NEW YORK—After being spirited away from the airport after his 6:30 p.m. arrival, Chen Guangcheng, his wife and their two children were taken to his New York University’s residence on Mercer Street in lower Manhattan at around 7:30 p.m. It was a joyous day for human rights activists, politicians, and supporters who had helped Chen Guangcheng fight for his freedom. Chen’s family members, however, still remain in China under the shadow of the Chinese regime’s security forces.

“At the most critical moment, the U.S. Embassy in China gave me an opportunity for emergency asylum and helped me get through the most dangerous time. The American government too, gave me a lot of help,” Chen said to the press after arriving at his residence as a crowd stood cheering behind a police cordon.

Chen Guangcheng gestures beside his wife Yuan Weijing before making remarks to the media, upon his arrival at New York University campus on May 19. (Andy Jacobsohn/Getty Images)

He thanked the U.S. officials for their effort to rescue him.

“Acts of retribution in Shandong have not been abated and my rights to practice law have been curbed—we hope to see a thorough investigation into this,” he said.

Chen Guangcheng’s dramatic April 22 escape from house arrest in his hometown of Linyi, Shandong Province, drew international attention and became a focal point of U.S.-China relations.

Chen was helped by several friends, before being picked up by staff from the U.S. Embassy in Beijing on April 27. He first left the embassy on May 2, under pressure from Chinese authorities who threatened his family if he did not leave American custody immediately; at the same time, a deal had been brokered that would have allowed him to stay in China and study.

Read more: Chen Guangcheng Arrives in the United States, Issues Thanks [with Video] | Democracy & Human Rights | China | Epoch Times

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This is the first of a three-part series by Dr. Jingduan Yang. Links to the second and third parts are below.

People spend almost one-third of their lives sleeping. Good-quality sleep plays a very important role in having a healthy life.

What Happens During Sleep? The body relaxes, restores, and rebuilds itself during sleep. After having a good night, people wake up feeling refreshed. This is because many things take place during sleep that restore and rebuild the body. For example, during sleep, the body produces more growth hormone, which is important in burning fat and developing lean muscles

Sleep is also the time when the body goes through a complicated regulation of immune system functions. Studies show that when people are sleep-deprived or have their sleep chronically restricted, their T-cells go down, and their inflammatory cytokines go up. They become prone to getting colds or the flu.

During the deep level of sleep, muscles relax and blood vessels dilate, promoting better blood circulation, and the brain processes information. Therefore, sleep is not a passive process but an active, integral part of our lives. People who think sleep is a waste of time and try to use artificial means to cut down on sleep will suffer a significant decline in health.

How Much Sleep?

How much sleep we should get depends on our age. The older we get, the less we need. An infant needs 14 to 15 hours of sleep; a toddler needs 12 to 14 hours of sleep; school-age children need 10 to11 hours; adults need anywhere from 7 to 9 hours of sleep.

People who are chronically sleep-deprived, those who chronically have poor-quality sleep, and pregnant woman may need an increased amount of sleep. Older people may have interrupted sleep and need naps during the day.

In general, adults who sleep less than six hours and more than nine hours may have a shorter lifespan.

Early research focused on what happens if someone is sleep-deprived for 48 to 96 hours. Symptoms included sleepiness, hair loss, irritability, agitation, and psychosis.

Today, researchers have shifted their focus to sleep restriction, studying what happens to people who sleep less than six hours nightly. Some people tend to become hyperactive and restless during the day, others tired and sleepy.

Doctors wondered if they should give these patients mental stimulants to keep them calm and alert. Another question is, what have these patients actually lost in terms of their health?

Best Time to Sleep

Current sleep-hygiene guidelines advise people to go to bed at the same time and get up at the same time, yet very few researchers address what time people should go to bed.

Dr. Chritian Gulleminault, of Stanford University, conducted a preliminary study of eight men who spent one week in the sleep laboratory. His research tracked their behavior and level of function while simulating driving and taking memory tests and tests for staying awake. They were allowed to sleep for eight and a half hours for two nights and only four hours for the other seven nights.

One group slept from 10:30 p.m. to 2:30 a.m. for seven nights, the other group from 2:15 a.m. to 6:15 a.m. As you can expect, sleep restriction affected all participants. Results of the wakefulness tests taken the day after eight and a half hours of sleep differed greatly from results on the last day of sleep deprivation.

