What is Qigong?
It occurred to me today that although I have made frequent mention of Qigong in articles, I’ve never really discussed the nature of this important pillar of Chinese medicine practice. I guess it’s one of those situations where you don’t know what others don’t know and so fail to explain things! Qigong has become such a normal part of my life that I forget that many people don’t know about it!
I am in no position to provide an even incomplete history of Qigong, nor am I knowledgeable enough to provide a complete description! The best I can do is offer a brief explanation and my observations - I hope it is useful. I’d be happy to hear about your experiences with Qigong in the comments.
Basic Explanation through Chinese character etymology
Many people start their explanations of Qigong with a comparison to Taiji (also known as Tai Chi). While this comparison is certainly useful, I’d rather start with a little etymology. Qi Gong : 氣功 is made up of two important characters. The first, Qi 氣 is ubiquitous in Chinese medicine texts, but has a wide variety of interpretations that have sometimes been the subject of controversy. Most dictionaries list Qi as having the following set of meanings: air, vapor, energy, vital energy and spirit. The character is composed of two portions, the uppermost 气 a picture of steam rising or simply air moving. The bottom portion of the character, 米 is a picture of rice. So many interpretations suggest that the first understanding of Qi developed from this idea of vapor rising from something cooking. What does this mean? For me it evokes the multiple meanings of Qi. Qi is nourishment, but it also has ethereal qualities - it is vaporous, but not simply air, but air with something IN IT. Palpable air. It is moving and warm. It is in an “in between” state between fully material and fully etheric.
Gong, the other half of the term Qi Gong, is a very simple character but is likewise full of meaning. It is composed of two portions, the leftmost being 工 which is often simply translated as work or labor. Some sources suggest that it is a picture of a tool used to flatten earth. The right portion of the character 力 is usually translated as strength and is a picture of an arm doing something that uses muscle. So Gong as a total character refers to work that involves strength, or work that creates strength. Put together, Qi Gong simply means work using and/or creating strength that involves the Qi. You could think of this as work with Qi, so to manipulate and strengthen the Qi but there are certainly other interpretations possible.
How Qigong is practiced
Just as with other martial arts, Qigong has many many schools. I don’t know the exact number, but one of our professors suggested that there are many thousands of schools of Qigong in China. Some of these may be practiced only by one family, passed along from generation to generation. Others are published in books and DVDs! Originally, as with most martial arts, Qigong knowledge was passed from Master to Student and often involved an element of secrecy. Qigong has been and can be used for a variety of purposes from increasing longevity to dispelling particular elements of disease to simply exercising the body for general health purposes. As with many martial arts, the packaging and distribution for mass consumption almost always removes many elements that make it most effective.
For this reason, if you are interested in Qigong, I suggest you search carefully and find a Master who you can study with in person. Find out from the teacher or other students the nature of the Master’s background and their connection to the lineage they are teaching. Qigong practitioners can vary widely in personality and temperament, but you should feel comfortable with the instructor and the form they are teaching.
There are forms of Qigong that are quite strongly moving and will give you a workout. On the other hand, there are sitting forms of Qigong that focus on internal movement and meditation. The lineage that I am privileged to learn has the full range of sitting, standing and moving forms. Qigong seems to almost always involve the intentional opening and moving of Qi in the acupuncture channels. This may involve stretching, striking of the channels with the hand, shaking or even simply internal focus on the movement of energy through the channels. Qigong is also often a very balanced activity. If you do quite strong motions they will often be followed by something quieter. If you do a lot of activity with the upper body it will often be followed by a lower body focus. You get the idea…
My experience with Qigong has been wonderful. I have done quite a bit of Yoga and Taiji in my life, but didn’t do Qigong until I came to NCNM. While I still enjoy both Yoga and Taiji, nothing has been as wholly positive as Qigong. I find it really helps to keep my energy flowing, boosts my productivity and serves as a convenient vehicle for me to do my daily meditation. I am quite fortunate to have access to the very special form I have access to - but I know that others have had great success with other more widely available forms. I hope this brief introduction will encourage you to seek out a Qigong practitioner in your area. If you have any questions, suggestions or personal stories please do contribute to the conversation in the comments - no registration is necessary.
Edit: If you cannot find a Qigong class near you that you are interested in - you can consider learning from DVD. It’s not ideal, clearly, but I do know of one great product: Master Wu’s 5 Elements Qigong DVD. This incredible man is a true master and used to teach at NCNM. Check it out.
