Developing Chi

[superman859]

I used to work on Chi and breathing for a short amount of time at my kung fu school (only did internal for a little bit..) but then I moved and now there is no school around here. I really want to build chi and all the good internal stuff, but am pretty lost and get confused about it because I hardly have any experience. I never got to the point where I "felt" it or anything like that..just followed the exercises.

What I am wondering, is what would be the best way to work on that and improve it if there is no school or live help I can do? Are there any good books/dvds about it..my main concern isn't being able to follow exercises..its more about feeling it I guess.

A lot of the time I read you are supposed to lower your breathing to the center or whatever (below navel 2 inches in..) I can read that it says to do that in books and all, but what I dont understand is..how am I supposed to do that? How do I know where I am breathing..to me, I am simply breathing. I can take a slow deep breath, or a quick short one, but I just feel it filling up my lungs..nothing more.

Any help on any of this would be greatly appreciated.

[Yamesk]

I can't believe nobody replied to your thread!

Well in that case I guess I'll take the challenge.

Meditation, breathing, and focus. The three things that are used in ANY chi excercise. Practice the forms over, and over, and over again just as you would with any other forms.

Now first, what do you wish to do? Strengthening chi alone without a purpose or intention isn't good. Do you want to enhance your perceptions? Control your emotions? Have more power in your punches? You have to have the goal in mind because there are many ways to accumulate and strengthen chi and each way will develope it a bit differently.

(Please correct me if I am wrong, any experienced instructors. I'm merely a researcher and I practice only the health aspect of it.)

I have a few articles I quoted from a book called "Tai Chi Classics by Wasyon Laio." (sp?) That is a great book and if you see it I suggest you get it. I also have a type up copy at the following link should you wish to see it:

http://kisanctuary.chaosmagic.com/jing.html

By the way, this is my website. Yes I know a lot of the stuff on there is weird or even sounds farfetch'd but let's just say I've had some really odd personal and even shared personal experiences in my life that have lead me to be the way I am in my personal beliefs (which I did not mix in with the article.)

[Slade]

Im sure this post has been answered before, and maybe these people are sick of repeating themselves when there is a nice search function there. Ethier that or maybe nobody wanted to answer it or there has been nobody on that can answer it.

[TaiChiBob]

Greetings..

Yi leads Qi, mind leads energy.. if your attention/intention is directed to the DanTien (center), Qi will follow.. it all originates in the mind.. Qi is very curious about whatever the mind is interested in, if i am focused on a hand application the Qi goes there to see what's so cool.. with just a little more focus (intention) that same Qi will act as intended, enhancing the application..

As you inhale visualize the Qi circulating down along the Conception Vessel (Ren Mai, front centerline) mixing with the air being inhaled and filling the Dantien.. as you exhale visualize the Dantien acting as a pump pumping the enriched Qi out of the Dantien, under the torso (HuiYin region) and up the Governing Vessel (back centerline, Du Mai), crossing the skull arriving at the palate where the tongue touches, just behind the front teeth, completing the "small circulation".. then, inhale repeating this process.. Keep your intentions clear.. mix the air with the Qi, fill the Dantien and pump the Qi through the small circulation.. with practice you will begin to feel the Qi itself surging along this path.. there are beneficial postures and movements that enhance this process or focus this process for particular purposes, but first you should become comfortable with simply circulating the Qi effortlessly.. You should read carefully regarding blockages and appropriate muscular control for clearing the small circulation and making for a smooth and effective circulation of the Qi..

Visualize the Dantien as a small pressure cooker.. as you add air to the Qi and focus it to the Dantien, the Dantien heats up , and.. imagine the Qi stored in the Dantien like water, as it heats up it turns to steam which is pumped out by breath cycles.. remember, put your mind where you want the Qi to be.. so focus the intentions to the process, follow the small circulation in timing with the breath cycles.. and with practice you should get good results in 60-90 days, that is a comfortable circulation of Qi.. distractions will of course hinder this process.. 20-40 minutes of circulating Qi is recommended until you become comfortable with the process.. the you can gradually reduce the circulation focus and expand other techniques..