But the results also differed between the two groups. The early morning sleep group’s score on the wakefulness test was significantly better than the late-night sleep group. The early morning group also had better rates of sleep efficiency (the percentage of time spent sleeping in the four-hour window) and sleep latency (the amount of time spent falling asleep).

These results are not enough to tell when the best time to sleep is, but they do indicate that sleep at different times produces different results.

Dr. Jingduan Yang is a board-certified psychiatrist and a fourth-generation teacher and practitioner of traditional Chinese medicine. He practices integrative medicine in New York City, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey. His website is taoinstitute.com.

This is Part 1 of a series. Part 2 can be found HERE.

via Ancient Wisdom for Healthy Sleep Part 1 | Traditional Chinese Medicine | Health | Epoch Times

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Artist: Andrew Talbot (Lancashire – England, born 1972) Paintings.

Website : https://www.facebook.com/artcenterpaintinganddrawing

Music by the Swedish singer and songwriter:
Sophie Zelmani – This Room

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Ninth-century hieroglyphs painted by a Mayan scribe in Guatemala are records of lunar and perhaps planetary cycles, forming the oldest known Mayan calendar.

The city of Xultún was discovered almost a century ago in the remote rainforest of the Petén region and covers 12 square miles. It was once home to many thousands of people, and monuments were constructed from the first centuries B.C. Only 56 structures have been counted and mapped among thousands more.

Led by William Saturno from Boston University, a team of archeologists has now excavated the calendar keeper’s room, which seems to be part of a house. This is the first time that Mayan paintings have been discovered on the walls of a house.

Despite damage by looters, numerous red and black glyphs, and various human figures are visible on the three intact walls. Calculations on the east wall refer to the lunar cycle, whereas the more obscure calculations on the north wall could be linked with Mars, Mercury, or Venus.

According to the researchers, Mayan calendars aimed to harmonize sacred rituals with celestial events.

“For the first time we get to see what may be actual records kept by a scribe, whose job was to be official record keeper of a Maya community,” said Saturno in a press release.

“It’s like an episode of TV’s ‘Big Bang Theory,’ a geek math problem and they’re painting it on the wall,” he added. “They seem to be using it like a blackboard.”

However, there is no indication that our world will end in 2012; rather, it will just enter another cycle.

Read more: Earliest Known Mayan Calendar Goes Beyond 2012 | Beyond Science | Science | Epoch Times

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The Chinese regime’s domestic security chief, Zhou Yongkang, has handed over the reins of power of China’s security forces to a deputy, according to The Financial Times, which quoted sources familiar with the matter. The development would be one of the most significant in the current political crisis, which began in February, that has rocked the Chinese Communist Party.

Zhou will retain his figurehead Party position as chief of the Political and Legislative Affairs Committee, but operational control of the security apparatus has been given to Meng Jianzhu, the minister of public security, according to the Financial Times, which cited three senior Party members and diplomats who had been told about the matter.

In the recent instance Zhou’s “effective removal from power” took place some weeks ago, Financial Times reported.

Party leaders acted against Zhou, according to the Financial Times, because of his strong support for Bo Xilai, a renegade Party official who was purged in April. That took place two months after his deputy, the chief of police of Chongqing, attempted to defect to an American Consulate. After Wang’s visit to the consulate on Feb. 6, reports emerged that Zhou Yongkang and Bo Xilai had conspired to seize power of the regime in a meticulous coup d’état that would be orchestrated over the next year.

The two are bound together because of their involvement in the persecution of the popular Falun Gong spiritual practice, including the forced organ removal from living practitioners, information about which has been trickling out of China despite heavy Internet censorship. Jiang Zemin, the former regime leader, initiated the persecution against the population of nearly 100 million adherents in 1999. He promoted both Zhou Yongkang and Bo Xilai because of their willingness to carry out his policies.

The result was bloody, according to the available evidence, which suggests that both Bo Xilai and Zhou Yongkang oversaw abusive organ removal from living Falun Gong adherents. Tens of thousands of individuals are suspected of being victims of organ harvesting.

Sources in Beijing provided The Epoch Times details of a meeting that led up to the decision to relieve Zhou of his duties, pending an investigation.

In the meeting, Wen Jiabao openly argued against Zhou, the source said, questioning his connection with Bo Xilai.

