Chinese Secrets of Longevity 中国人的长寿奥秘

约翰·穆珠瑟图博士 译/陈天怡

Aging is not lost youth but a new stage of opportunity and strength.

—Betty Friedman

老去并不意味著韶华已逝，而是迈入充满机会与力量的新阶段。

——贝蒂·弗里德曼

The famous English philosopher， Francis Bacon once said; ‘I will never be an old man. To me， old age is always 15 years older than I am’. To live longer is everybody’s ambition. More and more people around the world are becoming centenarians1. China is famous for its largest percentage of centenarians. There is a famous village in China known as the ‘longevity village’. Several studies have been conducted to unravel the Chinese secrets of health and longevity.

A Chinese man who lived 256 years！

In 1930， New York Times reported in an article about a Chinese martial art expert and herbalist， Li Ching Yuen2 who was believed to have lived for more than two and a half centuries. It was in 1933 he died. He was claimed to be born in 1677， even though there was no verifiable records. Anyway it was evident that he lived an extraordinary long life， perhaps the longest period， with vitality and vigor. So it is interesting and inspiring to know more about his life and the secrets of his unusual longevity.

Li Ching Yuen led an active and enthusiastic life. He used to travel a lot for collecting rare herbs like ginseng， lingzhi， gogiberry， gotukola3 etc from the mountain ranges of China. His vast knowledge of herbs and their medicinal properties might have helped him to use them regularly for enhancing his health and longevity. He also used to eat wild and fresh mushrooms to boost his energy level.

Li was a firm believer in exercises. He learned qigong exercise and breathing techniques from an old hermit. He believed that it was his herbal diet and regular exercise and breathing techniques which helped him to live for such an unusually long period with perfect health and well being4.

It was in 1749， at the age of 71， Li joined the Chinese army as a martial art instructor. He was leading a very active and enthusiastic life even after his retirement from army. He continued his business of gathering and selling herbs of various kinds.

Li was highly respected and loved by the people in his village and community. It was reported that he married 23 times and had about 200 children. The Chinese government celebrated his 200th birthday in 1877. During the occasion of the birthday celebrations he was asked about the secret of his unbelievable longevity and health. For that he replied; ‘Keep a quiet heart， sit like a tortoise， walk sprightly5 like a pigeon6 and sleep like a dog’. Time magazine honored him by publishing a lead article7 about him titled ‘Tortoise Pigeon Dog’ in its 1933， May 15th issue， quoting his wise words revealing the secret of his amazing long life.

Li had disclosed that his inner peace， tranquil and stress-free mind， regular physical and breathing exercise and a herbal diet might have helped him to live such a long life with vibrant health， vigor， and vitality. This reminds us the wise words of Sai Bhabha8， an Indian hermit; ‘the secret of perfect health is keeping the mind always cheerful; never worried， never hurried and never bored’.

Longevity secrets from China

An American cardiologist， John Day visited China to study about the Chinese health secrets. During his study he came to know about Bapan village which was popularly known as the Longevity Village. It was a remote Chinese village without any of the modern amenities9. There were not even hospitals and doctors. But the villagers were amazingly healthy， exuberant and lived longer. The village had the highest percentage of centenarians in the world.

Dr. Day conducted scientific probes about the health and longevity secrets of the villagers and the centenarians. He also co-authored a book named The Longevity Plan： Seven Life Transforming Lessons from Ancient China.

Dr. Day identified seven secrets of longevity from the Bapan village of centenarians.

1. A diet consisting mostly of fresh organically grown fruits and vegetables， roots， legumes10 and nuts. Bapan villagers eat meat rarely and fish frequently.

2. Warm and strong social connections， helping and respecting each other. Social support system is very strong there.

3. A positive， happy and optimistic attitude about life， believing in a better tomorrow.

4. Moving without sitting still. Bapan villagers go out and do hand farming in the fields and move around regularly. They are physically active throughout the day.

5. A regular and disciplined routine. They wake up early， eat and go to bed at the same time every day. They live in harmony with the natural circadian rhythm11.

6. Clean and pure environment. Bapan village is so isolated and free of modern contaminants like pesticides and other chemicals. They are blessed with clean air， pure water， organic fresh fruits and vegetables.

7. Being passionate and interested in something meaningful， even in the old age. Everybody wakes up enthusiastically in the morning with a plan and goal in mind.

Dr. Day found that Bapan villagers were having a deep connection to nature， to earth， to family， to friends and to community. This is a great positive factor for their health and long life.

Longevity factors

Some believe that longevity is dependent on the genetic factors. But the modern researches have shown that we are not the prisoners of our DNA but can be the masters of our longevity. A research conducted in 3000 identical twins12 proved that the genetic factor in longevity is only 25% and the balance 75% depends on our life style. So your health and longevity is in your hands. As the famous Japanese artist Yok Ono13 aptly pointed out; ‘There is a long life ahead of you and it’s going to be beautiful as long as you keep loving and hugging each other’.

英國著名哲学家弗朗西斯·培根曾说：“我永远不会老。于我而言，离老年总是还差15岁。”每个人都希望活得久一些。世界各地的百岁老人也越来越多。中国尤以百岁老人占比最大而闻名。中国有个知名的村庄被称为“长寿村”。人们开展了多项研究，试图解开中国人健康长寿的奥秘。

活了256年的中国人！

1930年，《纽约时报》专文报道了一位名叫李庆远的中国武术家和中医师，人们相信他已经活了超过两个半世纪。李庆远于1933年离世。据传他生于1677年，不过没有记录可考。无论如何，他显然度过了格外长寿——或许无人能出其右——且充满生机与活力的一生。多多了解他的生活和拥有超凡寿命的奥秘因而既有趣又有启发性。

李庆远对待生活积极热情，曾在中国广泛游历，采集山间的人参、灵芝、枸杞、积雪草等稀有草药。凭借自己所掌握的有关草药及其药性的丰富知识，他定期服用草药以达到强身健体、延年益寿的目的。他还经常食用新鲜的野生菌菇补充精力。

李庆远深信锻炼的益处。他从一位老隐士那里习得了气功和吐纳技巧。他认为，自己能比一般人更长久地保持身心极佳的状态，就是食用药膳、定期锻炼和练习吐纳的功劳。

1749年，71岁高龄的李庆远作为武术指导参了军。退役后，他依然积极热情地生活，继续采集售卖各种草药。

李庆远深受村民和当地人的爱戴。……