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September, 2000
Message from Sifu Eric Sbarge 
If you're not taking vitamins and eating natural food supplements, you should be. In past generations you could reasonably argue that vitamins and supplements weren't necessary with a balanced diet. This is not true today for two basic reasons.
The first is that our culture-wide stress level and degree of hyperactivity are at an all-time high, and stress burns up chi (internal energy) more than any other cause. The second is that most of the food we eat today is no longer wholesome and nutritious. For example, fruits and vegetables were once grown using compost and other organic matter that provided a broad spectrum of additional nutrients in the food. Today, those same foods instead burden our bodies with high doses of pesticides and herbicides. Our bodies burn a lot of additional energy filtering these harmful poisons. If you eat meat, you ingest even more toxins that are purposefully used in meat producing. Farm-raised fish are no better, and "naturally" caught fish often contain similarly high accumulations of toxins from polluted waters. But these deleterious effects pale in comparison to the damage you inflict on yourself by eating "junk" food - the mainstay of many modern diets. Sugars, refined flours, oils, prepackaged foods, preservatives - the list of health-killers seems endless. Well-being is the result of many lifestyle choices including exercise, relaxation, proper sleep and the like, but diet remains perhaps the most important of these choices. We all need to try to eat as much wholesome food as possible, and eliminate as many poisons as possible, and in today's culture we need supplements to boost the immune system and compensate for the extra wear-and-tear that the artificiality of modern civilization subjects us to. Supplements such as vitamins, natural green foods like spirulina and green barley powder, and various healing and cleansing herbs are good examples. As explained below, I'm delighted to be able to get discounted prices on natural foods and supplements for myself and my own family through our new NOW catalog, and I fervently hope all of you will discover what a tremendous benefit this is for yourselves and your families too. Let me raise a glass of barley powder juice to toast your good health! NEW - Unheard of SPECIAL
Benefit For Students and Members Only: Included in this month's printed newsletter is a retail catalog for the highest quality NOW brand vitamins, nutritional supplements, herbs, health foods and more. We have researched various companies that sell natural, top-of-the-line health products, and have found none that compare with NOW in quality and value. Usually, NOW products are only available from full-retail-price health food stores. The Peaceful Dragon is now able to make every single item in the catalog available to you at 25% OFF the listed retail price. This includes health-and-well-being essentials such as multi-vitamins, antioxidants, herbal extracts and tinctures, green food powders, sports nutrition supplements, organic flours and grains, organic nuts and seeds, and much more. Look at catalog pages 31 - 36 for a comprehensive list of NOW products. Like a co-op, we will take individual orders from our students and members any time, and on the first of every month we will place a group wholesale order with the NOW company. Your merchandise will arrive within a week, and be waiting here for you to pick up. All you need to do is pay a 50% deposit when you place your order. In the course of a year, you will save hundreds of dollars over what you would have spent in a health food store. We will place the first group order on October 1st, so come in and get your order in NOW.Classes, Workshops & Events
Saturday, September 9th Noon - 9pm 4th Annual Tai Chi and Asian Health Arts Festival Enjoy FREE CONSULTATIONS, and FREE MASSAGES; listen to informative talks; watch a variety of exciting demonstrations. Students - please volunteer your services for the festival. We need your help to set up, clean up and demonstrate tai chi, yoga, martial arts and the lion dance. Come and help during some of the festival, stay and enjoy all the rest of the festivities! It's our big annual event, so do stop by and enjoy all the activities. Debra's famous veggie burgers and noodle soup will be available, of course. Plus, there will be discounts on joining any class and a raffle for a FREE year of classes.
Friday, September 22nd - Monday, September 25th. 2nd Annual Mountain Tai Chi Retreat
If you've never done tai chi or the related arts, this is an excellent
chance to discover how great they can make you feel. If you're already a
student of these arts, this intense uninterrupted training can help you
break through barriers and reach new levels in your skill and
understanding. Everyone is welcome: students, members, friends and
family.
Hours are from 1pm Friday, September 22nd - 4pm Monday, September 25th.
Directions are available at The Peaceful Dragon or by calling the
Assembly directly at (828) 669-8497. Make your reservations now at the
front counter. $329 for students; $429 for members. (Remember, anyone
can become a member for $19.95 and receive our member discount; or
become a student and get the full student discount!
Take advantage of a family discount (2 or more people) and save $30! A 50%
non-refundable deposit is required at the time of registration (check,
cash or credit card accepted.) In the event The Peaceful Dragon must
cancel the retreat for any reason, you will receive a full refund.
