Cultivating Qi by David W. Clippinger

Author:David W. Clippinger [Неизв.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780857012548
Publisher: Jessica Kingsley Publishers
Published: 2016-07-24T20:00:00+00:00

Regulating Body, Breath, and Mind

Classic training in the Internal Martial Arts proposes that there are five areas of concentration, each of which is related to and enhances the others. These are what are known as the five regulations, or training body, breath, mind, Qi, and spirit.13 The first three areas correspond to the furnace (body), bellows (breath) and cauldron (mind)—all of which generate, regulate, and direct the Qi. The last two areas of regulating Qi and spirit (Shen) build upon the foundation of the body, breath, and mind and turn the focus to harnessing that energy for regulating health and wellness as well as transforming Qi for spiritual cultivation. Each of these areas overlaps with the others, so it would be remiss, if not impossible, to discuss them as independent areas of training. A tense body obstructs breathing, for example, which agitates the mind and impedes the flow of Qi. Proper training means being aware of the body, breath, and mind working together, and the act of regulating means paying attention to all three. Traditional Chinese Medicine regards the body as an interrelated whole as well, and to treat a specific problem (a skin rash, for example) requires not just treating the site of the problem (the skin), but the organs and channels as well (the lungs, in this case). The body’s organs, channels, and the mind, and all of their processes, are one unit too: the respiratory process is the manifestation of the state of the body and mind; the emotional and psychological state of the mind is affected by the condition of the body; and the mind impacts the state of the body. Just as a tense body creates tense Qi, when the breath is shallow and tight, the Qi is weak and constricted.

The relationship between body and breath can be demonstrated quite easily by raising the shoulders and feeling how the breath concentrates into the upper chest and respiration becomes more shallow and rapid. When the shoulders are relaxed and lowered, the sternum hollows, and the breath is able to reach deeper, past the diaphragm and into the lower portion of the lungs, which allows the breath to soften and become fuller. Yang Cheng Fu’s explanation of the impact of the tightness of the shoulders upon the power of the body (discussed in the previous chapter) applies to the quality of breath as well. Yang explains that “If you cannot relax and sink, the two shoulders will be raised up and tense. The Qi will follow them and the whole body cannot get power.” The breath follows tense shoulders upward, and the inability to relax and sink alters the breath and adds to the drain of power. While the body needs to be relaxed, properly structured, and centered in order to cultivate Qi, the breath also needs to be unobstructed and full in order to build Qi; when it is not full, the respiratory process contributes to the depletion of power. Just as the state of relaxation

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.