Grandmaster Adrian Simon Lowe - The stress elimination handbook: a holistic self-help program to restore health, achieve balance, and promote well-being

Published in 2010 by Ibis Press

An imprint of Nicolas-Hays, Inc.

P.O. Box 540206

Lake Worth, FL 33454-0206

www.nicolashays.com

Distributed to the trade by

Red Wheel/Weiser, LLC

65 Parker St., Ste. 7

Newburyport, MA 01950

www.redwheelweiser.com

Copyright 2010 by Adrian Simon Lowe

All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be used for any form of training, teaching, instructional seminar or workshop, or in any school, college or university, nor in any public or private domain. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photo-copying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from Nicolas-Hays, Inc.

Reviewers may quote brief passages.

ISBN 978-089254-162-1

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Lowe, Adrian Simon.

The stress elimination handbook: a holistic self-help program to restore health, achieve balance, and promote well-being / Adrian Simon Lowe.

p. cm.

ISBN 978-0-89254-162-1 (alk. paper)

1. Stress management. 2. Qi gong. 3. Relaxation. I. Title.

RA785.L69 2010

613.7'9dc22 2010021735

Book design and production by STUDIO 31

www.studio31.com

Photos of Grandmaster Lowe demonstrating the Lion Tail Qi Gong positions by JULIA PINEDA

Photo of Jefferson Memorial (page 137) by RACHEL WASSERMAN

16 15 14 13 12 11 10

7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Printed in China

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I WISH TO THANK my dear wife Diane for her patience and the months she spent proofreading. Most importantly, for the many long years she has stood by, waiting uncomplainingly while I was teaching, guiding and helping othersthereby sorely neglecting our own family with my sporadic and protracted absences.

Secondly, to all those good and forward-thinking people, who have become more aware of how to care for their personal health and who, by their individual joyful experiences, have increased their determination to progress in their journey toward ever improving good health.

My objective in writing this material was to ensure that all people have the opportunity to enhance and maintain their personal health if they so desire and thereby lead a more Spiritually rewarding life.

My passion is to make as many individuals as possible aware of the powerful Chinese Healing Art of Qi Gong. Thus, wherever possible, to provide a simple means by which they can obtain information and learn of my traditional family art, namely LAMAS Qi Gong, The Ancient Chinese Healing Art.

This book is my humble attempt to offer readers an easy and simple means to gaining insights, skills and knowledge to make life easier and more rewarding.

S TRESS IS A FACT OF MODERN LIFE. Depending on the type of activity in which you may be involved, some aspects of that endeavor are likely to trigger the onset of stress.

Stress knows few boundaries and occurs during many sorts of physical work, sports and even during moments of enjoyment. Stress may also occur while performing daily chores and of course, during cerebral activities.

One may experience stress while involved in research, attending a conference, providing entertainment, or merely socializing. Whether you are young or old, stress respects no one.

The onset of stress-related illness is invasive and insidious. Its effects may take many years to reveal themselves, or may attack a person within minutes, establishing almost instantaneous symptomology.

My purpose in writing this book is to provide tried and tested self-help measures for any forward-thinking individual. This book is designed to offer easy-to-follow instructions to control, manage, reduce and eliminate stress.

L ORE FROM MY ANCESTORS had been handed down only through an oral tradition among tribal family members. One such story recounts how some members of the LoLo, one of the most ancient tribes of China, were outdoors one particularly dreary, chilly afternoon thousands of years ago.

The family huddled around a fire that provided warmth and light, and allowed them to cook their food. They noticed that the steam rising from the food in the pot, when blown by a gentle breeze in one particular direction, seemed to cast a wave-like image.

Knowing that food was vital for life, my ancestors drew three wavy lines depicting the image they saw.

These three slanting wavy lines represent the life force or Qi (pronounced chi) of the food. Each line symbolizes one of the Three Treasures: Shen, Qi and Jing, or Spirit, Mind and Body.

These wavy lines became the first Chinese character to depict this power, this Qi.

Qi is in all of nature and can be cultivated with the daily practice of LAMAS Qi Gong. (Subsequently, to be referred to as Qi Gong.)

Could my ancestors have predicted that their understanding of Qi would eventually be passed along to individuals like you in the 21st centurypeople yearning for well-being, improved health and a wellbalanced life?

Hopefully, one would like to think that they did.

Stress has its roots in the very essence of life and has caused more suffering and diminishment of the human spirit than any other form of affliction.

As an Empath and holistic healer, I've witnessed the effects of stress on innumerable individuals, their families, broader society and generally, most communities in our world.

Without a doubt, I know that stress is the surest way to become a victim of future ill health. Hence, I am revealing what was once esoteric knowledge, and core wisdom that was not previously available.

This book will provide you with more than a mere understanding of stress. It is my personal, detailed analysis of stress and its harmful and even deadly effects on the strength of the human spirit, the conscious and subconscious levels of mental endurance and on the efficacy of our bodily systems.

The information and techniques presented here are steps along the path to a longer and improved quality of life.

I encourage you to follow this path. It is the Way by which you may prolong and enjoy your life and its rich, meaningful, rewarding and dynamic experiences.

Qi Gong is your path to reduce, prevent and eliminate stress. Practice will heighten your awareness. Moreover, it is possible to find real peace and true harmony within yourself.

A constant in our daily lives, stress weakens Qi and is the genesis of disease. Change is also a constant in our daily existence.

Therefore, to change the impact and damage caused by stress, we need to purposefully and diligently employ another constant factor to prevent stress.

What is this constant factoring that which we must use? It is Qi, our life force.