“It is now time to change our way of thinking…”
– Li Junfeng and Li Jin
The universe knows when it should jolt you out of your stupidity and kick you out of untenable situations for your own good. You simply have to listen to its voice.
But I was unable to discern it back then. If I’d picked up the book Paving the Road to a New World at that time, I’d have been more attentive to the universe, and thus cushioned my numerous falls. I’d have also been enlightened on the affinity of yin and yang with humanity, and the urgent need to renew this bond to combat climate change, which authors Li Junfeng and Li Jing are helping to counter.
Master Li Junfeng is the founder and principal teacher of the International Sheng Zhen Society (ISZS). He inaugurated it in Manila 1995, and was training teachers on Sheng Zhen (unconditional love) meditation worldwide by 2000. He joined the Academy of Oriental Medicine in Austin, Texas, as dean of the Mind and Body department in 2002. He started practicing meditation in 1987. When he was tapped to coach the Philippine martial arts team in 1990, he also started teaching Sheng Zhen meditation to government and business organizations, and to the public. Previously, he coached the Beijing wushu team and the national wushu team of China for 15 years.
His daughter, Li Jing, is also a principal teacher of ISZS, and helps to spread its philosophy by conducting classes, workshops, and teacher-training throughout the globe. She became a professional member of the Beijing wushu team at 11, but left it at 21 to join her father in Manila. She graduated with a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Assumption College. She earned her licentiate degree from the Orebro University in Sweden in 2019.
Using qiology, a philosophy stating that qi (life force) and love are not separate entities, the father-daughter tandem posits that love is the original energy of the universe that produced qi, and that the strong interconnection between the two energies formed the Wuji Point (WP), “the metaphorical human zygote that seeded the universe.” The WP was the energy-gathering point in the whole universe where the qi grew in strength and transformed into yin and yang—two distinct polar forces embodying the concept of duality forming a whole—which further collided and transformed until they exploded upon reaching critical mass.
The explosion is what scientists call the Big Bang that separated yin and yang inside the WP, yielding yin qi and yang qi outside of the WP, with the latter fostering yin and yang inside it. The symbiotic relationship between the energies of the WP generated xing yuan ti (source of stars) that developed into different galaxies and celestial bodies. A new body of energy called heng also emerged, which maintained the delicate balance between yin and yang.
“The whole universe was forged by yin qi and yang qi. As a result, everything and every form in the universe contains specific forms of yin qi and yang qi,” say the Lis.
The corrosive work-stress was the culprit that birthed my depression, disillusionment, and seething anger
The Lis’ discourse on yin and yang resonated with me on the personal and political levels. My yin was slowly eroding my yang. (Yin manifests itself as darkness and stillness, while yang reveals itself as light and activity.) The corrosive work-stress was the culprit that birthed my depression, disillusionment, and seething anger. Stuck in a dead-end job and with careerist colleagues overseas, I also faced racial prejudice and collapsed romantic and other relationships.
I realized that my world lacked what the Lis describe as “the natural acceptance of people, of embracing those with the exceptional abilities without envy, and willingly helping those with less abilities.”
Going by the Lis’ rationale, I needed to slow down and quiet my heart to counter my intense yin.
The father and daughter declare: “Today, everything is in flux; the world is in a state of disorder; the human situation is unstable. The heart is not quiet; the mind is hyperactive when it should be as placid as a gliding swan.”
With yoga and meditation, I quieted my heart and became attentive to my yin and yang. I also experienced a belated epiphany: I was actually searching for xing.
“Each individual has xing (character or enlightened consciousness). If your heart is closed, xing will leave your heart. The heart is the home of the soul. If the soul is not comfortable, it will not stay in the heart…[reducing] happiness and quality of life,” the Lis counsel.
My rancor was stilled on the personal level. But on the political level, it was raging against injustice and those who have added to humanity’s problems. My indignation aligned with the Lis’ thoughts on environmental degradation as resulting from humanity in crisis.
‘The Earth is like a living human being…When it loses its vital energy, its immune system starts to weaken…’
Drawing a parallelism between Earth and humanity, they argue: “The Earth is like a living human being. When our bodies are severely impaired, have low energy, or become imbalanced, we become sick. Similarly, when the Earth loses its vital energy, its immune system starts to weaken: its balance with other celestial bodies is disrupted.”
Deforestation, flooding, land, water, and soil pollution, overfishing, and mining are symptoms of Earth’s weakened immune system. They’re brought about by people’s avarice, endless pursuit of self-satisfaction, and short-sightedness in thinking that one can engage in unrestrained culling of natural resources with impunity. Clearly, with the balance overthrown, the urgency of restoring the equilibrium between Earth and humanity can’t be emphasized more.
“Yin and yang are complementary and connected, yet opposite to each other,” the Lis point out. “[They] must coexist; without one, the world cannot exist. There is no absolute yin…nor is there pure yang. [They] are constantly exchanging and transforming into each other…Such exchange and transformation are the law of the universe.”
But recognizing the need to balance yin and yang isn’t enough to achieve synchronicity between Earth and humanity. There must be education inculcating “ethical and moral norms towards building good character” in people, and teaching them to love and do good to others, the Lis say.
They add: “If people in power—local, national, and state—are concerned only with maintaining their control, winning elections, or gaining favor from their superiors, they will inevitably make shortsighted decisions…Individuals blessed with power should lead people away from self-interest [and] towards a balanced view of this world.”
Natural scientists may find dissonance with the Lis’ viewpoint. But the father and daughter say they are coming from the perspective of the soul, of yin and yang, and quiet hearts which link to the science of the energies of nature and the universe. Understanding the universe’s qi and its connection to humanity, they say, has always been anchored on the premise of opposites harmoniously moving in the same direction.
The Lis are just reminding us of the rhythm we lost along the way.
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Paving the Road to a New World is published by the International Sheng Zhen Society Foundation, Inc., at S&L Bldg Esteban corner De la Rosa Streets, Legaspi Village, Makati City. To order, email: [email protected] or visit shengzhenphilippines.org or shengzhen.org.
