氣功 “Qigong”
Qi Gong is.. many things!
Qi is the famous qi/chi energy, but it’s a broadly ranging concept.
Gong most commonly means work, so “qigong” is a broad area encompassing different types of practices related to that hard-to-describe energy.
There are many styles of qigong being shared nowadays, and many are of the Medical Qigong category. This category was formalized in later 20th century China, and has been the dominant type of qigong shared today. Its focus is on physical health, is often taught in partnership with hospitals, and has seen undeniable success in patients with chronic illnesses who have exhausted other options of treatment.
The focus of our practice will not be medical qigong, but they are not wholly unrelated. The foundations of practice I want to share are oriented toward treating qigong as meditation, often as an entryway into a fuller meditative practice.
Qigong movement is a good and sometimes necessary bridge between the movement that everyday life asks of you and the stillness that meditation requires from you. Seated meditation doesn’t have to be the goal for you, but all the practices we will do are within a knowledge tradition heavily informed by meditation. The moving and standing practices (e.g. a qigong set, a Tai Chi / Tai Ji form) lead toward the still practices (e.g. standing post training, seated meditation on a cushion).
Whether you feel your qi or not, qi is quiet. The more smoothly and languidly you move, and the closer to rest and tranquility you are, the easier it becomes to notice and feel qi moving through you. The perception is subtle and continues to be built over time with your mind!
In addition to Medical Qigong, many famous qigong movements were popularized as part of the Buddhism practiced at the Shaolin Temple. The Shaolin monks had the most success preserving martial arts and movement forms, but there are many other forms, sets, and styles of qigong movements in existence and in practice today. It’s great to try some on and see how they feel to you over time.