Methods and tips for getting the most out of qigong practice for healing are described. Reviews of scientific studies, books and videos are also included to evaluate their usefulness for healing practice.
A needlepoint from Wikimedia, CC-BY-SA 3.0. Author Van Aldenhaag.
It may seem funny-odd, but both qigong and needlepoint are high on the scale of things that can help people have what are called "break-out" experiences that are characteristic of the enlightenment experience. According to the book,"The Breakout Principle" by Herbert Benson and William Proctor, people need something that gets them into the zone that allows releases and peak experiences to occur.
These practices can include very ordinary things like folding the laundry, fishing, music and drumming. Ritual practices like routine prayers and chants also fit the bill for having the potential to elevate one towards a breakout experience. And obviously, meditation and yoga are on this list.
We can thus get into the "zone" that allows greater self-awareness by a variety of practices. However, what is advantageous to using qigong dissolving meditations is that it skips one of the four parts of the process that leads to a new awareness as outlined by Benson and Proctor. By practicing "letting go" or dissolving you condition yourself to have physical, emotional and spiritual releases.
If you aren't aware of how Taoist dissolving meditation is done, read one of B. K. Frantzis' books like "Relaxing Into Your Being." This introduction discusses the background information and it has exercises you can do to progressively become familiar with this method of conditioning yourself to release, become more self-aware and conscious and to be a more of a being of light.
I am reading the Secret of the Golden Flower as translated by Thomas Cleary. In chapter two, where original spirit and conscious spirit are discussed, there is the statement, "If learners can just preserve the original spirit, they live transcendentally outside of yin and yang. They are not within the three realms."
So what are the three realms? There are actually three different layers of these realms. The lower realm, what the Secret refers to, consists of people, events and things. Transcending this ordinary state of being occurs when one is able to see essence, or the original face. Transcendence of thought allows viewing the original face.
The middle realm is that of humanity, earth and heaven. Humanity is interposed between these entities which provide it with sustenance and inspiration. Becoming at one with these energies by clearing out our earthly vessel helps us become more healthy and allows us to consciously evolve. Qigong exercises and meditation lead one down this path.
In the upper realms, time, universe and space, the self is not separate from anything. Achieving this stage may require years of dedicated practice; and, sages who attain this level of consciousnesses are actually able to integrate the lower, middle and upper realms. This is the goal, not superseding one's earthly existence, but rather integrating all levels with one's corporeal being.
The cycles of yin and yang manifest within and outside
the body according to Traditional Chinese medicine theory.Physical, psychological and spiritual health are
affected by the external cycles: the seasons, the time of day and lunar cycles.
The effects of these external cycles can be minimized by the Taoist practices
of TCM and qigong, methods that help one maintain internal equilibrium.These practices help clean and nurture the
inside of the body to prevent the accumulation of toxic chi that causes
imbalance and disease.Mentioned below
are TCM dietary practices and qigong exercises that help maintain the body’s
essential jing energy during these cycles.
The Effects of Seasons and Daily Cycles
Each of the seasons affects different areas of the body: in
spring, the liver; in summer, the heart, in fall, the lungs and sinuses and in
winter, the kidneys. This cycle is show in the figure to the right that illustrates the five element theory of TCM. The elements, beginning with the liver and ending with the kidneys are wood, fire, earth, metal and water, respectively. There outer cycle shows the nurturing cycle, while the dotted lines inside represent insulting cycles.
Daily cycles. There is a daily
cycle that affects each of these internal yin organs as well. The peak times are liver (1-3 am), lungs (3-5 am), spleen ( 9-11 am), heart (11 am to 1 pm) and kidneys (5-7 pm).Yang energy peaks at noon and yin peaks at
midnight. See this complex pie chart diagram for more information.
Lunar Cycles and Their Effects
Lunar cycles also affect us as well. According a Taoist master, Madame Liu He, on the third day of the
new moon, good moods prevail and it is generally a good time to start new
projects.When the moon is on the eighth
day, half yin and yang, it can cause increased nervousness and excess energy
that may manifest as anger.At 15 days,
or the full moon, too much yang energy can cause loss of sleep and excitement.During this time, it is not recommended to eat
too much or to have surgery; it is also said that you can take half the amount
of medications during a full moon because it increases their effects. But, consult your doctor on this piece of advice!
