Historical Notes related to general History are in Plain Type, those dealing with General Muslim History are Outlined Green, while those related to The Sillsila e A’aliya Mujummah al Bahrain Jehangiri are in Bold letters and Outlined Green. Dates of Some Luminaries of Various Sillsilas are untraceable despite documentation on many different subjects on a wide scale throughout the Muslim Lands. This is due to many Factors, unsettled affairs, internecine Warfare; contending Power Seekers; Retiring and Reclusive Habits of the Mystical Personalities and other reasons. Therefore these Dates have been estimated. Secondly some Saints ہمحرّ لا مھیلع are shown as succeeding to their Spiritual Mentors after the dates of their own Passing Away. This is due to the Fact that these Individuals attained the ‘Khirqa e Khilafat’ (Robe of Permission to Carry on the Affairs of the Sillsila) before the Passing Away of their Mentors. They were often told to depart to various Lands to carry out their Spiritual Functions. 496 – 606 CE Jianzhi Sengcan is known as the Third Chinese Patriarch of Chán after Bodhidharma and thirtieth Patriarch after Siddhārtha Gautama Buddha. He is considered to be the Dharma successor of the second Chinese Patriarch, Dazu Huike. Sengcan is best known as the putative author of the famous Chan poem, Xinxin Ming, the title of which means "Inscription on Faith in Mind". It is said that Sengcan (old spelling: Tsang Tsan) was over forty years old when he first met Huike in 536 CE and that he stayed with his Teacher for six years. (Dumoulin, p 97) It was Huike who gave him the name Sengcan (“Gem Monk”). The Transmission of the Lamp entry on Sengcan begins with a koan-like encounter with Huike: Sengcan: I am riddled with sickness. Please absolve me of my sin. Huike: Bring your sin here and I will absolve you. Sengcan (after a long pause): When I look for my sin, I cannot find it. Huike: I have absolved you. You should live by the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha. There are discrepancies about how long Sengcan stayed with Huike. The Transmission of the Lamp records that he “attended Huike for two years” after which Huike passed on the robe of Bodhidharma and Bodhidharma's Dharma (generally considered to be the Lankavatara Sutra), making him the Third Patriarch of Chan. According to Dumoulin, in 574 CE the accounts say that he fled with Huike to the mountains due to the Buddhist persecution underway at that time. However, the Lamp records claim that after giving Sengcan Dharma transmission, Huike warned Sengcan to live in the mountains and “Wait for the time when you can transmit the Dharma to someone else.” as a prediction made to Bodhidharma (Huike's Teacher) by Prajnadhara, the twenty-seventh Chan ancestor in India, foretold of a coming calamity. After receiving transmission, Sengcan lived in hiding on Wangong Mountain in Yixian and then on Sikong Mountain in southwestern Anhui. Thereafter, for ten years he wandered with no fixed abode. Daoxin. He met Daoxin, (580-651 CE) a novice Monk of just fourteen, in 592. Daoxin attended Sengcan for nine years and received Dharma transmission when he was still in his early twenties. Subsequently, Sengcan spent two years at Mount Luofu (Lo-fu shan, northeast of Kung-tung (Canton)) before returning to Wangong Mountain. He died sitting under a tree before a Dharma assembly in 606 CE. Dumoulin notes that a Chinese official, Li Ch’ang found Sengcan's grave in Shu- chou in 745 or 746 CE. Sengcan received the honorary title Jianzhi (“Mirror Wisdom”) from the Tang Dynasty Emperor Xuan Zong. Teachings. Sengcan, like Bodhidharma and Huike before him, was reputed to be a devotee and specialist in the study of the Lankavatara Sutra, which taught the elimination of all duality and the “forgetting of words and thoughts”, stressing the contemplation of wisdom. However, McRae describes the link between Bodhidharma (and therefore Sengcan) and the Lankavatara Sutra as “superficial”. The link between this Sutra and the “Bodhidharma school” is provided in Tao-hsuan's Further Biographies of Eminent Monks where, in the biography of Fa-ch’ung he “stresses that Hui-k’o was the first to grasp the essence of the Lankavatara Sutra” and includes Sengcan as one who “discoursed on but did not write about the profound message of the Lankavatara Sutra. Due to the lack of authentic evidence, comments on Sengcan's teachings are speculative. Although Sengcan has traditionally been honored as the author of the Xinxin Ming, most modern scholars dismiss this as improbable. Christian Mystic. 5th Century CE Stephen Bar Sudhaile . Christian Mystics. d. c. 518 CE  Aeneas of Gaza . 525–606 CE  John Climacus . c.580–662 CE  Maximus the Confessor . 5th–6th c CE  Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite . also known as Pseudo-Dionysius, also known as St. Denys. 