On the eve before going to Seattle to attend the level 4 course, my abecedarian asked me to write an article for the "Yearly of Universal Human Body Energy". I found that the deadline for article submission was 1st September. I would leave the next day, and it was already 2nd September. My abecedarian then said: "After the course is finished, write it as soon as you’re back!"
Since the 7-hour operation owing to the pressing of the cartilage of the 7th cervical (neck) vertebral bone (C7) on the nerve in early 1985, the sequelae have been bothering me for over 20 years, and they were: 1. Feeling of paresthesia at the third part of my right little finger all the time (24 hours); 2. Swelling feet; 3. Usually cramp on legs if they were not covered with blanket or were chilled, and that was why there was no air-conditioning in the bedroom; 4. Sudden feeling of lacking strength in the tendon of my left ankle often when walking; 5. Stiff knees when in wet, cold weather; 6. Only brisk-walking but not jogging; 7. Chronic back pain, the lower backbone was so painful as if it were broken when I lied down for more than 4 hours; 8. Insomnia and I needed to read to make myself sleepy, and sometimes still couldn’t fall a sleep even if I lied down till my back ached. I was still working in Hong Kong then, and some friend advised me to learn Qi Gong, saying that it would help. Unfortunately, the heavy workload and the long-distance daily commute stopped me from learning it, not to mention the popular Tai Chi or Ba Duan Jin which were similar in nature.
I was retired in late 2006, and as I wanted to be with my family, I left Edmonton where I had lived for 20 years, and moved to Calgary. When I had time, apart from taking care of my grandchildren, I also worked as a volunteer for two local Chinese associations, and conducted the "Monthly Seminar on Chinese Culture" regularly, which gave me the chance to have more contact with the community. In the summer of 2009, a 'fan' of mine who always attended my seminar told me that he had joined a meditation course which claimed to be with curative effect. I said it would not be the XX Gong, wouldn’t it? I thought it would be better to be a bit more cautious. About two weeks passed, I once called a Ms. Lau on behalf of the CCECA to arrange a seminar on Chinese literature. When we chatted afterward, she mentioned an organization called Universal Human Body Energy (UHBE) Center, which organized meditation courses for curative purpose, and a new course was about to commence. She wrote me the address of this Center, but without exact door number. Because of that, I asked another Director who was familiar with the area. He said I could ask Mr. Lau, another Director, as he was a senior member of that organization. I in turn asked Mr. Lau, and he said, "a course was just organized in April, and the next one will be held in late August in South Center. I can help submit your name for you, and you may just go and take a look at the North Center before the course commences. If you have any illness, you can as well ask them to cure it for you, and it’s free of charge." He then wrote me the detailed addresses of the two Centres.
I gave it a thought after reaching home. My wife just recovered from a serious illness and my old ailments bothered me persistently, and we both could join the course together. I just promised the Calgary University to teach a course for them in the next semester, which would start in September, and the time did not clash. The North Center was not far from my home, and it could be reached, taking bus as well as walking, within one hour. It was a bit complicated for the South Center, as we had to change buses for three times, and it took more than two hours for just one way, so we had no choice but to drive if we had to go there. We would need our daughter to drive us there, but she worked on shift, and if it happened to be a night shift, she would not be able to drive us there then. Unless she also joined the course, which meant she would think of a way to work it out, then the problem could be solved. Therefore, we persuaded her to go with us enthusiastically, and surprisingly she agreed to it almost immediately. And the transportation problem for joining the meditation course was solved.
Before the class started, we went to the North Center for treatment twice a week. It was Mr. Tan who treated me at the first time, and Mr. Lau told me that Mr. Tan would be our teacher when the class started. After the treatment, Mr. Tan told me that if I wanted to cure my illnesses, I had to meditate by myself 3 hours each day, and after a year or so, I should be able to recover.
It continued for another 2 months or so, and I did not feel there was any help. I started to doubt the effectiveness of the treatment was not as good as the people said, which might be over the top. Nevertheless, when my wife and others asked me, I just said, "a bit better, a bit better." I told them so because firstly I did not want my doubt to influence the confidence of my wife, who might then quit it as a result. Secondly, Mr. Tan said I would need to meditate myself in order to recover, and as I still had not learnt it, how could I say it was not effective? Anyway, my illnesses had been with me for 25 years, and it would not matter much to wait for another week for the class to start. After all, those who helped me did it without any condition, and it was not likely for me to be cheated, so I just waited patiently for the class to start.
