Читать книгу The Root of Chinese Qigong - Jwing-Ming Yang - Страница 12

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In their seven thousand years of history, the Chinese people have experienced all possible human suffering and pain. Chinese culture is like a very old man who has seen and experienced all of the pain of human life. Yet through his experience, he has also accumulated a great store of knowledge. Chinese culture, as reflected in its literature and painting, ranks among the greatest achievements of the human spirit. It reflects humankind’s joy and grief, pleasure and suffering, peace and strife, vitality, sickness, and death.

Within this complex cultural and historical background, the Chinese people have long sought ways of living healthy and happy lives. However, as they looked for ways to better themselves and seek spiritual fulfillment, they have also tended to believe that everything that happens is due to destiny, and that it is prearranged by heaven. Despite this fatalistic belief, they have still looked for ways to resist the apparent inevitability of sickness and death.

The Chinese have devoted a large part of their intellectual effort to self-study and self-cultivation in the hope of understanding the meaning of their lives. This inward-feeling and looking, this spiritual searching, has become one of the major roots of Chinese religion and medical science. Qi, the energy within the human body, was studied very carefully. As people perceived the link between the Qi in the human body and the Qi in nature, they began to hope that this Qi was the means whereby man could escape from the trap of sickness and death. Over the years, many different sectors of Chinese society have studied and researched Qi.

Of all the researchers, the scholars and the doctors have had the longest history, and they have brought the understanding of Qi to a very deep level. It was they who learned the methods of maintaining health and curing sickness. Chinese medical science has developed out of the Qi research of the physicians.

When Indian Buddhism was imported into China, it profoundly influenced Chinese culture. Naturally, Chinese Qigong was also affected by the Buddhist meditative practices. The Daoist religion was created out of a mixture of traditional scholarly Daoism and Buddhism. Since that time, Buddhist and Daoist Qigong have been considered among the greatest achievements of Chinese culture.

Daoism and Buddhism have not only brought the Chinese people a peaceful, spiritual mind which may untie the mystery of human life and destiny, they have also created a hope that the development of Qigong may give people a healthy and happy life while they are alive, and an eternal spiritual life after death. When viewed from this historical background, it is not hard to understand why a major part of Chinese culture in the last two thousand years, other than warfare and possibly medical science, were based on the religions of Daoism and Buddhism, and spiritual science.

The emphasis on the spiritual life, rather than the material, is one of the major differences between Eastern and the Western cultures. An example of this is in the maintenance of health, where the West emphasizes the physical body more, while the East tends to also treat the person’s spiritual and mental health.

Most Westerners believe that if you strengthen your physical body, you also improve your health. They emphasize the exercising and training of the physical body, but they ignore the balancing of the body’s internal energy (Qi), which is also related to the emotions and the cultivation of spiritual calmness. Daoists call this “Cong Wai Jian Gong” () (building the strength externally) or “Yuan Xin Zhi Wai Gong Yun Dong” ()(distant mind’s external exercises, meaning “external exercises without mental concentration or attention”).

People who exercise a lot and whose bodies are externally strong are not necessarily healthier or happier than the average person. In order to have true good health you must have a healthy body, a healthy mind, and also smooth and balanced Qi circulation. According to Chinese medicine, many illnesses are caused by imbalances in your mind. For example, worry and nervousness can upset your stomach or harm your spleen.¹ Fear or fright can hinder the normal functioning of your kidneys and bladder. This is because your internal energy (Qi circulation) is closely related to your mind. In order to be truly healthy, you must have both a healthy physical body and a calm and healthy mind. True good health is both external and internal.

When someone gets involved in body building, he will emphasize building strong muscles. According to acupuncture and Qigong theory, he will also energize his body, stimulate his mind, and increase the level of the Qi circulation. If he trains properly, he will naturally gain physical health. However, if he exercises too much, he will over energize his body and over-excite his mind and Qi. This will make his physical body too Yang (positive). According to Chinese philosophy, too much of something is excessive Yang () and too little is excessive Yin (), and neither extreme is desirable. When your body is too Yang or too Yin, your internal organs will tend to weaken and to degenerate sooner than they ordinarily would. A person who seems to be externally strong and healthy may be weak internally.

In addition, when a body builder gets older, his over-stressed muscle fibers may lose their elasticity and degenerate faster than those of the average person. This causes the Qi to stagnate in the Qi channels. This phenomenon is well known among older practitioners of external martial arts, where it is called “San Gong” (), meaning “energy dispersion.” The proper amount of exercise will generate only enough Qi to stimulate the organs and help them function normally and healthily. Overdoing exercise is like getting too much sunshine, which we now know will cause your skin cells to degenerate faster than the lack of sun.

