Share Lew students- discussion

[cha kuen]

I thought it would be nice to gather people who have learned from Share Lew or of his forms to discuss somethings. I am practicing the short Cloud hands and the earth meditation. I have been doing the cloud hands for about.. 2 months now and have just started to do the earth meditation (been a week?).

Who else has learned from SKL or his style of chi kung sets?

[Mojo]

I studied from Sifu back in the mid 70's. Learned his 31tao tan pai , the shen exercises, and also tai-chi ruler.

[urban tea]

Hi Mojo

Can you describe the effects that the shen and tai chi ruler have had on you? I am going to learn the shen next...probalby in Janurary. So far in the cloud hands I feel chi in my hands.... and also starting to fee it in my feet...tingling upwards too.

Also earth meditation I feel it in my feet and sometimes waving around my chest. I hear the shen is quite powerful...could you share a bit about the experiences in that set?

[Mojo]

I don't like to share experiences while doing chi-gong, because it is important for you to feel it yourself without any expectations.
The feelings are subtle and you can fool yourself into thinking your getting what you expect. Better they come naturally and spontaniously.

But I will say the shen exercises produce wonderful health benefits.

Now that your starting to feel your own chi , try to feel others chi. Move your hands around another person and see what you can feel. Find people who have been injured/hurt and feel the energy around he problem.

[cha kuen]

Hi Mojo,

I understand about now wanting to share expereinces because they vary person to person. But could you describe some of the health benefits?? I am really looking forward to healing my back/neck problem that has plagued me for 8 years and also increasing a lot of energy.

I hear some chi kung people only need 4 hours of sleep and wake up naturally w/ full energy to complete their day...

[Mojo]

I need about 5 hours of sleep to feel good the next day.

The first health benifit that really suprised me was my farsightedness disappeared. My eye that was 20/200 went to normal ( I never had it measured after that ). I was shocked because I never knew that could be a result of the shen gung.

[cha kuen]

WOW! Farsighted ness disappeared!!

Have you compared this with your other classmates to see if their vision improved???
Now that is something to get modivated about. Also 5 hours sleeep sounds awesome...

Have you learned the earth meditation? When do you practice that?
Currently I practice cloud and then sit down to do earth meditation. Does it matter if I do the meditaiton first, then the set?

[Mojo]

The Earth meditation was taught as part of the 31ttp.
It was done as part of the seated portion of the TTP. Sifu told me if I only wanted to do the Earth med to do some chi-gong before it. So you should do your cloud hands before sitting Earth med.

[cha kuen]

Thanks Mojo...

Did you get to learn the chi kung healing as well? I want to go to one of bill helm's semnars because he teaches the chi kung healing.... over the span of like 4 weekends or something like that.

[Mojo]

No, I regret that I never learned the healing.

[woliveri]

Mojo,

What are you doing these days? Are you stilll practicing qigong in addition to another art? Or have you dropped qigong?

[Mojo]

I do as much Hsing-I and Yang tai-chi as I can these days. My chi gong is mostly standing in Santi postion and some shen gong. It fullfills my needs.

[woliveri]

Mojo,

It's funny you should mention santi stance. I was with my friend at his daughter's wushu school and the teacher who is also versed in xing-yi, was teaching a beginning student and she was explaining this stance. Currently I'm practicing wuji qigong, standing stake with arms at the sides. When I get built up I will move to a different, more demanding stance and eventually train in something like xing-yi.

The question I have for you if you can is what is the overall purpose of training qigong. The way I understand it it is to open channels and build qi.

I mean, the difference between Share K. Lew and you (or me for that matter) is what? That he's opened the channels to the max and has accumulated much qi?

Thanks for any insights.

[Mojo]

Santi is funny. It's the first thing you learn and it's also the most advanced practice.

Taoist yoga has an ultimate goal of creating some sort of a spirit being of yourself that will live past the death of your body. ie: taoist immortal.

For most of us though, i'd say the goal of your chi gong exercises is good health. The chi gong exercises that we all practice are the lower levels of taoist yoga which are designed to bring us to ideal health. So it sets the stage for the really advanced yoga one might do if one was living in a taoist monastary.
Frankly, the advanced stages cannot be practiced in todays society, with all the complications and distractions we have in life. Better to shoot for being really healthy and happy with life and love.

[woliveri]

Santi is funny. It's the first thing you learn and it's also the most advanced practice.

I would say it's very similar to Wuji qigong and Taiji quan. Wuji is the first stance and the most advanced practice in the art.