“Kai” and “Xin”, these two Chinese characters combined together can be used to describe the feeling of happiness and satisfaction, but the combination is also a phrase which means “open (one’s) heart”. As is known to all, this heart stands for not only a body organ but also human’s wisdom or even the soul or spirit inside the body. So, this namely “Kai Xin Culture” actually provides people an effective way to practice and then gradually discover their wisdom and then reach the ultimate happiness, in other words, being fully awakened.
Cultural scholar Li Yuan opened a front of “Internet + Kai Xin Culture”, established “Kai Xin Physical Exercise Classroom”, published series of works of Kai Xin Culture and created various “Kai Xin Chat Rooms” in various simple and leisure ways online and offline to accelerate the promotion of “Kai Xin Culture” to benefit the people.
Preface
President Xi Jinping pointed out that excellent traditional culture is fundamental to the inheritance and development of a country or a nation and the spiritual lifeblood might be cut if the traditional culture is lost. Indeed, excellent traditional culture which is the soft power of the Chinese nation standing in the east of the world proudly has been providing abundant spiritual nourishment for survival, development and growth. Therefore, excellent traditional culture should be treasured no matter in the past, the present or the future. In this regard, we should be good both at inheriting and creative transformation, rather than copying all of them. What is gratifying is that some cultural scholars with ambition, responsibility, in-depth research and innovation are creatively integrating the ancient with the modern and opening up brand new cultural systems and manners of propagation and operation to impact on the public profoundly. “Kai Xin Culture”, created by cultural scholar Li Yuan, is one of the “vanes” and “new beacons”.
“I’ll seek up and down and will never regret even if I die for it.” This sentence reflects cultural scholar Li Yuan’s firm ambition to research and promote scientific system of “Kai Xin Culture”. As everyone knows, innovation is not easy, which just like thousands of soldiers are crowding on a single plank bridge. Popularization is not easy, which requires gathering the breath of the four seas and forces from all directions.” However, Li Yuan’s innovation has brought the feeling that “happiness is natural while we would get it by chance”. Popularization also simply follows the principle that “the heart wider, the road wider, the heart bigger, the fortune bigger”. Numerous “Kai Xin fans” are attracted by such nature and wistfulness to study and practice.
Now, with accumulation for years, “Kai Xin Culture” has formed solid a theoretical system, effective happy physical exercise methods and impacted on many people in many places like “lotus law”. Particularly, ruling wisdom, self-cultivation and opening wisdom that “Kai Xin Culture” involved in have seized the fundamental that “the nature integrates with the humanity” and “people-oriented” to instruct the people to understand the relationship between “small me” and “big me”, thus insist on positive life values to do more meaningful and valuable things for the society.
At present, Li Yuan has been appointed as the standing director of Ecological Industry Special Committee of the Investment Association of China to benefit mankind and pursue his dream in a higher platform and wider vision.
The Mode of “Kai Xin Chat Room” Is Attractive
When it comes to chatting, everyone is familiar with it. In its definition, it means “talking in a relaxed and casual manner without formality or constraint”. When many people came into contact with Li Yuan and listened to his talks and lectures, no one felt being preached or compelled but can understand a lot of truths from his down-to-earth and homely talks.
On December 24, 2020, the Christmas Eve, Li Yuan made a topic share of “talking about safeness on the Christmas Eve” on an Internet video live platform built by students. “Talking about safeness on the Christmas Eve,” He said, “Nobody likes annoyance. Everybody wishes for peace in global village, but in fact there are such factors of insecurity. The reason is people do not respect some natural and due laws, lack of patience and get impatient. Originally, it would be love between people and nature and between people, but it has been mutual hurt. This means that we need to temper ourselves through struggles and directly face difficulties, march fearlessly against storms and polish the small me to achieve the big me.”
