Emei Mountain is one of most majestic and spectacular holy mountains in the world. It is one of the four major Buddhist holy mountains and is the sacred abode of the Maha Bodhisattva Samantabhadra and the Avatamsaka Sutra. Samantabhadra is the primordial Buddha who manifests as a Bodhisattva to bring the teachings of Vajrayana Buddhism to this world system. Full of mountain spirits Emei Mountain was originally inhabited by shamans and Daoists. Laozi (Lao Tsu), the founder of Daoism established a temple in the Jiulao Cave near the mountain's peak during the 5th century BC with the nine ancients of Daoism. The famous Buddhist Monk Tangseng along with the Monkey King Sun Wukong also cultivated in the Jiulao Cave during their famous Journey West. China's most famous poet and Daoist drunken immortal Libai wrote scores of inspirational poems about the inconceivable nature of Emei Mountain. Even the Herbal Immortal Shennong still manifests in the expansive rainforest bestowing amrita elixirs that enlightens as well as they heal. The famous Tibetan Terton Khenpo Jigme Puntsog Rimpoche is the guiding light in the ever expanding Spiritual Water Tantric Monastery where even the Son of Heaven, Emperor Kangxi, stayed and cultivated the precious Buddha Dharma. As a beacon of Wisdom Light outstanding monks, nuns, lay practitioners and pilgrims from every spiritual tradition and every country in the world come to Emei Mountain to receive its blessings and harmonize in this magical sphere of intrinsic awareness.

Rising to 11,000ft. above the Sea of Clouds on the border land between China & Tibet Emei Mountain is a dense jungle rainforest that rises from the rice patties and bamboo groves of the Sichuan basin to pierce the clouds of heaven with its sub-artic peaks. High mountain rivers and crystal clear waterfalls cut deep canyons through the rock faces that can reach thousands of feet high and some waterfalls even dissipate before they hit the ground. There are cavernous swimming holes that lead to underground caves behind the waterfalls where rainbows are always in bloom. Full of Buddhist temples, mountain villages, tribal nomads, exotic animals and sacred herbs pilgrims from all over world come to play in this Buddhist wonderland. Emei Mountain is also home to many rare species of animals such as the panda bear, pigme-pandas and red panda, black bears, frisbee size butterflies, foot long praying mantis', all kinds of birds and hawks, peacocks, many types of snakes, giant insects, and three different types of monkeys that can be found throughout the mountain, yet even a mosquito bite is rare on our Sacred Journeys due to the protective energy and blessings of Samantabhadra.

Emei Mountain is an herbalist's wonderland. The rainforest and varying elevations provide a bounty of common, uncommon and sacred herbs. The extremely potent Snow Lotus Flower stays in bloom even under six feet of snow and makes a powerful kidney tonic. The Golden Hair Dog Root stops bleeding just by touching it. Foot long Suoyang roots raise the Yang even in the coldest of winters. Tianma roots can grow up to six inches long and Emei Ginseng and lingzhi mushrooms are cultivated by the Daoist saints and the Buddhist dakinis to confer immortality. Emei Mountain has four major types of lingzhi mushrooms some the size of coffee tables. The extremely rare Buddha's Hand lingzhi mushroom is a special prize of Emei Mountain. Emei Mountain also has many types of herbal teas. Green tea, black tea, wild tea and high elavation tea can be found throughout the mountain being hawked by local mountain villagers along the forest trail. For the 84,000 types of disease there are 84,000 types of medicine all of which can be found on Emei Mountain.

From the Golden Summit Monastery of Emei Mountain the sun and moon cascades across the Sea of Clouds and sets over the 24,000ft. Konga Mountains of Eastern Tibet. Many healing miracles, wisdom miracles and miracle signs have manifested on Emei Mountain since ancient times and even our students over the past two decades have witnessed quite a few. Some of these miracles include the Buddhist halo, multiplying lanterns, sky signs, unusual rainbows, dreams and visions, and maybe even a visit by the golden monkey. The Maha Bodhisattva Samantabhadra has been know to manifest bestowing blessings and miracle healings even to our own small group of pilgrims. Emei Mountain is adorned with many different types of Buddhist temples and Buddhist monasteries, martial arts schools, healing clinics, TCM hospitals, and even a national TCM and Martial Arts University. It also is home to the world's largest Zen Monastery.