6th c CE  Julianus pomerius . Second Zen Patriarch Bodhidharma arrives in China. -100 AH – 520 CE Bodhidharma was a semi-legendary Buddhist Monk who lived during the 6th Century CE. He is traditionally credited as the transmitter of Chan Buddhism to China, and regarded as its first Chinese patriarch. According to Chinese legend, he also began the physical training of the Monks of Shaolin Monastery that led to the creation of Shaolin kungfu. In Japan, he is known as Daruma. His name means "dharma of awakening (bodhi)" in Sanskrit. Little contemporary biographical information on Bodhidharma is extant, and subsequent accounts became layered with legend and unreliable details. According to the principal Chinese sources, Bodhidharma came from the Western Regions, which refers to Central Asia but may also include the Indian subcontinent, and is described as either a "Persian Central Asian" or a "South Indian [...] the third son of a great Indian king." Throughout Buddhist art, Bodhidharma is depicted as an ill-tempered, profusely-bearded, wide-eyed non-Chinese person. He is referred as "The Blue-Eyed Barbarian" (Chinese: pinyin: Bìyǎnhú) in Chan texts. Aside from the Chinese accounts, several popular traditions also exist regarding Bodhidharma's origins. The accounts also differ on the date of his arrival, with one early account claiming that he arrived during the Liu Song Dynasty (420–479 CE) and later accounts dating his arrival to the Liang Dynasty (502–557 CE). Bodhidharma was primarily active in the territory of the Northern Wei (386– 534 CE). Modern scholarship dates him to about the early 5th Century CE. Bodhidharma's teachings and practice centered on meditation and the Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra. The Anthology of the Patriarchal Hall (952 CE) identifies Bodhidharma as the Twenty Eighth Patriarch of Buddhism in an uninterrupted line that extends all the way back to the Gautama Buddha himself. Bodhidharma also known as "The Wall-Gazing Brahmin". the Anthology of the Patriarchal Hall states that Bodhidharma died at the age of 150. He was then buried on Mount Xiong'er to the west of Luoyang. However, three years after the burial, in the Pamir Mountains, Song Yun an official of one of the later Wei kingdoms—encountered Bodhidharma, who claimed to be returning to India and was carrying a single sandal. Bodhidharma predicted the death of Song Yun's ruler, a prediction which was borne out upon the latter's return. Bodhidharma's tomb was then opened, and only a single sandal was found inside. According to the Anthology of the Patriarchal Hall, Bodhidharma left the Liang Court in 527 CE and relocated to Mount Song near Luoyang and the Shaolin Monastery, where he "faced a wall for nine years, not speaking for the entire time", his date of death can have been no earlier than 536 CE. Moreover, his encounter with the Wei official indicates a date of death no later than 554 CE, three years before the fall of the Western Wei. The Record of the Masters and Students of the Laṅka, which survives both in Chinese and in Tibetan translation (although the surviving Tibetan translation is apparently of older provenance than the surviving Chinese version), states that Bodhidharma is not the first ancestor of Zen, but instead the second. This text instead claims that Guṇabhadra, the translator of the Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra, is the first ancestor in the lineage. It further states that Bodhidharma was his student. The Tibetan translation is estimated to have been made in the late Eighth or early Ninth Century CE, indicating that the original Chinese text was written at some point before that. The Anthology of the Patriarchal Hall says that in 527 CE, Bodhidharma visited Emperor Wu of Liang, a fervent patron of Buddhism: Emperor Wu: "How much Karmic merit have I earned for ordaining Buddhist Monks, building Monasteries, having Sutras copied, and commissioning Buddha images?" Bodhidharma: "None. Good deeds done with worldly intent bring good Karma, but no merit." Emperor Wu: "So what is the highest meaning of noble truth?" Bodhidharma: "There is no noble truth, there is only emptiness." Emperor Wu: "Then, who is standing before me?" Bodhidharma: "I know not, Your Majesty." This encounter was included as the first kōan of the Blue Cliff Record. Failing to make a favorable impression in South China, Bodhidharma is said to have traveled to the Shaolin Monastery. After either being refused entry or being ejected after a short time, he lived in a nearby cave, where he "faced a wall for nine years, not speaking for the entire time". The biographical tradition is littered with apocryphal tales about Bodhidharma's life and circumstances. In one version of the story, he is said to have fallen asleep seven years into his nine years of wall-gazing. Becoming angry with himself, he cut off his eyelids to prevent it from happening again. According to the legend, as his eyelids hit the floor the first tea plants sprang up, and thereafter tea would