Li Yuan’s opinion on some things is quite unique, which is often “unexpected and reasonable” and “seemingly ordinary but actually peculiar”. For example, the seemingly simple word “chat” (The word for “chat” in Chinese is rather interesting— “talk about the sky/ god/ fortune for the whole world” if taken literally), there is a different sky in his eyes, which is talking about “heaven” and the will of heaven. He would like to guide the people to know the heaven, respect the heaven and follow the nature. In ancient time, there was a saying “heaven and man are united as one”, which indicated the people to respect and trust heaven and follow the balance of yin and yang. In fact, this is to respect nature and the environment we live in. In the world, wars are often triggered by the struggle for power and many instances that green mountains and waters are destroyed by excessive deforestation exploitation without permission. There are also many examples overdrawing the earth resources in order to quicken industrial development. The mankind will inevitably be punished such as bad weather and climate and a variety of invasion of unknown virus once they destroy natural harmony. For this reason, people should restrain their desires and calm down and get a clear understanding of what they should do what they should not do. They should also admit and correct the mistakes they have made rather than repeating and doubling the mistakes.
Many people would ask Li Yuan a seemingly simple question reverently when they are chatting with him, “How to improve personal cultivation?” “Be as much earnest as you can, be as much modest as you can, do as many good deeds as you can.” Li Yuan answered them concisely and comprehensively, “ “The more magnanimous, the more easily one can return to nature; the more broadminded, the less obstacles there will be; the more calm, the less intention to do bad things.” By taking some visual examples such as eating eggs, planting apples and eating Chinese onion, Li Yuan also explained how to face difficulties, concentrate and work hard from which various truths often inspire people with a sense of being enlightened immediately.
Li Yuan said to some retired old people in Shanghai Dahua Welfare House, “Retirement is not only for rest, but also for practice and purifying your experiences in the past. Let go of things that used to trouble you and understand anything what you couldn’t before. In this way, you can live the way you are indeed and set a good example for on-the-job comrades.” After hearing Li Yuan’s talk, some old people said from their hearts, “Anyone in lifetime will inevitably encounter a variety of things. Even after retiring, there would be unwilling of one kind or another. If any of the three big problems, greed, anger and dementia appears in our hearts, our life might be disordered. After listening to Teacher Li Yuan’s explanation I finally know how to see through myself and put myself down and realize to input the rest of my life to pursuing happiness and meaningful things.” “I’ve profited more from what you said than from ten years of reading. The spectators see the chess game better than the players. Some truths seem understood but actually not. Something seemed can be done well but actually not. All of them are occasional. I feel I’ve eventually wakened up my life after listening to Teacher Li Yuan talking about Kai Xin Culture so vividly.”
For years, Li Yuan has ever been to many places such as schools, communities, factories, troops and nursing homes to explain Kai Xin Culture on invitation. He neither needs to prepare teaching materials or lectures nor rehearsal in advance. Whether he tells traditional and realistic stories, or states connotation of Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism, he draws from a wide range of sources and takes materials from nature and represents vividly from which all the audiences are addicted and give him thumb up.
Many people are curious that what experiences made Li Yuan accumulate so much knowledge and cultivation. Actually, it is clear at a glance from a few words he wrote himself. “A junior high school student from Lanshan Town would be almost an ordinary man. He is still engaged in agriculture in a plot of farmland. After trying his best to be enlightened, his wisdom welled up like the bubbling spring. He has been familiar with Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism and has understood the mind and seen the disposition. He created a kind of new culture to benefit sentient beings with happiness. He preaches honestly to make everyone happy. He harmonizes natural beauty so that every family enjoys peace. ”
From a peasant to a respectful cultural scholar, Li Yuan’s experience exactly proved the inspiring aphorism of Mencius, “Anyone can become Yao and Shun.”
Kai Xin Culture, An Ingenious Book
Kai Xin Culture, Li Yuan’s work, published by China Federation of Literary and Art Circles Publishing House, has been published in 16 volumes. Everybody Happy, the work he wrote recently is about to be sent to the press. Additionally, the teaching materials and stories about Kai Xin Culture compiled by his students, a “wisdom library of Kai Xin Culture” will be formed.