The lineage During the Southern Song Dynasty in 1227 AD a Wudang Daoist martial and medicinal priest named White Cloud, came to Emei Mountain, became a Buddhist monk and eventually the Sudden Enlightenment abbot of the Hua Zang Temple at the Golden Summit of Emei Mountain. White Cloud intergrated his knowledge of confucianism, shamanism, Daoism, Buddhism and the three thousand and six hundred schools that were prelavant at that time into a concise system that was easy to learn and apply and brought about great realizations and sudden enlightenment. After writing the Precious Lotus Cannon and formulating the External Energy Diagnosis and Treatment System Samantabhadra came to him in a vision and told him to pass on his knowledge to the next generation to help rid the world of pain and suffering and to let the light of the dharma shine like the sun. Undisturbed for eight centuries the monastics who practiced this tradition enjoyed a peaceful until WWII. During WWII the 11th patriarch Yongxin was gathering herbs down at the bottom of the mountain and ran into Zhou Qianchuan who was a western doctor who was extremely sick. Yongxin healed him and then trained him at the Golden Summit for thirteen years. When the Japanese invaded Yongxin fled to Kangding, Tibet which is the next mountain range over. Master Zhou fled north to Shanxi, Province and opened an Emei clinic there. Master Zhou had two wives and twelve children who taught the system to many people and his lineage is still flourishing today. After China's Liberation in 1949 Master Zhou passed on the Emei lineage to His Holiness Juzan, who was the head of China's Buddhist Association at the Guangji Temple in Beijing.

His Holiness Juzan was a Zen master who was also famous for his knowledge and skill in qigong and Vajrayana Buddhism. After the Cultural Revolution ended His Holiness Juzan exclaimed, "it comes from the people, now let's return it to the people", and Master Juzan opened the teachings to monastics and non-monastics alike spreading the Buddha's light throughout the ten thousand directions. Like the Sixth Patriarch Hui Neng he didn't leave one single documented lineage holder but passed the Emei Linji Teachings down to many disciple so that it would benefit even more people. Where the Guangji Temple was the store house for master Juzan's inconceivable teachings many of the new age qigong systems that are floating around the world today actually came from the teachings of this late great Master. Famous qigong systems like Soaring Crane Qigong, Chilel Qigong, and Da Dao Chan Gong all owe many of its roots to the teachings of this great master. However, on Emei Mountain we haven't changed a thing. We still teach the Emei Sudden Enlightenment system in strict accordance with the Dharma and His Holiness Juzan's traditional teachings. Unchanged since ancient times and grounded in the five precepts it is within the light of Dharma and protected by the Buddhas, Bodhisattva, Dakinis, and Dharmapalas. May this powerful system of health, healing and enlightenment illumine the world.

Master Linhai is the primary teacher of the Emei Sudden enlightenment School in the west and on sacred journeys. He began his training in martial arts in the seventies and in 1986 went to the Shaolin Temple where he recieved transmission. He went on to study with many of the great Emei Masters and is a disciple of the supreme abbot of Emei, Grandmaster Tong Yong. Linhai is also a yogi of the Nyingma tradition, a Doctor of Traditional Chinese Medicine and a NCCA Diplomate.

Emei Mountain is the sacred abode of Samantabhadra and the store house for the Avtamsaka Sutra. As it says in the Avatamsaka Sutra all Bodhisattvas who wish to accomplish the ultimate state of Buddhahood must do so by completing the teachings of Samantabhadra. That's why Samantabhadra is called the king of the Bodhisatvas and is the source of all the different shools be it Pure Land, Zen and Vajrayana. Today the most senior master on Emei Mountain is the 102 year old Abbot Grand Master Tongyong. He has spent ninty years on Emei Mountain keeping the lamp of dharma burning for the new generations of dharma masters. His disciple Master Zhaokong is the abbot of the Baoguo Temple where hundred of monks uphold the pureland and pilgrims from all lineages, traditions and religions come to bask. The famous Terton Khenpo Jigme Puntsog also has a very large monastery growing where the Emperor Kangxi, who was an emination of the Buddha Manjushri, stayed in retreat. The Chinese government just spent three hundred and fifty million dollars rebuilding the Hua Zang Temple of the Golden Summit where our system comes from and it includes the world's largest golden statue which is twenty stories tall. There are many miracles that have occured on this holy mountain since ancient times and even with our own groups. Ah, the magic and mystery of this fascinating land can only by Buddhas be told. May you achieve the realization of the sublime dharma and enjoy the Emei Pureland, Amituofo!!!

