Prescriptions for Positive Energy

Ten Positive Energy Prescriptions:

1. Awaken intuition and rejuvenate yourself.
2. Find a nurturing spiritual path.
3. Design an energy-aware approach to diet, fitness and health.
4. Generate positive emotional energy to counter negativity.
5. Develop a heart-centered sexuality.
6. Open yourself to the flow of inspiration and creativity.
7. Celebrate the sacredness of laughter, pampering, and the
replenishment of retreat.
8. Attract positive people and situations.
9. Protect yourself from energy vampires.
10. Create Abundance.
- Judith Orloff, M.D..
Positive Energy: 10 Extraordinary Prescriptions for Transforming
Fatigue, Stress, and Fear into Vibrance, Strength and Love.
New York, Harmony Books, 2004. Resources, index, 353 pages.
ISBN: 0609610104.

Wong Kiew Kit

I really enjoy reading the following books by Wong Kiew Kit:

The Complete Book of Tai Chi Chuan: A Comprehensive Guide to the Principles and Practice. By Wong Kiew Kit. Shaftesbury, Dorset, Element, 1996. Index, bibliography, 316 pages. ISBN: 1852307927.

The Art of Shaolin Kung Fu: The Secrets of Kung Fu for Self-Defense, Health, and Enlightenment. By Wong, Kiew Kit. Boston, MA, Tuttle, 2001. Index, bibliography, 215 pages. ISBN; 0804834393.

Wong Kiew Kit: Shaolin Kungfu, Chi Kung, TaijiQuan and Zen Extensive website.

Sing Without a Word

"A yellow flower
(Light and spirit)
Sings by itself
For nobody.

A golden spirit
(Light and emptiness)
Sings without a word
By itself."

- Thomas Merton
Thomas Merton's Poetry: Emblems of a Sacred Season



"Mountain fruit drops in the rain
and grass insects sing under my oil lamp.
White hair, after all, can never change
as yellow gold cannot be created.
If you want to know how to get rid
of age, its sickness, study nonbeing."
- Wang Wei, 699-761
Laughing Lost in the Mountains: Poems of Wang Wei, p. 129


Chan Buddhist (Zen) Poetry

The martial artists at the Shaolin Temple all studied Zen.

True Mind

"Refining the self, and setting up the foundation are not a matter of forced control, forced effort, or austere practices. What the work requires is first to recognize the natural, innocent true mind, and then to use this true mind to refine the self. Then a point of celestial energy emerges within the darkness - this is called true consciousness."
- Chang Po-Tuan, Commentary by Liu I-Ming)

Dancing Warriors

"Some martial arts in various cultures can be performed in dance-like settings, either for evoking fiercefulness/pumping adrenaline in preparation of battle, or rather showing off skill in a more stylised manner, or both.

Examples of such war dances include the gymnopaidiai from ancient Sparta, New-Zealand's Haka, the Sabre Dance depicted in Khachaturian's ballet Gayane, the Maasai "jumping" dance, Brunei's Aduk-Aduk, Qatar's Ayyalah, the Indian Kalarippayattu, Pakistani/Afghan Khattak Dance, Brazil's Capoeira, Scotland's Dannsa Biodag ... (not to forget the spoofing weasel war dance)."

Wikipedia - Martial Arts and Dance

Taiji Tun

"One of the best-known and most influential Neo-Confucian (Dao Xue, Study of the Dao) philosophers was Zhou Dun-Yi (1017-73 CE), creator of the famous tai chi diagram (Taiji tu, the yin-yang symbol) and its accompanying commentary, which was based on his study of the "appendices" of the Yi Jing."
- Andy James, The Spiritual Legacy of Shaolin Temple, p. 84

Practice at Dawn

"When you arise in the morning, think of what a precious privilege
it is to be alive - to breathe, to think, to enjoy, to love."
- Marcus Aurelius


"Waking up in the morning, I vow with all beings
to be ready for sparks of the Dharma
from flowers or children or birds."
- Robert Aitken

Feedback from Readers - April 2006

"Your website is comprehensive and informative. Very nice, Michael! Have we met? I took a few minutes on this special day in the history of certain spiritual ideals to cruise Qigong and Tai Chi. Your website was instrumental in that. It is an amazing jump station."
- Dr. Roger Jahnke, OMD, 16 April 2006, Healing Promise of Qi,
Feel the Qi, http://www.feeltheqi.com/

"Cool, Michael! The amount of information you have websited boggles (not to be confused with blogging) my mind. What a resource you are."
- Jack Gescheidt, 27 April 2006, TreeSpirit Project, http://www.TreeSpiritProject.com

