Articles
Sleep: why it is so important, and how to improve it
In our perpetually connected, 24/7 world, sleep is often the first thing we sacrifice. We treat it not as a biological necessity, but as a luxury we can’t quite afford, an inconvenience to be curtailed in the pursuit of productivity and entertainment. Yet, in the ancient Chinese tradition of yangsheng, or nourishing life, sleep is revered as one of the four vital pillars of health, as fundamental as a wholesome diet, appropriate exercise, and a calm mind. Without it, the entire structure of our well-being becomes unstable. As the 17th-century writer Li Liweng observed, sleep is an "infallible miracle drug, not just a cure for one illness but for a hundred."
Live Well, Live Long: Traditional Chinese health preservation teachings and modern research
The human body and mind do not come with a maintenance manual. To achieve a long and healthy life, we require guidance on which behaviours will help or harm our chances. Fortunately, we can access two and a half thousand years of Chinese lifestyle wisdom known as yangsheng (nourishment of life). This article introduces the fundamental teachings of yangsheng and aligns them with the findings of modern lifestyle research.
The Transformative Power of Deep, Slow Breathing
Slow, deep, lower abdominal breathing – for millennia a mainstay of Asian internal cultivation practices – is a powerful tool for healing and transformation. A wide range of emotional and physical problems can be helped by slow breathing and in the clinic it can be easily taught to patients - both while lying on the couch and as home practice.