provide a stimulant to help keep students of Chan awake during Zazen. The most popular account relates that Bodhidharma was admitted into the Shaolin Temple after nine years in the cave and taught there for some time. However, other versions report that he "passed away, seated upright"; or that he disappeared, leaving behind the Yijin Jing; or that his legs atrophied after nine years of sitting, which is why Daruma dolls have no legs. Jingde Records of the Transmission of the Lamp of Daoyuan, presented to the Emperor in 1004 CE, records that Bodhidharma wished to return to India and called together his disciples: Bodhidharma asked, "Can each of you say something to demonstrate your understanding?" Dao Fu stepped forward and said, "It is not bound by words and phrases, nor is it separate from words and phrases. This is the function of the Tao." Bodhidharma: "You have attained my skin." The nun Zong Chi stepped up and said, "It is like a glorious glimpse of the realm of Akshobhya Buddha. Seen once, it need not be seen again." Bodhidharma; "You have attained my flesh." Dao Yu said, "The four elements are all empty. The five Skandhas are without actual existence. Not a single dharma can be grasped." Bodhidharma: "You have attained my bones." Finally, Huike came forth, bowed deeply in silence and stood up straight. Bodhidharma said, "You have attained my marrow." Bodhidharma passed on the symbolic robe and bowl of dharma succession to Dazu Huike and, some texts claim, a copy of the Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra. Bodhidharma then either returned to India or died. Some Chinese myths and legends describe Bodhidharma as being disturbed by the poor physical shape of the Shaolin Monks, after which he instructed them in techniques to maintain their physical condition as well as teaching meditation. He is said to have taught a series of external exercises called the Eighteen Arhat Hands and an internal practice called the Sinew Metamorphosis Classic. In addition, after his departure from the Temple, two manuscripts by Bodhidharma were said to be discovered inside the Temple: the Yijin Jing and the Xisui Jing. Copies and translations of the Yijin Jing survive to the modern day. The Xisui Jing has been lost. According to Southeast Asian folklore, Bodhidharma travelled from Jambudvipa by sea to Palembang, Indonesia. Passing through Sumatra, Java, Bali, and Malaysia, he eventually entered China through Nanyue. In his travels through the region, Bodhidharma is said to have transmitted his knowledge of the Mahayana doctrine and the martial arts. Malay legend holds that he introduced forms to silat. Vajrayana tradition links Bodhidharma with the 11th-Century CE South Indian Monk Dampa Sangye who traveled extensively to Tibet and China spreading T antric teachings. Practice and Teaching. Bodhidharma is traditionally seen as introducing Dhyana-practice in China. Pointing Directly to One's Mind. He stressed the importance of the insight into reality achieved through "Self-Realization": There are early texts which explicitly associate Bodhidharma with the Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra. Daoxuan, for example, in a late recension of his biography of Bodhidharma's successor Huike, has the Sūtra as a basic and important element of the teachings passed down by Bodhidharma: In the beginning Dhyana Master Bodhidharma took the four-roll Laṅkā Sūtra, handed it over to Huike, and said: "When I examine the land of China, it is clear that there is only this Sutra. If you rely on it to practice, you will be able to cross over the world." Another early text, the "Record of the Masters and Disciples of the Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra" (Chinese: pinyin: Léngqié Shīzī Jì) of Jingjue (683–750 CE), also mentions Bodhidharma in relation to this text. Jingjue's account also makes explicit mention of "Sitting Meditation" or Zazen: For all those who sat in meditation, Master Bodhi [dharma] also offered expositions of the main portions of the Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra, which are collected in a volume of twelve or thirteen pages […] bearing the title of "Teaching of [Bodhi-] Dharma". In other early texts, the School that would later become known as Chan Buddhism is sometimes referred to as the "Laṅkāvatāra school" (Léngqié zōng). The Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra, one of the Mahayana Sutras, is a highly "difficult and obscure" text whose basic thrust is to emphasize "the inner enlightenment that does away with all duality and is raised above all distinctions". It is among the first and most important texts for East Asian Yogācāra. One of the recurrent emphases in the Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra is a lack of reliance on words to effectively express reality: If, Mahamati, you say that because of the reality of words the objects are, this talk lacks in sense. Words are not known