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By Shen Lian-sheng & Li
Guo-qing
Translated by Anna Lin & Bob Flaws
Abstracted from The Dao of Increasing Longevity & Conserving
One's Life
I. The Causes of Premature Aging
And Geriatric Disease
Birth, growth, old age, and death are the natural order which
no life can resist. Without birth there can be no death and vice
versa. Life and death together form a circle which rolls on
forever. Human beings are not outside this natural condition. All animals have their own life cycle of growth and decline.
What is the rule for human beings? The Nei Jing says: When one is 10 years old, one's five zang begin to grow,
one's qi and blood circulate, and all the qi goes downward so
one becomes better at walking. When 20 years old, qi and blood
become strong, the muscles are firm, and so one becomes good at
fast walking. When 30 years old, the five zang are all
solidly built and the muscles are strongly formed. One's blood
vessels are full so on is good at running. When 40 years old,
the five zang and six fu along with the twelve channels
are over their peak and are starting to decline. The hair starts
to turn grey and one is good at sitting. When one is 50 years
old, liver qi starts to decline and gallbladder juice begins to
decrease. Therefore the eyesight begins to blur. When 60 years
old, heart qi begins to weaken, qi and blood are both becoming
slack, and so one tends to sleep more. When 70 years old, spleen
qi is weak and the skin is dry. When 80 years old, lung qi declines
and the po leaves the body, so one's speech is not clear.
When 90 years old, kidney qi is burning out and the four zang
and channels and vessels are empty. When 100 years old, the five
zang are empty, the shen and qi are gone, and thus
one is ready to depart. Although this description may seem overly mechanical, yet it
does reflect the overall life cycle of a human being's birth,
growth, and death. Human beings cannot change the order of birth and death. However,
humans can actively improve upon this cycle and delay premature
aging. Conversely, peoples' wrong doing can negatively affect
this scenario. Our ancestors paid great attention to their lifestyle
and this had a major impact on prolonging their lifespan and preventing
premature debility and death. They also remind us of the harmful
effects of not keeping a good lifestyle. As the Nei Jing says: Nowadays people are not like this. They use wine as a beverage
and they adopt recklessness and unusual behavior. They enter the
chamber in an intoxicated condition (i.e., have sex while
drunk) and their passions exhaust their vital forces. Their cravings
dissipate their true essence and they do not know how to find
contentment within themselves. They are not skilled in the control
of their spirits and they devote all their attention to the amusement
of their minds. Thus they cut themselves off from the joys of
long life. Their rising and retiring is without regularity. For
these reasons they reach only one half of their 100 years and
they degenerate. The above statements are both correct and practical and are supported
by modern medical theory and clinical experience. When a person
does not know how to restrict their own action and thus indulges
in a lifestyle of overeating, overdrinking, and too much sex,
one will never have a healthy longevity. One cannot but have a
short life. Chinese medicine divides the causes of disease into 1) the six
evil qi, 2) the seven passions, and 3) diet and stress. Wind, cold, summer heat, dampness, dryness, and heat are called
the six qi (liu qi) when they are normal. The six qi describe
the fluctuations and progressions in the weather and climate throughout
the year. This is according to natural law. The human body needs
these changes and automatically adjusts to and can cope with them
during our everyday life. Therefore, the six qi are not harmful
to the body. But, if the six qi are excess or deficient, this
is not natural. If one of them comes at the wrong time or lingers
too long, if it comes too abundantly, if it gets too hot when
it is not supposed to or too cold when winter has not yet arrived,
all these abnormalities can directly influence our daily physical
routine and cause illness to occur. In such cases, the six qi
become the six evils (liu xie). In everyday life, it is
easier for us to catch a cold when the weather suddenly changes
too hot or too cold. When we suddenly move from one climate to
another, if we cannot cope with the new environment, we will be
affected by the six evil qi and become sick. Sometimes, even when
the six qi are normal, we may still catch disease if we do not
pay attention to wearing proper clothes or when our immune system
is depressed. As people age, one's jing qi becomes deficient and weak,
one's five zang wane, and their zheng or righteous
qi becomes insufficient. Thus the six evil qi can easily invade
the bodies of the elderly and cause disease. Therefore, it is
common to see old people suffering from recurrent asthma or cough
as winter approaches or sudden collapse and death during the extreme
heat of summer or cold of winter. In short, older people are more
easily attacked by the six evil qi. The emotional factors which cause disease are joy, anger, brooding,
sadness, and fear or fright. Under normal circumstances, these
emotions are the appropriate reflection internally of stimuli
from the outside world. Crying, laughing, and being happy are
feelings normal to the human body. When they are not out of control,
they do not adversely affect the zang fu and no disease
ensues. But, when they are out of control, excessive anger can
injure the liver, excessive joy can injure the heart, excessive
brooding can injure the spleen, excessive sadness can injure the
lungs, and excessive fright can injure the kidneys. Anger arouses
the ascent of qi. Joy induces sluggishness of the qi. Excessive
sorrow dissipates the qi. Fear causes the descent of the qi. Fright
causes disturbance of the qi. And worry causes stagnation of qi.
