What Is Qigong?

"What is this thing you do?"

he asks, hesitantly,
over the phone,
"this quee gung?"
"Is it a martial art?
he asks,
or is it some kind of health practice?"
"Well," I answer,
it is a health practice,
it's also a meditation practice,
as well as a spiritual practice."
"Wow," he says,
"all in one package huh?
What a deal!"

I suppose qigong
could be called
a sort of
psycho-spiritual-
energetic-meditation-
movement/exercise/routine.
Then again,
there's no need
to get so technical.
Qigong is really
just something that I do,
like breathing,
like eating,
like dancing,
like making love.
Making love
with the universe,
you might call it.
An amorous, attentive,
articulated, attitude
of openness and grace—
an exchange
on a deep and basic level
of my inner being
with that of the great
undivided, unending,
undissolved Dao.
And with that exchange
comes balance, harmony,
a composure of spirit,
a deepening of character,
a relaxing of mind muscles,
a feel of safety,
of being at home,
of being empty
and full at the same time,
of being attentive to detail,
clear of vision,
open of heart,
soft yet strong
like water, like wind,
sensitive to changes
in the energetic atmosphere,
simple joy in beingness,
compassion for the sufferings
of those around me,
a sense of proportion,
of objectivity,
of openess to change,
transformation and miracles,
a greater sense of
who I am myself
and how I fit into
the grand scheme of things,
a deeper understanding
of how I fit into nature
and how nature fits
in to me.

Of course sometimes
it's just too hard,
too tedious, too boring,
too hot, too little sleep,
not in the mood,
no time, no quiet,
too much to do,
too much to understand,
too much to remember,
too hard to stretch,
to stop my madly
running mind.
I'm too off center,
too sad,
too anxious,
too impatient.
too spaced out,
too distracted,
too distraught,
too confused,
feeling hopeless,
out of whack,
deflated, defeated,
dissolved in my own
sense of importance
or no-importance.

But still, the practice,
the form,
the breathing,
the focusing,
the exchange
of light and darkness,
of form and formlessness,
or yin and yang,
in and out—
all sustains me,
uplifts me
out of my limited
sense of being,
my old tired patterns,
my old empty
emotional, mental,
physical and spiritual states—
those oh so familiar faces
of doubt, worry, fear
that we all carry
from childhood,
those past life
karmic hauntings
that hold so much power
over us
until we learn
to let them go,
release them
gently but firmly
into the great healing
eternal Dao.

As the ancient Daoists said:
We humans,
are stardust,
we are golden,
and we've go to get ourselves
back to the garden—
the garden of Dao,
the garden of health,
vitality and spirit,
using and uniting with
the three treasures
of jing, qi and shen,
those three shining jewels
of simplicity, patience
and compassion—
those three celestial guides
leading us back
to before the beginning
when Dao gave birth
to the oneness,
the oneness gave birth
to the two—
the endless spinning,
dancing polarity
of yin and yang,
and the two gave birth
to the three,
those shining jewels,
those celestial guides,
which, in turn,
give birth continuously
to the ten thousand things—
all that we see
and know and touch
and feel and experience.

Yes, I say,
this mysterious qigong practice
that practices me,
is sometimes a struggle,
sometimes a dance,
but always a wise
and nurturing teacher.
Yes, it is something
that I hold dear and precious
like a light in my life,
like a treasure in my heart,
like a gift of the universe
which humbles me
and fells me
with the sense of awe.
This qigong,
as dear to me
as the smile
on the face
of my beloved,
the firm yet loving
words of my teachers,
the clear eyed vision
of my children,
the very centermost
core of my being—
eternal, vast
formless yet solid,
eternally present
while I drift aimlessly
through the wu wei
of my exultant, hopeful,
endlessly unfolding life.

by Solala Towler

Make a difference..

This is an old story, but a good one “His name was Fleming, and he was a poor Scottish farmer. One day, while working in his field, he heard a cry for help coming from a nearby bog. He dropped his shovel and ran
to the marshland.

There, stuck in black muck, was a terrified boy, screaming and struggling to free himself. Farmer Fleming saved the lad from what could have been a slow and terrifying death.

Why Drink Hot Water?

The way you start each day is incredibly important. Whether you're a mum, a coach, a writer, a small business owner or a yoga teacher, what you do first thing in the morning matters.

According to traditional Chinese philosophy, choices that you make regarding your daily routine either build up resistance to disease or tear it down.

BE invites us to get a jump-start on the day by focusing on morning rituals that work to align the body with nature's rhythms, balance the dantiens and foster self-esteem alongside self-discipline.