"Hi Mike! I am a junior undergraduate English major at the University of Maryland, College Park, 10 miles from Washington, DC. I just wanted to let you know how much I appreciate your website. It is the most inspiring and worthwhile website on the web, and every time I visit it I come away a more optimistic and grateful person. I practice Zen, Yoga, and am an aspiring gardener. Your website has inspired me to join my mother in gardening, something I always felt was a chore in my youth but now, thanks to your website, I view my mother's passion as a blessing rather than a burden. Especially on the east coast, where it is so hard to find someone who connects with our earthly home, I find your website a welcome relief from a fast paced, materialistic environs. I recommend your site to all of my friends who are interested, and they all appreciate it as I do. Thank you again and namaste, David."
- David Schultz, 4/1/06

"I started with this blog, reading about mind/body work and just cascaded through the rest of the site. Very cool! Mike, I found your sites to be interesting and in alignment with my own interests and personal journey."
- Michael Casko, Healing Partners, 4/4/06, http://www.healingpartnersllc.com

"The website I visited was Garden Digest, and I was impressed with all the resources! Mike, I hope the sun's shining for you!"
- Linda Gray, Flower and Garden Tips, 4/5/06, http://www.flower-and-garden-tips.com

"Your choice of quotations seems to be carefully entered. As I read the quotations, I could feel my emotions pulled and manipulated. Just as I was about to stand and cry out "Workers of the World Unite!" I would read a humbling quote that forced me to re-examine my emotions and current laments about work. This is what I like about your webpage."
Tammy Troupe, 4/8/06

"The layout, the wide range of quotes - it's all fabulous. I sincerely appreciate your website every time I visit it, and share the quotes with our little gardening community here in Portland, OR. I spend many times just scrolling through them and reading. Food for the soul. Heartfelt thanks."
- Terese, 4/10/06

"Your site is just amazingly large and wonderful. I will send you a copy of my new book "Meditatives Gärtnern." It is published in German, but maybe I will find a English editor - we will see. Good luck to you. Sincerely Reto."
- Reto Locher, http://www.comm-care.ch

"I have enjoyed all of your guides and articles. I know that if I have a question I just need to go to your Cloud Hands website and I usually always find an answer. Thanks!"
- John, from Phoenix, 4/25/06




Blogs that Linked to Cloud Hands:

The Walk of Ten Thousand Steps
Taoism, Tai Chi, Qigong, Poetry
http://tenthousandsteps.blogspot.com/

The Way of Long Life and Long Vision
http://renqizhen.typepad.com/

Martial Views
http://martialviews.blogspot.com/

Total Karate: Training, Kata, and Martial Arts Articles
http://totalkarate.blogspot.com/

Getting to Know Myself
http://nosceteipsum.wordpress.com/

Repulsive Monkey
http://www.samsara.plus.com/monkey/

Valley Spirit (Gu Shen)

"Departing from the Mysterious, entering the Female.
It appears to have perished, yet appears to exist.
Unmovable, its origin is mysterious."
- The Jade Emperor's Mind Seal Classic


"In the Recorded Sayings of Master Ta Ma it is said, "The Mysterious [hsuan] represents heaven, ching [essence], and the nose. The Female [p'in] represents earth, blood [qi], and the abdomen. Hsuan is the father of ching [jing], and p'in is the mother of qi. So that which departs from the father is ching, and that which enters the female is qi. Within each person there is the Mysterious Female. Everyone can create a spiritual embryo. The Valley Spirit refers to yang shen [pure spirit]; with just one drop of yang shen uniting with the ching and qi, the Spirit Embryo is born."

- The Jade Emperor's Mind Seal Classic. The Taoist Guide to Health, Longevity, and Immortality. Translated with commentary by Stuart Alve Olson. Rochester, Vermont, 2003. Index, bibliography, 216 pages. ISBN: 0892811358. Reference, p. 139.

Notes on the Idea of the Valley Spirit (Gu Shen)

Bone Marrow Washing Qigong

John wrote to me asking,

"Hello, Mike. I have enjoyed all of your guides and articles, and know if I have a guestion I just need to go to your website and I usually always find an answer.

I have been researching Xi Sui Jing or Bone Marrow Washing. I have had no success, and wonder if you may be able to guide me in the right direction to either find a teacher, literature or video on this system. I am told there are 18 forms or exercises. Is this true? I have non-Hodgkins lymphoma cancer and thought this may help with my chemotherapy treatments, although the doctor thinks it's a waste of time and money. Thank you."


John,

Take your oncologist's "advice" about treating cancer in terms of complementary exercises.

As for general well-being, an increased sense of vitality, feeling good, psycho-spiritual progress, positive visualization, and relaxation, qigong has helped many people. People who regularly practice qigong generally have positive comments to make about their experiences.

I've practiced Bone Marrow Washing Shaloin Qigong with a couple of Qigong teachers. I've not seen any consistency in the exercises between these teachers. The sets I learned had around 8 exercises.