Hu Jintao, the chief of the Communist Party, was silent. He Guoqiang, the head of Party’s internal disciplinary body, then said, “I believe that Comrade Zhou will be found innocent,” but also insisted that an investigation would be necessary.

To do otherwise would be “a hindrance to the Party and the future work of Party Central,” He said. Hu Jintao then reportedly agreed, on the principle that the investigation would be “fair,” but “secret.”

A source characterized this treatment of Zhou as “slow-boiling a frog.”

With reporting by Lin Feng. 

via Power Taken From Chinese Security Czar Zhou Yongkang | Regime | China | Epoch Times

Related Articles:

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• With Chen Guangcheng Abuse, Chinese Security Czar May Have Hastened Fate

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Click www.ept.ms/ccp-crisis to read about the most recent developments in the ongoing power struggle within the Chinese communist regime. In this special topic, we provide readers with the necessary context to understand the situation. Get the RSS feed. Get the new interactive Timeline of Events. Who are the Major Players?

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By Zhang Dong

“Violent rage and fury is harmful to yin, while sudden and excessive delight damages yang,” according to an ancient Chinese proverb.

In both modern and traditional Chinese medical practices, emphasis is placed on preventing unhealthy habits. For instance, it is generally believed that those suffering from coronary ailments should not get excited, and those with liver problems should not get angry.

In the view of traditional Chinese medicine, the heart is affected by happiness, the liver by anger, the lungs by sorrow and anxiety, the spleen by thoughts, and the kidneys by fear.

These “five symptoms” are the respective reactions of the five organs to the various emotions we experience. Ongoing strong emotional reactions will produce harmful vital energy and blood flow and will have grave consequences for the body.

Modern medical science has also found that constant changes in a person’s disposition will lead to different responses of the body’s endocrine system, which may result in severe adverse effects on the body.

Unlike our ancestors, many of today’s people are extremely competitive, jealous, tense, and depressed. We can be very ambitious, possessing little self-control and exhibiting strong desires for self-expression.

If we become full of resentment, we may find ourselves continuously finding ways to come out of life situations as a winner, harming those around us and, in the long run, harming society.

Furthermore, modern people are chronically worried about personal loss and gain, which will have a negative effect on their psyche. Such unhealthy sentiments cause disorder to the endocrine system and will, without exception, result in illnesses.

On the other hand, the ancients were very particular about etiquette and morals and maintained self-control. Their behavior was governed by what they understood to be the will of heaven. They were at ease with themselves. They had no high aspirations, did not ask for what was not possible, and did not worry about injustices. Therefore they harbored no resentment.

Also, in ancient society, competitiveness and self-promotion were non-existent. It was a less-stressful environment. The ancients did not exhibit nervous, anxious, or worried behavior, nor did they have feelings of indignation. Thus, we can safely say that the ancients were not harmed by their thoughts or behavior.

Today, however, people engage in harming each other and committing countless karma-inducing acts. In Buddhism, all human actions result in either good karma (“de” in Chinese) or bad karma (called simply karma). The benefits and misfortunes in life, such as wealth or illness, come from the de and karma one has accumulated.

In reality, the naked eye cannot see the entire universe. There are many dimensions that mankind cannot see. The main and collateral energy channels, as well as the acupuncture points discussed in traditional Chinese medicine, do not exist in the body in this dimension. Therefore, modern tools cannot find them. Yet they do exist.

De and karma are also two substances that are part of the body but exist in another dimension. When one does a good deed, one will obtain de. When one does a bad deed, one will obtain karma. A person’s de and karma follow one’s primordial spirit forever.

Modern science is unable to detect other dimensions and cannot confirm the existence of enlightened beings. Modern mankind, under the influence of modern science, will do everything for personal gain with very little consideration for the consequences. People thoughtlessly harm others and thus obtain karma. They do not know that karma is the root of all diseases, sufferings, and tribulations.

One can find the above expressed in many ancient books. Sun Simiao pointed out in his book “Valuable Prescriptions for Emergencies” that the reason that doctors are needed is that people fall sick as a result of their behavior and minds going astray.

Human beings are very stubborn and restricted within the frame of their own perception. They are powerless to address the wrongs in their minds and let go of their preconceptions. They are not willing to improve their morality, despite being sick.