Eric
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Tags: Acupuncture, Character, chinese-medicine, classical-chinese-medicine, deep-breathing, erics-habits, etymology, Personal Development, QiGong, stress, studentsRelated posts
How to use the five elements to eliminate overwhelming stress
You may have noticed that I haven’t been producing much content these past few days. It haunts me, really, because my greatest hope is that this blog will develop into a great community for the exploration of Chinese medicine. It is a labor of love and I’ve worked hard and hope that everyone has enjoyed the results so far.
But there’s more to my life than blogging. Shocking, I know. During the summer, when the external demands on my time were small, it was very easy to produce lots of high quality content. I believe that this is still quite possible - despite the rather heavy load of work school and the resumption of my various non-academic school duties (student government, etc) bring me. So, what’s the hold up?
No matter how well prepared you are for a change, it inevitably shakes you. In this particular case, the intense workload has begun to produce a condition of overwhelm that has made me quite numb. I know I’m not the only one - my fellow classmates have experienced something similar. So, instead of freaking out I’ve decided to take charge of the situation and find a solution to this crippling sensation. Here’s five things - one for each of the elemental phases - I’m doing to rectify my balance.
1. Fire - Laugh and have fun with the people you love
Fire has a lot to do with our ability to experience joy and ease, as well as our connections with other human beings. In overwhelming situations, we often let all of this perish. When I’m stressed, I find myself frowning more, getting angry with those close to me and neglecting my need to just relax and have a good time. It’s vital for me to remember that while the work I’m doing is very important, it’s even more important that I stay balanced and connected to my friends and family.
To this end: take your significant other out on a surprise date, watch a comedy (like Kung Fu Hustle!), invite your friends over for a potluck meal, dance to your favorite song in the living room, take your dog on the longest walk ever, laugh every time a new piece of work rolls in, call your mom and tell her that you love her.
2. Earth - Nourish your body
Possibly the most important thing you can do in a period of increased stress is to take care of your physical body. Particularly when a lot of your work is mental, you can quickly burn away any resistance to disease you may have had along with disordering your emotional states. DO NOT NEGLECT REGULAR MEALS OF A NOURISHING NATURE. For me, this is the first thing to go. I eat on the run, I stop paying attention to what I eat, sometimes I simply forget to eat altogether. So bad.
To this end: sit down right now and plan out a whole week’s worth of meals then go buy the ingredients, if you have extra time cook a bunch of meals ahead of time and freeze them, make extra certain to eat your meals at regular times and sitting down, splurge a little and buy your favorite foods so you’ll be more inclined to enjoy eating. Also - drink a lot of Pu-Erh.
3. Metal - Cut out unnecessary activity and get organized
Metal is all about cutting things away, paring down, getting ready for the time of difficulty in the Winter. It’s so easy to add things to your plate most of the time, and so difficult to clear them. Use the easy availability of Metal energy here in the autumn to take a calculating look at your list of “to-do’s.” If you can delegate something to someone else, do it. If you can drop something, drop it. If you can delay something until a later time, do that. When you have the list of “have to’s” get them organized. When are your deadlines? When will you have time to work on it? Prioritize! There are of course a hundred ways to deal with these big issues - I use Getting Things Done
4. Water - Cultivate, cultivate, cultivate
Right behind eating well, the second thing to go when I get overwhelmed is my self-cultivation. I think it is utterly vital to force yourself to take care of your spiritual health in stressful situations. I would even suggest doing this if it means losing sleep. I know, crazy. Deepening into the water element will allow you access stores of energy and inspiration you didn’t know you had. It will also help replenish your depleted stores and help you to remember why you’re doing all this crazy stuff in the first place.
To this end, I: throw the Yijing daily, spend half an hour or so in the morning drinking tea outside and contemplating, step up my meditation practice, do a little QiGong every day and focus on the subtle things around me like the calls of birds and the rustle of leaves. Do whatever works for you, but for the love of God, do it. I promise you it will help.
5. Wood - Get out in nature
This doesn’t necessarily relate to the Wood elemental phase on a metaphorical level, but it does on a more basic level. Even though it’s autumn where I am, the evidence of Wood energy is everywhere. In Oregon, things never stop growing. Refreshing myself with the boundless energy of nature helps remind me that while I may feel pretty depleted, there’s a whole world out there just conspiring to fill me full of hope, purpose and drive.
To this end: go for a walk at twilight or dawn, go for a hike in your nearest natural area, hang out by the river, play frisbee in the park, lie on the ground with your bare feet contacting the Earth and just….
breathe.
Got it?
Eric
Tags: Blogging, erics-habits, habits, Home remedies, lifestyle-counseling, nutrition, overwhelm, stress, studentsRelated posts
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