Finally the class commenced, and the teacher said, " when you go home, meditate for half an hour every day, and don’t stop for even one day." For the first 3 days I meditated for one hour in the morning, and felt nothing. My wife and daughter both said they did feel something, and suspected I meditated in a wrong approach. I went and asked the teacher, and he said, "you have it. Don’t bother with it, and just keep on with it.’ Remained unconvinced, I got up earlier next morning and meditated for one and a half hour, but in vain. When it came to Saturday morning, the feeling finally came, and a stream of Qi jumped from my neck, one section at a time along the spine, down to my low back, and the cycle continued. The feeling was strong and obvious, and I was very glad, fearing it would vanish and I simply did not want it to stop. However, I had morning lecture that day and must left home by 8am, so the meditation had to stop after 2 hours. In the following 2 days, I meditated for 2 hours in the morning, but the feelings were less strong than that of Saturday. On Monday evening, as instructed by the teacher, I went to the North Centre to do service at 7pm. The first patient was a middle aged woman. When my hand pressed on 'No. 7' of her, I felt the slipperiness and thought, "Is it that I came across one of the five incurable illnesses when I do the service for the first time? According to regulations I should stop treatment right away, but if I do so in the first service, would people think that it was like claptrap? Forgot it! Anyway, the one 'retrieving the foul air' in front of me was the teacher coincidentally, and if anything went wrong, he would come to my rescue." And I did not think much of it afterward. In the next morning, I coughed heavily, so I followed the teacher’s instruction, and tried to channel the energy to the uncomfortable area during meditation in order to undergo self-treatment. After meditation for 3 hours non-stop, I felt better at my throat. I went up at 4am on Wednesday and meditated for 3 hours, and the cough got away. This was the first time I found curative function of meditation, and I made a decision in my mind: I would serve people but not be served when going to the North Centre every evening in order to find out if I was really able to cure my illnesses by means of self-treatment. Therefore, I meditated for 3 hours from 4am to 7am every morning, and then started doing other work. If it was not too busy in the afternoon, I would have a nap for an hour. Why meditating from 4am to 7am? First, I need to write the lecture notes for the university lectures, and to prepare the contents for the monthly seminar on Chinese culture, both of which required in-depth thinking. If I meditated in the afternoon or evening, my mind would likely be occupied with these issues, which might increase the chance of 'wild thoughts'. The mind would be more tranquil without distracting thoughts in the early morning, and it helped us to concentrate on meditation. Second, my wife meditated in the morning, and if there was a phone call during meditation, the process would be interrupted. If I could finish meditation before 8am, I could cope with the 'unexpected guests' should there be any, and allow her to go on in a quiet environment. From then onward, meditating from 4am to 7am became part of my life, just like brushing my teeth and washing my face, and I did it anywhere, even when I was on a cruise tour. I went to the North Centre to do the service for those in need from 7pm to 9pm daily, not even the snow could stop me. I went on like this for merely one week, and I could already spare my walking stick. Two months later, my illnesses were basically cured. Not only my health was getting better, my state of mind was also getting happier. I felt to be energetic, with an increase in volunteer work, I led a very rich life. Since my daughter changed her shift duty, she could not keep up with the meditation. Ms. Lau, who introduced me to the UHBE Center, did not join it, and I never saw her since then!
Perhaps my son and daughter-in-law noticed the change in health of me and my wife, one day, my son told me they also wanted to learn to meditate. I explained to him, "You have to work, and your wife have to take care of 3 children, the youngest being a bit more than 2 years old and she has to take them everywhere with her, and I guess you both are busy enough. It’s good to learn to meditate, but the point is whether you can spare at least one hour each day to meditate. You can’t even miss one day, or the cycle will be broken, and it’ll be worse than not learning it at all. You therefore have to think it over thoroughly." The news that the North Center would have a new class in April was heard. My daughter-in-law said, "As the kids need to go to school during the day and go to bed early in the evening, we can’t go and learn it together. His low back aches frequently, so let him learn it first, and I can learn it later. Please sign up for the class for him!" Some time later, we heard that the two teachers would go preaching somewhere, and the class would be postponed. Naturally, my son and his wife were disappointed. Two months passed, the North Center decided to organize the level 1 course and the level 2 course on 12-17 July. They were overjoyed to hear the news, because the kids were having their summer holiday, and that meant they both could join the course together. A week or so later, my daughter-in-law asked my wife if a pregnant woman could learn to meditate as the doctor told her she was expecting. My wife asked the teacher at once, and he said, "If a pregnant woman learns to meditate, not only she benefits from it, but also the baby in the womb as well. When the baby is born, he or she will be in level 2, and will remain it even if not meditating." This was terrific news for the couple. In July, they successfully finished level 1 and level 2 training, and they achieved what they conceived! They were diligent in meditation, and spared one or two days each week to go and serve those in need in the North Center. It was heard that level 3 class would be held on 12 December, and my daughter-in-law jokingly said, "If the baby is still not born by then, I’ll move up to level 3, and not sure if the baby will also follow suit and become innately regulated in yin and yang as a result?"