The wind is the cause of all illnesses. When one is quiet, one’s flesh will be tight and will not be harmed by strong winds and disease, according to traditional Chinese medicine.

In modern medical views, “wind” means all pathogenic microorganisms and the symptoms of diseases that develop rapidly, change quickly, and are prone to spasms (earlier referred to as the tightening of the flesh).

This writer believes that wind means karma. When one is quiet and calm, one naturally will not commit bad deeds, will not be afraid of accumulating karma, and will not be affected by poisonous and evil influences. Therefore, not committing bad deeds is regarded as more important than simply observing healthy habits of living.

Along with the development of society, material comforts have become essential to the modern lifestyle. The importance of material wealth has grown exponentially. Moral standards have fallen to an all-time low.

People’s lives have strayed more and more from their inborn nature. In short, people have progressively deviated from the Tao and the Fa (law and principles in the Buddha school).

A sage of ancient times professed: “The principle of yin and yang is the fundamental principle of the universe. It is the law of creation. It brings about the transformation to parenthood. It is the root and source of life and death, and it is found within the temples of the gods. In order to treat and cure diseases one must return to what is fundamental.”

The life of modern people has deviated from yin and yang and destabilized the Five Elements. Out of selfishness, people will stop at nothing, stoop to low levels, and commit all manner of crimes. Such conduct results in illnesses that are difficult or impossible to treat.

In ancient times, sages taught people that harmful influences and evil winds should be avoided, especially at certain times. The ancients were unperturbed, thus the vital force of nature always surrounded them, and their fundamental spirit was preserved within. They did not suffer from illnesses the way today’s people do.

They exercised restraint with a strong will and had few desires. They were at peace and had no fears. They worked hard but did not become weary. Their spirit was at ease. They lived in harmony with their surroundings and followed heaven’s laws. They were satisfied, and their aspirations were met. Their food was appetizing, and their clothing was suitable.

They were happy with their lives. They were satisfied with their stations in life, whether of the lower or upper class. One could say that they were pure of heart. Their purity was such that they could not be tempted. Neither riches nor evil could lure their hearts.

They were without fear. They were in harmony with the Tao. They lived long lives, sometimes longer than 100 years, were always active, and did not become infirm. Their virtue was exemplary.

How does one follow the Tao and the Fa? One should adhere to the law of nature, live a clean, moral life, and cultivate oneself. For example, no matter how poor or rich a family, no matter how many toys a child possesses, or how technically advanced the toys are, 6- or 7-year-old children prefer to play with soil, sand, or simple things they find in their surroundings.

Human behavior has deviated from yin and yang and is destabilizing the Five Elements. People still have the innate desire to return to their original, true selves. In short, it is time for people to return to their true nature and to become attuned with the environment.

However, if society continues to disregard its true nature, human survival will be at risk. The way of returning to one’s true nature will become narrower and narrower.

— Pure Insight

via Modern Civilization, Modern People, and Modern Diseases Part IV | Traditional Chinese Medicine | Health | Epoch Times

Related Articles:

• Modern Civilization, Modern People, and Modern Diseases (Part III)
• Modern Civilization, Modern People, and Modern Diseases (Part II)
• Modern Civilization, Modern People, and Modern Diseases (Part I)

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By Tang Wen and Gao Zitan
Epoch Times Staff

Beijing authorities have decided to carry out a sweeping campaign to close loopholes in China’s Internet blockade. It intends to block all free Web-based proxies throughout the country so netizens will no longer be able to access banned websites or cached information of blocked sites such as Facebook, YouTube, and Gmail.

The statement, announced by the Internet monitoring department of Beijing Municipal Public Security Bureau on May 8, said all computer Internet services in the nation must be examined, and any free or open Web-based proxy will be blocked immediately.

Anonymous Surfing

China’s Internet censorship system, known as the Great Firewall (GFW) or Golden Shield, blocks politically sensitive content and blacklisted foreign websites. The firewall also prohibits China’s Internet service providers (ISPs) from offering access to social networking websites, like Facebook and Twitter, under the pretext of maintaining social stability.

Despite a huge expenditure of money and personnel, the GFW is not difficult to circumvent. A Web-based proxy server is one popular solution to climb over the wall.

Open proxies are open to the public and widely used. When a user connects to the Internet, a Web-based proxy stands between the user and a website, communicating directly with both.

