Tai Ji Men Qigong Academy

Celebrating the 22nd Anniversary of Tai Ji Men Qigong Academy in LA

Sail to Happiness with Conscience: Double Happiness for You and Me

This year marks the 22nd anniversary of Tai Ji Men Qigong Academy in Los Angeles. An anniversary celebration was held on October 8 in Walnut with the theme "Tai Ji Men LA 20+2 Happiness x 2," which also honored the United Nations-designated World Mental Health Day (October 10). Community leaders, scholars, and people from all walks of life attended the event to celebrate this important milestone and the UN day!

Dr. Allen Wu, mayor of the City of Walnut; Jessica Martinez, mayor pro tem of the City of Whittier; Dr. Tony Torng, president of Walnut Valley Unified School District Board; Victor Hung, president of the Liok-Kui Foundation; Prof. Massiomo Introvigne, an Italian sociologist and managing director of the Center for Studies on New Religions (CESNUR); and Prof. Gordon Melton, distinguished professor of American Religious History at the Institute for Studies of Religion of Baylor University, attended the event in person.

Tai Ji Men Qigong Academy in Los Angeles received certificates of recognition, congratulatory messages or videos, and flowers from many leaders, including California Governor Gavin Newsom; California Lieutenant Governor Eleni Kounalakis; Congressman Ted Lieu; Congresswoman Linda Sanchez; Congresswoman Norma Torres; California State Senator Connie M. Leyva; California State Senator Josh Newman; California State Senator Susan Rubio; former California State Senator Bob Huff; California State Assemblymember Blanca E. Rubio; California State Assemblymember Phillip Chen; California State Assemblyman Freddie Rodriguez; Mabel Segura Fernández, consul general of Costa Rica in Los Angeles; Dr. Zaw Linn Maung, consul general of Myanmar in Los Angeles; Deputy Director General Richard Lin of Taipei Economic and Cultural Office (TECO) in Los Angeles; Hilda Solis, LA county supervisor; Ted Alejandre, San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools; the City Council of Walnut; Cynthia Sternquist, mayor of Temple City, Diamond Bar City Council; Joe Vinatieri, mayor of Whittier and Jessica Martinez, mayor pro tem of the City of Whittier; Javier "John" Dutrey, mayor of Montclair; Alhambra City Council; Pasadena Mayor Victor M. Gordo; Pasadena City Councilmember Tyron Hampton; Victor Hung, president of the Liok-Kui Foundation; and Thakhin Kai Bwor, editor-in-chief of the Myanmar Gazette. The Academy has received congratulatory messages from people in over 34 countries!

Congresswoman Norma Torres honored Tai Ji Men with a Certificate of Special Congressional Recognition, which states, "Your commitment to promoting love, peace, and consciousness to make the world a better place is a commendable example to others. Thank you for your dedication to the community, and best wishes on your future endeavors."

Tai Ji Men was given a Certificate of Congressional Recognition by Congressman Ted Lieu. It reads, "In honor and celebration of your 22nd anniversary and with sincere appreciation for your outstanding dedication to uplifting communities in the Southern California Region through the promotion of traditional Chinese cultural practices."

Tai Ji Men was presented with a certificate of recognition by LA Mayor Eric Garcetti, who stated, "As Mayor of the City of Los Angeles, and on behalf of its residents, I am pleased to celebrate and recognize your services to the City of Los Angeles community. I congratulate you on your twenty two years of distinguished service and honorable achievements. You have earned the respect of Angelenos, and colleagues for your dedication, integrity and leadership."

The celebration was kicked off by the Tai Ji Men Celestial Drum performance and the auspicious lion dance. The sound of the celestial drums provided the motivation for people to overcome their adversities and persevere in times of difficulty. It allowed listeners to gather positive thoughts and energies to push forward while the lion dance spread joy and happiness. The joint performance of the drums and the auspicious lion infused the attendees with tons of happy energy.