I hope this helps.. Be well..

[SPJ]

There are many breathing exercises.

Practice using Yi/will/intent to guide the Qi flow.

when you inhale, it is called Cai Qi. when you exhale, all the CO2 and waste or toxic gas are out.

Ba Duan Jin is the most widely practiced Qi Gong since Song Dynasty.

There are several exercises I told people that are just starting.

You move your arms to the shoulder level, you inhale. You lower your arms to the abdomen or waist line, you exhale.

You do it longer and longer each time. The goal is 4 breaths per min.

It takes time to get there. This is similar to Qi Shi in Tai Chi.

You then raise your arms all the way up, inhale. All the way down, exhale.

You may elevate your heels when raising arms and inhaling.

You lower your heels, arms and exhaling.

You draw a circle upward with both arms, inhale. You lower your arms and complete the cirle and exhale.

All this time, you relaxe all over. You focus on breathing and Dan Tian. You exhale, the Qi moves up to your Bai Hui Xue. You inhale the Qi flows downward to your Dan Tian and then Hui Yin Xue. this is the little circulation. All the way down to Yong Chuan Xue on your feet is the big circulation. when you move your heels up and down or bending the knees, too.

The movement Qi Gong is a good way to start.

The sitting Qi Gong is a different practice.

You expand your chest, inhale. You contract the chest and exhale.

There are also elevating or sinking the diaphargm and do the abdominal breathing or prenatal breathing etc etc.

You may also assume a Gong Bu or bow stance, move both arms forward and exhale. Grab air in your palms and move toward you and inhale. you move from front Gong Bu to rear gong Bu. You may also rotate your waist.

On and on.

[superman859]

Thanks for the help I have gotten so far.

TaiChiBob - When I do these breathing exercises using Yi to guide Qi for the small circulation, what position should I be in? Sitting down on the floor is what comes to my mind when I think about this and just focusing and breathing and meditation. Is that ok? Is there a better way to be while I focus on the circulation?

yamesk - When it comes to my goals, I have a few. Pretty much the ones you said all sound like goals I wish to meet through this. I want more power from punches, I want to have better perception and thoughts, and going along with that, I wish to be able to relax and not get tense and control emotions.

Are there any good books? I have one book (dont remember why I got it..) But it is called How to Develop Chi Power by William Cheung. Does anyone know if it is any good? And has anyone ever tried any dvds about it? I wish there was Kung Fu here...bleh.

[TaiChiBob]

Greetings..

superman859: Personally, i favor standing meditation.. i also employ sitting meditation for purely esoteric reasons.. Standing meditation has many benefits, it gives us feedback on our structural alignment.. it connects us with the ground through the feet (a basic principle of MA).. it helps us understand the principles of manipulating energies in a common MA posture (upright).. and, as you advance through the meditative process, you can add the same circulations to standard Taiji postures.. further, you can begin to coordinate breath with movement AND circulation, this is where it gets interesting.. At some point, with diligent effort and discipline, the mind will become aware of a situation and the Qi will activate the musculo-skeletal mechanisms in its sudden rush to see what's so interesting to the mind, in other words, there is no thought process.. the stimulus gets the mind's attention and the response happens as a result of well trained Qi manifesting itself at the focus of the awareness..

Sitting meditation is excellent for cultivating spirit (Shen), enhancing creativity, and questing for enlightment.. Standing meditation unites the cultivated Shen with mind and body in a more complete unified process.. As far as faster or more powerful punches, that is a by-product of the process.. in the state of enhanced awareness and mental/spiritual clarity, your response will be so well timed and so focused that less power is necessary to acheive decisive results.. in the training process during push-hands drills, you can circulate Qi as you sense micro changes in the oponent's intentions/movements, activating the response before the oponent can manifest the intention.. this is very difficult to achieve due to the lack of training partners willing to let go of the ego's need to win.. if you find the right training partner, both of you can achieve great things.. each willing to help the other find their way .. it's not about winning, it's about developing the tools that make winning a by-product of your Taiji.. After investing much time and work i have learned that if i focus on the Taiji it takes care of the situation, but.. if i focus on the situation, the Taiji gets muddled and fragmented, then i get tense and caught up in my head resulting in a struggle rather than simply doing my Taiji.. You must have faith that your Taiji will do its job, that your training is worthy.. if so, you will seldom need it, your confidence (not arrogance) will have already decided the outcome..

