Qi Gong

Qi Gong (Chi Kung) has been an important part of Eastern history and culture since ancient times. For thousands of centuries Chinese Medicine and Qi Gong practitioners have been concerned with maintaining health and preventing illness. The history of Qi Gong can be traced back some 7,000 years to the Dance of The Yinkong, a documented dance for arthritis prevention and healing designed to release stagnant energy caused by high humidity in China at the time. These simple exercises combine focused breathing, posture-movement, and visualization, to harmonize the mind, body and spirit.

In ancient times people knew intuitively that feeling bad, being ill or in pain were somehow associated with a lack of movement. Observations linked certain movement and motions with well being, good health and the lessening of pain. Traditionally, people included dance and other forms of physical movement to create changes in the Qi of the body. These changes were experienced as releases of old, blocked energies, old physical patterns, and emotional feelings followed by return or enhancement of their health.

As time passed, a deeper understanding developed regarding the flow of Qi throughout the body. In ancient China, the mapping of channels through which energy flowed was accomplished over a long period and the laws and principles of how Qi moved were discovered.

The principles of Yin-Yang were brought into the Chinese medicine philosophy. The complimentary, yet antagonistic, relationship between those two energy forces represents the universal actions of expansion and contraction and all opposites.

The Law of Five Elements was formulated depicting the ways in which Qi moves through endless creative cycles while being balanced by forces of control. These cycles are found within our bodies throughout our organ systems and their associated functions as well as in nature and the corresponding seasonal changes.

As these insights into the origin, function, purpose and flow of Qi developed, so did the ways of working with energy evolve from simple dance to more specific methods of movement, breathing, and mental concentration. Qi Gong evolved slowly from simple Qi awareness to a series of specific forms – methods and techniques – utilized to cure illness, promote and maintain health, develop strength and increase longevity.

Five Major Traditions

Confucian Qi Gong – This Qi Gong was designed to attain higher moral character
intelligence.

Taoist Qi Gong – This practice stresses the preservation of the physical body as
well as cultivating a higher level of virtue.

Buddhist Qi Gong – This practice is aimed at freeing the mind and emphasizing the cultivation of virtue and wisdom (enlightenment). Buddhists
also believe that the body is just a vessel for holding the spirit.

Martial Arts Qi Gong – This form focuses on training and protecting the body from attack. It uses the fist and feet as weapons to attack an aggressor. It also trains the practitioner to utilize his/her Qi to help deliver fatal blows.

Medical Qi Gong – This practice focuses on the free flow and balancing of Qi
within the body. It helps practitioners take control of their health by providing methods to prevent or remove illness and injury. Medical Qi Gong trains practitioners on how to use ‘inner Qi’ in a way to diagnose and promote healing. This  form is also referred to as Qi-emission.

Qi Gong masters have always been held in high esteem in Chinese society. These masters were often the pillars of society and included teachers, healers, scientists, astrologers, martial artists, and philosophers. Qi Gong masters served an important role in leading and developing Chinese culture. Many cultural revolutions and much of China’s social progress were the results of these masters’ leadership.

Today, Qi Gong is practiced throughout the world in public gathering places and in private groups. In China, many hospitals have medical Qi Gong departments complementing Western medicine, acupuncture and herbal prescriptions.