TowardTheosis

From what I've gathered via self study, the Lower Dan Tien (LDT) is the primary governor of the body's qi supply. It acts as a distribution system to all of the other energy centers of the body and has a huge impact on the body's overall health. My personal practice seems to affirm these details. Whenever I bring my mind down to the LDT, I do feel an immediate sense of relaxation, increased warmth throughout my limbs, a stronger sensation of strength in my legs and overall musculature, and a slowing down of the racing, monkey mind. Wonderful benefits. These benefits do not come without detrimental consequences. They last for about a good hour or so, but once they dissipate I am left in a weakened state that I cannot explain. I become extremely tired and groggy. My mind slows to the point of dullness, and I find that it is difficult for me to maintain any decent degree of concentration. There's a bout of pronounced lethargy that just seems to overtake me. I become emotionally apathetic, my social charisma disappears, and without jumping into TMI territory my sexual energy also evaporates. I have a very difficult time performing after meditating on the LDT if I haven't taken a rejuvenating nap first. Would any of you more experienced practitioners have some idea as to why this happens?

Yes, that is an accurate summary of the fatigue incident following my weightlifting practice. The fatigue always follows my practice of centering in the LDT regardless of whether or not I've been involved in any strenuous physical practice beforehand, but I do think that this specific incident highlights some useful pain points. 1. My diet is not well regulated. I do ensure that I get adequate amounts of protein for muscle growth and other macronutrients to support recovery following my workout, but I also have a penchant for sweets and junk foods. I've read that successful meditation rests on what we choose to consume. If so, then I am positive that I'm not giving my body optimal fuel for these practices. 2. Sleep has become something of a source of stress. I am recently married, and my wife and I have had to adjust to our very different sleeping patterns now that we share the same home. Before, I'd wake up like clockwork at the same time every morning and go to sleep with the same precision. Now, that's not the case. 3. Did I mention that I was newly married and cohabitating? Stress levels are a little bit elevated lol. 4. I am inclined to believe your diagnosis of qi deviation. Prior to converting to Orthodoxy and renouncing elements of my past, I was involved in a wide array of disjointed energetic/spiritual practices with absolutely no consistency or input from an instructor. I would not be in any way surprised if I caused harm to myself with the deviation in this practice being the latest symptom of having done so. I'll seek out the help of a qualified acupuncturist to try to address imbalances.

Thank you for your counsel. I can certainly refrain from mixing my meditation practice with any other activity, but I'll admit a little bit of confusion on this point. I was under the impression that centering the mind in the LDT while engaged in physical activity was ideal in that it allowed one to keep the mind stable even while the body was in motion. Is this not the basis of how practitioners are taught to move in Karate and in other martial arts with a spiritual component? On the other hand, it's more than probable that I'm not focusing at the correct center since my practice is almost exclusively a product of self study. I remain open to correction in all things.

You may not have had a chance to see my message in the Welcome forum, but I am an Orthodox Christian. Theosis is intimately connected to our concept of salvation and would be roughly analogous to the Western Christian concept of divinization. That aside, I meditate and practice qigong to maintain my health. These wellness practices are not directly connected to my spiritual path.

Please reference my most recent reply to @ChiDragon. I'm happy to provide any additional details as needed.

Forgive me for not providing these details in my original post. I dabble in meditation with the LDT as a focus. The bulk of my practice is taken from Yong Hua's Chan Handbook where he details Chan methods of developing samadhi using that energy center. Energy flows where attention goes, per the aphorism, and Yong Hua encourages his students to anchor the mind at the navel to train both the accumulation of qi and concentration. The fatigue that I mentioned always follows (after about an hour or so) my placement of my attention on the LDT regardless of what I happen to be doing beforehand, but I'll speak on the most recent instance to hopefully shine some light on what may be going on. This particular incident took place at the gym. I weightlift to support my health, and that day saw me moving through a fairly heavy assortment of compound exercises. I was tired, but I sensed that much of my fatigue was the result of my mind being scattered rather than my body being fully exhausted. So, in between sets, I placed my index finger just at my navel to help guide my focus to that point. Initially, things were great. I felt a renewed sense of power coursing throughout my body accompanied by a nimble concentration that empowered me to knock out the remainder of my exercises without any obstacles and to make my way back home. It was only later that things took a turn for the worse.

Would you be able to expound a bit more on what you mean? Bringing attention to the LDT is (again, from what I gather in my own research) supposed to yield the benefits I referenced above, but is it your assertion that the heavy fatigue is somehow also a part of that constellation of benefits? Is the fatigue a necessary stage of developing the LDT?

What then is the remedy? Is it that my mind is stuck or that my qi does not flow well?

@Trunk @ChiDragon Thank you both for the warm welcomes!

Good Afternoon All, I'm usually rather terrible at introducing myself in online communities. I never know exactly what to say, and my inner critic is almost never satisfied enough with my writing to post without a burdensome amount of ego interference after the fact. I suppose I should consider this first post as a practice ritual to combat those egoic tendencies. All that aside, I've been a casual reader of the Tao Bums for quite some time now, and I'm eager to interact with the many learned souls who feel likewise drawn to this group. I am, as you might have guessed from my handle, an Orthodox Christian. The path toward Christ has been a very long and meandering one, but it suffices to say that I've made enough spiritual detours in my past to know definitively that this is where I'm supposed to be. Having said that, I have massive respect for just about every other spiritual paradigm out there. My faith does not prevent me from acknowledging the common humanity of my fellow brothers and sisters, the commonalities between our respective paths, and the potential for friendship arising out of a healthy appreciation for the energetic arts. I am a qigong practitioner (mostly for medicinal purposes). Since my practice is largely self taught, I don't have a great deal of opportunity to chat with other practitioners in my everyday life. Hopefully, the Tao Bums will provide what I lack in that respect, and I hope that I can in turn contribute something of value to this forum. Please call me Robert, and know that it is my distinct honor to be here. Thank You,