The Emei Sudden Enlightenment School's Apprenticeship Program
Every year we make our annual pilgrimage to the glorious Emei Mountain to study the Emei Sudden Enlightenment School's External Energy Diagnosis and Treatment system while seeking the blessings and teachings of the many great masters we meet along the way. TCM and all esoteric Chinese arts are traditionally taught in apprenticeship programs from master to disciple in unbroken lineages that have continued since ancient times. Though Academic TCM has become the mainstream in urban environments traditional Chinese culture still flourishes on the holy mountains in apprenticeship programs where the lamp of wisdom medicine is still being passed down. The Emei Sudden Enlightenment Apprenticeship Program is not taught in credit hours but according to individual capacities. There are four basic levels taught in ten day increments over a four year period until you complete the system. Though the qigong is easy to learn there are time requirements for some of the training and you need some clinical experience too before going on to the next level. You need no prior experience and there are no prerequisites. Anybody can join. It might be good to have some background in Buddhist or Daoist studies, TCM, martial arts, qigong etc... but often it is even better to simply come with an empty mind. Whether you go to Emei Mountain for the fun and adventure or to study Emei Mountain's ancient wisdom traditions of health, healing and enlightenment may you obtain the everlasting state of joyous luminosity!!!

	Emei Grandmaster Tongyong and his disciple Linhai.		Hua Zang Monastery floating in a sea of clouds.

The four parts of the Emei Journey:
1. The qianneng empowerment: After receiving the Emei Sudden Enlightenment school's qianneng empowerment and opening the third eye, practitioners can see and feel qi energy to diagnose and treat diseases immediately. Realizations will vary according to practitioners natural abilities. Once qi energy becomes demystified and the material and physical reality of qi is understood you can then use this new found awareness to diagnose disease, open your channels, strengthen your health, heal others diseases, transmit qi energy, increase your awareness, reach enlightenment and liberation.

2. The Emei cultivation system: Living in the Buddhist temples on Emei Mountain you will learn the Emei Sudden Enlightenment School's system of purification of the three root poisons, purification of the vase channels and the central channel, Uniting shamatha and vipasana meditation, The Buddha's Diamond Palm Training, Emei's Heaven and Earth Qigong, Large and Small qigong, the Twelve Forms of Emei Qigong forms, Samantabhadra, Vajrasattva, Padmasambhava, Prajnaparimita and Amitabha recitation and meditation.

3. The Emei diagnosis and treatment system: Completley integrated with the cultivation system you will learn observing the external energy field (aura) diagnosis, palm sensitivity diagnosis, other forms of diagnosis, the great compassion palm qi energy transmission, mantra energy transmission, qigong shaitsu, qigong massage, qigong acupointing, tuina, bone and channel adjustments, qigong acupuncture, Emei fengshui healing, Emei Qigong theory, Emei Qigong Therapy application and some basic Emei Mountain herbal medicine. Learn as much as you can absorb.

4. Pilgrimage to the Golden Summit: One of the greatest services in any religious practice and the most expedient way to purify our karma is to go on a pilgrimage to a sacred Mountain. The meandering and often steep trails of Emei Mountain provide a great way to purify the body and mind while achieving new levels of health, healing and awareness. It is also a good opportunity to experience how the local mountain people live in harmony with Heaven and Earth. To see the strength and simplicity of their life in the high mountain rain forest is truly inspiring. It is common to see old ladies carrying 100lb. bags of rice up the mountain or young men carrying large loads of coal, bricks, supplies, and even pligrims up the steep mountain side while most of us are just trying to catch our breath. On Emei Mountain we live and train in the Buddhist monasteries as we ascend to the Golden Summit where our system of cultivation comes from. Dressed in the proper robes we will attend all of the temple's morning ceremonies and then practice Emei meditation, Emei qigong and qigong therapy application throughout the day. We will either spend all day training at the temples or climb the mountain to the next level until we reach the Golden Summit. We will also attend other empowerments, ceremonies, and teachings that we run into on this very Sacred Journey.