Your mind may say you have to check emails, take the dog out, get the kids out the door, that you can't be late for work or that you just don't have enough time to cultivate your own morning rituals.

But, if you can only make time for one ritual that will improve your health, let it be this.....

One Hundred Day Gong

Tradition & Gong

A Gong in Chinese is a designated amount of time that you allot to perform a specific task daily and there is a tradition in internal arts that even seemingly unattainable goals become possible in 100 days of concentrated training.

This allows for a new set of behaviours to take effect in our nervous systems and become a ‘habit’. The 100-day Hun Yuan Qigong program, open to all, is an exercise in individual discipline with community support.  Tradition states that we diligently practice every day for 100 days without fail. This means that if you miss a day, even if its day 99, you start over. Not only does this build resolve, it forces us to wake up and pay attention to our day-to-day routines.

Sticky Hands

We are created with the hand prints of our actions, emotions, experiences and thoughts

each and every day,

Our handy work sticks to us: only if we let it define us. 

Continuum

Revolutionary on the fitness scale, Continuum takes the healing power of movement to a higher octave. Continuum is a call to life that honors the language of the body: one with source, that language is creative. The human body and spirit are designed for the creative act of regeneration. This does not require invention. The cells of the body already know.

In Continuum, people find a safe space of surrender that allows the intelligence that goes beyond thought to be received. Embodying the water principle, Continuum explores the harmonies between human beings, movement, and the Tao. This truly can regenerate vitality without depletion.

Imagine an organism relaxed, in spontaneous play. Minute sensations spread and amplify as we attend to them. Wave motions bring the body away from a segmented awareness. At times the body suspends with a sense of lightness that seems to defy gravity. The whole organism begins to move as one coordinated whole. This is the context that allows tissue to open of its own accord, restoring suppleness.

May Newsletter

Here is the new look newsletter which I am trialling, your feedback as always will be appreciated.

Please click on the link below.

May 2012 Newsletter

There is important information on.

New Diary Dates on workshops, Qigong on the Beach and lots more....
Money Matters
The Breathing Room
Samye Ling Retreat in Scotland
OnetoOne Sessions

The Dance of the Nature of Water

Can we slow down enough to ask just what is the ‘dance of the nature of water’ and its impact in terms of exercise, physical strength and toning? When we think of the water element in movement terms, we think of a fluid quality of smooth, effortless motion. It is the description of grace.

In the Tao of well-being, practicing the nature of water may not only lead to a less strained and fatiguing form of exercise, it also may be the key to the kind of deep cellular health and strength that persists into old age. Infinitely adaptable to all manner of circumstances, water sees no duality between strong and supple.

What is Love?

People ask me all the time, "What is Love?"
I'll tell you what Love is.
It is sitting down for a meal with friends.
It is sharing a plum with your wife in the bath.
It is giving your little girl a sticky pink sweet that may hurt her teeth. It is drinking beer in the pub or coke and popcorn at the movies, pouring wine, chopping veggies, burning the toast. If you do those things with all your heart - then that is Love.

Of course sometimes it may be feeding a street child or sending food to Burundi - the kid of thing we normally associate with the word Love.
But don't forget the ordinary miracle of seeing water as water, a carrot as a carrot - the everyday experience of feeling alive, feeling part of all of this, of life-and-death, dancing in the interconnectedness of things.

This is the true nature of Love.

Spring Season Wellbeing and Beingwell with Food

According to Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), the world is a harmonious and holistic entity where all living beings are viewed in relation to the surrounding environment. Since ancient times, the Chinese have tried to explain different complicated phenomena by creating yin yang or the five elements theories. Man is part of the holistic entity, and takes his cue from nature. He is influenced directly and indirectly by changes in weather and needs to make corresponding physiological and pathological responses. For example, a change of season causes the rate, rhythm, volume and tension of the pulse to vary. The pulse tends to be taut in spring, full in summer, floating in autumn, and sunken in winter. TCM physicians will take this into account when distinguishing the abnormal pulse from the normal. The occurrence, development and change in the pattern of many diseases are seasonal such as wenbing (Warm Disease Theory / Febrile Disease) occurring in spring, sun strokes in summer, dryness-related symptoms in autumn, and cold stroke syndromes in winter.

Everybody's Free To Wear Sunscreen!

I heard this on Chris Evans Radio 2 programme this morning and had to share it with you.



Everybody's Free to Wear Sunscreen!
By Mary Schmich (Chicago Tribune) - Baz Luhrmann

Ladies and gentlemen of the class of '97

Wear Sunscreen!

