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Qigong: For Meditators
Qigong: For Meditators
Qigong: For Meditators
for meditators
Energy cultivation for a deepened practice
By Teja Bell
Photographs by Stephanie Mohan | Diagrams by Mason Holcomb
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Essential Practice:
Standing Meditation
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diagram 1
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From the stillness and stability of the standing meditation posture we open into motion with the Radiant Body Breath.
Through this practice, we guide the qi throughout the entire
field of the body, smoothing and soothing the energy body while
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For meditators, practicing Full Spinal Breathing can be beneficial for overall alertness, releasing tension of the lower and middle
back and shoulder blade area, moving qi inside the body to
nourish and bring health to the internal organs, and gently
pumping the cerebral spinal fluid along the spinal cord and into
the brain. Learn the form of Full Spinal Breathing by first studying the basic mechanics of the actions and then weaving this
understanding into a seamless flow of movement and awareness.
Begin in the standing meditation posture. With open palms
facing upward at the hips, waist-height, relax your shoulders,
allowing shoulder blades to settle downward, smoothly turn the
hands palms up, so that the fingertips begin to point inward toward the body, continuing the turning as they point behind the
body. (Photo 4: Full Spinal Breathing, hand movement)
Continue the spiral rotation of the upward-turned palms
until the fingertips point away from the body and the palms face
outward. Continue this elliptical arch of the arms until the
backs of the hands come together in front of the body, like a
diver getting ready to dive into the water. (Photo 5: Full Spinal
Breathing, C shape)
The body should be very relaxed in this gesture. The knees
are slightly bent, the hips and pelvis are relaxed, and the lower
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the palms spiral forward away from the body, coming again into
the divers stance.
Practice slowly with an evenness of in- and out-breath. You
may pause, but do not hold your breath in the spaces between
the completion of each in-and-out-breath. Practice between 3 to
12 cycles per session. To complete the practice, on the last exhalation extend the hands forward just below shoulder height.
With palms downward, complete the exhalation. Inhale as you
float the palms downward to the sides, seamlessly returning to
the standing meditation posture. Return to natural breathing
and rest.
To deepen and refine this qigong practice, bring your attention to the luminous core of the spinal cord as it extends from
the base of the tailbone into the brain. The gentle and mindful
pulsing action of this field of aliveness activates, strengthens,
and tones the nervous system, bringing about a natural calm
and alertness.
With the exhalation and each accompanying gesture, begin
to feel the length of the posterior spine opening and expanding
while the front or anterior length closes. This is a spinal pulse.
Similarly, with the inhalation, begin to feel the length of the
posterior spine closing as the anterior length of the spine expands
inside the body. Along with this anterior and posterior wrapping
of the body around the lateral aspect of the spine, simultaneously there is another pulse of the so-called superior and inferior
lengththe top and bottomof the spine. This is the C
shape, or bow, of the spine that forms as the tailbone drops and
the crown of the head extends at the same time with the exhalation, then relaxes back to its natural opposite, arching with the
gesture of the inhalation.
Dont make this difficult or mechanical. Enjoy the way your
body relaxes into these very slow, wavelike, health-giving pulses.
Soften your eyes and allow a sense of interior vision to open.
Simply be with the subtlety.
Principles of Practice
The following orientation to qigong practice transforms movement into meditation, nourishing and
grounding the whole being:
1. Undertake the actions with ease rather than forcefulness, letting your intention rather than willpower
guide your movements.
2. Unify your mind and body with the breath. This
opens you to presence awarenessto the direct experience of feeling the interconnectedness of spirit,
mind, and body through natural focused attention,
enhancing and stabilizing practice.
3. Underdo. Practice within 70 percent of your capacity and range of motion. This makes it possible for
you to stay connected with feeling and flow, release
extra tension, and optimize the effect of practice.
4. Cultivate dynamic relaxationattention without
tension, or laxity, or unnecessary effort.
5. Cultivate the feeling of openness and expansion from
within. Instead of copying an external form, trust
your somatic perception to guide you. In this way, the
form becomes a doorway to the practice of qi cultivation and flow.
6. Practice the movements slowly, softly, and smoothly.
This cultivates effortless concentration and mindfulness.
7. Trust the natural intelligence of your being to guide
your practice and your deepening understanding. To
access this direct knowing, listen from your heart.
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