in all the Buddha-lands; words, Mahamati, are an artificial creation. In some Buddha-lands ideas are indicated by looking steadily, in others by gestures, in still others by a frown, by the movement of the eyes, by laughing, by yawning, or by the clearing of the throat, or by recollection, or by trembling. In contrast to the ineffectiveness of words, the Sūtra instead stresses the importance of the "self- realization" that is "attained by noble wisdom" and occurs "when one has an insight into reality as it is": "The truth is the State of self-realization and is beyond categories of discrimination". The Sūtra goes on to outline the ultimate effects of an experience of self-realization: [The bodhisattva] will become thoroughly conversant with the noble truth of self- realization, will become a perfect master of his own mind, will conduct himself without effort, will be like a gem reflecting a variety of colors, will be able to assume the body of transformation, will be able to enter into the subtle minds of all beings, and, because of his firm belief in the truth of Mind-only, will, by gradually ascending the stages, become established in Buddhahood. Works attributed to Bodhidharma.  Two Entrances and Four Practices .  The Bloodstream sermon.  Dharma Teaching of Pacifying the Mind.  Treatise on Realizing the Nature.  Bodhidharma Treatise.  Refuting Signs Treatise (a.k.a. Contemplation of Mind Treatise).  Two Types of Entrance. Zazen (literally "seated meditation") is a meditative discipline that is typically the primary practice of the Zen Buddhist tradition. The meaning and method of Zazen varies from school to school, but in general it can be regarded as a means of insight into the nature of existence. In the Japanese Rinzai school, Zazen is usually associated with the study of koans. The Sōtō School of Japan, on the other hand, only rarely incorporates koans into Zazen, preferring an approach where the mind has no object at all, known as shikantaza. Zazen is considered the heart of Japanese Sōtō Zen Buddhist practice. The aim of Zazen is just sitting, that is, suspending all judgmental thinking and letting words, ideas, images and thoughts pass by without getting involved in them. In Zen Temples and Monasteries, practitioners traditionally sit Zazen as a group in a meditation hall, usually referred to as the Zendo. The practitioner sits on a cushion called a zafu, which itself is usually placed on top of a low, flat mat called a zabuton. Before taking one's seat, and after rising at the end of the period of Zazen, a Zen practitioner performs a gassho bow to their seat, and a second bow to fellow practitioners. The beginning of a period of Zazen is traditionally announced by ringing a bell three times (shijosho), and the end of a round by ringing the bell either once or twice (hozensho). Long periods of Zazen may alternate with periods of kinhin (walking meditation). The posture of Zazen is seated, with crossed legs and folded hands, and an erect but settled spine. The hands are folded together into a simple Mudra over the belly. In many practices, the practitioner breathes from the Hara (the center of gravity in the belly) and the eyelids are half-lowered, the eyes being neither fully open nor shut so that the practitioner is neither distracted by, nor turning away from, external stimuli. The legs are folded in one of the standard sitting styles:  Kekkafuza (full-lotus).  Hankafuza (half-lotus).  Burmese (a cross-legged posture in which the ankles are placed together in front of the sitter).  Seiza (a kneeling posture using a bench or zafu). In addition, it is not uncommon for modern practitioners to practice Zazen in a chair, often with a wedge or cushion on top of it so that one is sitting on an incline, or by placing a wedge behind the lower back to help maintain the natural curve of the spine. One can sit comfortably, but not too comfortably, so as to avoid falling asleep. While each of these styles is commonly taught today, Master Dogen recommended only Kekkafuza and Hankafuza. In his book Three Pillars of Zen, Philip Kapleau says that practitioners in the Rinzai school face in, towards each other with their backs to the wall, and in the Sōtō school, practitioners face the wall or a curtain. Kapleau quotes Hakuun Yasutani's lectures for beginners. In lecture four, Yasutani describes the five kinds of Zazen: bompu, gedo, shojo, daijo, and saijojo (he adds the latter is the same thing as shikantaza). Very generally speaking, Zazen practice is taught in one of three ways. 1 Concentration 2 Koan Introspection 3 Shikantaza (just sitting) Koan practice is usually associated with the Rinzai school and Shikantaza with the Sōtō school. In reality many Zen communities use both methods depending on the Teacher and students. Concentration. The initial stages of training in Zazen resemble traditional Buddhist Samatha meditation in actual practice, and emphasize the development of the