Excerpts from                    DRAGON'S BREATH

Ching Yi Kung Fu Association Newsletter

MARCH 1982

  by Michael Alan Brown            President -  CYKFA

Edited by W Kraig Stephens CYKFA Black Belt #68

PUBLISHED WITH PERMISSION OF THE CHING YI KUNG FU ASSOCIATION

TRAINING -- Subject:  Standing Qi Gong (meditation) -- One vital common denominator that is found in virtually every school of internal martial arts is the practice of some sort of standing Qi Gong as a supplementary exercise.  The term means "Qi achievement" or "training of the vital force" and is closely akin to Nei Gong, meaning "internal achievement".

Although you will now find these exercises done by practitioners of most any style from southern Shaolin to Yang Tai Ji Quan, there are certain historical associations that can be made.  In general, if the arms are raised in a circle with the palms facing in toward the body, the method is of Tai Ji Quan origin.  Palms outward, it more than likely began as Ba Gua training.  Dr. Wong recommends the palms inward type for practice in colder climates and palms outward for warmer regions.

There are several different ways of placing the feet:  high horse posture with feet parallel; one foot weighted with the other foot a half step forward, feet parallel with the heels off the ground; etc.  Whichever way you have learned (or prefer), the main points still persist:  Shoulders must relax, your breath and total concentration must be centered in the Dan Tian region below the navel, the hips must rotate under so the spine is straight, and the tongue must firmly touch the hard palate.  Slow the breath until it is so quite you cannot hear the sound of either inhalation or exhalation.  Make each inhale and each exhale the same length (i.e., if you inhale for 20 seconds, you should exhale for 20 seconds).  If you are standing in a high horse posture (recommended), bend the knees slightly so that all strain is removed from the upper body.

Gradually increase the amount of time that you practice.   Try to work up to 15 minutes to ½ hour daily.  At first, you may experience tension in the shoulders and upper back.  When you do, slowly lower your arms, shake or massage the area, practice forms, whatever, then go back and do another round.  You will find that in a very short time you'll be able to stand longer and longer in each set without having to stop and rest.  Where you were previously doing 4 "sets" of five minutes each, you can now do ONE "set" of 20 minutes.

If you haven't already given a good effort to standing Qi Gong practice, now is the time to start.  The increase in overall body strength will be dramatic -- true internal strength that will aid you in every activity.