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Medical Qìgōng

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医学氣功 Yīxué Qìgōng

Medical Qìgōng


Medical Qìgōng

" The doctor of the future will give no medicine, but will interest his patients in the care of the human frame, in diet, and in the cause and prevention of disease."

Thomas Edison (1847-1931) The 'superior man', a phrase from the I Ching - Yì Jīng 易经, would be a master of the 'Five Excellences':

• Martial arts

• Medicine

• Painting

• Poetry

• Calligraphy Healers should strive to be 'superior men & women'; they should strive to lead and teach by example. Their goal should be to prevent, rather than cure disease. This is a lifetime’s challenge. The Spirit of a Healer Traditionally, Oriental healers were expected to know eight levels of healing; these included:

• Spiritual healing

• Exercise

• Diet

• Geomancy (Feng Shui - Fēng Shuǐ 风水),

• Astrology

• Massage

• Herbology

• Acupuncture. The healer’s education would include techniques of self-development and self-defense, as well as the tools of the trade. Qìgōng 氣功, T'ai Chi Ch'uan - Tàijí Quán 太极拳, and meditation were practiced to maintain their health and increase sensitivity. “Physician, heal thyself.” was their conviction.


What is Qìgōng?

Qì Gōng

Basic meaning: Better meaning: Qìgōng 氣功 is a system of training designed to develop the body, mind, and spirit. The modern definition of Qìgōng 氣功 The skill of mind-body exercise that integrates body, breath and mind in one practice.


Types of Qìgōng


Examples of Qìgōng

Qìgōng 氣功 as exercise; precedes all other forms of Chinese medicine.


Why Qìgōng?

'If you want to be healthy & live to 100, do Qigong.' Dr. Mehmet Oz

With regular practice of Qìgōng 氣功, it is possible to keep blood and energy circulation flowing smoothly throughout the entire body. When the Qì 氣 flows through the channels easily and fluidly, the blood follows and health, wellness and longevity are achieved. It will also enable you to relax more easily and bring a feeling of peace, joy and a positive attitude. The reasons to practice Qìgōng 氣功 are:

1. Preventive health management.

2. Improve your healing power.

3. Manage acute stress.

4. Manage chronic stress.

5. Cure ailments.

6. Longevity.

7. Develop spirit and higher consciousness.

8. Become one with the Tao - Dào 道.

9. Achieve enlightenment.

The effects of Qìgōng 氣功 are to:

1. Regulate Yin & Yang.

2. Regulate Qì 氣.

3. Regulate blood.

4. Move Qì 氣.

5. Move blood.

6. Regulate the organs.

7. Reinforce righteous Qì 氣.


The History of Qìgōng

"Superior doctors prevent the sickness; mediocre doctors treat the sickness before evident;

inferior doctors treat actual sickness." Yellow Emperor's Inner Canon - Huángdì Nèijīng 黃帝內經 (2600BCE)

Qìgōng 氣功 history can be roughly divided into five periods. Throughout Qìgōng 氣功 history there have been several constants. An emphasis on meditation; breathing and movement in order to achieve higher levels of health and well-being. Ancient History

The first period had very little written documentation and therefore historical review is a bit speculative. It is possible that Qì 氣 principles were practiced during this time because some historical records have indicated that conscious body movement and breathing exercises were practiced to cure diseases. It is unknown if these practices were related to Qì 氣 philosophy or if they were just practiced because of the de facto realization of increased health.

There is documentation of body movement and breath control practice in ancient history. The first written record of anything resembling Qìgōng 氣功 principles was 4000 years ago in a book titled, The Spring and Autumn Chronicles by Lu. In this book Lu states that a long time ago people became ill due to stasis of body fluids which caused diseases similar to the modern condition known as rheumatism. Afflicted individuals were prescribed a series of dance like movements that were intended to relieve stagnation. Heaven, Earth and Man The second period is marked by the introduction of a book known as the Book of Changes - I Ching - Yì Jīng 易经 sometime before 1122BCE. This book was the first known to discuss the