Yang Jwing-Ming and Mantak Chia have written books on this qigong form, and, as I recall, give instructions on a version of the set. Yang Jwing-Ming's books are usually very informative and useful for learning forms, and have excellent, detailed background theory.

There are both harder and easier verions of the Xi Sui Jing exercise as with Shaolin White Crane Qigong. 18 Lohan Qigong, another Shaolin Qigong form, is also popular.

I'd recommend The Eight Section Brocade Qigong for a general introductory form, and you don't need to spend any extra money learning it (I explain it for free on a webpage); and, don't spend more than 20 mintues a day, at first, doing the form in the early morning. Also, enjoy some walking if you feel up to it!

Best wishes for a long remission, improved well-being, and a peaceful soul.

Mike Garofalo

Making of a Butterfly

Philip Starr wrote to me:

"I’d like to announce the release of my new martial arts book, “The Making Of A Butterfly”, which has been published by North Atlantic Books and is now available at bookstores as well as through Amazon.com. This is not a “how-to” book nor is it “style-specific.” Rather, it is a collection of anecdotes involving my teacher, my classmates, and me. These stories are intended to present certain lessons and concepts that can be applied to any martial art. I hope that you’ll enjoy this new book and perhaps be able to utilize and expand upon some of the lessons presented therein. Some of these lessons involve subjects such as: Commitment to Regular Practice, The Spirit of Bowing, The Link Between Forms and Fighting, Courage, Courtesy, and so on. I hope that you will also make your students aware of the book. If I can ever be of service, please don’t hesitate to let me know! "
Very Truly Yours, Phillip “Pete” Starr
Email: pdstarr@cox.net

Ancient Qigong Artifacts

"The earliest records of qigong being practised were found on archaeological artifacts excavated in Qinghai province, China, dated approximately 5,000 years ago. These were in the form of drawings on gallipots. Descriptions of qigong were also found in relics from the Western Han Dynasty (206-24 BC), excavated in Hunan province; and actual written records were found in the ancient Chinese classic Shanshu, of the same period."

By Dr. Amir Farid Isahak, Qigong Revival - The Art of Qi

Has anyone else heard of these Dao-Yin drawings on the "gallipots" referred to by Dr. Isahak??

Mawangdui Manuscript

In 1973, archeologists in China excavated the tomb of king Ma who lived in the Western Han Dynasty (206 BC - 24 AD). In this tomb at Mawangdui, on the outskirts of the city of Changsha in Hunan Province, they discovered medical manuals, compilations, and a silk scroll on which were drawn 44 humans in various poses or postures. Under each pose, or Dao-yin diagram, was a caption with the name of an animal or the name of the disease that the posture might help cure. A number of the postures in the Dao-yin Tu closely resemble some in the Eight Section Brocade

Weeds of the Mind

"What is essential to practice the Tao is to get rid of cravings and vexations. If these afflictions are not removed, it is impossible to attain stability. This is like the case of the fertile field, which cannot produce good crops as long as the weeds are not cleared away. Cravings and ruminations are the weeds of the mind; if you do not clear them away, concentration and wisdom do not develop."
- Chang San-feng, legendary founder of T'ai Chi Ch'uan, circa 1300 A.D.

The Yoga Sutra by Pantajali speaks of the purpose of yoga being the calming and settling the disturbances of the mind. The ability to concentrate is one of the Eight Limbs of Classical (Raja) Yoga.

Concentrating fully while practicing Taijiquan or Qigong leaves little room for the mind to wander.

Valley Spirit Center

Valley Spirit Center
Michael Garofalo and Karen Garofalo
23005 Kilkenny Lane
Red Bluff, California
530-200-3465
E-mail

Website: http://www.egreenway.com/VSC/index.htm

Private Instruction and Services in:

T'ai Chi Ch'uan

Qigong

Yoga

Reiki and Massage

The Concept of the Valley Spirit (Gu Shen)



Directions to the Valley Spirit Center, Red Bluff, California;

The Valley Spirit Center is located 7 miles south of downtown Red Bluff. From Main Street (Highway 99 West) and Antelope Blvd. (Highway 99 East), in downtown Red Bluff, drive south on South Main Street (Highway 99 West) for seven miles until you reach Kilkenny Lane, turn right, and drive .3 miles to 23005 Kilkenny Lane. Kilkenny Lane is 1.7 miles south of the Wal-Mart Distribution Center, and .3 miles north of the Proberta Post Office at the corner of Highway 99 West and Flores Avenue. The Valley Spirit Center is 5.4 miles south of the Tehama Family Fitness Center. There is an Interstate 5 Freeway off ramp at both Flores Avenue and at South Main Street (Highway 99 West).

Accomodations and Attractions in Red Bluff, California