Living in a fast-paced city like Shanghai, most people are under different levels of pressure and find it difficult to maintain their mental and physical well-being. According to a report released by World Health Organization, about 200 to 300 million people in China have mental health problems, primarily depression, anxiety and sleeplessness.

To help city residents find peace of mind in the urban chaos, the third-annual Healing Arts Festival was held at The Market last Sunday. According to organizer Robert Applegate, director of Centre for Spiritual Living Shanghai, healing arts usually refer to methods beyond science, such as spirituality and happiness.

Applegate told the Global Times that this year's event has attracted over 1,000 visitors and 30 vendors, with stalls rented out by qigong teachers, Chinese medicine practitioners, yoga masters and essential oil specialists.

"It is the only time of year that specialists in healing arts in and around Shanghai gather all together in one place," he said.

Participants of the event are primarily devotees of healing arts. Tanya Golitsina from Israel said that she has been practicing spiritual and fitness activities for many years. She believes that activities such as meditation, yoga and qigong have made her a stronger, healthier and happier individual.

"It is very important to develop ourselves on different levels beyond eating, sleeping and walking around. By doing spiritual activities, I felt I have developed my mental and physical status," said Golitsina, adding that by developing spiritually and physically people can face hardships much easier.

Relaxing protocol

Evan Pinto, originally from New York, is a licensed practitioner of traditional Chinese medicine in Shanghai. At the event, he gave free acupuncture herbal remedies to people's ears, attracting dozens to line up until late afternoon. Pinto explained that he was doing a "relaxing protocol" by using band-aids (about 1 square centimeter) with herbal seeds.

"Ears are a micro-system of the whole body. You can treat almost everything just by putting a needle or a seed on the ear," Pinto said. "Three organs, our kidney, liver and lungs, relate with fear, anger and sadness respectively. Herbal remedies can replace these negative feelings with more positive emotions."

Pinto became interested in Chinese traditional medicine after his survival of the 911 terrorist attacks in New York. He used to be a finance teacher, but after the attacks he decided to make his life more positive by working in the healthcare industry. He then attended a medical school and studied Chinese medicine for six years.

Healing artist Ganesh from India is the founder of Just Yoga China. Ganesh told the Global Times that the reason why he came to Shanghai is that he wanted to introduce authentic yoga to Chinese people.

"There is a lot of demand for yoga in Shanghai, but most Chinese and Western yoga studios here give all the wrong notions of yoga. For example, many people have turned yoga into a sport," he scoffed.

Ganesh pointed out that though most people tend to get a fitter and healthier body after practicing yoga, the ultimate goal of yoga should be about happiness and love of one's body and one's life.

"Yoga is a simple technique that helps individuals go inside themselves. It is also about a lifestyle. Every second and every experience in our life is training for us," he added.

Growing interest

Applegate said he has noticed a growing interest in spiritual and healing methods like meditation, yoga, qigong and psychology among residents of Shanghai.

 "China has been developing so quickly and people have had a great opportunity to create wealth and knowledge as well as a good job, a happy marriage and a nice house," he told the Global Times. "But now many people who already have those things are seeking more meaning in their life, and this is why more and more people are becoming interested in the healing arts."

As for where the idea for this unique festival came from, Applegate said that about five years ago Shanghai started to attract many kinds of spiritual teachers who organized classes at their homes or in venues they rented. To cooperate together and connect with the local community, some specialists came up with the idea of creating a fair that enable them to promote healing arts to everybody all at once.

Applegate also said that their healing arts festival, which was organized by Shanghai Awakening, a local grass-roots community dedicated to healthy living, has gained popularity primarily by word of mouth. "We started the first fair just two years ago at Jiashan Market and had around 500 participants. Last year we had about 1,000 people and this year we have even more now that people are talking about it."

Robert Applegate, director of Centre for Spiritual Living Shanghai

 

Healing artist Ganesh from India is the founder of Just Yoga China.

 

Evan Pinto, originally from New York, is a licensed practitioner of traditional Chinese medicine in Shanghai. 

 

The third Healing Arts Festival was held at The Market last Sunday. Photos: Wang Han/GT

 
Newspaper headline: Body & Mind