Qigong

Qi means energy and gong means work or exercise. Qigong involves the cultivation and circulation of qi through the organs and meridians of the body to improve health and vitality.

The earliest records of dao yin qigong practice were found in silk paintings in the Mawangdi cave dating back almost 2500 years. Dao yin means leading or guiding and these exercises use the breath to guide qi (vital energy) around the body. This focus has the additional benefit of calming the mind.

There is an almost infinite number of qigong exercises and the ones I practice and teach include:

• Zhanzhuang - the essential foundation of every practice, standing qigong to develop centre (dantian) and balance the body
• Yin-yang qigong - Grandmaster Chenxiaowang's version of the Yi Jin Jing (muscle and tendon changing qigong)
• Six healing sounds - Chen Xiaowang's version internalises the sounds relating the to 5 yin organs and the san jiao (triple energiser)

• Dao yin yangsheng gong - based on the cave drawings, Prof Zhang Guande has devised sets of exercises to work the different yin organs (Lungs, Heart, Liver, Kidneys, Spleen)
• Da gong - Hunyuan (primordial chaos) qigong for health from Feng Zhi Qiang

How Qigong can help?

As qigong becomes part of daily life students often find that the practice of standing and gentle flowing exercises can influence:

• balance
• energy
• posture and alignment
• stress by calming the shen or mind
• focus
• mindfulness
• mental processing