When you open series of books Kai Xin Culture, you may find that they are quite exquisite in the aspects of theme refinement, layout and diction with natural and appropriate thoughts, pertinence and readability. Sometimes, poetic style expression gives the feeling of rhythm and aesthetic of reading. For example, it says, “It’s important to live clearly. Everyone wants to be fine truly. Be calm and open in life. Be gentle and patient in temper. Be pleased as meeting anyone. Be magnanimous and happiness appears on the eyebrows. Be happy and leisure at anywhere. Be considerate to others first. Be never worried about the nation or the people. Be always optimistic. Be proud for benefiting the public. If you form good habits, you can be acquired even if you’ve never expected it. By putting doing good deeds in the first place, you will be enlightened naturally.”
Sometimes, faults should be revealed straightly. “If free riding is prevail, it must originate from greed. If your mind is filled with material desire, you might be stupid no matter how powerful you are. Good and evil will be rewarded in the end. Experience happily that god rewards those who work hard.”
Some students’ experiences on contacting Kai Xin Culture are recorded in the book Kai Xin Culture. Some students said that Teacher Li Yuan created a calligraphy form, which is a Chinese character consisting of four strokes, that means “heart” and has been the unique logo of Kai Xin Culture. From the changed shape of the character, we can see four Chinese characters respectively means “diligence”, “mercy”, “caritas” and “flying”, implying four necessary conditions for cause success. To achieve a good cause, we must be diligent. Additionally, we must be merciful and be considerate for the public. Only in this way, we can get our soul flied to make rapid advances in our cause. The implied meaning is very profound and wonderful for words.” Some students said, “The logo is also like a smiling lip facing towards a person, which means we should embrace our life with smiles.” Some students said, “Fragrance will leave in your hands if you present someone a bunch of rose. Teacher Li Yuan has got students here and there, but he never asks for even a cent for his help. His wish is to make everyone happy and make the society harmonious. This shows us the height of a wise man’s mind and the sanctity of his soul.”
The articles were written pertaining to time and the poetries were written pertaining to current events. The book Kai Xin Culture has received a good response from many readers since its publication by showing its unique value and vitality. From a macro point of view, culture is the soft power of a country and a nation. It is the product of the development of things to a certain height and attracts people’s attention. From the specific point of view, culture enriches people’s mind and reflects people’s temperament image and spiritual outlook. Therefore, it has important historical and practical significances to innovate cultural connotation forms and promote the dissemination and infiltration of culture. Kai Xin Culture has been adding brilliance to the field of national culture full of fragrance by arming people with scientific theory, guiding people with correct public voice, shaping people with noble spirit and inspiring people with excellent works.
Some critics pointed that, “China is a country with an ancient civilization and a state of ceremonies. The unique connotation of Chinese culture has amazed the world. The book Kai Xin Culture has been lighting up the history, benefiting the present and integrating the future like a torch of traditional culture. It has also hit the trend to guide people’s world view and values like a flag of modern culture. We praise inheritance of Kai Xin Culture to historical civilization and the contribution to lighting up the new beacon of culture.” “It is affords for thought to learn culture from culture. People are often attracted by various ‘golden sentences” in Kai Xin Culture, which reasons things out or tells stories just like a spring breeze blowing on the face so that the readers are addicted in the world of books naturally to absorb nutrients of knowledge, acquire methods and tips to get a strong heart and a healthy body and learn profound truth of conduct. Now, many people have been ‘mobile phone addicts’ and do not like reading quietly. If they browse Kai Xin Culture, maybe they would read it pleasantly and find enlightenment and a way to overcome their ‘mobile phone addiction.’
Kai Xin Physical Exercise Extremely Funny
When it comes to sports, perhaps the first thing that comes to people’s mind is fierce competition and all kinds of sports equipment. But in the physical exercise methods created by Kai Xin Culture, with simple materials, easy methods and harmony first, many people shout “eye-opening” and “very exciting”!
Generally, when quite a few people get to know Li Yuan, the first hurdle they encounter is “piling up eggs”. Eggs are so round and smooth that can they be piled up like bricks? However, an answer can be found in practice soon for such doubt. With instruction and self-grope, one egg and even two eggs can be piled on an egg really without any adhesive material really. The most essential is that the simple and challenging exercise method attracts people to try for the second time, the third time, the fifth time and the eighth time. The more they pile up, the more confident and happy they are. This is the wonder(magic) of piling up eggs happily.