My daughter-in law had learnt the UHBE for about a month, and then she asked one day, "Is there any Centre in Toronto for UHBE? A friend said I looked a lot healthier these days, and I told her maybe it's because I learn to meditate. She said it’s a pity that she has to move to Toronto next month, or she’ll definitely learn it. And then I think if there’s a Zen Hall in Toronto, she can join the class there." She also asked whether she really looked a lot better after learning the UHBE for merely a month. My wife said as we met every day, we could not tell the difference. I said, "Ha! This is 'One cannot know the shape of a mountain when one stands on it.' We are too involved!"
In June, the teacher said, "A level 4 course will be held in Kuala Lumpur in November, and you four can join it." I was a bit perplexed: it would span 3 weeks including the training and the retreat before it, and it was still in the middle of the semester in the university. How could I find time to make up my class for 3 weeks? Could I really join it? A month later, the teacher said, "The Central Center in Seattle will organize a level 4 course again in September, and you can go there to join it." A flash of chance appeared and I asked, "Will it be in early September?" The teacher replied, "Perhaps in late September." I thought: if organized in early September, it would not clash with the university timetable, and it would be a perfect arrangement. If in late September, there would still be problem. Another two weeks passed, and the teacher said, "The time in Seattle is fixed and the dates will be 3-5 September." Upon hearing the news, I just felt that destiny had its own way.
In early August, we planned to go to Vancouver for 2 weeks to visit my mother-in-law to celebrate her birthday, and to give her treatment. I thought we were really having a holiday this time and spending 2 weeks relaxingly. When we got off the plane, as the old lady was having back pain and could not sit for more than 20 minutes in one go, and having constipation with swelling belly, I treated her immediately. To my surprise it worked at once, and she needed to go to the toilet right away. She could also sit for 1 to 2 hours continuously without any pain on the back. A relative heard of it and asked for treatment as well. Since the treatment worked well, the number of relatives who requested treatment increased, on average 3-4 people a day, and hit a record high at 6 people one day. We not only did not find our techniques rusty, but were also allowed the opportunity to treat some cases we had never met before, e.g. constipation, gastroesophageal reflux disease etc., and the results were sound. There was one such case, which the relatives liked to relate a lot, where a client sprained her ankle and it swelled so much that she could not walk. The pain was gone after treatment for 1 day, and then the swelling for 3 days, and she could walk again after the fifth days, even thinking of putting on her high-heel shoes. This was too much beyond our expectation. They said, it would take at least one week to go for the traditional Chinese bone setting treatment to recover. However, we just touched and pinched the affected area and then the client got well as if the sprain were never there, which was like magic. If they did not see it with their eyes, it would be hard for them to believe in it. They commented that this skill was really miraculous. Besides the chances to treat different illnesses, my wife and I were also given the opportunity to be in the limelight before our relatives!
Before we departed for the Headquarter Center, I finished the column in the Weekly ‘Chinese Grammar’ for 2 September and sent it. However, the article for 9 September must be sent on 7 September the latest, and it was not done. The University semester started on 9 September, and the lecture notes were still not printed. A huge pile of work had to be completed within the 2 to 3 days after I was back from the training, and it was indeed a burden. I thought of bringing the notebook computer with me to the training, as I might have time to do some work in the evening.
We reached the inn on 2 September, and I found I forgot to bring the power cable with me, which meant I could not do the work as I planned. I thought perhaps it was arranged so in order to make me concentrate in the course, and that was why the power cable was left at home. In the end, I was indeed able to concentrate in the class and listen carefully to the lecture.