Itinerary

Commentary On The Emei Sudden Enlightenment Tradition

As the Sixth Patriarch Hui Neng has said it is not the Buddha Dharma that is fast or slow it is the capacity of sentient beings that is fast or slow. For beings of high capacity the mere mention of a sutric stanza could bring them to complete realization. For beings of lower capacity however they might have to recite that same stanza for an entire life time before they obtain any realization. The Sudden Enlightenment School is a Zen tradition and like that of the Vajrayana Dzog Chen school uses the the mind directly to understand the nature of mind. The training is very direct and easy to learn and for those with greater capacity enlightenment comes very quickly. However, for those of lesser capacity the system and approach still remains the same it just requires more time and practice to obtain complete realization. Regardless of whether one's capacity is fast or slow all sentient beings have Buddha nature and all phenomonea arises from the dharmakaya so it is from this point that we begin our sacred journey.

Obtaining qi realization
People who are unfamiliar with the Sudden Enlightenment tradition usually think it is impossible to immediately achieve qi realization in an afternoon. Acupuncturists talk about qi their entire life yet most of them have never had a real qi experience anyway. Qigong, tai chi, bagua, yoga and the internal arts practitioners talk about qi their entire life but only after many years of practice do they gradually obtain any qi realization. However, through the qianneng empowerment of the Emei Sudden Enlightenment School and others like it participants immediately gain one of the three levels of qi realization. When a practitioner has developed qi realization they can perceive the light nature of phenomonal existence directly. They enter the Sambogakaya. Through qi realization practitioners can experience the divine energies of people, places and things. They can quickly connect to the energies of holy mountains, spiritual masters and the consecrated relics of the practice field. Percieving their immeasurable and boundless qualities which are as vast as space we can realize and obtain their blessing.

Becoming a qigong acupuncturist
According to conventional thought most people think that it is impossible to become an acupuncturist in just one afternoon. For academic acupuncturists that is definitely true because it takes years to learn anatomy, physiology, psychology, pathology, the meridians, channels, collaterals, acu-points, their functions, theories, manipulations, pulses, signs and symptoms. In fact most academics are lacking in their own academic approach because it is impossible to completely know the vast copious of TCM knowledge that has been compounded for so many thousands of years. How many people graduating acupuncture schools today even know all of the fifty two pulses? The bottom line is that intellectual knowledge can not be completly known by using the intellect and since all intelectual knowledge in contained within mind, it is to the mind we must turn our intention to obtain wisdom. Academic acupuncturist look at the pulse and tongue to see what the qi is doing to the patient indirectly but by using qi awareness a practitioner can see and feel the qi directly making an extremely spontaneous and accurate diagnosis. As the saying in kungfu medicine goes," those that have to ask the ten questions can't see, those that have to take the pulse can't feel." Qi realization cuts through all such indirect methods to perceive diseases directly. In more recent times TCM has also been inundated with intensive studies in western medicine making it even more difficult to turn their minds to the profound path of TCM's classical studies. However, in Sudden Enlightenment qigong Acupuncture all that intellectual study is really not that important anyway. In fact it really more of a hindrance. As it says in the Hui Jing, "the intellect can bring you to the gates of heaven but to enter you must leave it behind." The same is true for Sudden Enlightenment qigong acupuncturists. Qigong acupuncture is based on direct qi realization, qi diagnosis, needle manipulation, qi transmission and nothing else. And, it can be learned in just an afternoon through empowerment, obtaining the pith instructions and receiving the pointing out instructions. For those with the fortunate karma to meet with these teachings and put them to good use healing becomes the path the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas.

Becoming a qigong therapist
According to conventional thinking most people believe it is impossible to learn acupuncture, tuina, massage, shiatsu, chiropractics, reki, qi diagnosis, qi transmission, and basic herbal medicine formulas all in just ten days on the mountain. For academics that's definitely true because it takes years to learn anatomy, physiology, psychology, pathology, the meridians, channels, collaterals, acu-points, their functions and theories, adjustments and manipulations, individual herbs and herbal formulas. Again most academics don't even get it because it is too vast to comprehend. The common approach to academic physical therapies is to learn all the disease categories and then all of the treatment protocols that treat those diseases. that takes a long time. However, in the Emei Sudden Enlightenment School's qigong therapy system all you have to learn is the treatment application sequence and how to use it. It is like learning a tai chi/kungfu form that you perform on a patient. It doesn't matter what the disease is whenever you see a patient you simply apply the form and the results can be quite miraculous. There are two types of applications. One is for general health and longivity and the other is for treating specific diseases. You might not be able to cure everything and sometimes western methods might be better at addressing an issue but this system can have a profound effect on all of the four stages of birth, old age, sickness and death. It can be used for prenatal treatment, post natal treatment and even post mortum treatment. Regardless of the particular stage of treatment enlightenment and liberation from the six realms of samsara is the therapy's goal. How we achieve it is up to us.

