What is Qi Gong?
…..and begin practising today!
The guiding principle of Qi Gong is the coordination of the breath, eyes and body movements.
The Rosewell Centre is all about celebrating health and wellbeing from a holistic perspective. Taking the time to rejuvenate and restore, to heal and elevate life. Our team aims to help you discover your energy, frequency and vibration within a community space that is welcoming for all.
As part of this ethos, Sue Hix, founder and director of the Rosewell Centre, is focusing on Qi Gong this autumn. Sue has been practicing and teaching Qi Gong in the Stamford area for many years, and over the decades she has encountered a good number of people looking for a ‘quick fix. This is especially true when the work challenges them to face some content in their shadows. We all have shadows, but do we have the patience and perseverance to shine light on those deeply buried beliefs? Luckily, Sue is here to help, but she cannot do the work for you. What she can do, is point you in the right direction, to share her experience, knowledge and to inspire you to help yourself. So, if you want to change your life and activate your intrinsic healing power, read on to find out more… and begin practising today!
What is Qi Gong?
The literal translation of Qi Gong is “energy work.” It is an Asian form of yoga and like yoga, it has been practised for thousands of years. One of our Qi Gong students describes Qi Gong as a mix of gentle yoga and Tai Chi. Qi Gong has come from hundreds of varied lineages, the majority of which focus on health benefits for the 21st century. Mostly it is performed in a standing position, but there are seated sets as well.
Essentially it is a powerful system that teaches you how to move energy and feel the vibrations internally, making use of traditional Oriental healing and acupoints. Physically, the slow gentle movements of Qi Gong warm the tendons, ligaments and muscles, through vibrations thereby tonifying the organs and connective tissues and promoting the circulation of the body’s fluids.
Being one of the oldest holistic forms of treatment for physical and mental health, modern studies have shown Qi Gong to be effective in helping to heal life challenges ranging from mental stress, emotional frustration to chronic illness and high blood pressure. Regular practise empowers you to be the orchestrator of your own health and wellbeing.
How is Qi Gong Practised?
The practise of Qi Gong acts to harness willpower, to focus, and to help channel energy through the palms of the hands. Some Qi Gong systems are focused on spiritual cultivation and depth of meditation, others focus on moving the body, while others are visualisation based. Almost all Qi Gong systems involve specialised breathing, which is coordinated with the activity at hand. The guiding principle of all these practices is the coordination of the eyes with the body movements, the focus of the mind and the breath. If practising less movement exercises, then the focus is the vision inward, exploring the inner realms as the breath is guided to various inner chambers.
Sue pays particular attention to biodynamics and body alignment looking at movement and working out the detail of how to strengthen joints or muscles with the least amount of force. In Sue’s classes you will learn the six healing sounds which is a subtle breath work that enhances the organ functions. Advancing practioners will learn Ba Duan Jin
Let’s now break it down a bit more, in Qi Gong, we are looking for the coordination of all (not just a couple) of the following to take place in order for practise to be effective:
The Eyes in Qi Gong
In Western culture, the eyes are considered the window to the soul and, in Taoist theory, the eyes are believed to guide the shen (spirit). It is said that the qi (energy) follows the shen and the blood and body fluids, in turn, follow the qi.
Therefore, the eyes are the “command centre” for the spirit to control and guide the movement of the energy in the body. This system can also be used to direct energies outside of the body to bring about healing and exert our influence on the environment around us.
Mental Focus in Qi Gong
Mental focus is a key component of Qi Gong practice, as it is in any energy work, by engaging the fire energy of the heart and tying the spirit in with the actions at hand. Here, focus is on the action at hand and, to remain engaged in the body movements, we track them with the eyes. This demands our mental focus and presence. As the Ancients say, the linking of attention and intention creates mastery in life. This aspect also draws on the yi, or shen, of the earth element.
Body Movements in Qi Gong
These are the sequenced body movements of Qi Gong exercise and many follow the pathways of the energy meridians. The simplest definition of a meridian is an energetic highway in the body – and as such allow for the flow of energy to circulate throughout the body. Meridians exist in corresponding pairs and each meridian has multiple acupuncture points along the pathway. They may also trace the outer edges of our energy fields, caressing and smoothing the potency of the energy flow in our Light Body. These movements involve various degrees of exertion which, depending on the system you are training in, can be quite rigorous.