Saturday, October 14th, Women's Self-Defense, 10am - 5 pm
Saturday and Sunday, November 4th - 5th Shaolin: Uniting Zen - Meditation and Kungfu
A free lecture combined with a two-day workshop will be offered by
Venerable Shi Guo Lin, 34th generation monk, and lineage transmission
disciple of Abbott Shi Yongshin of China's famed Shaolin Temple. The
workshop will begin Saturday, 11am to 5 pm, followed by the free lecture
that evening at 7 pm, and the second half of the workshop will be
Sunday, November 5, from 11am to 5 pm.
Students and members, don't miss this once-in-a-lifetime chance to train
with this world-renowned Buddhist monk, 34th generation lineage disciple
of China's famed Shaolin Temple and lineage heir to the current Abbot of
the temple.
Be sure to pick up a flier which gives details about the
lecture and workshop here, and read the attached article about Shi
Guo-Lin's life, and the only authentic Shaolin Temple overseas, which he
directs.
If you have any interest in strengthening your mind through meditation,
improving your health through qigong, expanding your knowledge of
Buddhist principles, or improving your strength and skill in kungfu,
sign up for this workshop now. Space will be limited - the first
announcement has gone to you, our students and members, but this
workshop will be publicized widely and as widely attended, so REGISTER
EARLY!
Workshop Price: Early-bird price $189 public; $169 members; $149
students. After Nov. 1 add $20. Lunch tickets are available for
vegetarian lunch Saturday and Sunday, $6 each. Lunch tickets must be
purchased in advance.
Sunday, October 1st, Tibetan Buddhist Meditation Workshop, Geshe Dakpa Topgyalm 1 - 5pm
What's New?
Brochures
Silk Tai Chi Uniforms
Pakua Classes Begin Next Year
My Peaceful Dragon Experience
Stick-To-Itiveness
I began my quest towards understanding the Tao Te Ching and Tai Chi over
three years ago. I wasn't sure where I was going when I started, but
after reading and studying the Tao and other articles that described Tai
Chi, I knew this was something that I wanted to learn.
Being a fair athlete but getting older, I had started to see my physical
skills erode. I couldn't compete at the same level as I once had. I
wanted an activity that I could continue for many years to come, and
golf was just too frustrating. I found Sifu teaching at a park in
Pineville and decided to give his class a try.
It was not as easy as it looked. The first time I did "line leg," I
could barely stay in the position 15 seconds - forget keeping both feet
flat. Even "universal post" had my legs shaking. And sore, yes,
especially after Shaolin class. With time, my body started to loosen up
and strengthen. The key was sticking with it. Can I perform all the
moves and postures correctly? No, but I have made great strides since my
first year.
Looking back, it's hard to believe I've been practicing already this
long. How far away the years seem just to have them pass so quickly. Now
studying Tai Chi, and following the Tao have become part of my everyday
life. And it's not just the training, because there are other changes in
my life that are a reflection of this commitment. Green tea has replaced
coffee, reading and music have replaced TV, and I'm eating more
vegetables and less red meat.
Who knows where the next three years will take me. With a beginning such
as I have had studying with Sifu, I can only imagine how much more my
physical and mental health will improve. The key to my success is
patience and practice, but most of all 'stick-to-itiveness.'
I can think
of many reasons not to go to class: I'm tired, I don't feel like
fighting traffic, I'm not getting anything out of that class, etc. Well,
you must find the reasons to go. As the saying goes, "If you don't crack
the shell, you can't eat the nut." And remember what Sifu tells us in
class: "The time is going to pass anyway, so you might as well
practice."
Reminders
Dragon Classified Ads are a great way to get the word out to a group of
people who share some of your interests, and do it for not a lot of
money. $10 gets you 40 words of your choice. And you can have 40 more
for another 5 bucks. See Wes or George.
Your Peaceful Dragon Experience is worth sharing whether you know it or
not. If you're shy about your writing, don't worry. The editor can take
your words and polish them a bit. Your voice, your intent, your
experience will still be there for others to appreciate.
Words to Light Your Path
"People of this world are deluded. They're always longing for something
‚ always, in a word, seeking. But the wise wake up. They choose reason
over custom. They fix their minds on the sublime and let their bodies
change with the seasons. All phenomena are empty. They contain nothing
worth desiring."ä"To have a body is to suffer. Does anyone with a body
know peace? Those who understand this detach themselves from all that
exists and stop imagining or seeking anything. The sutras say, 'To seek
is to suffer. To seek nothing is bliss.' When you seek nothing, you're
on the Path." To contact The Peaceful Dragon:
Call: (704)-544-1012
Write: The Peaceful Dragon E-mail: comments and suggestions to staff@thepeacefuldragon.com |
