MANILA, PHILIPPINES — It begins with silence filling the room. Not a physical room, but a virtual one, where the teacher, in a calming and relaxed voice, instructs students to sit still and quiet their minds. The seconds pass by. As the students learn to quiet their minds, they grow more and more relaxed, with each breathe coming in and out.
This is what usually happens at the start of a Sheng Zhen class, a meditative practice of unconditional love. Translated, Sheng Zhen means ”unconditional love.” For its practitioners, unconditional love is the highest form of truth, and is the end goal of this meditative practice.
“Unconditional love is pure, encompassing love. It means love of self, love of others, of nature, and the earth, and the universe,” says Roger Ty-Simone, a certified Sheng Zhen instructor, and a member of the International Sheng Zhen Society.
Sheng Zhen Meditation offers a wide variety of both non-moving and moving practices. Through a series of gentle and graceful movements, a person can remove negative emotions, gather positive healing energy (Qi), and experience a feeling of perfect harmony with the universe. Proper posture, breathing, and purposeful movement, such as gliding of the arms through the air like a butterfly, all go hand-in-hand.
Ty-Simone started practicing Shen Zhen in 2000, the year he met his wife. “I had been studying Qi and energy, attending workshops abroad. When I visited the Philippines and met my would-be father-in-law, he had been practicing Sheng Zhen with Master Li Junfeng, the founder of Sheng Zhen. When I met him, I never looked back.”
Ty-Simone had recognized the presence of a true grandmaster. “The movements were sublime, the practice so simple and I could really feel the qi. I was feeling the healing power of love.” Before long, Ty-Simone took trainings to become a Sheng Zhen teacher himself.
These days, with the pandemic dampening the safety of face-to-face classes, Ty-Simone mostly conducts classes via Zoom, limiting students to 6 to twelve so he could cater to the students better.
Most of them are cancer patients, elderly people wanting more vitality, or health-conscious people interested in longevity and better health.
Sisters Malu and Malen Lim, 69, have been doing Sheng Zhen for fifteen years now, attending classes once a week.
They say this is something they do to feel healthy and good about themselves. “We feel grounded, calm, and focused. We’ve observed an improved focus on our tasks after practicing,” Malu and Malen say in an online interview.
Like Malu and Malen, Mary Co, a retiree from an insurance company, would recommend this practice to everyone wanting to improve their health.
Mary got introduced to Sheng Zhen through her parish in 2019. At first, she felt uneasy—unsure if this was something that aligned to her Catholic faith. “But getting to know it better, the universality and unconditional love for all mankind and all creatures and all of existence impressed me and showed me the commonality between Sheng Zhen and my faith.”
She met Master Li in 2020, and was struck by the clarity of his teachings. Since then, Mary made it a point to attend class one to two times a week. She says she would recommend Shen Zhen since it’s something anyone can do anytime and anywhere. “It warms the body up, and you can feel the movement of qi in the body. I believe it does help improve the body circulation,” Mary shares.
Like any other form of meditation, the practice of Sheng Zhen offers many health benefits.
“With regular practice, stress is reduced, blood pressure may lower, mood is enhanced, and an overall sense of well-being is felt,” Ty-Simone says.
Other long-term health benefits follow, such as a stronger immune system that can guard the body against infections and other viruses.
With regular practice, Ty-Simone says, Sheng Zhen can reduce dependence on expensive maintenance medications. “Under the guidance of a physician, of course,” Ty-Simone adds.
Interested to start a Sheng Zhen practice? It can be challenging at first, even the simple act of quieting the mind can be tricky in today’s fast-paced, digitally-cluttered, and chaotic world.
But with regular practice, it can be done. It gets easier with every class you attend.
The deeper you get into the practice, you more you start to see the mental, emotional, spiritual, as well as physical benefits. And remember, don’t rush into it. Take it slow and trust the process.
Know more about Shen Zhen: https://www.shengzhenphilippines.org
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