Breath in Qi Gong
The vital breath circulates through the various meridians, and it is the energy from the air that mixes with the food qi to create the functional energy of our body. The coordination of breath with attention and body movements drives energy through the designated pathways and opens blockages. We use breath, not only to open these pathways, but to gather and store the breath and energy in specific reservoirs (called dantiens) within the body. With increased practise, you will learn to extract vital energy from the air through breathwork.
Progressing with Qi Gong
This framework sets the basis for all of the benefits of Qi Gong to occur. There is more to learn and master with specific movements and to develop a deeper understanding of the energy pathways and how they affect us, but reaching and incorporating this level of focus, coordinated thought and breathing into your day-to-day life will really bring about improvements in your health and wellbeing.
To progress your practise, learning more about these pathways/meridians, and their mechanisms of action, involves engaging the intellect (yi) and the attention (shen) with the intention (zhi). Once this ‘vertical axis’ of fire, earth and water has been activated, you will unlock the first elements of your immense potential.
This vertical axis provides the spiritual and mental alignment that is required to connect all aspects of being into our body whilst in practice. Then, various aspects of ourselves can become connected and break us out of our trance of false beliefs. Once the flow of energy is corrected and diverted away from wasteful patterns of the past, it becomes possible to begin to gather and accumulate power in our reservoir and to use this as a buffer against fatigue, disease, ailments or simply falling back into a sleepy trance. When we refer to the accumulation of power or storing energy, we are really referring to creating places where we condense and refine the quality of the energy that moves through us. In other words, we condense the energy to nourish our essence, and refine it to illuminate our spirit and clarify our connection to the Divine.
It is important, however, not think of this in purely transactional terms. We do not need more energy, because there is unlimited energy available to us and all the power that ever was, or ever will be, is here and now.
We need to instead realise where energy is from. There is no external source from which we draw energy, the entire force of the universe is flowing through us at all times and in all places. Consequently, it is the resistance or blockages we create to the free flow of energy that makes us feel a sense of lack by channeling much of this energy subconsciously to our shadow; we simply close our minds to the limitless flow of energy because it is at odds with our ego’s definition of ourselves. An analogy might be keeping one foot on the brake and the other on the accelerator and then wondering why we feel constantly exhausted.
The objective of Qi Gong must not be thought of as an accumulating process. The more we can get out of our own way, the more we can let the universal flow of energy move through us, becoming an agent of its goodwill, taking our rightful place in eternity. But not in some far-off heaven – here and now – Qi Gong helps us wake up to the living, breathing moment in which we can finally take part!
A key aspect in our “getting out of our way” is reconciling the stuck energies in the “horizontal axis” like frustration, grief, shame or anger. The horizontal soul axis of emotions and held beliefs is closely involved in the rise and fall of our emotional and mental lives; tied to the cycle of life and all the trials and tribulations of the soul. Therefore, it is essential not be deferential about this and to engage in the process of reconciling imbalances on this axis.
It is often at this point in the process that many people can get stuck because the majority of the repressed charge is stored in the shadows, which we habitually refuse to look at. Our desire to accumulate (wood) and our reluctance to let go (metal) lead to clinging and suffering. By playing this game, we become unbalanced and unintentionally pour more and more energy into creating these ‘imps’! To be fair, most of us learn this game from childhood experiences and it takes a courageous leap to reflect a higher vibration.
In Chinese medicine, courage comes from the lungs which are represented by metal and descends energy naturally. Harmonious cooperation manifests from the liver and represents positive wood energy, which naturally rises. The lungs sit above the liver in dynamic tension maintaining this energetic flow that is the essence of life. Upon death, the shen of the liver (hun) ascends to heaven and the shen of the lungs (po) descends into the earth. Our awareness keeps the dynamic tension, otherwise, they separate, and we perish.
Bringing harmony to the flow of the horizontal axis is what sustains a smooth running life and plugs us into the power of the vertical axis. The proper alignment of attention and intention requires a healthy understanding of the human condition – far from running from it – we are aware, engaged and awake moment by moment.
So, if you want to change your life and activate your intrinsic healing power, Sue runs regular courses and practice at the Rosewell Centre as well as working in partnership with other energy and healing experts. Click here to find out more.
0 Comments