Health & Life

7 Top Tips from Ancient Times to Overcome Illness and Harsh Weather

The secrets of health care and wellness from ancient sages, despite being centuries old, remain incredibly practical, useful, and worth referencing and learning from.

Administrator

28 February, 2024

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Ancient celebrities like Confucius and Hua Tuo highly valued health cultivation as a way to overcome the harsh weather and diseases.

Here are 7 health cultivation methods from celebrities, which are worth considering:

1. Sleeping method

In the Southern Song Dynasty in China, the famous poet Lü Du often read books at night, usually until the end of the second watch (equivalent to 10 pm) as the maximum limit.

He believed that sleep is the best way to get rid of fatigue, frequently staying up late can lead to dizziness and decreased memory.

2. Meditation method

Tô Thức, a talented writer and painter of the Northern Song Dynasty, praised meditation as the best health cultivation solution for physical well-being.

Once, he built a resting room similar to a meditation room and wrote a sign that said: “Sitting in meditation, you will no longer see the troublesome life, a long day is like two days. If you live for seventy years, your life will be as long as a hundred and forty years.”

The meditation method requires the correct sitting posture, closed eyes, relaxation of the whole body, natural breathing, mental stillness, and keeping the mind relaxed and loose, focusing on the lower abdomen for 15-30 minutes each time.

3. Walking method

Ancient people emphasized that you should not sit at work or go to bed immediately after each meal. For example, the famous poet and medical scientist of the Southern Song Dynasty, Dao Hong Canh, once said: “You cannot sit or lie down immediately after you are full. Therefore, the best way is to take a slow walk, like when you want to take a stroll.”

Walking is a great way to maintain health, the enduring flexibility of the body, and reduce diseases.

4. Bathing method

Taking regular baths and changing clothes is not only a good hygiene habit but also helps keep the mind alert, the body and mind comfortable, and reduces fatigue.

The poet of the Song Dynasty Thẩm Kinh Trung said: “Regularly bathing, changing clothes, burning incense, bathing… will lead to peace and tranquility.”

5. Entertainment, relaxation, and rest

Arrange your garden and house neatly and clean. Plant flowers and grass, feed birds and fish, raise animals, and pets to create a fresh environment, thereby helping to regulate life and nourish the mood.

Poets and playwrights of the Ming Dynasty, Cao Cai Tang, considered love and entertainment as important aspects of health care and cultivation.

Everyone needs to allocate time for rest, relaxation, entertainment, and balance their mood.

6. Going outside for sightseeing

The celebrity Tô Vũ once said: “Mountains and rivers are originally no one’s own in the world. If you have free time, go out and enjoy it.”

This means that the natural landscapes on this Earth are extremely beautiful, and everyone should seize the opportunity to travel and admire the grandeur of the mountains and rivers.

According to Tô Vũ, the country is incredibly beautiful, so take advantage of your day off or holidays to go out for sightseeing, immerse yourself in nature, explore fascinating things, which can make people feel relaxed, no longer tired and discouraged.

7. “Travel at home” method

When you are no longer young and have weak health that prevents you from moving around, hang many landscape paintings in the living room. You can enjoy them without leaving home.

Ngê Toán, a famous painter of the Yuan Dynasty, painted many beautiful paintings of the country’s landscapes, flowers, grass, birds, and majestic mountains and rivers. He believed that not everyone can travel, so you should take the time to admire beautiful paintings as a form of “traveling at home”.

Even when you are old and weak, lying in bed, you can still look at beautiful paintings, immerse your soul into the painting, considering it as a “lying travel”.

Nowadays, entertainment media is modern, sitting in one place can allow us to know the whole world if we know how to utilize the strengths of computers and internet-connected phones.

Frequently asked questions

Su Shi, or Tô Thức, praised meditation as the ultimate solution for physical well-being. He built a room specifically for meditation, encouraging others to sit and meditate to find peace and double their perceived lifespan.

The text advises maintaining the correct sitting posture, closing your eyes, and relaxing your body. One should focus on natural breathing and keeping their mind still, yet relaxed, with a focus on the lower abdomen for 15-30 minutes.

Ancient Chinese poet and medical scientist, Dao Hong Canh, advised against sitting or lying down immediately after a meal. He suggested that a slow walk after eating is the best way to aid digestion and maintain good health.

Regular bathing and changing of clothes were considered important by poets like Thẩm Kinh Trung. He believed that maintaining good personal hygiene led to a peaceful and tranquil state of mind, which is essential for overall well-being.

Ming Dynasty poets and playwrights, including Cao Cai Tang, viewed love and entertainment as vital aspects of healthcare. They believed in creating a fresh and natural environment, tending to gardens, and having pets to regulate life and nourish one’s mood.

Tô Vũ admired the beauty of natural landscapes and believed that everyone should take the opportunity to travel and admire the grandeur of the mountains and rivers. He encouraged people to make use of their free time to explore nature, which can provide a sense of relaxation and rejuvenation.

Yuan Dynasty painter, Ngê Toán, believed that admiring beautiful paintings of landscapes, flowers, and majestic mountains could provide a similar experience to traveling. Even for those with weak health or in old age, ‘traveling at home’ by immersing oneself in art can be a form of exploration and relaxation.