It is learned that Kai Xin piling eggs is a kind of entry-level attention concentration method. This training is set 1-hour programme and is divided into 5 passes (120, 210, 360, 810 and 1,200) according to times of being steady. “This method is to exercise patience,” said Li Yuan, “if you have no enough willpower and perseverance, you might give up. But who would like to give up willingly? So, as exercise goes ahead, you may improve your patience and perseverance and weaken impatience, irritableness and impetuousness in your mind. Once you improve your willpower, you will not be afraid of difficulties and will be indomitable for doing things and never give up easily with negative emotion. You will be more indomitable, more enthusiastic and more creative in work and life.”
Besides, Kai Xin “Jumping over the Dragon Gate” is very funny too, which requires you to throw a small glass ball into a very small dragon gate hole that is 10 metres away with closing your eyes from the beginning to the end. The one who throws three glass balls into the hole successively is the winner. Li Yuan said that playing glass ball is many people’s happy memory in their childhood. That’s simple joy at that time. Now, the joy is the same, but the rule and purpose are different. If you want to shoot the ball into the hole, you have to stay calm, trust yourself, and then follow your heart, find the right direction, and send the ball out. When you close your eyes, you might be calm and acute in feeling and judgment. When you concentrate on a point, it is easy for you to achieve your goal. This process is to guide you to feel the sense of life such as calm, direction, judgment and goal to apply what you have learned to work and real life.
In Kai Xin Culture Base, Lanshan Town, Suining County, Jiangsu Province, there many small stones that have been sport equipment like artworks after the team of Kai Xin Culture sculpt, punch and polish on them. The stones are used as “small dragon gate” for exercise of drawing out marbles. Different levels and standards are set according to different difficulties and timing requirement of the dragon gate holes. The secret of the exercise is concentration and gentleness. The more difficult, the more haste makes waste.
Li Yuan pointed out that the main purpose of small dragon gate exercise is to break unreliable self-confidence on the surface that was built up based on the outward things and motivate everyone’s deep self-confidence to develop their potential and improve their willpower and endurance by stimulating their sincerity. Anyone who has undergone high-level small dragon gate training has got improved in mentality and temper to a certain extent. After your mentality gets improved, you will be idealized gradually in your life, study, work and conduct.
In addition to the above Kai Xin physical exercise, there are also many sports such as double-patting pig-pong ball with both hands, Kai Xin basketball shooting, patting rugby and Kai Xin pushing table tennis. Kai Xin pushing table tennis is to try your best to help your opponent to prevent the ball from falling down to the ground rather than getting victory for yourself. With such reverse thinking and transpositional consideration, you will learn pay, be ready to help others and be proud of dedication.
Kai Xin push-up is a step-by-step process from non-standard to standard for most people. Through training, we gradually strengthen the backbone and realize that growth needs a process so that we will be calmer and more patient. Through adhering to this training for years, many people not only have changed their state of weakness and lack of self-confidence originally, enhanced their perseverance and strength of character, but also have come to understand that if they want to be an indomitable hero, they must put down themselves first.
Some people have experienced many incredible changes since they came into contact Li Yuan and started to learn about Kai Xin Culture. “I used to be in poor health and have trouble in sleep. I took things too hard. The more I thought, the more uncomfortable I felt. I made spiritless myself. Since I started to exercise Kai Xin piling up eggs under the guidance of Teacher Li Yuan, I got my vision broadened and my heart calmed down. I felt anything that I was annoyed before is nothing. I can sleep soundly after piling up eggs. Moreover, I changed my habit of hunchback by piling up eggs in an upright posture. Formation of some bad habits is owing to unawareness and unconsciousness to ourselves and we have no determination and toughness to correct them.” “The old women in my neighbourhood are all in their 70s. They used to spend their spare time in hospitals or gossiping. Now, they are enthusiastic in piling up eggs and patting balls from which everybody has got self-cultivation to be full of energy. In addition, they have become more considerate and tolerant in dealing with relations with families and neighbourhood.” “My kid used to have poor grades in school, be addicted in playing video games and seldom go out during holidays. Now, he has mastered several Kai Xin physical exercises. So, unexpectedly, he has transferred his purpose and changed his hobby and given up playing video games. Now, he has learned how to master his concentration and studies hard. His grades have improved markedly… ”
Every Pull Together to Light up the Road of Kai Xin Culture to Benefit the People
As early as 2011, China made the Decision on Several Major Issues Concerning Deepening the Reform of Cultural System and Promoting the Great Development and Prosperity of Socialist Culture. The biggest highlight of the decision is the long-term strategy of building a “cultural power”. Some experts said that cultural power will be a very rare historic opportunity for every Chinese enterprise and individual. It is an important part of China’s economic transformation and upgrading and overall improvement of life quality of the Chinese people.