Although it may at first sound peculiar that emotions may injure
or kill a person, in fact, this happens every day. Chinese people
are wont to say, "I laughed myself to death," or "I'm
so sad I'm dying." These are vivid examples of the reality
of this proposition. We have heard of elderly people dying due
to sudden joy causing an unstoppable fit of laughter. We have
also heard of some elderly persons dying of heart attack caused
by a sudden increase in blood pressure in turn due to getting
angry. Overthinking can harm the functions of the heart and spleen
and liver and spleen which will then manifest such symptoms as
anxiety, insomnia, tenderness of the hypochondrium, dizziness,
belching, bloating, and decreased appetite. These days, authorities
from various countries agree that there is a relationship between
cancer and emotional stress or imbalance. When a person suffers
from longterm, extreme depression, anger, sadness, or worry, they
can develop cancer. Because of their emptiness of jing
and qi, the elderly are all the more easily injured by uncontrollable
emotions. Irregular diet includes both overeating and undereating. It also
includes eating too much raw, cold food, hot foods, and oily,
greasy, or spicy foods. All of these can cause disharmony of the
zang fu. Such dietary irregularities first attack the stomach/spleen.
This then escalates from mild digestive disturbance to severe
disease due to spleen dysfunction failing to perform its functions
of transportation and transformation. Poor digestion is a common
problem amongst the elderly. Therefore, they need to be more careful
than others with their diet. Unfortunately, some people simply
ignore their health and lose control during the holiday seasons.
They overeat and overdrink at family reunions which cause them
immediate woe. In Chinese medicine, stress means overtaxing the body or overconsuming
our body's energy. This includes too much sex. Too much sex causes
more harm than most people think. It is a major cause of kidney
emptiness. Too much sex exhausts kidney jing and leads
to emptiness of both kidney yin and yang. This manifests as loss
of teeth, low back weakness and pain, difficulty walking, dizziness,
and premature ejaculation or impotence. Too much sex, fang
lao in Chinese or literally bedroom taxation, is very harmful
to the elderly. Therefore, they should not ignore this.
II. The Dao of Increasing Longevity And Conserving One's
Life
To reiterate the above, in conjunction with tonifying their zheng
or righteous qi, we know that the elderly need to pay particular
attention to the following guidelines in maintaining their health
and thus securing longevity.
A. Qi Ju You Chang,
Lao Yi Shi Du A constant and regular lifestyle,
Suitable amounts of work and rest What were our ancestors' secrets for attaining longevity? One
answer is, "A constant and regular lifestyle (and) suitable
amounts of work and rest." This saying implies that there
should be a certain regimen to our life which includes reasonable
amounts of working time, rest, exercise, and sleep. According to the Nei Jing, one should go to bed late,
rise early, and take a walk in the spring. During the summer,
one should go to bed late and rise early being sure to spend a
good bit of time out of doors. In the fall, one should go to bed
early and get up early, and during the winter one should go to
bed early and get up late. Whether or not this theory is scientific
requires further investigation. Nonetheless, during the spring
and summer when all things are growing and the weather is warm
and nice, it is certainly healthy for us to take a walk in the
sun and inhale the fresh air outdoors. During the autumn, the
sky is high, the air is clear, and the weather is comfortable.