When I reached home in the afternoon of 6 September, without taking the dinner, I switched on my computer and rushed to finish off my work. Oh no! The folder for storing the information of ‘Cultural Activities’ was not there, and it was not found in the folder in the backup either. What could I do? I had not used the computer, how come the folder would disappear? Why the one lost was the most important and urgently needed? Why the folder in the backup in the external hard disc also disappeared? If this folder was lost, all the information gathered for the column, lecture notes and seminar topics would be lost, and I would not be able to collect it afresh even if given 2 to 3 months’ time. Within such short timeframe, what should I do with the work I promised others? Inevitably, I could not help but thinking that it was a lesson for me from the Founder Master, and naturally I asked DASIRA NARADA, the Founder Master for pardon and help. Besides, I called my son immediately and asked him to come and `save’ me after work. He came in the evening, and after troubleshooting for a while, finally managed to recover the information folder for me.
I received an email message from the university that evening informing me that as the course was undersubscribed, it would be cancelled. This meant I did not need to rush the lecture notes through, and I could also do other things in the coming 4 months!
After meditation in the early morning on 7 September, I was about to finish off the article for the column, and then I received a phone call from the editor. He said there were two odd characters in my previous article, and therefore it was not published. As he knewI would be back by today, he called me to proofread them with me so that the Weekly could be published as soon as possible. Finally, he also asked me to continue to prepare for the article for next week. Ha! I could take a rest and there was no need to rush.
I thought there would be a huge pile of work waiting for me to finish when I was back, and who knew the situation would unfold itself like that? "Why bother with it as the Heaven will arrange for it?"
"There is a destiny for everything." "The Heaven will arrange for it." Who is the Heaven, and where is the decision maker? After listening to the explanation of Mrs. Nguyen, my master’s wife, I understood the Founder Master has a superb power. In reviewing what I experienced in the past year, would ‘the Heaven’ be the Founder Master? Would it be that the Founder Master wanted to lead me into the UHBE, and therefore he made all these delicate arrangements? Initially the ‘fan’ recommended it to me, but because I had always be cautious and would not believe in something simply by mere hearsay, I was not convinced. And would it be for this reason that the Founder Master approached me by means of a lady, an academic researcher, who had no relation to the UHBE but I had more confidence in to move me successfully in order to lead me into it? My daughter learnt to meditate with us, but she could not keep up with it after 2 weeks. Would it be that the time for her to meet with the UHBE was not ripe yet, and her participation was simply the Founder Master’s arrangement for her to 'take care of ' us, and her main duty was to drive us to and fro to attend the meditation course? Mr. Tan’s instruction "to meditate for 3 hours each day", would it be the Master’s prescription for me? I came across the ‘problem’ on my first day of service in the North Center, and would it be the Founder Master’s message for me to start to take the prescription? I served at the North Center from 7pm – 9pm every evening, and did not feel tired at all, but rather felt more contented than sponsoring several children through the World Vision. This was because I only needed to pay monthly to sponsor the children and was not required to do other things, and I did not know how much actually the children would benefit from my sponsorship. On the contrary, I needed to meditate often when serving in the North Center in order to treat the clients carefully. When the clients got better, they gave me a nod or a smile, and then I would feel much contented and satisfied. Would it be that the Founder Master lead me to the path of practice, and wanted me to use my hands to serve the mankind and to contribute to the society? My son and daughter-in-law learnt to meditate successfully, and would it be that the Founder Master cared for the 3 generations of my family in order to strengthen my determination to practice?
I remembered 2 months after I finished level 2 course in last November, that was when the ‘extraordinary experience’ befell me, a classmate who was a retired Chinese medical doctor said to me, "You don’t know Qi Gong, and you came across this kind of extraordinary experience after meditating for so short a time, it’s indeed very rare. Perhaps the Master wants to use your hands to implement his will!" After hearing his words, I was bemused, staring at him. He then said, "Just joking, and please don’t mind." I thought, "What about if it’s not joking, what about if the Master does indeed choose me to implement his will? What should I do?" From that time onward, I meticulously and seriously learn and study the principles and techniques of energy treatment, and considered serving people to be my responsibility. I considered each upgrade in course to be the acceptance of an appointment, and I dared not to harbour any sense of arrogance. During the level 4 course, after listening to the explanation on ‘Founder Master’s instruction’ by Mrs. Nguyen, I knew this is the practice of the Buddha. It would be a long and difficult road for a common man to follow the Buddha’s path, which required greater patience and perseverance to go on. I hope I would continue to receive the instructions of the Master!
Autumn Fan Study, Calgary
September 2010