As such, the website only sees the proxy server; it doesn’t see the user’s real Internet Protocol (IP) address, and the user is seen as anonymous. This is known as “anonymous surfing.” It is a common way to bypass firewalls and unblock sites.

Through Web-based proxies, Chinese netizens can access cached information of blocked sites such as Facebook, YouTube, and Gmail.

The May 8 order means netizens will be unable to use open Web-based proxies to visit blocked websites or read banned media.

According to an earlier report this week, the regime recently spent over 10 million yuan ($1.58 million) in upgrading the firewall to further tighten control over foreign websites.

The upgraded technology includes a combination of software and hardware, including probe sniffers, backbone nodes matching, machine using manual test, and other auxiliary methods applied to attack blacklisted foreign websites such as The Epoch Times and Dynaweb.

Read original Chinese article

via Chinese Regime Tightens Grip on Great Firewall | Regime | China | Epoch Times

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…
Albert Einstein was a physicist best known for his theory of relativity. He won the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1921 for his discovery of the photoelectric effect and other contributions to theoretical physics.

Einstein’s work in relativity pointed out limitations in Isaac Newton’s classical mechanics and contributed to the rise of quantum physics. It led to astronomical discoveries including black holes, neutron stars, and gravitational waves.

via Science in Quotes: God and the Universe’s Laws | Beyond Science | Science | Epoch Times

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Middle-class art brings beauty to stark homes

By Sylvia McCleary

SAN FRANCISCO—The Cult of Beauty exhibit, currently at The Legion of Honor in San Francisco, presents works from the height of the British Aesthetic period 1860–1900. Calling the period a gentle time would be an understatement. The exhibit gives an understanding not only of the elite world but also of the needs and wants of the working-class home.

Other works of art, such as furniture, jewelry, wallpaper, and the first trinkets found in Victorian homes purely for decoration, are shown and give a feeling that all classes of this period wanted something of beauty brought into their homes.

But the paintings make the exhibit. From John Spencer Stanhope’s “Love and the Maiden” (1877) to James McNeil Whistler’s “Harmony in Grey and Green: Miss Cicely Alexander” (1872–1874), they show the depth of art from that period.

One of my favorite pieces at the exhibition was “Laus Veneris” (1873–1878), by Edward Burne-Jones. It shows a lady sitting back in her chair, with a gold crown on her lap, listening to other ladies discussing medieval scriptures.

The details of the painting with the single rose thrown carelessly on the ground and intricate tapestries in the background bring a sense of life and thoughtfulness to the picture.

Variety

Edward Reiner of San Francisco said, “I love the beauty of the paintings that to me show a simpler, calmer life whilst in reality this time period was an extremely hard one for most. I loved the drops of a piece of furniture or a tea set which in some ways threw me off of what the exhibit was about, but in reality I enjoyed the variety.”

The exhibit reflects the feeling of owning things and tells of the middle class beginning to want things to put on a dresser or fireplace. They don’t just want to show off the piece but also show that they are the same as the upper classes.

With over 180 examples of artworks on view, you get an idea of not only paintings but also fashionable trends in architecture, interior decorations, furniture, and much more.

San Francisco is the only U.S. venue for this exhibition, and once it leaves here, it will be on its way back to Europe.

Curator Lynn Federle Orr explained in her catalogue essay: “Like a fine Victorian novel, the story of the Aesthetic Movement is one centered around serious social debates—shifting class structures, the confrontation between science and religion, art’s place in society, the impact of new market forces and a unique emphasis on the middle-class home.”

Victorians loved Asian art and embodied it in their furniture, art, and decorations, as seen in this exhibit.

Wallpaper, which has recently made a comeback in homes, was very fashionable in homes during the British Aesthetic period. Morris & Co. marketed wallpapers, fabrics, and decorative items such as the Flora and Pomona (1883–1885) tapestries. They were designed and executed by the team of Edward Burne-Jones and John Henry Dearle.

The exhibit runs until June 17 at the Legion of Honor, San Francisco.