If I could offer you only one tip for the future, "sunscreen" would be it.

Spring Equinox

CYCLES: SPRING
THE SEASON OF WOOD ENERGY                                                      

As the days become warmer and brighter, nature rouses from her winter slumber and looks ahead to the new growth of spring. The Wood, which has been at rest, storing and concentrating its energy under a winter blanket, now bursts forth with new buds, new life piercing Earth's crust. The swelling Wood of spring initiates rebirth - a surge of rising energy, like the young lamb staggering up to nurse, like the dandelion whose growing edge can burst through concrete if it must. Wood is the energy of youth and growth: a new beginning, a vision of a whole new cycle. The Wood energy of spring is an expression of life at its strongest.

If we have followed nature's way and taken a winter rest, we too emerge into spring “raring to go,” with clear vision and a sense of purpose. This is the season to plant seeds for a future harvest, to look ahead and make new plans, formulate new ideas, make decisions, and determine our direction for the coming year - and to take action.

Spring's increasing warmth encourages us to stay outside more than we did in the winter. Warmth comes not only from physical heat, but also from the interaction of friendships and relationships. In this season, we want especially to take advantage of opportunities for growth through the observations and insights that come from others as well as from ourselves. It can be painful to see ourselves through different, and perhaps clearer eyes, particularly aspects of ourselves that we are unaware of. Similarly, it can be difficult to convey an unpalatable truth to others. While the energy of spring supports and challenges us to grow and change, we may feel discomfort from these processes. We can temper our pangs with the warmth of friendship, as well as with the recognition that we all experience growing pains in the process of realizing our potential.

After a winter rest, the power of springtime surges through nature - through us

Be Still.

Be Still.

Be still.

Just for a moment.

Listen to the world around you. Feel your breath coming in and going out. Listen to your thoughts. See the details of your surroundings.

Be at peace with being still.

In this modern world, activity and movement are the default modes, if not with our bodies then at least with our minds, with our attention. We rush around all day, doing things, talking, emailing, sending and reading messages, clicking from browser tab to the next, one link to the next.

We are always on, always connected, always thinking, always talking. There is no time for stillness — and sitting in front of a frenetic computer all day, and then in front of the hyperactive television, doesn’t count as stillness.

This comes at a cost: we lose that time for contemplation, for observing and listening. We lose peace.

And worse yet: all the rushing around is often counterproductive. I know, in our society action is all-important — inaction is seen as lazy and passive and unproductive. However, sometimes too much action is worse than no action at all. You can run around crazily, all sound and fury, but get nothing done. Or you can get a lot done — but nothing important. Or you can hurt things with your actions, make things worse than if you’d stayed still.

And when we are forced to be still — because we’re in line for something, or waiting at a doctor’s appointment, or on a bus or train — we often get antsy, and need to find something to do. Some of us will have our mobile devices, others will have a notebook or folder with things to do or read, others will fidget. Being still isn’t something we’re used to.

Take a moment to think about how you spend your days — at work, after work, getting ready for work, evenings and weekends. Are you constantly rushing around? Are you constantly reading and answering messages, checking on the news and the latest stream of information? Are you always trying to Get Lots of Things Done, ticking off tasks from your list like a machine, rushing through your schedule?

Is this how you want to spend your life?

If so, peace be with you. If not, take a moment to be still. Don’t think about what you have to do, or what you’ve done already. Just be in the moment.

Then after a minute or two of doing that, contemplate your life, and how you’d like it to be. See your life with less movement, less doing, less rushing. See it with more stillness, more contemplation, more peace.

Then be that vision.

It’s pretty simple, actually: all you have to do is sit still for a little bit each day. Once you’ve gotten used to that, try doing less each day. Breathe when you feel yourself moving too fast. Slow down. Be present. Find happiness now, in this moment, instead of waiting for it.

Savor the stillness. It’s a treasure, and it’s available to us, always.
—
From the Tao Te Ching:

It is not wise to dash about.
Shortening the breath causes much stress.
Use too much energy, and
You will soon be exhausted.
That is not the Natural Way.
Whatever works against this Way
Will not last long.

What is Tensegrity?

The word tensegrity was coined by Buckminster Fuller for sculptor and artist Kenneth Snelson and it is a contraction of tensional integrity. A tensegrity structure stabilizes itself mechanically because of the way in which tension and compression forces are distributed within the structure. When a continuous pull (tension) is balanced by a discontinuous push (compression) the result is a stable system that is maximally strong.

Imagine a cobweb and this structure for instance.

