Mantak Chia - The six healing sounds: Taoist techniques for balancing chi

Acknowledgments

We extend our gratitude to the many generations of Taoist masters who have passed on their special lineage, in the form of an unbroken oral transmission, over thousands of years. We wish to especially thank Taoist Master Yi Eng for his patience and openness in transmitting the formulas of Taoist Inner Alchemy. We also wish to thank the thousands of unknown men and women of the Chinese healing arts who developed many of the methods and ideas presented in this book.

We offer our eternal gratitude to our parents and teachers for their many gifts to us. Remembering them brings joy and satisfaction to our continued efforts in presenting the Universal Tao System. As always, their contribution has been crucial in presenting the concepts and techniques of the Universal Tao.

We thank the many contributors essential to this books final form: The editorial and production staff at Inner Traditions/Destiny Books for their efforts to clarify the text and produce a handsome new edition of the book, Nancy Yeilding for her line edit of the new edition, and the artist, Juan Li, for the use of his beautiful and visionary paintings and drawings, illustrating Taoist esoteric practices.

We wish to thank the following people for their assistance in producing the original edition of this book: Dena Saxer for her writing and editorial contributions; Udon for his illustrations, book layout, and beautiful cover; Wilbert Wils and Jean Chilton for their assistance in preparing, editing, and proofreading the manuscript; and Jettaya Phaobtong and Saumya Comer for their editorial contributions to the revised edition.

A special thank-you goes to our Thai Production Team: Raruen Keawpadung, computer graphics; Saysunee Yongyod, photographer; Udon Jandee, illustrator; and Saniem Chaisarn, production designer.

Contents

Putting the Six Healing Sounds into Practice

The practices described in this book have been used successfully for thousands of years by Taoists trained by personal instruction. Readers should not undertake them without receiving personal transmission and training from a certified instructor of the Universal Tao, since certain of these practices, if done improperly, may cause injury or result in health problems. This book is intended to supplement individual training by the Universal Tao and to serve as a reference guide for these practices. Anyone who undertakes these practices on the basis of this book alone, does so entirely at his or her own risk.

The meditations, practices, and techniques described herein are not intended to be used as an alternative or substitute for professional medical treatment and care. If any readers are suffering from illnesses based on mental or emotional disorders, an appropriate professional health care practitioner or therapist should be consulted. Such problems should be corrected before you start training.

This book does not attempt to give any medical diagnosis, treatment, prescription, or remedial recommendation in relation to any human disease, ailment, suffering, or physical condition whatsoever.

The Universal Tao and its staff and instructors cannot be responsible for the consequences of any practice or misuse of the information contained in this book. If the reader undertakes any exercise without strictly following the instructions, notes, and warnings, the responsibility must lie solely with the reader.

What Is the Universal Tao?

The Universal Tao is a self-help system for curing and preventing illness and stress, and for enhancing all aspects of life. Its key concept is increasing vital energy, or chi, through easy techniques and physical exercises. This life-force energy is then circulated through the acupuncture meridians of the body and channeled into health, vitality, balanced emotions, and creative and spiritual expression.

A practical system accessible to everybody, the Universal Tao is a modern expression of centuries-old Taoist practices. Many of these techniques were formerly known only to an elite group of Taoist masters and handpicked students. After formulating these powerful practices into a comprehensive system, I began teaching them to the public at large in my native Thailand in 1973. In 1978 I brought this system to the Western world. I then opened the Universal Tao Center in New York and began teaching the practices there. Today we teach our system in various places throughout the United States and Europe, as well as in Thailand. Though spiritual in its foundation, the Universal Tao is not a religion. It is compatible with all religions, as well as with agnosticism and atheism. There are no rituals to perform and no gurus to surrender to: the master and the teacher are highly respected, but are not deified.

The Universal Tao system has three levels:

Level I concentrates on universal energy, strengthening and calming the body

Level II concentrates on changing negative emotions into strong, positive energy

Level III concentrates on creative and spiritual practices

All levels include both mental (meditative) practices and physical disciplines, such as Tai Chi, Papua, and Iron Shirt Chi Kung.

This book covers the Six Healing Sounds, one of the beginning practices of Level I. Level I also includes the Microcosmic Orbit, which is covered in my book, Healing Light of the Tao, and the Inner Smile, which should be used to begin every meditation in the Healing Tao system. For instructions on this technique, see The Inner Smile: Increasing Chi through the Cultivation of Joy. For the most profound results, you should make all three of these practices of Level I an integral part of your life. For a description of other courses and for the addresses and phone numbers of the Universal Tao centers, see the end of this book.

TAOISM AND SOME BASIC CONCEPTS IN CHINESE HEALING

Taoism is the five- to eight-thousand-year-old foundation of Chinese philosophy and medicine. It is also the mother of acupuncture and the inspiration for modern body-oriented therapies, such as acupressure, Rolfing, and the Feldenkrais method. The Tao has been described as natural law or natural order, the constantly changing cycle of the seasons, an art, a method, a power, and a path of direction.

In the Taoist view, harmony and balance are essential for health. The body is seen as a whole; therefore, stress or injury to one organ, gland, or system weakens the entire body. The body is also self-regulating and will naturally move toward balance if allowed.

The Taoist system links each organ to one of the five elements in nature: metal, water, wood, fire, or earth. It also connects each organ to a season of the year (the season in which the organ is dominant or working the hardest), a color, and a quality in nature (such as wet, dry, or windy). These relationships often describe the characteristics of the given organ. For example, the heart is linked to summer, fire, and red; a healthy heart is associated with excitement and warmth.

According to Taoism, the body, mind, and spirit are totally integrated. Therefore, Chinese medicine finds that negative emotions, such as anger, fear, or cruelty, and excessive amounts of positive emotions, such as too much joy or excitement, can injure the organs and cause disease. By helping to balance the emotions, the Six Healing Sounds help to improve health.

ILLNESS STARTS AS AN ENERGY-LEVEL PROBLEM

Illness is caused by a blockage of energy. Too much or too little energy in one part of the body results in disease to that part and stresses the entire body. The Universal Tao teaches us how to correct this imbalance by awakening the chi, or vital energy, and circulating it to the needed areas.