Dragon Boat Festival celebration and cultural feast

Posted by Nancy Arcuri on 6/17/14 • Categorized as Articles

Tai Ji Men shares tips for disease prevention and benefits of nurturing the body, mind, and spirit with qigong

The Dragon Boat Festival is one of the three major traditional Chinese holidays, and it occurred on June 2 this year. To celebrate this colorful holiday, Tai Ji Men Qigong Academy in Los Angeles hosted a cultural feast on May 31st. The event featured introduction to traditional customs related to the holiday, tips for disease prevention, as well as the culture of practicing qigong to nurture the body, mind, and spirit. The guests had a wonderful time making traditional sachets, playing fun games, and eating delicious Chinese tamales.

Dragon boat races and Chinese tamales are inseparable parts of the Dragon Boat Festival celebration. The arrival of this holiday also means that summer is closely approaching. In summer germs multiply faster and insects like mosquitoes are very active. In the old days, during this holiday people would drink wine with a small amount of realgar (a mineral), hang a bundle of mugwort (an aromatic plant) on their front doors, and wear a sachet on the chest to repel insects and prevent diseases. To reflect the theme of this holiday, Tai Ji Men members shared “three don’ts and five dos” to prevent diseases: Don’t get angry, don’t worry, and don’t be anxious. Do wash hands more frequently, drink plenty of warm water, exercise more, stay cheerful, and pay attention to disease prevention measures. Tai Ji Men members also encouraged people to practice qigong to enhance their immune system and keep the body in the best possible condition.

Duncan Lee, who has been practicing Tai Ji Men Qigong for over a decade, started to have severe asthma attacks when he was only two. He would often suddenly wake up in the middle of the night short of breath. At 12, his parents took him to Tai Ji Men to practice qigong. After practicing it for less than six months, he found that his immune system had significantly improved and he no longer suffered from asthma attacks. He has continued to practice qigong to stay healthy physically and mentally. Later on, he became a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and currently works as a CFO and general manager at a public company.

During the event, Tai Ji Men Qigong Academy also gave away “Preventive Measures for Health and Well-being” (a manual for disease prevention and health protection) to help the public stay healthy. The academy also provided a series of fun-filled activities to enhance the audience’s understanding of the Chinese traditions associated with the holiday and the traditional regimen to stay healthy. The guests enjoyed a great time celebrating the holiday in a meaningful way.

The event also included fun games that promoted the movement of“An Era of Conscience,” co-organized by the Association of World Citizens, NGO in consultative status with ECOSOC and associated with the UN DPI, the Federation of World Peace and Love, and Tai Ji Men Qigong Academy. The results of an experiment of water crystals by Dr. Masaru Emoto were shared with the audience to show the power of positive thoughts. Therefore, do not underestimate the impact of a single kind thought. Every good thought has the ability to change the destiny of the world.

At the end of the event, Anahi Romero, an Argentine and Italian American, said, “Although I was raised here, I weren’t aware of lots of things. I actually learned a lot of stuff here today. If we can all give a little bit to make the earth better, it would be so much better than it is now.”

Since “An Era of Conscience” started on Jan. 1, 2014, there have been over 1 million hits on the movement’s website. Tens of thousands of people from 466 organizations in 155 countries have participated in the movement, and over ten thousand responses to the movement have been submitted to the designated website in the forms of articles, pictures, paintings, comics, video and audio recordings, etc. Through the movement of “An Era of Conscience,” we hope to evoke and connect in all individuals the inner kindness and goodness, which transcends linguistic, racial, national, and religious barriers. The consolidated positive influences will create a better and brighter world.