         

The human body is a tensegrity structure. Muscles in tension and bones in compression act in unison to increase the strength in one another. In treating the body as a continuous structure it is easy to understand how tightness or instability in one area of the body can affect dysfunction in another area that appears to be unrelated.

Tensegrity Skeleton
The complete tensegrity skeleton demonstrates a surprising similarity to a human skeleton. It can walk, sit, stretch, and contort ; most amazing it will stand self supporting with all of the compression elements floating in the web of tension that is woven around it from top to bottom. This model is difficult to make and difficult to balance, but it clearly demonstrates the principle of biotensegrity in its fullest form to date.
Models and description from www.intensiondesigns.com

The Tao of Exercise & Self-Care

There was once an efficiency expert who visited a chocolate factory and watched the women hand dipping chocolates. Their gestures always included various spirals and twirls in order to prevent drips as they lifted the chocolate from the vat to the paper.

Considering this a loss of time and efficiency, these women were taught to make a more direct in, out, over, down pathway. Within a week they were complaining of wrist pain (carpal tunnel symptoms). Having fallen out of interplay with their core creativity, the small, ingenious variations within each repetitive task were eliminated, and the women became more prone to fatigue and damage.

In the accelerated pace of our nanosecond world, if our goal is truly to be one with the nature of the Tao, we must be mindful to never lose the fluid, water-like language of the body. For in Taoism, the closest thing in nature to pure effectiveness is water. Water is the communicator, the informer and the transporter all in one.

Taming the 'Monkey mind'

With more than 2,500 years Taoism and Buddhism has been teaching people about the human mind so that we might understand ourselves better and discover that there is a way out of suffering. These two philosophies are intelligent insights into human nature.

Both trains of thoughts describe the human mind as being filled with drunken monkeys 'The Monkey Mind', jumping around, screeching, chattering, carrying on endlessly. We all have monkey minds, with dozens of monkeys all clamouring for attention. Fear is an especially loud monkey, sounding the alarm incessantly, pointing out all the things we should be wary of and everything that could go wrong.

Meditation through sitting, Qigong and deep breathing tames the drunken monkeys in our minds. It's useless to fight with the monkeys or to try to banish them from your mind because, as we all know, that which you resist, persists. Instead, if you spend some time each day in quiet meditation -- simply calm your mind by focusing on your breathing and/or Qigong -- you can, over time, tame the monkeys. They will grow more peaceful if you lovingly bring them into submission with a consistent practise of meditation.

Meditation is a wonderful way to quiet the voices of fear, anxiety, worry and other negative emotions.

Learning to manage your monkey mind is one of the best things you can do to transform fear, anxiety, stress and tension. Take time to practise simple meditation on a regular basis. Learn how to change the conversations in your head.

Practise kind, loving, positive mindfulness and see how it can transform you.

The Lost Thing by Shaun Tan

I was introduced to this short movie by Mary a Norwich student and although not a Qigong subject it definitely can be classed as a Mindful one. Enjoy.

Fascia

Fascia or myofascia is the dense, tough tissue which surrounds and covers all of your muscles and bones. This outer fascial covering is very strong and very flexible. In fact, it has a tensile strength of over 2000 pounds (over 900 kg).

Under a microscope, myofascia resembles a spiders web or fish net. It is very organized and very flexible in a healthy state. Myofascia can best be described as a complete body suit which runs from the top of your head down to the bottom of your toes. It is continuous, has no beginning or end and can be found almost everywhere in your body. Like yarn in a sweater the entire body is connected to every other part of the body by the fascia. It is a continuous weave of material. And, like a pull in a sweater, damage to an area of fascia can affect other distant areas in your body even years later.

Where feeling becomes a language...

What you'll Gain from This

If you have an interest in how the mind works, or you are looking for tips on obtaining enlightenment, the technique below may be the most important tool you've ever been given.

Let me show you a new way to think.

The Language of Feeling

The Language of Feeling is a method of thinking that is feel-based so it's important to start by learning how things feel. With a small amount of practice you'll naturally identify things this way and your mind will seem much lighter and faster.

Everything that exists has a unique feeling or 'frequency', even if they seem identical. In the technique below you'll be starting out by identifying the feeling of things. This is the ABCs of the Language of Feeling.

"Soflty softly, catchee monkee"

The saying "Softly softly, catchee monkee," refers to situations where achieving success and results requires a patient, careful and a quiet approach. Always consider this fun proverb when doing your Qigong, it not only brings a smile to your face but more importantly gives you the correct frame of mind to approach your practise. Have fun!