Qigong practitioners believe that in order to gain real health you must not only do external exercises, but must also “Cong Nei Zhu Ji” ()(build the foundation internally), or do “Xiang Xin Zhi Nei Gong Yun Dong” ()(literally “toward the mind’s internal exercise,” meaning internal exercise with mental concentration). Strengthening yourself internally and externally at the same time is called “Xing Ming Shuang Xiu” (). Xing means natural characteristics, personality, temperament, or disposition. It is shown internally. Ming is life, and refers to the life or death of the physical body. Shuang Xiu means double cultivation. The expression therefore means that if you desire to gain real health, you must cultivate your character internally and strengthen your body both internally and externally. The internal side is approached through meditation and Qigong exercises.

Many people believe that Qigong is a product only of China, India, or other Oriental countries. As a matter of fact, internal energy cultivation has also been common in the Western world, usually within the context of religion. Many people have been able to find their internal foundation and strength through meditation or praying in their church, temple, or mosque. Through their devotions and the practice of prayer, they are able to build up their concentration, confidence, and will, all of which are prerequisites to internal strength. The practice of such disciplines allows the energy in the body to become balanced, bringing health and strength to some, and even, in some cases, seemingly supernatural powers. Jesus is credited with many miracles, but he told his disciples “He that believeth on me, the works that I do, shall he do also, and greater works than these shall he do,” (John 14:12). All of the major Western religions have had branches or sects which used practices similar to the Oriental Qigong disciplines.

However, there have also been people without any particular religious belief who have meditated by themselves and, through the buildup and circulation of Qi, developed psychic or healing abilities. Unfortunately, in earlier times such people were often killed as witches or heretics, so people who found they had such powers tended to view themselves as freaks or worse, and hid their powers. These negative attitudes only kept people from researching and understanding such abilities.

Many people in China and India have developed amazing powers through their meditation training. Fortunately, these powers were understood as being a result of Qigong, and so people were encouraged to train and research the subject. Although Qigong is becoming a more acceptable subject in the West, the Chinese and Indians are still way ahead in this internal mental and physical science.

Since 1973, acupuncture has been widely accepted by the American people, and even by many in the medical establishment. More and more people are becoming familiar with the concept of Qi. Qi related arts such as Taijiquan and Qigong exercises are getting much more attention than ever before. Many people are learning that the study of Qi can be very beneficial, and I feel certain that in the next twenty years Qigong will become one of the hottest fields of research.

1-2. General Definition of Qi and Qigong

Before we define Qi and Qigong, you should understand that so far, there is no one scientific definition of Qi which is accepted generally by Qigong practitioners and Chinese medical society. The way people define Qi varies, depending upon their individual background and experience. Some people think Qi is an electric energy, others believe that it is a magnetic energy, and many others believe that Qi is heat or some other type of energy. However, anyone who has carefully researched the historical background of Qi would not define it by any one of these narrow definitions.

It is the same with Qigong. Qigong is often narrowly thought of as only exercises or meditations which can be used to improve one’s health or to cure sickness. In fact, however, the range of Qigong and the scope of its research is much wider. You should understand this point so you will be able to view Qi and Qigong in an accurate and open way.

In this section we will discuss the general definition of Qi and Qigong. Specific terms concerning Qi and Qigong which are directly related to the human body will be discussed later in a separate section.

General Definition of Qi

Qi is the energy or natural force which fills the universe. Heaven (the sky or universe) has Heaven Qi (Tian Qi, ), which is made up of the forces which the heavenly bodies exert on the earth, such as sunshine, moonlight, and the moon’s affect on the tides. In ancient times, the Chinese believed that it was Heaven Qi which controlled the weather, climate, and natural disasters. In China, the weather is still referred to as Tian Qi (Heaven Qi). Every energy field strives to stay in balance, so whenever the Heaven Qi loses its balance, it tries to rebalance itself. Then the wind must blow, rain must fall, even tornadoes or hurricanes must happen in order for the Heaven Qi to reach a new energy balance.

Under Heaven Qi, which is the most important of the three, is Earth Qi (Di Qi, ). It is influenced and controlled by Heaven Qi. For example, too much rain will force a river to flood or change its path. Without rain, the plants will die. The Chinese believe that Earth Qi is made up of lines and patterns of energy, as well as the earth’s magnetic field and the heat concealed underground. These energies must also balance, otherwise disasters such as earthquakes will occur. When the Qi of the earth is balanced, plants will grow and animals thrive.