power of concentration, or joriki (Sanskrit samādhibala). The student begins by focusing on the breath at the hara/ tanden with mindfulness of breath (ānāpānasmṛti) exercises such as counting breath or just watching it. Mantras are also sometimes used in place of counting. Practice is typically to be continued in one of these ways until there is adequate "one-pointedness" of mind to constitute an initial experience of Samadhi. At this point, the practitioner moves to one of the other two methods of Zazen. Koan introspection. Having developed awareness, the practitioner can now focus his or her consciousness on a koan as an object of meditation. Since koans are, ostensibly, not solvable by intellectual reasoning, koan introspection is designed to shortcut the intellectual process leading to direct realization of a reality beyond thought. Shikantaza . Shikantaza is a form of meditation, in which the practitioner does not use any specific object of meditation; rather, practitioners remain as much as possible in the present moment, aware of and observing what passes through their minds and around them. Dogen says, in his Shobogenzo, "Sitting fixedly, think of not thinking. How do you think of not thinking? Nonthinking. This is the art of Zazen. The Yijin Jing , (Literally: 'Muscle/Tendon Change Classic') is a manual containing a series of exercises, coordinated with breathing, said to enhance physical health dramatically when practiced consistently. In Chinese yi means "change", jin means "tendons and sinews", while jing means "methods". While some consider these exercises as a form of Qigong, it is a relatively intense form of exercise that aims at strengthening the muscles and tendons, so promoting strength and flexibility, speed and stamina, balance and coordination of the body. In the modern day, there are many translations and distinct sets of exercises all said to be derived from the original (the provenance of which is the subject of some debate). These exercises are notable for being a key element of the physical conditioning used in Shaolin training. According to legend, the Yijin Jing was said to be left behind by Bodhidharma after his departure from the Shaolin Monastery, and discovered within his grave (or hidden in the walls of the Temple) years after he had left (or died). It was accompanied by another text, the Xisui Jing, which was passed to a student of Bodhidharma's, but has not survived to the modern day. The Monks of Shaolin supposedly practiced the exercises within the text but lost the true purpose of the document; Lin Boyuan recounts the legend that they "selfishly coveted it, practicing the skills therein, falling into heterodox ways, and losing the correct purpose of cultivating the Way. The Shaolin Monks have made some fame for themselves through their fighting skill; this is all due to having obtained this manuscript." Both documents were written, per the mythology, in an Indian language which was not well understood by the Monks of the Temple. According to one legend, a Monk decided that the text must contain more valuable knowledge than simply self-defense, and went on a pilgrimage with a copy of the text to find someone who could translate the deeper meaning of the text. He eventually met an Indian priest named Pramati in the province of Szechwan who, examining the text, explained that the meaning of the text was extraordinarily deep and beyond his ability to translate fully. He nonetheless provided a partial translation. The Monk found that within a year of practicing the techniques as Pramati had translated, that his constitution had become "as hard as steel," and he felt that he could be a Buddha. The Monk was so pleased that he thereafter followed Pramati wherever he went. The legendary account springs from two prefaces which accompany the Yijin Jing. One of these prefaces purports to be written by the General Li Jing in 628 CE during the Tang Dynasty, while the other purports to be written by the General Niu Gao, an officer of the Song Dynasty General Yue Fei. However, there are several inaccuracies and inconsistencies in these forewords that cast doubt on the authenticity of Bodhidharma's authorship of the Yijin Jing. It was specifically the foreword by Li Jing by which Tang Hao traced the attribution of Shaolin Kung Fu to Bodhidharma. Li Jing's foreword refers to "the tenth year of the Taihe period of Emperor Xiaoming of Northern Wei." The Taihe reign period did not occur under Emperor Xiaoming but under Emperor Xiaowen and, in its tenth year (487 CE), the Shaolin Temple did not yet exist according to the Jiaqing Chongxiu Yitongzhi, itself an updated compilation of earlier records, which states that the Shaolin Temple was built in the twentieth year of the Taihe era (497 CE). Li Jing's foreword also claims that he received the manual containing the exercises from the "Bushy Bearded Hero" (Qiuran ke), a popular fictional character from a Tang Dynasty