There is a common saying among Chinese people: Those who have an evil heart and do wicked deeds will be punished by “five thunders.” “Five” is related to the ancient Chinese concept of the five elements of the cosmos — metal, wood, water, fire, and earth. As recorded in ancient texts, the god of thunder is ...
Chinese feng shui is very popular nowadays. So what is feng shui? At its core is a system that promotes harmony between humans and their environment. Essentially though, it is the study of geography. People living in a place with good feng shui are likely to be blessed with long and healthy lives and growing ...
There is a saying: “Your word is your bond.” If you owe something, you must pay it back. One of the first lessons we all learn is that when we make sacrifices for what we want in life, we must pay back what we owe. There were two good friends, Lan and Qiu, who lived ...
Born into a respected family with wealth, riches, and good fortune, you would imagine that that is a great start in life. There was once a rich boy who indulged excessively in drinking and gambling until he lost all his wealth and inheritance, and was driven to desperation. At the time of his despair, an elderly ...
According to legend, the patriarch of Chinese civilization was the Yellow Emperor. The birthplace of Chinese civilization was the Yellow Earth Plateau (Loess Plateau). The cradle of the Chinese nation was the Yellow River, and the descendants of the Yellow Emperor have yellowish skin. Since ancient times, the color yellow has been an integral part ...
There was a true-life story about the “Hidden Treasure Under the Plum Tree” circulating in Huating County (now known as Songjiang District, Shanghai). This treasure-finding tale took place during the end of the Qing Dynasty. The protagonist of this story was a poor and humble man who people addressed as Han Weng. Han Weng was good-natured ...
In the time of the Qing Dynasty, there was an almshouse in Tianchang County where beggars who had nowhere to go could live. On the eve of the New Year, Mao Jun, who lived in the almshouse with his wife, went to the streets to beg as usual with another beggar who carried him, as ...
It is said that a person is rich and prosperous for a reason. Accumulation of virtue, in this life or from previous lives, can be exchanged into wealth and prosperity. This is a true story from the Qing Dynasty of immediate reward for having virtue and doing a good deed. In the Shunzhi era, an elderly ...
The Great Emperor Kangxi was one of the longest-reigning emperors during China’s Qing Dynasty. He came to the throne at the age of 7 and took charge of all affairs by the age of 14. Having a very eventful and accomplished life, he passed away at the age of 69. His 61-year reign (1661-1722) was one of ...
During the Daoguang period of the Qing Dynasty, foreign businesspeople brought massive amounts of opium into China, leading the people to take on incorrect social values and ruin their health. In the eighteenth year of Daoguang (1838), the imperial court appointed Lin Zexu as the imperial minister and sent him to Guangzhou to ban opium. ...