Dr. Hong, Tao-Tze, the leader of Tai Ji Men, delivered welcome remarks, pointing out that "The key to mental health is the attainment of ‘internal and external balance.’ By awakening our innate conscience in peace and tranquility and by reflecting on our own improvement daily, we can eliminate the bad and preserve the good in our hearts, which are the roots of physical and mental health. By practicing qigong, cultivating our hearts and moral character, thinking kind thoughts, and nurturing positive energy, we can remove illness and calm our spirit, maintaining peace and stability in a turbulent environment. This will allow us to achieve what the WHO refers to as ‘a state of complete physical, mental and social health.’’’ "Conscience is the sparkling treasure in everyone’s heart. Let us listen to the call of our conscience, which will guide us on the right path and nourish healthy bodies, minds, and souls. With conscience, we can build a society and a nation of love, justice, peace, and happiness," emphasized Dr. Hong.

Dr. Linda Chen, a biomedical researcher at Halifax University in Canada, suffered from depression as a teenager and often had suicidal thoughts. Her uncle recommended her to join Tai Ji Men when she was in the 12th Grade. She shared how practicing Tai Ji Men Qigong helped her get through her depression and face the little demon in her heart, saying, "Within a few months after I started practicing Tai Ji Men Qigong, one day, I suddenly noticed that my feeling of not wanting to live seemed to ‘evaporate.’ Those strong hopeless and helpless feelings disappeared all of a sudden.” She shared the wisdom she learned at Tai Ji Men: Be 100% honest with yourself, be grateful, and meditate daily to observe yourself. She hopes that everyone’s heart will be filled with love and peace.

Lily Chen, another Tai Ji Men member, recounted her tale of transformation. She was diagnosed with cancer when her son was only four months old. Even after a surgery and treatment, she was still very fearful, worrying that she would not be able to see her son grow up. Through her family’s recommendation, she joined Tai Ji Men. Under the guidance of her shifu (master) Dr. Hong, Tao-Tze, the leader of Tai Ji Men, she has learned to reflect on herself and gradually changed from a negative to a positive thinker. As a result, she overcame a major hurdle in her life with a smile. She also changed from a self-centered individual to someone who frequently volunteers to promote love, peace, and conscience locally and globally. She said, "Doing these meaningful things makes me happy and gives me a sense of purpose!”

At the event, a video about Tai Ji Men’s recent efforts to promote love, peace, and conscience in New York was presented. This September, Dr. Hong, the leader of Tai Ji Men, led his dizi (disciples) to hold the "World Leader Summit of Love and Peace" and ceremonies of ringing the "Bell of World Peace and Love" during the 77th session of the United Nations General Assembly. A total of 15 key leaders rang the bell and made wishes for peace, injecting strong positive energy into the planet to awaken the conscience of global citizens and pray for the world. It is very meaningful at this tumultuous time!

As of September 2022, a total of 445 leaders from 128 countries, including 49 heads of state and government, seven Nobel Peace Prize laureates, UN ambassadors and leaders from all walks of life, have rung the Bell of World Peace and Love to make a positive impact on world peace and sustainable development! Dr. Hong was honored by the Mayor of New York City for promoting love and peace and other goals of the United Nations.

Embodying the Wisdom of Tai Ji: Achieving Inner Balance, which features 55 inspiring life stories of Tai Ji Men members of all ages who applied what they had learned at Tai Ji Men to overcome obstacles and work toward a bright future, was given to the distinguished guests. These true stories are not only heartwarming, but also provide practical yin and yang advice that readers may apply to all facets of life. Chiwen Su, the designer of the book cover, had panic disorder in the past, but after practicing Tai Ji Men Qigong for a while, her mind and body improved greatly, much like the morphing butterfly on the cover. She related her experience creating the book cover.

Tai Ji Men members sang "A Prayer for Peace" to pray for the world. They also invited attendees to endorse the Declaration of International Day of Conscience and the Declaration for the Movement of An Era of Conscience, hoping that everyone will act with conscience so that the world will be peaceful and that everyone will be joyful so that every family will be happy. For those who were unable to attend, a video of it is available on YouTube at the following link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rZqVq6F036M