On the waning side of the moon at 18 days moods such as
worry and doubt can manifest that can transmute into sadness and inability to
reason on the 23rd day.The
new moon is associated with an increase in feelings of fear and more suicidal
behavior.
Independent research on the effects of lunar cycles on men versus women indicates that the moods of men and women are both affected by lunar cycles, but the effects are different. Men are in rhythm with full moon cycles, while women are affected mostly during new moon cycles.
Gods in the Body and Jing Energy: Taoist Dogma and Cycles
From an ancient book called “The Book of the Yellow Court,”
the ancient Taoist concept of the body is described as being made up of a
number of gods.Here are the first two
verses of an opening poem in that book:
Lao Tzu at rest made these verses of seven feet
To explain the body and its forms, as well as its gods
The Taoist gods are metaphors for Taoist practices.
These gods represent various manifestations of energies within the body. There
are twenty-four gods in Taoist alchemy related to one’s body. Introductory exercises help the spirit harness these inner energies and put the body in order.
As mentioned before, lunar cycles affect our moods and
actions.The first, fifteenth and last
day of the moon’s cycle is a time when terrestrial spirits known as p’o can
induce kuei , or spiritual corruption, in the body.The forces of p’o attack the energetic
foundation of the body, or jing.
Building up the jing (or ching) energy of the body helps
prevent these forces from causing imbalance.This yin, or nurturing energy reserve is centered in the kidneys.Jing energy helps fuel all of the body’s
energies and thus helps maintain equilibrium within the body.This energy can be drained by a number of factors, including sexual
activity, injury and illness.
Building Up The Jing to Prevent Cyclic Effects
Observe the cycle of the moon in your daily life, but maintain
a regular qigong practice to prevent the effect of p’o during critical
days.There are general practices that
help reinforce the spirit and body like T’ai chi chuan and the qigong exercises
known as Ba Duan Jin and Dragon-Tiger.Choose one of these as a foundation practice (Dragon-Tiger is shown in the video below).In addition, there are practices that specifically
reinforce the yin energy are:
Healing sounds exercises for all five yin organs
Bear frolics qigong
Breathing exercises that lead the energy to the yin organs
To nurture the yin energy, practicing these exercises in the
early morning is strongly recommended.This helps you start in tune with the rhythm of the time’s energy and it
is optimum for accumulating nurturing energy.
Find also a quiet place that will help foster inner
tranquility.Concentrating on one’s
inner world through specific noting of internal imbalances and doing dissolving
practices for maintaining equilibrium is important during this time.
Foods For Building and Maintaining the Jing
It is also recommended is to avoid certain foods,
particularly cereals like rice or wheat, during cycles which negatively affect jing.There are many foods that are recommended for building the yin energy of
the kidneys:fruits and melons, seafood,
nuts, seeds, leafy green vegetables and small amounts of animal protein.Sufficient water intake is also
recommended.For an extensive listing,
read this pdf file on TCM and nutrition.
This second part of Qigong and the Principles of T'ai Chi covers the mind, posture and movement principles.
Maintain a calm, alert mind. The mind is not directed at any particular thing, and as such it is a non-specific or "fuzzy" awareness. Fuzzy does not mean lazy, of course. Developing the calm mind that fosters this type of awareness takes practice. And development of this mind is absolutely necessary to move ch'i with your intention and to sink your ch'i to the dantien. If all is calm, breathing also smoothly flows in and out of the dantien area.
While
moving, let your intention guide your movements, not your strength.
The Taoist arts are not about strength, energy follows intention. If
you are aware of yin and yang extremes (full, empty; open, closed; etc)
of the movements as well, you move more gracefully.
Maintaining your alignments is important in static as in movement exercises. Bad alignments can drain your energy. The head should be held up, as it is suspended by a string from the Bai hui point. Moving the chin downward a little also helps open the occipital area where the spine enters the head. Maintaining this head posture helps keep the mind clear and calm. Allow the chest to drop as well, this opens up the upper back and the space between the shoulder blades.
The hips should support the torso evenly on both sides when in a neutral position. This is where standing practice really helps. It also allows the pelvis and the tailbone to relax downward. These lower boy alignments help you sink the ch'i to the lower dantien. It also helps to gradually open up the lower and upper spine. Imagine that the weight of the hips is supported by a ball allows the relaxing and dropping down of the tailbone.
