{"id":4205,"date":"2016-03-14T03:00:35","date_gmt":"2016-03-14T07:00:35","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.dontow.com\/?p=4205"},"modified":"2016-06-20T08:28:52","modified_gmt":"2016-06-20T12:28:52","slug":"what-is-qigong","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.dontow.com\/2016\/03\/what-is-qigong\/","title":{"rendered":"What Is Qigong?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Qigong (\u6c23\u529f<\/span><\/span>) has a long history of several thousand years and is practiced by many people throughout the years.\u00a0 It is practiced today by millions of people in China as well as in many other parts of the world.\u00a0 With such a long history involving so many people and numerous teachers\/masters, there are many types of Qigong.\u00a0 However, the theory of Qigong is really based on concepts behind Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), which includes examining external appearances, examining internal conditions (e.g., via listening to one’s pulse), analyzing patient’s descriptions of his\/her ailments, prescribing herbal medicines, utilizing techniques such as Tui Na (\u63a8<\/a>\u62ff<\/a><\/span>), acupressure, and acupuncture.\u00a0 This article provides an introduction to Qigong.
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The Basis of Qigong<\/strong><\/span>:\u00a0 <\/strong>The fundamental concept behind Traditional Chinese Medicine is that there is a life force called Qi (\u6c23<\/span><\/span>), some sort of bio-electric energy that is vital to the health of an individual, that circulates throughout the body.\u00a0 Illnesses are due to insufficient or excess Qi or blockages of Qi, and illnesses can be cured by helping the body to generate more Qi when there is a deficiency, or to get rid of some Qi when there is an excess, or to remove the blockages so that Qi can flow freely and thus getting rid of the problem of excessive or insufficient amount of Qi.<\/p>\n

Although it is not clear what is this life force Qi and what is the scientific basis of Qi, modern scientific and medical research during the last 20-30 years [1, 2, 3] provide many indications that there are many health benefits to practicing Qigong and Taiji [4], although many more such studies are still needed, involving larger sample sizes and duplication of results by other groups.<\/p>\n

There is not yet a detailed scientific definition of Qi that is generally accepted by scientists, but this doesn\u2019t necessarily mean that Qi doesn\u2019t exist.\u00a0 To the many people in this world who have practiced Qigong for an extended period and on a regular basis, Qi is as real to them as their breath, their heartbeat, their conscious mind.\u00a0 They can feel Qi in their body.\u00a0 They can guide Qi to circulate to different parts of their body.\u00a0 They can feel sensations in their body, e.g., tingling sensations in their fingers, when they are practicing Qigong.\u00a0 As a matter of fact, in my opinion, one of the most important areas of scientific\/medical research during the next 50-100 years is to perform a more comprehensive, systematic, and in-depth investigation of the scientific basis and health benefits of Taiji and Qigong. [5]\u00a0 Then we should have a much better understanding of the relationship between Western medicine and TCM, and can integrate the best of each to establish a new and more holistic medicine.<\/p>\n

The word \u201cgong\u201d in Chinese means work via steady practice to achieve an accomplishment.\u00a0 So Qigong means the practice that regulates the Qi and its circulation within the body.<\/p>\n

Qigong then is a set of stretching, breathing, and meditation health exercises that is based on TCM, and can be thought of as strengthening exercises as well as self-healing exercises that can prevent or treat illnesses.\u00a0 It can supplement or sometimes even replace the treatment of doctors (TCM doctors or Western doctors), or taking medicine (Chinese herbal medicine or Western medicine).\u00a0 Through appropriate practice, one can remove blockages, and improve the circulation of Qi within one\u2019s body, so that no part of the body has an excessive amount or a deficiency of Qi.\u00a0 In modern physiological terminology, balancing the Qi is equivalent to attaining homeostasis (the property of a system in which variables are regulated so that internal conditions remain stable and relatively constant).<\/p>\n

Fundamental Principles and Structure of Qigong Exercises<\/span>:\u00a0 <\/strong>All Qigong exercises follow certain fundamental principles.\u00a0 The most important is that all parts of the body should be relaxed.\u00a0 For example, the shoulders should be slanted downward.\u00a0 In many stances, the knees should be slightly bent.\u00a0 The tailbone should be tucked in slightly.\u00a0 The upper body should be straight.\u00a0 Eyes can be opened, partially closed, or closed.\u00a0 Breathe in and out through the nose while taking slow deep breaths, but do not hold your breath for any extended period of time.\u00a0 In addition, the mind is also relaxed, but the mind is not void.\u00a0 As a matter of fact, the mind is very much involved in Qigong.\u00a0\u00a0 In many Qigong exercises, the mind’s intent is used to think about the Qi and to guide the Qi.\u00a0 Although initially you may not feel anything associated with the mind’s intent, you should still practice the exercises following the prescription for the mind’s intent for that particular exercise.\u00a0\u00a0 The tongue should be touching lightly the upper palate, just behind the upper front teeth, so that the meridian (or Qi channel) that flows upward along the back of your body and the meridian that flows downward along the front of your body can be connected together at the point of contact of the tongue touching the upper palate behind the upper front teeth.<\/p>\n

Because there are so many people practicing Qigong and so many teachers and masters, there are many different Qigong exercises.\u00a0 However, there is a structure consisting of four components in which Qigong exercises can be classified.\u00a0 The four components are:<\/p>\n