Tai Chi Qigong

The Internal Foundation of Tai Chi Chuan

Jwing-Ming Yang

• Publisher: YMAA Publication Center
• Year: 2013
• ISBN:
  9781594392702
• Edition: 2
• Topic: Biological Sciences
• Subtopic: Sport & Exercise Science
• Index: Biological Sciences

This revised edition of our best selling beginner Tai Chi Qigong book includes a new and modern easy-to-follow layout. Every qigong movement is presented in 2-4 large photographs with clear instructions, followed by a discussion of how the movements aid in improving Tai Chi practice.

Tai chi chuan is an internal martial art that uses soft/round movements to redirect an opponent's incoming force.

Qigong exercises are an internal method of increasing and circulating your body's energy (qi).

This book teaches tai chi qigong exercises that are useful for improving your tai chi skills and overall health.

IF YOU ALREADY KNOW A TAI CHI FORM, here are a few ways that you will use tai chi qigong to reach new levels of skill and ability.

• To feel qi
• To regulate body, breathing, and intention
• To learn how to use intention to lead qi
• To learn how to circulate qi
• To learn how to expand qi
• To learn how to use qi to energize muscles
• Accelerates the health benefits of tai chi

IF YOU DON'T KNOW TAI CHI, but want to benefit from qigong exercises, here are a few ways tai chi qigong can help you.

• The exercises are short and easy to learn
• They help reduces stress
• They loosens muscles and joints
• They stimulates qi flow
• They can help develop a strong immune system
• They sharpen concentration
• They build a deeper awareness of breath and body coordination

Chapter 1: General Introduction

1.1 Introduction

Qigong (氣功), the study of the energy in the universe, is one of the great cultural achievements that China has contributed to the human race. It was through the study of qi (氣) that the balance between the negative (yin, 陰) and positive (yang, 陽) aspects of the universe was understood. This understanding led to the formulation of the “Natural Way” (Dao, 道) (pronounced “da-oh”), which became one of the guiding principles of Chinese philosophy. This “Dao” has come to be used in explaining not only nature, but also mankind. The Chinese hope that the study of the Dao can demonstrate the way to improve health or even to extend life. This led to the development of Chinese medicine. The circulation of qi in the body was also studied, which became the field of human qigong.

According to Chinese medical theory, the qi or energy body is considered yin (陰), while the physical body is considered yang (陽). Qi cannot be seen, but it can be felt. The yin aspect of your body is related to your thinking, soul, and spirit, while the yang aspect executes and experiences the decisions of the yin. Neither part can survive by itself. They must balance and coordinate with each other so that life can exist. Qi is the source of life, and the actions of the physical body are the manifestation of life. When the yin is strong, the manifestation of yang can also be strong. When yin is weak or too strong, the yin and yang may lose balance and sickness can result. For this reason, Chinese medicine and qigong are primarily concerned with how to maintain the correct balance of yin and yang.

According to many documents, although many other cultures have discovered the circulation of qi, none of them has studied it as deeply as the Chinese. Only since the 1970s has the West begun to accept the concept of qi, equating it with the bioelectricity circulating in the human body. More and more, Western doctors are starting to recognize that abnormal or irregular qi or bioelectric circulation is one of the main causes of physical and mental illnesses. Many Western physicians are sending patients to acupuncturists for an alternative method of treatment for certain diseases that Western medicine has difficulty treating. Some are even encouraging patients to take up qigong or taijiquan as a means of enhancing their health and quality of life.

As a qigong practitioner, you should trace back its history to see how it was developed. Understanding the past makes it possible for you to avoid repeating the mistakes that other people have made. It also helps you to develop an appreciation for the art, which is necessary in pursuing your own study.

For these reasons, we will devote the rest of this chapter to defining qi and qigong and reviewing the history of qigong and taijiquan. We will also introduce the general concepts that are critical in understanding the why and how of your qigong practice. In the second chapter, we will discuss the yin and yang of taijiquan. This will give you an understanding of taiji qigong’s place in Chinese qigong. Finally, in the third chapter we will introduce several sets of taiji qigong exercises.

1.2 The Definition of Qi and Qigong

What is qi? In order to understand qigong, you must first understand what qi is. Qi is the energy or natural force that fills the universe. There are three general types of qi.

The heavens (the sky or universe) have heaven qi (tian qi , 天氣), which is made up of the forces that the heavenly bodies exert on the earth, such as sunshine, moonlight, and the moon’s effect on the tides. The earth has earth qi (di qi , 地氣), which absorbs the heaven qi, and is influenced by it. Mankind has human qi (ren qi, 人氣), which is influenced by the other two. In ancient times, the Chinese believed it was heaven qi that controlled the weather, climate, and natural disasters. When this qi or energy field loses its balance, it strives to rebalance itself. Then the wind must blow, rain must fall, and even tornadoes and hurricanes must happen in order for the heaven qi to reach a new energy balance. Heaven qi also affects human qi, and divination and astrology are attempts to explain this.

Under heaven qi is the earth qi. It is influenced and controlled by the heaven qi. For example, too much rain will force a river to flood or change its path. Without rain, the plants will die. The Chinese believe earth qi is made up of lines and patterns of energy, as well as the earth’s magnetic field and the heat concealed underground. These energies must also balance; otherwise, disasters such as earthquakes will occur. When the qi of the earth is balanced, plants will grow and animals will prosper. Also, each individual person, animal, and plant has its own qi field, which always seeks to be balanced. When any individual life loses its balance, it will sicken, die, and decompose.

