Energize Your Qigong Practice
Spring Forest Qigong
Energy cannot be created or destroyed, it can only be changed from one form to another. ~Albert Einstein
Do you know what E=mc2 means? For many of us “non-scientific” types, this was a complicated equation to understand in school, but as Master Chunyi Lin has taught us, we can keep things simple and still have great understanding of theories and concepts. For example, Einstein’s theory basically tells us that “mass and energy are essentially equivalent” (physicscentral.com). This simply means, energy does not go away but rather can change form.
Qigong also has a pretty simple definition: Qi means energy, and Gong means to work with… to cultivate. Qigong is merely the practice of working to balance our body’s energy for the best physical, emotional, and/or spiritual health. It sounds so easy, right?
For something that is not very complicated, why can it be so difficult sometimes to create a consistent qigong practice in our life?
For some of us, we may start out all “gungho” for maybe a few weeks or even months, and then our flaming desire to do Qigong regularly begins to slowly fizzle out until all that is left is barely a spark of interest. Maybe our daily practice becomes a little less—maybe we only do a few movements instead of the whole series, or maybe we tell ourselves that we do not have time to meditate during the day because the demands of work and family make it seem like there are not enough hours in a day.
Developing a consistent Qigong practice is one of the Six Keys to Success taught in Spring Forest Qigong. Remember “good, better, best”? Best would be practicing Qigong exercises and meditation every day, preferably around the same time of day. Why is this? Because you will begin to regulate your body’s energy systems, which can create greater health. It is also recommended to practice Qigong for at least one-half hour each day—the longer and the more consistently that you practice, the greater the results for your physical, emotional, and spiritual well-being.
Making time for your Qigong practice now can save you time in the future. If you become ill because your energy is blocked, your time will be spent going to the doctor or lying in bed, feeling sick and miserable. How might you reenergize your Qigong practice by re-framing how you are viewing your available time? A regular Qigong practice may help you reduce the amount of time you need to sleep. Energy begets energy… as you open up your energy channels, you will become more energized… more energy equals more quality sleep… more quality sleep can mean less hours needed for sleep. Come to think of it, taking time now to practice Qigong will generate a greater return on investment… investing the time now gives you more time later!
In today’s world, we all have a lot of responsibilities and activities that take up our time each day. We are constantly “connected” through our technology, so there is very little “down” time unless we are sleeping, and even our sleep can be negatively affected if our energy channels are blocked. The beauty of Spring Forest Qigong is that you can perform an exercise pretty much anywhere and at any time. Moving of Yin and Yang or Breathing of the Universe are two of the fundamental exercises of Spring Forest Qigong. Either of these can be done easily as you are riding in a car, going for a walk, or sitting at your desk at your workplace. If you feel a bit self-conscious in performing the movement in front of other people, you don’t even need to do the actual movements, but use your mind and imagine yourself performing the movements in your mind’s eye.
Good, better, best.
If you cannot do one half hour of Qigong a day, energize yourself by doing even just ten or twenty minutes in a day. As you practice a little each day, you will find yourself with more energy, which in turn will help you energize your Qigong practice even more!
A wonderful way to incorporate some Qigong into your busy life is to listen to a meditation as you are lying down to go to sleep. Master Lin’s Small Universe meditation is an easy meditation to listen to and is known to help many Spring Forest Qigong practitioners fall asleep easily. As Master Lin tells us, sleep is a great form of meditation! Listening to a meditation at bedtime also won’t take additional time out of your busy schedule during the day.
For others of us, we learned Qigong because we had a health crisis and our total focus was on restoring health. How wonderful it is to be free of the illness and health issues that we were experiencing before Qigong—right? In fact, we feel so awesome that we gradually forget to keep up on our Qigong “maintenance” practice. It is similar to having a back injury where we are taught back exercises by our health care provider to strengthen the back muscles and promote healing. It is so easy to remember to do the exercises when our back is telling us it is in pain. But once the injury is resolved, the exercises can easily be forgotten, until the muscles in the back weaken again and the next twinge of pain resurfaces … NOW we are being reminded to do our exercises! Any good physical therapist will tell someone with back pain that they should continue doing strengthening exercises especially after the pain is gone, to prevent further pain and injury.
Be sure to make time for your Qigong practice when your energy is healthy and happy. If we only make time during a physical, emotional, or spiritual “crisis”, we can easily transform that beautiful energy into one of illness and sadness.
When we first begin practicing Qigong, we might feel the energy quite strongly, because in the beginning, our body is similar to a small energy “container” and only needs a little energy to fill it up. As we practice more, the energy channels in our body open up and our body becomes a larger container, which has the capacity to take in more energy fill it up. This is the best time to work with and develop our energy even further because our body is collecting more energy to move us to a higher level of physical, emotional, and spiritual well-being. If we stop practicing, those open energy channels we have worked with to balance our energy will start to close up again, easily putting us back at risk for potential physical or emotional challenges.
Knowing the benefits of having a consistent Qigong practice is great, but how do we keep ourselves and our practice energized? Here are a few suggestions:
• Take it outdoors (weather permitting). Doing Qigong outside in nature’s elements can be invigorating. Even stepping out on the balcony of your apartment to do your Qigong practice can help connect you with the energy of the sun and sky.
• Practice with a friend. Doing your Qigong practice with another person can help you be more accountable in actually doing your practice on a regular schedule.
• Join a practice group in your area. Practicing Qigong in a group setting is a sure-fire way to energize your practice. The energy of each participant in the group connects and expands so there is so much more energy in the space surrounding you. Remember, energy attracts energy, so it only makes sense that healing energy will attract healing energy!
• Lead your own practice group. Participating in a practice group is wonderful experience, but leading one can be even better! As we share our love with others, our hearts become filled with joy. As we give, we receive, and leading a practice group is a wonderful gift to give your family, friends, and community.
• Schedule your Qigong practice into your calendar. Make it a “date” with yourself (and Master Lin if you want him to join by DVD)! Last month’s newsletter showcased a practice group who energize their Qigong by getting dressed up and meeting together for their “date” with Master Lin, where they practice their Qigong while watching him on the TV screen leading the movements!
Yes, energy cannot be created or destroyed, however it can be transformed. If you are interested in transforming your Qigong practice to be more energized, consider taking a Spring Forest Qigong class or join a Spring Forest Qigong Practice Group in your area!