Sylvia McCleary, based in San Francisco, writes about events, entertainment, and travel. She has traveled to over 80 countries. See www.thegypsytraveller.com and thegypsytraveller.wordpress.com

via Cult of Beauty Exhibit Highlights Victorian Era | Literary & Visual Arts | Arts & Entertainment | Epoch Times

Link to: The Cult of Beauty: The Victorian Avant-Garde 1860–1900 – February 18, 2012 – June 17, 2012

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A senior Communist Party official who styles himself as a reformist said in a recent, otherwise staid work report, that the Chinese people should not thank the Party for their happiness. The speech trundled on with formulaic Party jargon, but that remark was rapidly excerpted and widely circulated on the Internet, meeting with the applause of netizens.

Wang Yang is the Party Secretary of Guangdong Province and is expected to be given a seat on the Standing Committee of the Politburo of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) when the regime convenes its 18th Congress later this year (or possibly early next year, according to reports).

He is known as a “liberal” in the Chinese communist context, and openly jousted with the hard-line neo-Maoist Bo Xilai, who was recently disgraced and stripped of his Party posts. Wang Yang advocates market-oriented public policy and greater economic freedom for Chinese—though he is often careful to say that China should not “imitate” the West.

In a May 9 presentation to the 11th Guangdong Provincial Party Congress, Wang Yang said, “We must do away with the mistaken idea that the happiness of the people is a favor bestowed by the Party and the government.”

This is a contrast to standard Party propaganda, which portrays the CCP as the graceful benefactor of all good things afforded the Chinese people.

Wang Yang added that “Seeking happiness is the right of the people” and that the role of government is to give “the masses of people” (Party jargon) freedom to “boldly explore their own road to happiness.”

The headline news for Chinese web portals was that Wang Yang had said that the people do not owe their happiness to the Communist Party.

The remarks by netizens were highly acclamatory. “A good official is hard to find. Guangdong people are very lucky,” one wrote in the comments section of the article posted to Sohu.com, a major web portal. Another posted, “I just wanted to say I support you, and I am very grateful. I hope your life is peaceful.” Another said “These words will enter history.”

There was a limit to the circulation of the news. State television reports on Wang Yang’s speech did not mention the remarks.

via Senior Party Official Goes Against Propaganda Line | Regime | China | Epoch Times

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Chinese officials on Monday forced the shutdown of the English-language bureau of Al Jazeera in Beijing by denying the renewal of press credentials to its journalist in China and refusing to allow a replacement.

Charles Lee, a Falun Gong practitioner who spent three years in detention and in labor camps, was featured in the Al Jazeera English documentary that resulted in the broadcast being expelled from China.

The decision was reportedly driven by Al Jazeera’s release of a documentary about slave labor camps in China in November last year.

The documentary prominently featured the story of Charles Lee, a Falun Gong practitioner who spent three years in a re-education through forced labor camp. “For a year they tried to brainwash me, trying to force me to give up my practice of Falun Gong,” Lee was quoted as saying.

Chinese authorities have persecuted Falun Gong, a popular spiritual practice, since 1999, and it is among the most strictly censored topics by officials.

Melissa Chan, the journalist whose renewal of credentials were denied, reported for Al Jazeera English since 2007 and has filed over 400 reports.

“The channel expressed its disappointment at the situation and said it would continue to request a presence in China,” according to a press release.

The Arabic language Al Jazeera service will continue reporting from China. The decision to expel Al Jazeera English was met with criticism and ridicule among Western journalists and bloggers.

Bob Dietz, the Asia program coordinator with the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), stated that the refusal to renew Chan’s accreditation “marks a real deterioration in China’s media environment, and sends a message that international coverage is unwanted.”

According to CPJ’s research, anonymous hackers attempted to hack Chan’s computers, which is a common experience for foreign reporters in China.

“Surveillance and harassment are the norm for reporters on the China beat, and authorities will often delay visa approval or threaten to revoke it as part of an overall strategy of intimidation,” Dietz added.

The Foreign Correspondent’s Club of China said it was “appalled by the decision of the Chinese government to take this action.”

Alex Johnston contributed research.

via Al Jazeera English Forced Out of China | Regime | China | Epoch Times

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By Wang Chenguang
NTD Television

After seven days of being detained by public security police, activist He Peirong has given further details of blind Chinese human rights lawyer Chen Guangcheng’s dramatic escape from house arrest.

Ms. He announced via Twitter that she has returned home on May 4 and three days later spoke with New Tang Dynasty (NTD) TV via Skype and gave details of Chen’s audacious April 22 escape and flight to the U.S. Embassy in Beijing.