Daylight grows less and the night is longer each day. So it is
also healthy for the body to take a walk outdoors and inhale the
fresh air. Because it is so cold during winter, we should avoid
chilly mornings and wait for the warm sunshine in order to prevent
attacks of cold evils. According to foreign studies, early risers
indeed do enjoy longer life. In Japan, all the elderly of unusually
advanced years get up from 4-6 AM. That is the time when all the
birds wake. Chinese medicine recommends that everyone get up early
during the spring, summer, and fall and wake up late during the
winter. This follows the same belief as the long-lived in Japan. During one's older year, the jing qi is generally weakened
and depleted. Zang fu function is not as energetic and
strong as in youth. It is, therefore, of utmost importance to
avoid hard labor and to pay attention to resting and fostering
the needs of the body. To get sufficient sleep is also very important.
Good sleep helps our shen reside within the body unperturbed
by the outside world. Thus it is a well accepted theory among
people that the key to longevity is the ability to eat and sleep
well. In everyday life, we often encounter people in poor health
due to insomnia and they are invariably fatigued and their memory
is poor. When this happens in the elderly, it speeds up the aging
process. Thus a good balance between physical labor and mental
activity is recommended. It is a proven fact that enjoying pleasant
music can increase both one's physical and emotional strength.
Taking a walk after meals improves the digestion. Further, gardening,
enjoying keeping fish in the house, and playing various Chinese
games are all species of active rest which each individual can
chose according to their individual preference. Rest and exercise should complement one another. Rest alone with
little if any physical exertion tends to be harmful to the body.
Chinese medicine regards longterm sitting as harmful to our muscles
and longterm lying down as harmful to our qi. It can, therefore,
be concluded that good diet and rest alone without physical exercise,
in fact, overburdens the body and thus weakens the entire system.
The Nei Jing calls this, "bodily exhaustion not due
to fatigue". As Sun Si-miao of the Tang Dynasty said, "In
order for the body to feel comfortable and healthy, we need suitable
amounts of labor." Modern medicine has proven that decrease
in muscle tone due to lack of exercise also results in decreases
in the tone and functioning of the nervous, circulatory, and digestive
systems and accelerates the aging process. In addition, lack of
exercise and too much stress are also causes of heart and cerebral
ischemic disease. Therefore, older persons are recommended to
choose suitable, individualized exercise to retard aging. This
includes qi gong, Tai Ji Quan, walking, etc. Each individual
can chose different activities. Whatever the exercise, one should
feel well and refreshed after each session. One should also be
aware that, "Lifting things which are beyond our strength
will cause more harm to the body."
B. Shun Si Shi Zhi Qi,
Fang Liu Yin Zhi Xie
Follow the qi of the four seasons,
Defend against the six wanton evils According to Traditional Chinese Medicine, in order to conserve
one's life, people should live in consonance with the changes
of the four seasons and yin and yang qi. Our bodies and our lives
should be in harmony with nature and thus remain in a well balanced
state. As it is said, "Harmonize with yin and yang and balance
with the four seasons." It is also said, "Going against
causes harm, while following along results in health; this is
the Dao." Dao means rules and laws or the rules
of conserving one's life. The Nei Jing mentions again and
again the harmful effects the changing of the four seasons can
have on the human body. It is said, "One should avoid all
emptiness and evils and especially evil wind," and, "The
sage avoids emptiness and evils as he would attack by stones."
