Chi Kung (Qi Gong)
Definition – “Chi Kung” (also spelled “chi gong,” and “chi gung”; originally called daoyin):

Chi Kung is: Chinese energetic healing, Chinese Qigong therapy, Chinese yoga, internal Qigong, Kiko, Qi Gong, Qigong healing. Chi Kung is a form of self-healing whose purported aim is to “stimulate” and “balance” the flow of qi (chi “vital energy”) through meridians (“energy pathways”).

It involves contemplation, visualization (imagery), assumption of postures, and stylized breathing and body movements. “Gong” is a Mandarin word that pertains to skill. Its Cantonese equivalent is “kung”, as in “kung fu.” The word “qigong” literally means “breathing exercise,” “to work the vital force,” “practicing with the breath,” and “working with the energy of life.” Interpretations of the word include “energy skill” and “energy mastering exercise.”

Chi Kung is: awareness! Of this very moment beyond time and space. The simple act of standing in this vivid awareness is Chi Kung. The awareness will serve like a golden light that will dispel the darkness of sickness and despair from your body/mind/spirit.

Chi Kung practice is recorded in hieroglyphics 7,000 years ago and in Chinese books 3,000 years ago. This philosophic, meditative, and postural discipline evolved through the efforts and exploration of many practitioners and masters. In ancient times life could be difficult. Our ancestors had to work hard to provide for themselves and their families. At the same time they had to learn how to care for themselves. They had to be self-sufficient and hardy in order to not only survive, but also to flourish. They developed Chi Kung practice to keep themselves in harmony with the universe, in good physical health, and in a state of peacefulness. In these simpler times people lived closer to the earth. They arose, worked, ate, and retired in concert with the sun, and the moon. They planted, and hunted according to the dictates of the seasons of the earth, and the constellations. They had the time to observe the simple miracles of life of their fellow creatures, not just humans, but animal, insect, fish, and plant life. So it is that they became aware of their inter-connectedness with all of these elements of the universe.

How Chi Kung works
In Chinese “Chi” means breath or air as well as life force energy. Chi Kung means breathing exercise, it is the skill of breath! Many thousands of years ago in China, Chi Kung was applied, and still is as a field of medicine for the treatment of chronic diseases. Chi Kung therapy has been proven effective for diseases including neurosis, hypertension, ulcers, chronic constipation, arthritic problems, not to mention stress related illness, panic attacks and anxiety phobia etc.

The basic therapeutic principles behind the effectiveness of Chi Kung is its ability to have restorative value for vitality, and increase storage capacity for physical energy, because of its massaging action of the visceral organs. Chi Kung also replenishes depleted energy, the reserves of the body that have been lost through disease or physical exertion. It encourages proper rest and recuperation, aiding our physical and mental systems through normal organic function. The deeply relaxing state achieved by the practice of Chi Kung suppresses the excitation perimeters of the cerebral cortex (in the brain). This internal inhibition or suppression of over excitation and fatigue of the cerebral cortex allows a quiet calm state for extended periods, and this provides a receptive medium for the restoration of the brain to its normal calm and alert condition.

Hyperactivity is quieted by internal control, which means conditions in the central nervous system become more conducive to the regeneration of vitality, and recovery of health from disease. The therapeutic principle of storing physical energy is essential to the practice of Chi Kung.

Chi Kung stimulates an energetic and positive emotional outlook. Chi Kung helps one follow the natural rhythms of earth and can help lead to the path of success. It boosts the effectiveness of your immune system in combating chronic and debilitating conditions, as well as aiding the body/mind/spirit connection.