You must understand that all natural things, including man, grow within, and are influenced by the natural cycles of heaven qi and earth qi. Since you are part of this nature (Dao, 道), you must understand heaven qi and earth qi. Then you will be able to adjust yourself, when necessary, to fit more smoothly into the natural cycle, and you will learn how to protect yourself from the negative influences in nature. This is the major target of qigong practice.

From this you can see that in order to have a long and healthy life, the first rule is that you must live in harmony with the cycles of nature and avoid and prevent negative influences. The Chinese have researched nature for thousands of years. Some of the information on the patterns and cycles of nature has been recorded in books, one of which is the Book of Changes (Yi Jing, 易經). This book gives the average person formulas to trace when the season will change, when it will snow, when a farmer should plow or harvest. You must remember that nature is always repeating itself. If you observe carefully, you will be able to see many of these routine patterns and cycles caused by rebalancing the qi fields.

For thousands of years the Chinese have researched the interrelationships of all things in nature, especially with regard to human beings. From this experience they have created various qigong exercises to help bring the body’s qi circulation into harmony with nature’s cycles. This helps to avoid illnesses caused by weather or seasonal changes.

The Chinese also discovered that through qigong they were able to strengthen their qi circulation and slow down the degeneration of the body, gaining not only health but also a longer life. The realization that such things were possible greatly spurred new research.

You can see from the preceding discussion that qi is energy, and it is found in the heavens, in the earth, and in every living thing. All of these different types of energy interact with each other and can transform into one another. In China, the word gong (功) is often used instead of gongfu (功夫), which means energy and time. Any study or training that requires a lot of energy and time to learn or to accomplish is called gongfu. The term can be applied to any special skill or study as long as it requires time, energy, and patience. Therefore, the correct definition of qigong is any training or study dealing with qi that takes a long time and a lot of effort.

Qi exists in everything, from the largest to the smallest. Since the range of qi is so vast, the Chinese have divided it into three categories, parallel to the three powers (san cai, 三才) of heaven, earth, and man. Generally speaking, heaven qi is the biggest and the most powerful. This heaven qi contains within it the earth qi, and within this heaven and earth qi lives man, with his own qi. You can see that human qi is part of heaven qi and earth qi. However, since the human beings who research qi are mainly interested in human qi, the term qigong is usually used to refer only to qi training for people.

Qigong research should ideally include heaven qi, earth qi, and human qi. Understanding heaven qi is very difficult, however, and it was especially so in ancient times when the science was just developing. The major rules and principles relating to heaven qi can be found in such books as The Five Elements and Ten Stems (Wuxing [and] Shitiangan, 五行與十天干), Celestial Stems (Shierdizhi, 十二地支), and the Yi Jing (易經).

Many people have become proficient in the study of earth qi. They are called geomancy teachers (di li shi , 地理師) or wind water teachers (feng shui shi , 風水師). These experts use the accumulated body of geomantic knowledge and the Yi Jing to help people make important decisions such as where and how to build a house, or even where to locate a grave. This profession is still quite common in China.

The Chinese people believe that human qi is affected and controlled by heaven qi and earth qi, and that they in fact determine your destiny. Some people specialize in explaining these connections; they are called calculate life teachers (suan ming shi , 算命師), or fortunetellers .

Most qigong research has focused on human qi. Since qi is the source of life, if you understand how qi functions and know how to affect it correctly, you should be able to live a long and healthy life. Many different aspects of human qi have been researched, including acupuncture, acupressure, massage, herbal treatment, meditation, and qigong exercises. The use of acupuncture, acupressure, massage, and herbal treatment to adjust human qi flow has become the root of Chinese medical science. Meditation and moving qigong exercises are widely used by the Chinese people to improve their health or even to cure certain illnesses. Meditation and qigong exercises serve an additional role in that Daoists and Buddhists use them in their spiritual pursuit of enlightenment and Buddhahood.

You can see that the study of any of the aspects of qi should be called qigong. However, since the term is usually used today only in reference to the cultivation of human qi, we will use it only in this narrower sense to avoid confusion.

1.3 A Brief History of Qigong

The history of Chinese qigong can be roughly divided into four periods. We know little about the first period, which is considered to have started when the Book of Changes(Yi Jing) was introduced sometime before 1122 BC and to have extended until the Han dynasty (漢) (206 BC), when Buddhism and its meditation methods migrated from India. This infusion brought qigong practice and meditation into the second period, the religious qigong era. This period lasted until the Liang dynasty (梁) (AD 502–557), when it was discovered that qigong could be used for martial purposes. This was the beginning of the third period, that of martial qigong. Many different martial qigong styles were created based on the theories and principles of Buddhist and Daoist qigong.

This period lasted until the overthrow of the Qing dynasty (清) in 1912, when the new era started in which Chinese qigong training was mixed with qigong practices from India, Japan, and many other countries.

Before Han Dynasty (Before 206 BC)

The Book of Changes (Yi Jing , c. 1122 BC) was probably the first Chinese book related to qi. It introduced the concept of the three natural energies or powers (san cai, 三才): heaven (tian, 天), earth (di, 地), and man (ren, 人). Studying the relationship of these three natural powers was the first step in the development of qigong.

In the Shang dynasty (商) (1766–1122 BC), the Chinese capital was in today’s An Yang in Henan Province (河南安陽). An archaeological dig there at a late Shang dynasty burial ground called Yin Xiu (殷墟) discovered more than 160,000 pieces of turtle shell and animal bone that were covered with written characters. This writing, called Oracle Bone Scripture (Jia Gu Wen, 甲骨文), was the earliest evidence of the Chinese use of the written word. Most of the information recorded was of a religious nature. There was no mention of acupuncture or other medical knowledge, even though it was recorded in the Classic on Disorders (Nei Jing , 內經) that during the re...