relationship of energy and thus relates to the development of Qìgōng 氣功. In the I Ching - Yì Jīng 易经 three natural energies were proposed: Heaven - Tiān 天, Earth - Tǔ 土 and Man - Rén 人. Importantly it was the study of the relationship between the three energies that sponsored the ideas of Qìgōng 氣功 practice. Each energy was considered a power and the cultivation of the three individual powers depended on the relationship of one to another. During the Zhou dynasty (1122-934BCE), the famous philosopher Lao Tzu wrote Tao Te Ching - Dàodé Jīng 道德经 in which he stated that the way to achieve health was to concentrate on Qì 氣 and achieve softness. There was also a great deal of discussion about proper breathing and respiratory techniques. Several other books came out during this time that discussed the importance of conscious breathing techniques for the cultivation of Qì 氣 and subsequently increased vitality. Two types of Qìgōng 氣功 training were developed during this period: Religious Qìgōng 氣功 which was practiced primarily by Taoist and Confucian scholars, and Medicinal Qìgōng 氣功 which was practiced to prevent or cure illness. Interestingly both Religious and Medicinal Qìgōng 氣功 was practiced for the sake of increasing health. Both types of training focused on the natural way of optimum health potential. It was thought that it was impossible to counter the effects of nature. Instead the powers of nature were used to fortify energy in the individual Qìgōng 氣功 practitioner. Religious Qìgōng 氣功 It was during the Han Dynasty (206-502) that Qìgōng 氣功 began its third period in which it experienced multicultural dimensions. Han emperors were intelligent and kind. As a result the peaceful exchange of cultural information was encouraged. The spread of Buddhism in China was allowed to occur and as such Indian meditation and movement techniques were accepted in some factions of Chinese culture. This allowed cultural and practical comparison of Qìgōng 氣功 techniques that led to more interest in the effect of Qìgōng 氣功 on increasing Qì 氣 circulation. There was a great deal of interest in the various religious Qìgōng 氣功 practices. Three schools of religious Qìgōng 氣功 dominated the period: Indian Buddhism, Tibetan Buddhism and


Taoism. The covert exchange between the different practices created an opportunity to more deeply examine the theory of Qì 氣 circulation. Generally speaking most religious sects attempted to keep their practice secret but traditional scholars continued their research and made great contributions to Qìgōng 氣功 theory. A set of Qìgōng 氣功 movements known as The Five Animal Frolics - Wǔ Qin Xi 五禽戏, was developed by the famous doctor Hua Tou 華佗 (110-207). These exercises were based on animal movements and were supposed to increase Qì 氣 circulation. Those that wished to maintain a youthful disposition practiced this classic Qìgōng 氣功 set. Martial Qìgōng 氣功 The Liang Dynasty (502-557) began the fourth period of Qìgōng 氣功 history. Prior to this time there was very little influence of Qìgōng 氣功 in the martial arts. Around the beginning of the 6th century the emperor invited a Buddhist monk named Boddhidharma to visit China from India. The emperor was interested in Boddhidharma’s style of Buddhism, known as Chan Buddhism. When the emperor became tired of Boddhidharma’s theory he exiled him. Boddhidharma traveled throughout China and eventually found himself in the Shaolin Monastery. He fell in love with the area around the Temple and began to teach Chan Buddhism to the monks. Because he chose not to teach from books he was asked to leave the monastery by the Abbott. During his time away he meditated in a cave near the monastery. He was fully supported by the Shaolin monks and therefore was able to sit facing a wall and meditate everyday for many hours. His dedication to enlightenment did not go unnoticed and after 9 years of meditation he was asked back into the Shaolin monastery. Upon his return he noticed the poor physical condition of the monks and set out to teach health principles through movement and meditation. Boddhidharma believed that the body and mind were one and as such, in order to achieve enlightenment one must train both. The mind would support the body and the body would support the mind. Much of his teaching was influenced by


Indian Yoga principles.

Boddhidharma taught two types of exercises to the monks. The first type was a set of 12 Qìgōng 氣功 exercises called, Muscle Tendon Changing Classic - Yì Jīn Jīng 易筋經. These exercises were aimed at strength and agility. There were two applications of Muscle Tendon Changing Classic - Yì Jīn Jīng 易筋經. Depending on the student’s level of study they would either study the External power - Wèigōng 功 principles or the Internal power - Nèigōng 内功 principles related to the exercise sets. The advanced students were taught inner strength applications as they were considered a higher level application. In the inner application the student was encouraged to let the movements occur without the strength of the body. Initiation of movement came from the energy inside of the body. The outer strength principles were taught as a physical exercise. The second set of exercises was known as Bone Marrow Washing - Xi Sui Jing XX. Unlike the Muscle Tendon Changing Classic - Yì Jīn Jīng 易筋經 exercises, Bone Marrow Washing - Xi Sui Jing XX was completely involved with the development of Qì 氣 energy through meditation and body postures. These Qìgōng 氣功 sets were not taught publicly but rather were kept secret and reserved for high level, advanced students. They were harder to learn and required intense dedication. Following Boddhidharma’s death in 536 AD the exercises that he taught continued to be practiced. Taoist priests expanded upon the health theories. Probably because of the Shaolin influence, Qìgōng 氣功 sets were eventually adapted in the study of martial arts. Prior to this time martial arts did not consider Qì 氣 an important part of warrior activity.


