting. One day while hunting, he came across a monk. The monk said, “Please spare me some food.” Jiang Jiao had his servants bring the monk some meat. After the monk finished eating the meat and left, surprisingly, the meat was still there and looking completely untouched. Jiang Jiao ordered his men to catch up to the monk and bring him back.
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