Excellence Reporter: Chris, what is the meaning of life?

Chris Shelton: Two words sums up the meaning of life: Love and Acceptance.

I believe that Love is all there is, and that Love heals. I’m not just talking about romantic love but Universal Love. The type of Love that has no opposite. The type of Love that heals and transforms.

We find peace through acceptance (non-resistance) when we allow the events of life to unfold easily and naturally. Acceptance is a state of allowing, loving, believing. An overriding belief that All is Well and that life is happening for us and not to us.

Most people think that acceptance means giving up, being weak or passive, not showing up or quitting when the going gets tough. Quite the contrary. Living from a place of acceptance demonstrates great inner strength. It’s a powerful act of letting go of control… and we love to feel in control. We’ve been taught that if we are in control and command of our lives, we are safe, secure and comfortable. But control demands control over others and that’s where madness and fear can overshadow Love and Acceptance.

Without Acceptance, we miss opportunities to transform situations into outcomes that benefit all of us. When illness and dis-ease enter, we are especially susceptible to the trickery of shadow. Fear always invites us to get stuck and stay stuck in rigid mind patterns that distort Love and Acceptance.

Pain and suffering is the great equalizer and great teacher. Suffering always asks: Who are you?

There was a time in my life when I felt tremendous anger towards what I perceived as the unfairness of life. I felt victimized by an accident that left me partially paralyzed. A childhood that wasn’t perfect. A marriage that didn’t work out. Looking back, I feel such Love and gratitude for that fearful young man. Pain and suffering was the great alchemist because once everything was burned away, I had the inner space and quiet to study Qigong, Chinese Medicine and Taoist philosophy. These traditions showed me what life could look like when I approached life with an open heart rather than a closed mind and clenched fist.

Qigong taught me Love and Acceptance.

I believe part of our destiny as humans is to learn, transform and evolve. Many of us believe that our fate is written in stone or spiraled into our DNA. I’m here to say that’s not correct thinking. From misfortune and heartache comes the potential for deep, everlasting awakening that can change your fate/destiny/life path. When we learn from our experiences, we gain wisdom. We become kinder and wiser.

As we honor our divine nature, we access greater sources of Love and Acceptance, and the feeling that All is Well. My life is deeper and more meaningful when I make the conscious choice to see everything – and everyone – as independent from the low-energy labels of good, bad, right, wrong.

Everything just is. Approaching life with Love and Acceptance make that truth easier to live and blesses us with a life that’s joyful and hopeful, too.

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~Chris Shelton is a certified practitioner and teacher with 15 years of clinical experience in Qigong, an ancient holistic health modality that combines traditional Chinese medicine with movement, breath and visualization. He’s helped thousands of people across the United States and around the world reclaim their health and enjoy lives free from chronic pain. Chris has worked with Special Olympics teams, professional martial artists, weight lifters and celebrities looking for deeper meaning in their lives. Chris’ belief in the healing powers of Qigong is rooted in first-hand experience. As a teenager he suffered from a devastating back injury that left him in constant pain and partially paralyzed. He attributes his full recovery to Qigong, a holistic approach perfect for people who want non-invasive, affordable and empowering healthcare. Chris’ work has appeared in newspapers and magazines and been featured on radio and television. He is founder of Morning Crane Healing Arts Center in San Jose, California, and the author of Qigong for Self-Refinement and host of YouTube series 30 Days Qigong to Better Health. Chris is often found chasing after his favorite herd of turtles: his wife, four kids and one grandkid.
www.SheltonQiGong.com

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