Forty-year-old Ms. He revealed that it took nearly a year to plan the rescue and that after Chen escaped from Dongshigu village in Shandong Province, she received an email from Chen’s family saying: “The bird has left the cage,” Ms He then picked Chen up and drove him to Beijing.

“His escape was entirely his own effort,” said Ms He. “Chen was completely on his own for the first 17 hours and nobody was there to help him.”

“At one point Chen hid in a pigsty and sometimes in farm fields. He also climbed many walls. Chen had nothing to eat or drink. This is a Shawshank Redemption-style flight,” Ms. He said, referring to a well-known movie where the protagonist makes a daring and elaborate prison break.

The rescue operation suffered some setbacks, including a flat tire, taking the wrong route, not finding Chen, and even losing Chen at one point, Ms. He said in another interview with Voice of America (VOA).

Ms. He said she then passed Chen to another activist — whose identity she withheld for safety reasons – to be taken to the U.S. Embassy.

An English teacher by profession, Ms. He said that she visited Chen in Shandong six times last year but declined to comment about current arrangements, which include whether Chen will leave China or not.

She told NTD Television: “I do not want to comment on any specific things. We thought it was impossible for him to leave the village, yet he had already fled the village. We must believe in miracles, nothing is impossible!”

via Activist Reveals How She Helped Chen Guangcheng Escape | Democracy & Human Rights | China | Epoch Times

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• Analysts Find Blind Chinese Lawyer’s Escape Significant

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While attempting to visit Chen Guangcheng in hospital, Jiang Tianyong, a civil rights lawyer who defended Chen in 2005, was seized and beaten by domestic security police.

He was interrogated by around 10 domestic security agents after being taken from the Chaoyang hospital where Chen is staying, at around 6:30 pm on May 4. Reached on his cell phone in the late evening on May 5, Jiang was at home recovering from the beating, and under house arrest.

He said that he was taken away by about 10 domestic security police from the Haidian District of Beijing. “They put me in a car and said they were sending me home… I later realized that the road they were taking me on was not the way home.”

They took him to a hotel in the Haidian area, shut him in a room, and gave him something to eat.

A security officer that Jiang identified as Du Yunhui then came at 10:00 pm to “chat.” But “actually he was abusing me incessantly.” Jiang questioned Du back at one point. “He jumped up and beat me. It was very fast and extremely hard, punching me in the face three times, first on my left ear. I thought then that the ear is gone. The second punch was to my right ear, the third to my chest.”

Jiang said he wanted to see the doctor and press charges against Du. Du then asked: “What evidence have you got that I hit you?” Jiang characterized the attitude as “shameless.”

The security officers decided to send him home at about 2 am. Jiang expressed a wish to be taken to the hospital, but they refused, and told him that from now on if he wanted to go anywhere he would have to apply for permission.

At the time of the interview, Jiang said there were at least four plainclothes security officers outside his residence, and that he is not allowed to leave. His wife comes and goes under the graces of the unidentified guards.

“This is a sensitive issue in relations between China and the US, and they don’t want me to participate,” he said. “They said it was the order of higher-ups.”

Jiang Tianyong, like Chen Guangcheng, has advocated for groups in China that have been unjustly treated by communist authorities. In particular he has represented other lawyers targeted for their civil rights work, including Chen, Hu Jia, and Gao Zhisheng. He has also defended Falun Gong practitioners, the spiritual discipline whose adherents are persecuted and whose defenders often become targets. In February 2011 Jiang was extra-legally sequestered for 60 days, and beaten and tortured, a result of the Chinese regime’s anti-Jasmine movement crackdown.

via Chen’s Lawyer Jiang Tianyong Captured, Beaten, and Put Under House Arrest | Regime | China | Epoch Times

Click www.ept.ms/ccp-crisis to read about the most recent developments in the ongoing power struggle within the Chinese communist regime. In this special topic, we provide readers with the necessary context to understand the situation. Get the RSS feed. Get the Timeline of Events. Who are the Major Players? 

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Many people wonder how to find a good acupuncturist. To answer this simple question, it is important to understand what acupuncture is and how it works.

