Yangsheng
2 min readYangsheng refers to the improvement of health and prolonging of life through the proper ways of caring for and nurturing one’s body and mind.The goal is to prolong life and enjoy good health.According to Dao De Jing（the representative book of Taoism），those who are good at yangsheng know how to avoid things that are harmful to the body and mind.They know how to gain health through the right diet and healthy lifestyle，meaning they can live longer and healthier than most people，as diseases and ill health will not affect them.
When one is free of diseases，it is easy to delay aging and prolong life past the average lifespan.So the goal of yangsheng is to ward off diseases，delay aging，prolong life，and ensure a healthy，happy，and high-quality life.
Specific Measures of yangsheng
The first，primary step is the cultivation of one’s moral attitude，which is the prerequisite condition of health and longevity.
Taoism has established many disciplines that enphasize virtues such as kindness，loyalty，love，friendliness，mercy，and sympathy，as well as attempts to help others，and influencing others through one’s own actions.Such practices help benefit both the individual and the society，and those who practice them usually enjoy a happy，long life without having to consciously seek longevity.
The second step is to incorporate regular，consistent physical exercise into our lifestyle.Those who have diseases need to exercise to get better，while those who are free of diseases need to exercise for prevention，because physical exercise can strengthen the body，iprove the mind，stiulate digestion，increase circulation，and build up immnity.
The third measure is about mental，emotional，and psychological health.yangsheng requires us to foster a healthy mental and emotional stability that is free from mental extremes，psychological upheavals，and emotional outbursts.From the perspective of TCM，anger harms the liver，sorrow harms the lungs，and over-excitement harms the heart.
The fourth measure of yangsheng is a healthy, balanced diet. For thousands of years,a healthy diet has been considered as the crucial approach to longevity, and iproper eating habits and an unbalanced diet were a source of most health problems. Taoism has established a tradition of a basically vegetarian diet with simple, balanced flavors, without alcohol consumption or cigarette smoking.
The fifth step to health is prevention. Prevention is a major approach to health and longevity. With regular exercises, with the correct use of natural herbal remedies and food therapies, and other healthful practices, each person can achieve the goal of preventing diseases, thus prolonging his or her life.
