The good feeling derived from laughter can stay with us as______even after the laughter stops.
A. an inner experience
B. a lifelong experience
C. an outward experience
D. a mental reward
Chinese Buddhist Music Catches Audience in HK
中华佛教音乐吸引香港听众
The Hong Kong Cultural Center in Victoria Bay was packed on Thursday night, and loud applause periodically echoed through the neon lit sky. It was not rock music nor was it pop—it was traditional Chinese Buddhist music that made an instant hit in the modern metropolis.
Hong Kong is the fourth leg of the Buddhist music performance tour by a troupe consisting of more than 130 monks from the Chinese mainland and Taiwan. And this is also the first time monks from across the Taiwan Strait had jointly set up a troupe to perform, on global stages.
Crowds of Hong King residents were lining up at the local port waiting to welcome members of the troupe who were sailing in from Macao, where they had just ended another successful performance on Wednesday night.
The monks returned the enthusiasm of the residents with a powerful performance. Almost without sleep, the monks drove to the concert hall preparing the stage and doing the rehearsals.
Buddhist music, which originated from ancient India, found its way into China some 2,000 years ago, and after absorbing elements of traditional Chinese folk music, court music and other religious music, a unique form. which is now called Chinese Buddhist music came into being.
The monks of the troupe come from prestigious Buddhist temples including Fo Guang Shah Temple in Taiwan, Shaolin Temple in central Henan Province, Labrang Temple in northwestern Gansu Province, and General Temple in southwestern Yunnan Province, representing the three branches of Buddhism in China, namely Chinese Buddhism, Tibetan Buddhism and Pali Buddhism.
The wind sweeping across the Victoria Bay was cool, but the atmosphere in the concert hall was hot. The audience was mesmerized by the great variety of genres of Chinese Buddhist music.
"It's great to see so many genres of Chinese Buddhist music performed on the same stage," said a female bank employee surnamed Chang, "It's so fascinating," she said.
Calling it a happy event in Hong Kong, the Venerable Kwok Kuang, president of the Hong Kong Buddhist Association, said that the concert served as a prelude to the display, in Hong Kong on May 26, of a relic from Famen Temple preserved in Xi'an, capital of northwest China's Shaanxi Province.
He said that Buddhism and Buddhist music in the Chinese mainland, Taiwan and Hong Kong had the same roots, and through the performance by monks from across the Taiwan Strait, the traditional religious art would be further developed and bring more happiness to the Chinese.
Co-sponsored by the Chinese Buddhism Association of China and Fo Guang Shan Temple in Taiwan, the troupe was formed in February this year and has since staged four successful performances in Taiwan and Macao, and will move on to Los Angeles and San Francisco in the US and Vancouver of Canada from Friday.
Hailing the joint performance as a major event in the history of Buddhism, Hsin Ting, deputy chief of the troupe and abbot of Fo Guang Shan, said that both the monks and the support staff had been working together very harmoniously ever since the formation of the troupe, indicating their inherited strong ties.
"I hope the troupe's tour to North America will help the world community better understand Chinese traditional culture, especially the harmonious relationships among the people across the Taiwan Strait," he said.
How was the Chinese Buddhist music troupe received in Hong Kong?
A. It was welcomed like any other rock or pop music bands.
B. It was not as welcome as rock or pop music bands.
C. It was so welcome that it would visit Hong Kong for the fourth time.
D. It caused a great sensation among the local people.
Bringing More Humor and Laughter into Our Lives
在生活中带进更多的幽默和笑声
The sound of roaring laughter is far more contagious than any cough, sniffle, or sneeze. Humor and laughter can cause a domino effect of joy and amusement, as well as set off a number of positive physical effects. Humor and laughter strengthen our immune systems and help us recover from illness, as well as bring joy into our lives. The question is: how do we gain access to this priceless medicine?
A good hearty laugh can help
reduce stress
lower blood pressure
elevate mood
boost immune system
improve brain functioning
protect the heart
connect you to others
foster instant relaxation
make you feel good
Humor is a powerful emotional medicine that can lower stress, dissolve anger and unite families in troubled times. Mood is elevated by striving to find humor in difficult and frustrating situations. Laugh at yourselves and the situation helps reveal that small things are not the earth- shaking events they sometimes seem to be. Looking at a problem from a different perspective can make it seem less formidable and provide opportunities for greater objectivity and insight. Humor also helps us avoid loneliness by connecting with others who are attracted to genuine cheerfulness. And the good feeling that we get when we laugh can remain with us as an internal experience even after the laughter subsides.
Mental health professionals point out that humor can also teach perspective by helping patients to see reality rather than the distortion that supports their distress. Humor shifts the ways in which we think, and distress is greatly associated with the way we think. It is not situations that generate our stress, but it is the meaning we place on the situations. Humor adjusts the meaning of an event so that it is not so overwhelming.
Here are some additional things we can do to improve our mood, enjoyment of life and mental health.
Attempt to laugh at situations rather than bemoan them—this helps improve our disposition and the disposition of those around us.
Use cathartic laughter to release pent-up feelings of anger and frustration in socially acceptable ways.
Laugh as a means of reducing tension because laughter is often followed by a state of relaxation.
Lower anxiety by visualizing a humorous situation to replace the view of an anxiety-producing situation
Our work, marriage and family all need humor, celebrations, play and ritual as much as record-keeping and problem-solving. We should ask the questions "Do we laugh together?" as well as "Can we get through this hardship together?" Humor binds us together, lightens our burdens and helps us keep things in perspective. One of the things that saps our energy is the time, focus and effort we put into coping with life's problems including each other's limitations. Our families, our friends and our neighbors are not perfect and neither are our marriages, our kids or our in-laws. When we laugh together, it can bind us closer together instead of pulling us apart.
Remember that even in the most difficult of times, a laugh, or even simply a smile, can go a long way in helping us feel better.
Laughter is a birthright, a natural part of life. The part of the brain that connects to and facilitates laughter is among the first parts of the nervous system to come on line after birth. Infants begin smiling during the first weeks of life and laugh out loud within months of being born. Even if you did not grow up in a household where laughter was a common sound, you can learn to laugh at any stage of life.
Which of the following isn't
A. a contagious physical function
B. a domino effect
C. an immune system
D. a medicine