Acupuncture is a treatment modality of ancient Chinese medicine. Along with the modern version of traditional Chinese medicine, ancient Chinese medicine is a complete medical system passed down to us from an unknown prehistoric civilization. Traditionally, Chinese people believed that the art of Chinese medicine was a gift from the divine.

This medical system recognizes the anatomy and physiology of the human body as modern medicine does; yet it also maps out and explains the energetic network of human beings. Although this level of human existence is still invisible to us, we are always experiencing it throughout our lives.

The energy that traditional Chinese medicine has mapped out is called qi, a vital life force that keeps the body functioning well physically and mentally. The system of qi circulation is referred to as meridians—a network of energy pathways centered in the major internal organs. Today’s imaging technology has not yet been able to see these meridians.

A sufficient, smooth, and directional flow of qi keeps the body functioning normally. Any physical, chemical, or emotional stress will compromise the qi and block the meridians.

Consequently, this stress causes dysfunctions and symptoms affecting the areas of our body, mood, and mind associated with these meridians. The compromised qi can manifest as chemical, physical, and even structural abnormalities that modern medicine can detect and attempt to treat.

There are specific points or tiny areas on the surface of the body that are connected with specific meridians and organ systems. If we stimulate these points with the insertion and manipulation of fine needles, we will be able to open the blocked meridians, redirecting and facilitating an adequate flow of qi. Thus, we can reduce the dysfunction and symptoms the patient is feeling.

The treatment will prevent the symptoms from developing into serious illness and disease. However, the most important work is done before needles are inserted. It is the diagnosis and evaluation of what meridians are involved and how the qi is imbalanced.

The diagnosis and the qi evaluation determine the selection of the points and techniques of needling. This diagnostic process requires clinical skills, including tongue and pulse readings that are unique and powerful diagnostic tools in Chinese medicine. The doctor needs a solid and comprehensive knowledge of the energetic systems and their functions to diagnose the patient well.

Although the symptoms and dysfunction may respond to the acupuncture treatment immediately after the first session, any chronic condition will require a course of daily treatment to achieve significant improvement. (However, in the United States, patients usually can only afford and commit to two or three sessions per week.)

Thirty sessions of treatment are needed to significantly improve most chronic cases. Furthermore, the acupuncturist should be able to recognize and address the causes of the qi imbalance, provide tools for self-care, and help patients make lifestyle modifications.

Just as in choosing any professional for a service, referrals are important. The best types of referrals are ones from your friends and people you trust who have had a positive experience and outcome with the practitioner.

If you do not know anyone who can refer you to a practitioner nearby, you may want to find a few different acupuncturists in your local area and set up some time to interview them.

Some good questions to ask them would be how they diagnose their patients and what their treatment plan would entail. You may also want to ask what their experience has been in treating conditions like yours.

The bottom line is you want to see if they care about their work and their patients and if they are confident about what they know. A good acupuncturist will use acupuncture as a tool of a complete medical system, rather than use it as a simple needle for simulating your skin, muscle, or nerves based solely on the modern understanding of anatomy.

A good acupuncturist is no different from any other health care professional in terms of having a caring heart, sound knowledge, clinical skills, and the ability to communicate effectively. The acupuncturist needs to be able to develop a therapeutic alliance with patient.

In addition, a good acupuncturist must be able to appreciate the energetic system of the human being as ancient Chinese medicine describes. Because there are no external tools to be able to see this system, the practitioner has to be able to “see” it with a pair of “quantum glasses.”

Understanding the energetic nature of a human being is critical for the treatment process. The human body is an open system that constantly exchanges its energy with that of the natural environment and people around it. An acupuncturist can advise patients to be mindful of their surrounding climate changes, behaviors, and interpersonal relationships.

Since energy circulates in the meridian systems in an orderly and timely fashion, the acupuncturist should advise patients to maximally live a life congruent with the energetic flow of nature. This includes clear instruction on a good time to rise, rest, exercise, eat, and cleanse.

An acupuncturist’s own energy is also important when interacting and intervening with the energy of the patient. A good acupuncturist must cultivate his or her energy to a healthy level and remain very focused during the treatment.

Dr. Jingduan Yang is a board-certified psychiatrist and a fourth-generation teacher and practitioner of traditional Chinese medicine. He practices integrative medicine in New York City, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey. His website is taoinstitute.com.

via How to Find a Good Acupuncturist | Traditional Chinese Medicine | Health | Epoch Times

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