Becoming a qigong teacher
Most people think it is impossible to become a qigong teacher in just one trip to Emei Mountain. It usually takes years to learn qigong and your master usually only allows you to teach it after you have been with him for over ten years. Our approach is the exact opposite. You can become a qigong teacher on this trip. Most people know that qigong forms are not that hard to learn. They're usually very simple in fact. Qigong is just a series of basic postures and body movements combined with breathing patterns and visualizations to get the qi flowing. The Emei Sudden Enlightenment School's four basic qigong forms are very easy to learn too and are specific to the hand techniques of the qigong therapy application form. That's one of the aspects that makes this healing system so powerful. The four basic forms are easily learned in just a couple of weeks and continual support is given to those that maintain their training and want to grow in the system. We encourage participants to take their training seriously and to use it to help liberate the pain and suffering of their friends, family and communities. Just practicing qigong can treat thousands of illness and qigong therapy can treat thousands more. But to escape the realm of suffering a practitioner must begin to practice qigong. They must practice qigong to strengthen their meditation. They must strengthen their meditation to discover the nature of their mind. They must discover the nature of their mind to escape the wheel of birth and death. They must escape the wheel of birth and death to reach final liberation from the six realms of suffering. Where meditation is the vehicle for enlightenment qigong is the rocket fuel that gets you there quickly and for all of the medical applications Emei qigong therapy is not just a treatment, it is a blessing. From this trip you can become a qigong teacher and open on-going classes. Your students will have ailments you can treat with your qigong therapy and they will become your patients. If you help them they will introduce you to more patients and in turn they will become your students. Isn't this a great way to live your life in the service of others? May you obtain all of the blessings and realizations that qigong, qigong therapy, meditation and the sublime dharma of cultivation has to offer!

The four levels of the Emei System:
1. Level One: Qianneng Empowerment, first introduction to the material reality of qi. Uniting shamatha and vipasana meditation level one, from calm abiding to insight. Buddha's Diamond Palm Training level 1 the Impenetrable Diamond, must be practiced for 100 days before going on to the next level. Emei Heaven & Earth Qigong, opening the gates outer meaning. Finishing set, opening the central channel, opening the third eye, Qi transmission, the Four Great Compassion Palm Techniques, Acupuncture basics and acupuncture qi transmission. Qigong therapy, Complete cycle one massage and celestial hand techniques. Buddhist history, philosophy, refuge, vows, chanting and ritual.

1. Level Two: Qianneng Empowerment, second level of increasing qi realization. Uniting shamatha and vipasana meditation level two, from insight to calm abiding. Buddha's Diamond Palm Training level 2 The Diamond's Great Force, must be practiced for one year before going on to the next level. Emei Heaven & Earth Qigong, Large and Small Qigong, opening the gates inner meaning, visualizations and breathing patterns. Finishing set, opening the central channel, opening the third eye. Thirty Six Celestial Hand Techniques, Qi transmission for qigong therapy and qigong acupuncture. Qigong therapy cycle two acupointing, and celestial hand techniques. Buddhist history, philosophy, refuge, vows, chanting and ritual.

1. Level Three: Qianneng Empowerment, third level of increasing qi realization. Uniting shamatha and vipasana meditation level three, nondual awarness. Buddha's Diamond Palm Training level 3 The Diamond's Ceremonial Protection, must be practiced for one year before going on to the next level. Emei Eighteen Methods Qigong, opening the gates visualizations, breathing patterns and secret meaning. Finishing set, opening the central channel, opening the third eye. Continuation of the Thirty Six Celestial Hand Techniques, Qi transmission for qigong therapy and qigong acupuncture. Qigong therapy cycle three bone alignments using the celestial hand techniques. Buddhist history, philosophy, refuge, vows, chanting and ritual.