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Tofu, anyone?
Hi,
At the moment I am reading a book, by Gao Xinjian, called Soul Mountain, which is very interesting as it recounts the travels of the author throughout China, and it won the Nobel prize for Literature. There are several references to chi kung, or qi/qi gong as it is written in the book. Mention is made at several places to Daoist priests using breathing exercises to increase longevity but also in connection with martial arts. Qi gong was suggested to the author by a friend, to cure his lung cancer. Also, quite often the author describes people using the chant “Namo amitofu”. I immediately recognised this from reading through the discussion page, but I thought it was “namo amitabha”. Is this the same word/meaning, or is it just a result of Chinese being Romanised. I don’t chant when practicing chi kung, and I think if I did, amitofu would just make me smile, as it makes me think of vegetarian food, which would be a bit distracting.
I guess one thing I like about this book is that it gives a Chinese perspective on chi kung, which is considered to be a very old practice, and held in awe, but it seems also something that mainly old people do. Or, that's my interpretation at least.
I like very much as well the way that old people are referred to as "Elder brother" or "Uncle", "Grandmother" when speaking to them. It shows a respect for elders which seems to be disappearing in a Western world which worships youth culture.
Namo amitofu!
Kevin.
At the moment I am reading a book, by Gao Xinjian, called Soul Mountain, which is very interesting as it recounts the travels of the author throughout China, and it won the Nobel prize for Literature. There are several references to chi kung, or qi/qi gong as it is written in the book. Mention is made at several places to Daoist priests using breathing exercises to increase longevity but also in connection with martial arts. Qi gong was suggested to the author by a friend, to cure his lung cancer. Also, quite often the author describes people using the chant “Namo amitofu”. I immediately recognised this from reading through the discussion page, but I thought it was “namo amitabha”. Is this the same word/meaning, or is it just a result of Chinese being Romanised. I don’t chant when practicing chi kung, and I think if I did, amitofu would just make me smile, as it makes me think of vegetarian food, which would be a bit distracting.
I guess one thing I like about this book is that it gives a Chinese perspective on chi kung, which is considered to be a very old practice, and held in awe, but it seems also something that mainly old people do. Or, that's my interpretation at least.
I like very much as well the way that old people are referred to as "Elder brother" or "Uncle", "Grandmother" when speaking to them. It shows a respect for elders which seems to be disappearing in a Western world which worships youth culture.
Namo amitofu!
Kevin.
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