Hello, let me start out with an introduction. I am new to this website and wanted to see if any would help me out with their perspectives on some questions I have about chi and qigong. I have been interested in chi for a few years and ever since I was stuck in my head trying to figure out what it really meant and the meaning behind the power of it. On my path I found myself lost trying too hard to balance myself and wanting to control every aspect of my life. My path consisted of so many ups and downs, but it was if I was going in circles; and when I realized I was going in circles I would break out into a new path, but then I started going in circles again in the new path I was going in. I couldn't distinguish between which was yin and what was yang though I read online the feelings associated with both. It seemed like I was more consumed by the mental aspect of what chi was. Mentally I felt like nothing could harm me but deep inside I still felt off balance and wondered why things in my life (mostly people) would still reject me for who I was though it was all truly in good meaning. I would sit for hours in my head thinking of so many possibilities of the world and why things are the way they are. Many "wierd" and "normal" questions and thoughts went through my head and it seemed as if I was still while the world was passing me by. " Is immortality possible? Can I have superpowers? Why do we exist? Why am I here? Is this life real or is death real? What if the people who are close to me die? I wouldn't be able to deal with that pain but thinking about it brings me pain. I wish I could just die and end this pain. I'm not meant for this world" and so on and so on. Imagine how much pain built up in me living like this for years. As of recently, all that changed. I think I finally felt CHI. I emptied myself of all these thoughts but somehow kept a little hold of them in order to process reality in my own way. I found out that by keeping myself in this box of mine, I rejected myself of my physical body. I was feeling both energies but I was consuming myself with yin I believe (I am a guy though) which kept me inside of my head. As I released this energy I felt more energy going throughout my stomach and through my body which had been there all this time, but was just stagnant because of my mindset that I didn't have to worry about my body because I thought I knew it already and me not being able to distinguish between the yin and yang energies. Now I seem like I know it. I was now able to go deeper into these areas and I found myself being able to feel and discover areas of my body I didn't really think about much such as places on ears or my toes. I started living more in the moment not because it's what I have heard so many times, but because it felt... right. I realized that my immediate desire to balance my chi took me to my lowest, but at the same time brought me to my highest, and at the same time the realization allowed see and capture what I truly wanted. As of now I see truly see my mind and body as one thing; and whenever I put my energy towards something, I also see it as one and everything else seems to fade around it.Though it may or may not seem as a powerful story; to me it is really just a release that I found the opportunity to act upon. I know that my journey will never be done and I will continue to develop through my life and hopefully if there is an afterlife, will continue then. Don't worry I'm not suicidal or anything I plan to live as long as possible and take what life gives me. Anyways sorry for the very very long introduction hah I got very into it. But now for the questions.
Have any of you learned how to store chi in the dantien? If so what does it feel like to you? Also have any of you been in very deep meditation and what experience did you have in doing so? How do you know how much chi is in your dantien and when it is full? Last, how do you project chi (such as using it to send heat through your hand)?
