Dr. Xu’s studies in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) started in an unusual way. During the Cultural Revolution, he was sent together with other students and scholars, to the rural zones of China. In 1972, he was run over by a farm lorry, fracturing two ribs and causing major damage to his digestive system. Unable to move or eat, he was given pain killers, since the doctors in that area did not know how to treat this case.
The presence in the same area of an old Daoist (Taoist) monk who had also been forced to abandon his temple, the Wan So Temple (The Temple of 10,000 longevities) due to the Cultural Revolution, was of fundamental importance for Dr. Xu. This monk, Yi Chien Liang (whose nickname was “A Flower Facing Heaven”), was the 21st descendant of the Longmen school of Qigong (Dragon Gate Qigong). Yi Chien Liang managed to completely heal him in a relatively short time using Qigong and TCM. After years of study with Yi Chien Liang, Xu Guo Rong became the 22nd descendant of the Longmen school of Qigong.
Dr. Xu continued his studies of TCM at the Shanghai Tuina Center Hospital, which treats patients utilizing Tuina (Manual Therapy) exclusively. He studied the style of Tuina called “Ding Imperial Family” (the Southern School) under the guidance of the head physician, Dr. Wan Ming. This style of Tuina acquired this name because its founder, Dien Fung San, treated the imperial family during the Ming Dynasty. Xu Guo Rong rapidly became Dr. Wan’s best student.
Dr. Xu also worked at the Huang Pu District Central Hospital, where he studied acupuncture and TCM under the head physician, Dr. Lee Yan Fong, who in turn, was the best student of Dr. Lu Shou Yan, considered to be the best acupuncturist in China before the Cultural Revolution. In fact, the majority of texts used today for teaching acupuncture in China were written by students of Dr. Lu.
Over the years, Dr. Xu studied all five of the Tuina styles existing in China today:
- The Buddhist School
- The Daoist School
- The Northern School
- The Southern School
- The Modern School
While respecting all five styles, Dr. Xu garnered the best elements from each, always starting from the basics he acquired from his first teacher, Yi Chen Liang. Dr. Xu presently teaches Tuina in Miami, Florida (U.S.A.) where he also continues to treat patients with TCM.
Dr. Xu is the Honorary President of the Oriental Health Academy. Master Richard Ellis was his first student in Italy and remains his exclusive representative there.