story of the same name by Du Guangting (850- 933 CE). Niu Gao's foreword mentions the Qinzhong Temple, which wasn't erected until 20 years after the date he claims to be writing. He also claims to be illiterate. Dictation could resolve the question of how an illiterate could write a foreword, but it is almost certain that a General of Niu Gao's stature was not illiterate. Thus during the 18th Century CE, the scholar Ling Tingkan concluded in a sarcastic fashion that the author of the Yijin Jing must have been an "ignorant" and a "master" all at the same time (i.e., Tingkan states that the author must have been an "ignorant village master"). The text of the Yijin Jing was probably composed by the Taoist priest Zining writing in 1624 CE. The earliest surviving edition of the Yijin Jing was dated by Ryuchi Matsuda to 1827 CE. In the course of his research, Matsuda found no mention of—let alone attribution to—Bodhidharma in any of the numerous texts written about the Shaolin martial arts before the 19th Century CE. The number of exercises tends to change; some contend that 18 should be the correct one (if based on the 18 Arhats), but can vary from 10 to 24, to 30. Today the most respected routine is that of Wang Zuyuan, composed of 12 exercises, and has been adopted by the Academies of Chinese Medicine in China. Chang Renxia together with Chang Weizhen proposed an alternative set of 14 exercises, which can be of interest for the therapeutic effects he promises. Deng Mingdao presents a version with 24 exercises, but with another name, Xisui Jing. In fact, another point of contention is the relationship between the Xisui Jing and the Yijin Jing. Some authors tend to use those two names for the same routine; others keep things separated and invoke different results and different effects on the body. Then, there are other authors that have written different books and created different theories, sometimes not simply in search for the truth. The 12 Posture Moving Exercise kept to this day is something that Wang Zuyuan learned at the Shaolin Monastery on Mount Song. It is somewhat different from the original "Picture of stationary exercise" and the "Guide to the art of attack" (as Guangdong sources demonstrate). Some specialists (Liu Dong) refer to a later integration of Yijin Jing, Daoyin, Tu-na and Xingyi methods. However Wang's 12 Postures is found through practice to be a concise aid in enhancing one's physical health. As the name implies, "sinew transforming exercise" is the method to train the tendons and muscles. The exercise is designed according to the course and characteristics of Qi circulation in the 12 regular channels and the Du and Ren channels. During practice, Qi and blood usually circulates with proper speed and with no sluggishness or stagnation. Because of such efficacy, Yijin Jing has existed for centuries as a favorite with the populace and is still widely used in sanatoria and hospitals for therapeutic purposes. Two ancient written and illustrated routines remain, one from Chen Yi's "A Collection of Annals" published during the Ming Dynasty and another more recent one published in 1882 CE from Wang Zuyuan's "Internal Work Illustrated". The 12 Posture Moving Exercise supposedly describes what is called the purported "12 fists of Bodhidharma" in many Southern martial arts, most notably Hung Gar and Wing chun. Legend states that the 12 exercises were developed based on the movements of the 12 animals that Bodhidharma studied after his 9 years of meditation. These exercises aided the health of the Shaolin Monastery Monks, and contributed to many of the animal-based martial arts in China. Purposes of Yijin Jing The basic purpose of Yijin Jing is to turn flaccid and frail sinews and tendons into strong and sturdy ones. The movements of Yijin Jing are at once vigorous and gentle. Their performance calls for a unity of will and strength, i.e. using one's will to direct the exertion of muscular strength. It is coordinated with breathing. Better muscles and tendons means better health and shape, more resistance, flexibility, and endurance. It is obtained as follows:  Postures influence the static and nervous structure of the body..  Stretching muscles and sinews affects organs, joints, meridians and Qi.  Torsion affects metabolism and Jing production.  Breathing produces more and better refined Qi.  Active working gives back balance and strength to body and mind (brain, nervous system and spirit). Power and endurance are of paramount importance if we look at becoming qualified in whatever practice we choose, be it Tui na, martial arts, or simply better health and wisdom. Already another known Qigong system, Baduanjin, in its more radical and strong forms was used in the past from schools of Xingyiquan and Taijiquan as bodily preparation to fighting arts, in order to make body strong and flexible. Baduanjin still remains the first, entry-level routine to learn at Shaolin training