Be well..

[Slade]

Are there any good books? I have one book (dont remember why I got it..) But it is called How to Develop Chi Power by William Cheung. Does anyone know if it is any good? And has anyone ever tried any dvds about it? I wish there was Kung Fu here...bleh.

Ive read the book mainly its got a bit on Dim mak at the start of it, then it has 2 different breathing excercises and some stuff on meridian massage to get the chi flowing more freely and then it has the whole basic Shil lim Tao form then followed by applications of techniques from that form, and a bit on one arm and two arm chi sao. Not overly in depth when it comes to chi development but a not bad read if you are into Wing Chun.

[superman859]

Alright, thank you. What is the best in-depth Chi Development book any of you have read?

[Jim Roselando]

Hello,


Chi?

For me, I find the easiest way to develop it and have others develop it is thru Zhan Zhuang (Jam Jong) aka Tree Huggin!

You need to get the gas cookin so its important to do atleast 20 minutes a day for the first couple of years. Once you have it then you can heat up real quick and will not need the 20!

What to think about?

Not much!

Posture, Relaxation of body/mind, Deep soft silk like Dan Tien breathing!

Nothing else IMHO.

Trying to force/lead the breath with the mind in the beginning will most likely cause reverse effect! Stick to the natural approach for now and then later you can do whatever you want when you have a lot stored up! Your body knows best where the Chi should go and when it should go etc.. Focus on the above for 3 months and test it out.

Line up:

Bai Hui/Hoi Yin/Yong Chon (K1)

You may almost feel like you are leaning forward a bit when doing the standing post but usually thats normal as we have to allow our bodies to naturally adjust over time.

Oh yeah! DO NOT USE A MIRROR! You need to feel this stuff and not try to visually copy it.


Best of luck with your training!


Peace,

[superman859]

When I am imagining Qi flow in the small circulation, how should I imagine it flowing? Slowly goes down to the dan tien, and then back around? Or does it travel there fast?

[Yamesk]

When I am imagining Qi flow in the small circulation, how should I imagine it flowing? Slowly goes down to the dan tien, and then back around? Or does it travel there fast?

The whole art behind martial arts is that if everyone does a technique properly there will always be something unique about the person him/herself that is shown. In other words, don't speculate or make it so complicated. "Just do it," as the old saying goes. Tai Chi is not as strict on form when it comes to visualisation really, as long as you don't add anything way off.

[Jim Roselando]

Hello,


When I am imagining Qi flow in the small circulation, how should I imagine it flowing? Slowly goes down to the dan tien, and then back around? Or does it travel there fast?


How can you worry about the small circulation if the Chi has not sunk to the Dan Tien yet?

Forget about trying to imagine or force this or that. Just stand, relax and breath and let nature take its course. The more you think or try to do this or that the longer it will take for Chi to begin to cultivate!

Listen to Nike corp.:

Just Do It!


If you are looking for some good books:


Tao Of Yi Chuan: Jam Dieperslooth (sp?)
The Way Of Energy: Lam Kam Chuen

Cheng's 13 Chapters: C. Man Chengs


Peace,

[shog]

TaichiBob hit the can right on...

If you are in the proper posture, and breathing regularly, and not focusing on any one thing, then the standing meditation (Zhua Zhang) will take care of itself.

Too many thoughts will cloud what you are doing, and you will not truly learn to touch based with your reptilian brain, or become zanshin (in japaneses terms)...

The study of qi, in this case truly begins when one let's go of what they are holding onto. That is, your hands must be empty in order to grab onto the new. The same goes for your mind, your body, and your spirit.

With Standing Tree ~ plant it, and the qi will flow and grow.


:)

those are my thoughts...

take care