Gosh, I sure do have a lot to say lately :)
I'm sure most of you know that I started the website www.qigongproject.blog in late 2023 with the intention of sharing my ongoing research into the major categories of Qigong, their theory, practice and history.
My trip to Europe and Christmas slowed the web content down a bit, but one thing that hasn't stopped is the development of the particular view of Qigong that is emerging from within this research.
In this short article I'd like to share a few key points about what I'm up to, some of which will be public and some for subscribers only (so you know what to do if you're not subscribed).
1: The Big Picture:
Modern Qigong styles are often hyped up as being the profound creation of certain masters who have it all figured out.
The platitude goes that master so and so was sick during their youth and they spent time with a magical mentor who was basically a deity who healed them and shared ancient secrets which they have now modernized and are happy to provide you if you join their group and choose to adopt their beliefs.
These styles have fancy theories which are sometimes in keeping with an extant philosophy such as Daoism, TCM or Buddhism, and other times are completely made up crazy stuff masquerading as high brow scholarship.
The systems vary in quality from highly effective mainstream ones like Da Yan Qigong, Xiang Gong, Guo Lin Qigong and so on all the way to completely insane fake styles like Wai Dan Gong that are made up on totally false premises. Of course there are also lots of styles in the middle, especially old Dao Yin methods like Yi Jin Jing, Ba Duan Jin etc.. which while having their merits are not as holistic or as powerful as the most famous modern systems.
The theories of the styles are meant to describe the effects and are almost universally based on the philosophical preferences of the masters who make them up rather than concrete biomedical research. Even when biomedical research is used they still tend toward obscure pseudo-science rather than anything concrete. This is mostly because we still don't know what Qi is so researching the effects of Qigong on Qi is very difficult to do except through experience.
Research about qualitative changes in the bodies of practitioners such as blood pressure levels, weight loss, improvements in mental capacity and sensory ability have been conducted on a number of styles and show promising results across a number of metrics, but again they do not explain the theory of the style, only some of its benefits.
Modern Qigong while being a good way to cultivate Qi and very beneficial to a wide range of people with diverse health problems is still poorly explained at least insofar as genuinely concrete and non mystical explanations are concerned.
The term Qigong science is usually used as a marketing term rather than a real dedication to the scientific method, although we must allow for traditionalism to be viewed as a type of medieval heuristic science and insofar as that is concerned Qigong could be considered a science in the same way that Traditional Chinese Medicine is, not yet proven in randomized controlled studies, but showing great promise and a generally well proven track record.
2: Anyone with sufficient training and knowledge can make a Qigong style and Qigong is highly customizable:
Qigong is not rocket science and it is actually very easy to learn on a deep level within the space of about a decade. I'm a slow learner so it took me 23 years, but I think it is entirely possible for people to learn the practice of Qigong thoroughly enough in one lifetime to create their own style which is not only suitable for them personally but can help other people.
The reason why people might choose to invent their own style of Qigong is because people experience health differently. This is true for individuals but also cultures and even individual districts of cities and family units.
People also have different goals with some being more medical in nature and others being spiritual, while still others want something more athletic.
I think people who want to do this must first learn one system of Qigong and be able to practice it at a good level, then begin learning other systems and gradually find the connection between them.
At a low level this could be as simple as learning a basic Dao Yin routine such as Wu Qin Xi and also studying a meditation method such as Zhi Guan. This person's Qigong classes might look like a few sets of the Five Animals followed by half an hour of seated meditation and it would be very nice for the students.
On the other hand if you are looking to become more accomplished then you have to go deeper and establish a theoretical and doctrinal perspective which can help you merge various schools of practice.
For instance by now I'm an expert on Daoist Qigong, Meditation, various Internal Martial Arts and modern Qigong as well as being certified as an Acupuncturist so my approach to Qigong may be significantly more nuanced than the above mentioned simple combination of practices.
This means that for a person in my position to develop a style requires significantly more time, planning, trial and error, deep study, and attention to detail.
Thus it becomes increasingly more difficult to design a complete practice as you become more knowledgeable since as they say that with knowledge comes responsibility.
This responsibility is that we must help people as much as we can to realize the benefits of practice and avoid pitfalls. Any complex practice comes with many possible pitfalls since lack of context can lead quickly to wrong practice which can cause real illnesses so we have to be cautious about this.
This is why even though I've created an entire Dao Yin Routine, have a unique set of Qi leading practices done while seated and lying down, and have worked on developing a set of fitness Qigong based on Martial Arts I still haven't taught any specific classes on the subject.
I did teach my basic Dao Yin routine one of the two days I taught in Holland recently and I think it was well received by the students, but there is still much to do before I feel confident to pitch the whole system.
3: Mixing Methods is an art in itself:
Knowing how to combine various methods is not random at all, you really have to be aware of what kind of benefit you are looking for.
For instance, I think a balanced approach to Qigong should have therapeutic practices which can help with chronic illness, fitness work that improves strength, balance and flexibility, and spiritual work that can improve inner energy and focus the mind.
Many Qigong systems attempt to do this all in one or two major forms, but for me personally I've chosen to separate out each idea into its own practice including sets of Dao Yin for healing the body and strengthening the body as well as inner meditations used to develop energy and move toward the spiritual results of Daoist Meditation.
While the core of this approach really is taking a bit from column a and a bit from column b it still requires us to understand where the pieces fit most appropriately.
This means that diverse practices like:
Dao Yin,
Breath Work,
Mental Guiding and Collecting of Qi,
Visualization,
Nei Gong and Wai Gong,
Meditative Practices,
Pai Da,
Self Massage
all have to be balanced appropriately and cannot be done in a random way lest it cause problems later on.
4: Breaking Convention and Adding Elements from outside of the Chinese tradition:
I do not advise doing this unless you really understand Qigong and are conversant in the other material you will add, but in my opinion Qigong can benefit greatly from the addition of schools like Vajryana, Tantra, Muraquaba, and even elements of Christian Mysticism.