Finally, within the Earth Qi, each individual person, animal, and plant has its own Qi field, which always seeks to be balanced. When any individual thing loses its Qi balance, it will sicken, die, and decompose. All natural things, including man, grow within and are influenced by the natural cycles of Heaven Qi and Earth Qi. Human Qi (Ren Qi, ) is usually considered a separate type of Qi, different from the Qi of the earth, and of plants and animals. The reason for this is simply that because we are human, we are particularly concerned with Human Qi, and have devoted a great deal of study to it.

Qi can be generally defined as any type of energy which is able to demonstrate power and strength. This energy can be electricity, magnetism, heat, or light. In China, electric power is called “Dian Qi” (electric Qi, ), and heat is called “Re Qi” (heat Qi, ). When a person is alive, his body’s energy is called “Ren Qi” (human Qi, ).

Qi is also commonly used to express the energy state of something, especially living things. As mentioned before, the weather is called “Tian Qi” (heaven Qi) because it indicates the energy state of the heavens. When a thing is alive it has “Huo Qi” (vital Qi, ), and when it is dead it has “Si Qi” (dead Qi or “Gui Qi” (ghost Qi, ). When a person is righteous and has the spiritual strength to do good, he is said to have “Zheng Qi” (normal Qi or righteous Qi, ). The spiritual state or morale of an army is called “Qi Shi” (energy state, ).

You can see that the word Qi has a wider and more general definition than most people think. It does not refer only to the energy circulating in the human body. Furthermore, the word “Qi” can represent the energy itself, and it can also be used to express the manner or state of the energy. It is important to understand this when you practice Qigong, so that your mind is not channeled into a narrow understanding of Qi, which would limit your future understanding and development.

General Definition of Qigong

We have explained that Qi is energy, and that it is found in the heavens, in the earth, and in every living thing. In China, the word “Gong” is often used instead of “Gongfu,” which means energy and time. Any study or training which requires a lot of energy and time to learn or to accomplish is called Gongfu. The term can be applied to any special skill or study as long as it requires time, energy, and patience. Therefore, the correct definition of Qigong is any training or study dealing with Qi which takes a long time and a lot of effort.

The Chinese have studied Qi for thousands of years. Some of the information on the patterns and cycles of nature has been recorded in books, one of which is the Yi Jing()(Book of Changes; 1122 B.C.). When the Yi Jing was introduced to the Chinese people, they believed that natural power included Tian (Heaven, ), Di (Earth, ), and Ren (Man, ). These are called “San Cai” (The Three Natural Powers, ) and are manifested by the three Qi’s: Heaven Qi, Earth Qi, and Human Qi (Figure 1-1). These three facets of nature have their definite rules and cycles. The rules never change, and the cycles repeat periodically. The Chinese people used an understanding of these natural principles and the Yi Jing to calculate the changes of natural Qi. This calculation is called “Bagua” (The Eight Trigrams, ). From the Eight Trigrams are derived the 64 hexagrams. Therefore, the Yi Jing was probably the first book which taught the Chinese people about Qi and its variations in nature and man. The relationship of the Three Natural Powers and their Qi variations were later discussed extensively in the book Qi Hua Lun (Theory of Qi’s Variation, ).

Figure 1-1. The three Qi’s of Heaven, Earth, and Man

Understanding Heaven Qi is very difficult, however, and it was especially so in ancient times when the science was just developing. But since nature is always repeating itself, the experience accumulated over the years has made it possible to trace the natural patterns. Understanding the rules and cycles of “Tian Shi” (heavenly timing, ) will help you to understand natural changes of the seasons, climate, weather, rain, snow, drought, and all other natural occurrences. If you observe carefully, you will be able to see many of these routine patterns and cycles caused by the rebalancing of the Qi fields. Among the natural cycles are those of the day, the month, and the year, as well as cycles of twelve years and sixty years.

Earth Qi is a part of Heaven Qi. If you can understand the rules and the structure of the earth, you will be able to understand how mountains and rivers are formed, how plants grow, how rivers move, what part of the country is best for someone, where to build a house and which direction it should face so that it is a healthy place to live, and many other things related to the earth. In China today there are people, called “geomancy teachers” (Di Li Shi, ) or “wind water teachers” (Feng Shui Shi, ), who make their living this way. The term Feng Shui is commonly used because the location and character of the wind and water in a landscape are the most important factors in evaluating a location. These experts use the accumulated body of geomantic knowledge and the Yi Jing to help people make important decisions such as where and how to build a house, where to bury their dead, and how to rearrange or redecorate homes and offices so that they are better places to live and work in. Many people even believe that setting up a store or business according to the guidance of Feng Shui can make it more prosperous.

