Health Qigong

What is Qigong?

 

'Qi' (pronounced 'Chi') means life force energy or the Universal energy within oneself. 'Gong' means work or play. Put ‘Qi’ and ‘Gong’ together, as in ‘Qigong’ literally means to cultivate the skill of managing your personal energy.

 

When we practice Qigong, it affects the harmony, balance and functionality of the Qi. We're essentially doing a series of integrated practices in 4 dimensions:

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• Body – postural adjustments and gentle movement

• Breath  – modifying the pace and depth of the breath

• Mind – meditation, mindfulness, self-awareness, and present moment focusing

• Self-applied massage – pressing, stroking, holding, tapping and Qi massage

 

Research tells us that these practices help:

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• Boost the function of the immune system 

• ​Enhance the delivery of oxygen and nutrition to the cells

• Shift the autonomic nervous system balance in favour of the vagal or parasympathetic system associated with rest, recovery, regeneration, and rehabilitation

 

Repeating breath and movement together is a powerful formula for activating Qi – activating the medicine within, its functional capacity.

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Humans exist on the plane between Heaven and Earth. Qigong also works to gather and harmonise the flow of the polar energies of:

 

• yang, relating to the heavens and immaterial light

• yin, relating to earth and dense material existence

 

There are three main schools of Qigong:

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• Medical – aids to prevent and reverse disease

• Spiritual – aids to grow shen or spirit body

• Martial Arts Qigong, including Tai Chi – aids to develop physical prowess and defensive skills

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A life nourishing practice

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I practice Daoyin Yangsheng Gong, the original and oldest movement and mindfulness system practised by the Daoist masters on mount Wudang in China.

 

Qigong was later developed as part of Buddhist, Daoist and Confucian practices and only really became widely known and practised in the western hemisphere about 60 years ago.

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Daoyin Yangsheng Gong is a life nourishing healing system. It's characterised by gentle twisting motions, breath control, self-massage to stimulate acupressure points, meditation and visualisation.

 

Some exercises are designed to soften the body and develop flexibility. Others, such as the Wudang 5 Animals, relate directly to specific organs and the 5 elements theory as used through Eastern medicine and culture . While others have a more general effect on health, such as stress relief and stress prevention.

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Daoyin Yangsheng Gong is designed to work on 3 levels:

 

• Prevention – it can be used for health maintenance, to improve vitality and prevent disease by keeping the immune system strong

• Treatment – it can be used directly as a primary or adjunctive treatment for chronic disease or certain acute conditions 

• Recovery – it can be used as a recuperative therapy for those in a recovery phase

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Exercises can be practised as seated or standing forms making it accessible to people of all ages and abilities.