Over the course of the next 500 years many of the original Qìgōng 氣功 movements became an important part of martial training movements. In fact, the Muscle Tendon Changing Classic - Yì Jīn Jīng 易筋經 became the Shi Ba Luo Han Shou, which means “the 18 hands of students of Buddha.” This new adaptation of the original movements was considered training for martial fighting techniques although it remained consistent with Qì 氣 cultivation.

During the Song Dynasty (1127- 1279) Qìgōng 氣功 continued its development. Marshal Yue Fei 岳飛 (1103-1142) introduced a popular Qìgōng 氣功 set called The Eight Pieces of Brocade - Bā Duàn Jǐn 八段錦. His intention was to help increase the health of his soldiers. From the Song Dynasty up until the end of the Qing Dynasty (1911), many different styles of Qìgōng 氣功 were introduced and taught to the general public. Around this time many different cultures became interested in health through Qìgōng 氣功 practice and developed Qìgōng 氣功 sets that reflected their lifestyle and culture. The development of martial arts in different parts of the world helped to develop culturally specific Qìgōng 氣功 exercises.

Modern Qìgōng 氣功 Qìgōng 氣功 enthusiasts have always enjoyed the benefits of Qìgōng 氣功 practice. The modern approach to Qìgōng 氣功 practice has become a quest for scientific validation. This is a result of the difference in the way that Qìgōng 氣功 is taught. In the past the tradition was to have a Master select a student and teach on a one to one basis. The period commencing in the 1980s’ saw a more open public method of teaching in the Western world. This in addition to the development of modern communication and research methodology has led to an exciting new era in Qìgōng 氣功 practice. It is important to examine the effects of Qìgōng 氣功 practice on the health of individuals so that perhaps there will be a positive effect on the health of our society in general. Although modern study techniques may facilitate our understanding of Qì 氣 circulation, it is important to continue to consider the historical elements of Qìgōng 氣功 science, art and philosophy.


Qìgōng Timeline

1979 Lin Housheng creates T'ai Chi Qìgōng Shibashi 1952 Chinese Government creates 24 Posture T'ai Chi Ch'uan 1830 Yang Luchan learns T'ai Chi Ch'uan 1640 Chen Wangting creates T'ai Chi Ch'uan 1200 Chang Seng Feng creates T'ai Chi Ch'uan 1140 Yue Fei 岳飛 (1103-1142) creates the 8 Pieces of Brocade 960-1280 Purpose made iron Chinese Health Balls are first used 500 Bodhidharma creates the Yì Jīn Jīng 易筋經 640 Sun Si-Miao 孫思邈 (581-682) writes The Song of Hygiene about the Six Healing Sounds 200 Hua Tou 華佗 (110-207) creates the 5 Animal Frolics 206BCE-230 Factory archives show walnuts are used to train the hands in the exercises for Chinese Health Balls 500BCE The Yellow Emperor's Guide alludes to Qìgōng in 8 places 1,000 BCE 'Definitive' version of the I Ching 1800-1400BCE Wang Chih Chiao develops breathing exercises 1900-1066BCE Peng Zu 彭祖 develops Dao Yin 導引 exercises 2,000 BCE Shamans of the Yellow River Basin danced to ward off damp in the bones, joints and muscles and to restore the circulation of Qi and blood 8,000 BCE Tribal shamans danced as an intermediary between heaven, earth and man - the earliest form of Qìgōng


The Five Regulations

"The mind controls the breath, the breath controls the posture." Unknown

Qìgōng 氣功 The Five Regulations [Harmony of Life] (Wu Tia)

1. Regulate the mind (Tiao Xin)

2. Regulate the breathing (Tiao Xi)

3. Regulate the body (Tiao Shen)

4. Regulate the Qi 氣 (Tiao Qi)

5. Regulate the spirit (Tiao Shen)

The vital elements of Qìgōng 氣功 practice are:

1. Posture

2. Breath

3. Mind

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