In movements, the torso should remain erect, not leaning to the sides, forward or back. The erect posture allows optimal energy flow up and down the spine. Movement of the torso should occur within the kwa, or inguinal crease area, making the muscles of the upper thigh twist and the energy spiral through your legs. Swing movements like those in Opening the Energy Gates of Your Body are good practice to enable this ability. Standing meditation will also help relax and open up the hips for improved energy flow.
Lastly, movements of the upper body should be coordinated with the lower body. Having one half of the body finish movements before the other is a definite no no. Hone your technique over time and use the help of friends and get critique from a professional instructor. Sometimes you think you are doing everything perfect when you aren't. Accurate proprioception is difficult to achieve sometimes.
Relaxing into Your Being is one of two books on Taoist Meditation that Taoist Lineage Master Bruce Frantzis published in the late 1990s. This book, and The Great Stillness, introduce how to apply the water method when one meditates. This method uses the breath and a technique called "dissolving" to help connect one's intention with energetic blockages that can be sensed in the body. Dissolving practice helps release and relax physical and emotional blockages, and it subsequently deepens inner awareness to deeper levels.
Meditation Exercises in the Book
In the twelve practices provided in the Relaxing book, the first nine prepare the mind and body to develop continuous awareness and the ability to feel within the body. Dissolving practices are introduced before the fifth exercise so that practitioners can begin to clear and strengthen their energy channels for deeper work that releases repressed emotions. This processes could be called "clearing the Red Dust."
Intermediate practices involve breathing with the kidneys, upper back breathing and breathing energy into the dantien. Being able to advance to this stage requires diligent practice in learning how to sense and relax internally. At this stage, you can encounter and neutralize attachments (positive or negative), traumas and your internal demons. Stillness comes, making it possible to see where these polarities are produced.
Other exercises introduced in the book are standing meditation and awareness exercises for the lower half of the body. One of the exercises is the introductory or commencement move of Wu style T'ai Chi. These exercises are used to help increase body awareness and they complement the static meditation exercises. I highly recommend doing all of the exercises.
Consequences of Taoist Meditation
A stream in Northern Costa Rica.
These meditation practices develop conscious awareness to the point of being in the "now," or being aware of that slippery thing known as consciousness. Reaching this point, you can develop an awareness of the Mindstream which contains subtle manifestations of the seven energy bodies. Intermediate and advanced practitioners then practice inner dissolving to release these subtle energies which manifest by creating gaps in awareness of the Mindstream. Inner peace nurtures one intermittently during the process and can help motivate you along the way.
Frantzis talks about the deeper challenges of meditation near the end of the book. The fear of ru ding, or loss of the ego, occurs when one is in the deep into advanced stages of their practice. One has to be tenacious to surmount this obstacle. Also, a form of spiritual egotism can manifest when one develops knowledge of energy manifestation. If one can maintain inner strength and not give in to power trips, these problems do not get in the way of enlightenment, or the unification of your being with the Tao.
A Testimonial for Relaxing Into Your Being
Jane Alexander wrote a review of this book that ended saying, "The practice of the material within its pages totally changed my life around and gave me a reason to live." One cannot give a better recommendation than that. In the web article, she outlines some of the contents of Frantzis's book and even wrote a book about her recovery from PTSD and depression, Possessing Me: A Memoir of Healing.
For standing and sitting qigong meditation practices, it is relatively simple to use feng shui to help you determine the optimal direction to orient yourself. The method requires calculation of a number based on your birth date and use of a reference table. There are two of eight directions that are good for health practices and nurturing tranquility. Go to this HubPage to find out the method. It is a short article and it could give your practice a boost!
Qigong is based on the principles of T'ai Chi, maintaining circular continuity and on establishing a center between Yin/Yang dualities: substantial and insubstantial, full and empty, heavy and light, etc. The T'ai Chi, or Supreme Ultimate, provides the source of movement and stillness, and it births Yin and Yang. Our center provides a middle ground between excesses and deficiencies. Our movement from the center allows Yin and Yang to act independently. Stillness allows the two to merge into unity.
Establishing one's center requires mindful and persistent practice. Through diligent practice it is possible to understand one's energy field and attain spiritual enlightenment. Supernatural knowledge can be attained.
How can this occur? Developing familiarity with your intrinsic "empty and full" dualities will facilitate "letting go." It is this emptying which allows you to become sensitive. In learning a qigong form, the mind is persistently returned to what the body is doing. This introduces the practitioner to tranquility, it quietens and relaxes the mind, calming one's emotional nature.
are good practice to enable this ability. 