Among the three Qi’s, Human Qi is probably the one studied most thoroughly. The study of Human Qi covers a large number of different subjects. The Chinese people believe that Human Qi is affected and controlled by Heaven Qi and Earth Qi, and that they in fact determine your destiny. Therefore, if you understand the relationship between nature and people, in addition to understanding human relations (Ren Shi, ), you will be able to predict wars, the destiny of a country, or a person’s desires and temperament and even his future. The people who practice this profession are called “Suan Ming Shi” (calculate life teachers, ).

However, the greatest achievement in the study of Human Qi is in regard to health and longevity. Since Qi is the source of life, if you understand how Qi functions and know how to regulate it correctly, you should be able to live a long and healthy life. Remember that you are part of nature, and you are channeled into the cycles of nature. If you go against this natural cycle, you may become sick, so it is in your best interests to follow the way of nature. This is the meaning of “Dao,” which can be translated as “The Natural Way.”

Many different aspects of Human Qi have been researched, including acupuncture, acupressure, herbal treatment, meditation, and Qigong exercises. The use of acupuncture, acupressure, and herbal treatment to adjust Human Qi flow has become the root of Chinese medical science. Meditation and moving Qigong exercises are used widely by the Chinese people to improve their health or even to cure certain illnesses. Meditation and Qigong exercises serve an additional role in that Daoists and Buddhists use them in their spiritual pursuit of enlightenment.

You can see that the study of any of the aspects of Qi including Heaven Qi, Earth Qi, and Human Qi should be called Qigong. However, since the term is usually used today only in reference to the cultivation of Human Qi through meditation and exercises, we will only use it in this narrower sense to avoid confusion.

Before we finish this section, we would like to discuss one more thing. The word Nei Gong () is often used, especially in Chinese martial society. “Nei” means “internal” and “Gong” means “Gongfu.” Nei Gong means “internal Gongfu,” as opposed to Wai Gong () which means “external Gongfu.” Nei Gong is martial arts training which specializes in internal Gongfu, which builds up the Qi internally first and then coordinates the Qi with martial techniques. Typical Chinese Nei Gong martial styles are Taijiquan (), Liu He Ba Fa (), Baguazhang (), and Xingyiquan (). In contrast to Nei Gong, Wai Gong emphasizes developing the muscles, with some build up of Qi in the limbs. Typical Wai Gong martial styles are: Praying Mantis, Tiger, Eagle, White Crane, Dragon, and so on. Many of the external styles originated in the Shaolin Temple.

1-3. About This Book

I hope this book will lay down a theoretical foundation which interested Qigong practitioners can use in their training. Hopefully this book can explain to you the How, Why, and What of Qigong, and help you to avoid being confused and misled.

It is extremely difficult to write a book which covers more than four thousand years of study and research, especially since a large portion of the knowledge was kept secret until the last twenty years. Even though the study of Qigong has reached very high, there are still many questions which must be answered through recourse to today’s technology and interdisciplinary knowledge. Contemporary, enthusiastic minds will have plenty of opportunity to research and promote the art.

One of the major purposes of this book is to stimulate Western scholars and medical society to get involved with and study this newly-revealed science. Hopefully other Qigong experts will be encouraged to share their knowledge with the public. I believe that in a short time Qigong will reach new and exciting heights in the Western world. This would be one of the greatest cross-cultural achievements since East and West opened their doors to each other.

Most available documents are not systematically organized and do not explain the subject very well. As I compile them and try to explain them in a logical and scientific way, I must use my own judgment, and I must explain them based on my personal Qigong background and my understanding of the documents. It is impossible for one person alone to do justice to this enormous field. You are encouraged to question everything stated in this text, and to always remember that many conclusions come from my own judgment. The main purpose of this book is to lead you to the path of study — it is not meant to be the final authority.

When you read this book, it is important that you keep your mind open, and let go of your habitual ways of thinking. When we find ourselves in a new environment or start studying something new, it is human nature to view the new from the standpoint of what we have already learned. Unfortunately, this tends to make us conservative and narrow minded. This is commonly seen in tourists who visit another country, but judge the local customs and behavior according to their own country’s standards. This usually leads to a lot of confusion and misunderstanding. If, however, you try to understand other people according to their own culture and historical background, you will have a much better chance of understanding their behavior. Please do this when you start studying this science of Qigong. If you keep your mind open and try to understand it according to its historical background, you will find it a fascinating and challenging subject.