Proposal of the CPC Central Committee on Formulating the 14th Five-Year Plan for National Economic and Social Development and the Prospective Goals for 2035 pays a high attention to cultural construction and definitely proposed to build China into a cultural power by 2035, which is the first time that the CPC Central Committee defined a specific schedule since the proposal of building socialist cultural power on the Sixth Plenary Session of the Seventeenth CPC Central Committee.
Huang Kunming, the minister of Publicity Department of the CPC, pointed out that, “The surge is more rapid when a boat is sailed to the middle of a river. The mountain road is steeper when a man climbs to the half way of a mountain. We need firmer confidence, uniform will, cultural guidance, spiritual support than anytime before.” “Promoting high-quality development, culture is an important supporting point. To satisfy people’s increasing demand of beautiful life, culture is an important factor. To overcome all kinds of risks on the way of advance, culture is an important source of power.”
Li Yuan has gone through 30 years of exploration and popularization since he began to research Kai Xin Culture in 1991. He has known clearly about cultural power and cultural competition in the times of globalization so that he realized that we must have support of culture of innovation. He takes pain and advances with carrying heavy burden like a “pioneer cattle”. He reclaimed a fertile soil with high sky, wide field and green scene in which many people have cultivated and harvested hope, abundant culture and spiritual nutrient. However, for Li Yuan, he would never take Confucian thoughts as a commodity. He would just like to know more about how to be a “Kai Xin messenger” and lead more people to a happier life and how to enable China to be a cultural power with strong steps.
On December 15, 2019, a welfare project seminar on cultural power innovation power innovation path and “Kai Xin Culture” was held in Beijing, which attracted the attention of all sectors of society. The experts and scholars from functional institutions such as education and reform, career planning and training policy instruction, innovation and development of cultural industry, ecological civilization construction promotion, legal construction and supervision of relevant national ministries and commissions carried out in-depth discussions on forward-looking, scientific, pioneering, leading and universal features of Kai Xin Culture. They thought that Kai Xin Culture is expected to lead the development direction of modern culture and health industry, to bring more senses of gain and happiness and to bring a profound change to the society.
Some experts, scholars and public characters offered proposals in succession by submitting reports and proposals to governments at all levels, such as bringing Kai Xin Culture into National Program for the development of Culture and Sports, setting up the research subject of Kai Xin Culture, doing a good job of organization training of “Kai Xin Culture tutors”, introducing Kai Xin Culture into schools, families, communities, institutions, enterprises and diplomatic activities in the whole society, bringing the theories and practices of Kai Xin Culture into regular programmes of educational institutions at all levels and into reference proofs of the assessment and promotion of civil servants and accumulating energies for Kai Xin Culture by pulling together.
Actually, for years, Li Yuan and the team of Kai Xin Culture has never stopped their pace of pursuing their dream whether online of offline. They have ever been to the countryside to help the left-behind elderly, left-behind women and left-behind children, have ever participated in the event of “Incorrupt Government in China”, have established Kai Xin Culture Promotion Office in Incorrupt Government in China to trigger the public consciousness of anti-corruption and benefiting the people, have gone abroad to exchange Kai Xin sports with foreign friends and have shown “Chinese civilization”, “Chinese spirit” and “Chinese creation” with Kai Xin Culture. Also, they have reflected their responsibilities and lofty realm at the same time.
Disclaimer: The views, suggestions, and opinions expressed here are the sole responsibility of the experts. No journalist was involved in the writing and production of this article.