These sayings remind us to avoid the evil qi of the four seasons
and to avoid attack by external evils. Dr. Yi Shi of the Ming
Dynasty advised weakened persons to be especially aware of the
following: to defend against wind in spring; to defend against
summer heat in summer; to defend against dampness in late summer;
to defend against dryness in fall; to defend against cold in winter;
and to also defend against warmness when the season is not supposed
to be warm such as in the winter. Following such advice by the
ancients is important for maintaining health and should not be
neglected by the elderly. The ability of the elderly to adjust to changeable weather is
weak. Therefore, they need to pay special attention to these instructions
and also to the way they dress and eat. One should not let external
evils attack through the skin and hair, i.e., the surface,
nor should one allow them to attack through the mouth and nose.
In sum, "One must pay attention to adjust when the seasons
are changeable." C. Yi Le Guan Kai Lang,
Fang Qing Xu Ju Bian Be happy with a light, open view;
Guard against being seized by sudden
changes in emotion As mentioned above, when the so-called seven passions or emotions
are grossly excessive, they can injure a person. Dr. Sun Xi-miao
of the Qing Dynasty said: To live long, people should take care not to worry too much,
not to get too angry, not to get too sad, not to get frightened,
not to do too much, talk too much, or laugh too much. One should
not have too many desires nor face numerous upsetting conditions.
All these are harmful to the health. He also said: One who knows how to conserve one's life is one who thinks less,
worries less, has less desire, is less active, talks less, is
less upset, has less joy, has less anger, and does less wrong.
These twelve lesses are the key to conserving one's life. An individual is but a small part of society and has strong ties
to society. Therefore the "twelve lesses" are difficult
to follow and not even entirely correct. We do need to worry for
our society and our country and to make our contribution to society.
Therefore, some of the twelve lesses are not totally right. However,
from the point of view of conserving one's life, the emphasis
should be on the word less which means avoiding extreme
emotional ups and downs. Studies show that talking increases the
blood pressure in patients with hypertension. We need to have
a broad, open mind with a happy mood and avoid all unnecessary
worries and stress. One should not run after fame or money. Therefore,
the saying, "A broad mind, a healthy body," proves to
be very true. Li Ma-kang, a centenarian from Beijing has said
that the secret of his longevity was to 1) never worry and 2)
not to overeat. The emotional well-being of the elderly depends both upon the
individual and upon society and one's family. We also recommend
the good habit of respecting and loving the aged. And we strongly
criticize any maltreatment or disrespect of older people. Rather
we should make them feel comfortable no matter where they are,
whether at home or in public. D. Yin Shi You Jie
Ji Bao Yin Bao Shi Be abstinent in food and drink;
Refrain from eating and drinking till you bulge Diet is the key to bodily health. There can be no healthy body
without a healthy diet. Overeating and inappropriate foods harm
the body. As our ancestors said, Care of the body depends upon diet. Being drunk yet longing to
drink more, being full yet craving to eat more are major impediments
on the path to yang sheng or lengthening life. It is important for the elderly to have a well regulated diet.
Overeating and overdrinking are harmful. In maintaining a better
balanced diet and hence a healthy body, it is wise to eat more
vegetables and bean products such as tofu. Vegetables stimulate
the secretive functions of various glands within the body. Vegetables
are easily digested and assimilated by the body. They can increase
intestinal peristalsis and improve bowel movements. They can detoxify.
They also prevent obesity, diabetes, heart disease, and other
disorders. As one ages, the functioning of the zang and
fu becomes debilitated. Therefore, it is important for
the elderly not to overeat. Overeating high cholesterol and high
calorie food is generally the cause of cancer, arteriosclerosis,
coronary heart disease, hypertension, and premature aging. The
Nei Jing states that xiao ke or diabetes (literally
thirsting & wasting) is caused by "all fat, greasy, oily
foods". One should not be prejudiced in favor of a particular
food. In Guangxi, one centenarian eats mainly vegetables, the
five grains, and little animal products. His main foods are cereal
and bean products like tofu and vegetables cooked in sesame oil.
This kind of food provides less calories but more of the nutrients
the body needs.
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