It is true that it is very hard to break from tradition. In many old cultures, tradition must be obeyed absolutely. If anyone is against the tradition, he is considered a traitor to the culture. However, the correct approach to research and study involves questioning tradition and proving its inaccuracies through the use of modern thought and technology. This is especially necessary in regard to ancient sciences which were developed before this century. New study will allow us to prove and establish their accuracy. You should understand that this is not a form of betrayal. It is our responsibility to prove the truth and bring facts to light.

Many of the theories which have been passed down were based upon many years of experience. Regardless of how you modify a theory, the fact is, it is still the root of the entire science. Therefore, the correct approach to study and research involves respect and study of the past. From this respect and study, you will be able to find the root of the entire science. If you forget this root, which has been growing for thousands of years, you are studying only the branches and flowers.

You should judge this inner science of Qigong in a logical and scientific manner. Of course, the words “logic” and “scientific” are not absolute terms. They are relative to the science and understanding which we possess. Remember, though, that although science has been developing for thousands of years, it was only in the last hundred years or so that it suddenly began to swell in the width and depth of its understanding. We can be sure, therefore, that our understanding today is still in its infancy. There are many facts and phenomena which cannot be explained by today’s science. Therefore, when you read this new inner science, be logical and scientific, yet don’t reject explanations which lie outside of what you presently accept as true. What is accepted as true in a few years may be quite different from what we now accept.

All sciences were developed from daring assumptions which were then proven by careful experimentation. The results which we get from our experiments allow us to modify our assumptions and to create new experiments which explore our new hypotheses. This process enables us to develop a complete theory, and determine what next needs to be studied.

It is the same with Qigong practice. If you look and study carefully, you will see that, although many of the Qi-related theories were proven accurate and have been widely used in China, there are still many questions which still need to be answered.

During the course of study you must be patient and persevering. Strong will, patience, and perseverance are the three main components of success. This is especially true in Qigong training. Your will and wisdom must be able to dominate and conquer your emotional laziness. I believe that a person’s success depends on his attitude toward life and his moral character, rather than his wisdom and intelligence. We’ve all known people who were wise, yet ended up losers. They may be smart, and they pick things up more quickly than other people, but they soon lose interest. If they don’t persevere, they stop learning and growing, and they never achieve their goals. They never realize that success demands moral virtues, and not just wisdom. A person who is truly wise knows that he must develop the other requirements for success.

In addition, a person who is truly wise will know when to start and when to stop. Many opportunities to succeed are lost by people who are too proud of their intelligence. There is a Chinese story about a group of people who competed in a snake-drawing contest. One man completed his drawing of a snake faster than anybody else. He was very proud of himself, and he thought “I’m so fast I could even draw four legs on the snake and still win!” So he drew the legs on, but when the judge chose the winner, it was somebody else. The man was very upset, and asked the judge why he didn’t win; after all, he had finished before everyone else. The judge said: “You were supposed to draw a snake. Since snakes don’t have legs, what you drew was not a snake.” So, as smart as the man was, he didn’t have the sense to know when to stop.

A person who is really wise understands that real success depends not only his wisdom but also on his moral character. Therefore, he will also cultivate his moral character and develop his good personality. Confucius said: “A man who is really wise knows what he knows and also knows what he does not know.”² Too often people who are smart become satisfied with their accomplishments and lose their humility. They feel that they know enough, and so they stop learning and growing. In the long run they will only lose. Remember the story of the tortoise and the hare. If the rabbit had not been so proud and satisfied, he would not have lost the race.

Once you understand what has been passed down to you, you should be creative. Naturally, this creativity must be under one condition: that you must understand the old way clearly and thoroughly. Only after you understand the old knowledge to a deep level will your mind be qualified to think “what if...” Then you will be able to come up with good ideas for further study and research. If all Qigong practitioners only practice the old ways and never search for new ones, the science of Qigong will stagnate at its current level. In that case, we will have lost the real meaning of and attitude toward learning.

This book is the most fundamental of the YMAA Qigong book series. It offers you the foundation of knowledge and training practices which is required to understand subsequent YMAA Qigong books. This book consists of four major parts. The first part will briefly summarize Qigong history, explain the necessary Qigong terminology, and discuss the major Qigong categories. The second part will discuss the theory and major keys to Qigong training. This will enable the Qigong beginner to enter the door to the Qigong garden, and will offer the experienced practitioner a directory to the various types of Qigong. The third part will review the Qi channels and vessels to help you understand the Qi circulatory system in the human body. Finally, the fourth part will conclude the discussion in this book, and list some of the many questions I have about Qigong.

References

1. When Chinese medicine refers to an organ, such as the spleen, kidney, or bladder, they are not necessarily referring to the physical organ, but rather to a system of functions which are related to the organ.

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