I received this e-mail: My name is James Morrison, and I teach a World Religions course at Red Wing High School (Red Wing, Minnesota). It has not been easy. Over the years I have been condemned by Christian fundamentalists for “polluting the minds of children with false ideas” and for “doing the devil’s work.” I have been teaching for [...]
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Ruyi Studio of Multicultural Arts
My friend and student, Pearl Huang, has opened a new studio in Taos, NM. She’s teaching classes in Qigong and Taiji, Chinese langage and music, as well as Chinese calligraphy. You can also see some of her own stunning calligraphy on display. Pearl was born and educated in China. She is a performer, artist and [...]
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Chinese New Year Day
Today is Chinese New Year Day. It’s a day when every action we take should be auspicious—in the belief that this sets the tone for the remainder of the year. That’s certainly an ideal worth pursuing. How many times do we really get the chance to start over, start fresh, start anew? This is one [...]
Chinese New Year: The Nian Monster
There was once a mythical beast named Nian. Nian is the actual word for “year” and is a pictograph of a person carrying the harvest home. But in this legend, the Nian came on the first day of the new year to devour livestock, crops, villagers, and especially children. People were forced to put food [...]
Chinese New Year
Chinese new year begins tomorrow, January 23. It’s the year of the dragon. A Family Holiday The Spring Festival (Chun Jie) beginning with Lunar New Year Day, is a family holiday. Family members return home to see parents and grandparents and to renew family ties. For many, it may be their only opportunity of the [...]
Five Sacred Mountains of Taoism
The Five Sacred Mountains of Taoism are Taishan, Huashan, Hengshan (Shanxi), Hengshan (Hunan), and Songshan. Each of the Five Sacred Mountains is a center of history, spirituality, art, and poetry. Pilgrimages to the sacred mountains are highly valued as inspiring, reverent, and beneficial journeys. Pilgrims believe that they can absorb the power of the mountain [...]
The Darkest Day
In the course of a year, who among us goes through over three hundred days without any misfortune or trouble? All of us do, and sometimes, those troubles can try us to our souls, drive us to madness, and leave us staring in bewilderment at the complete darkness outside our filmy windows. For all of [...]
The I Ching and the Winter Solstice
Some hexagrams of the I Ching are associated with the seasons. Hexagram 24, Returning (Fu), is specifically linked to the Winter Solstice and the eleventh moon. Understanding the graphic structure of this hexagram can help make the philosophy and symbolism of the solstice clear. The bottom of the hexagram is the early stage of a situation, the [...]
Winter Solstice
The Winter Solstice Festival (Dongzhi) is celebrated when the sunlight seems to be at its weakest and the days are the shortest. Therefore, it is a festival deeply tied to the observation of yin and yang: this may be a day that yin is seemingly at its greatest, and yet people know that yin must [...]
The Beijing Wushu Team Coming to the San Francisco Bay Area
The Beijing Wushu Team is coming to the San Francisco Bay Area. There will be two performances at Stanford University on January 18 and 19 and a matinee and evening performance in San Francisco. Come see the current Chinese martial arts champions. For more information, see www.pacificwushu.com.
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