Starting on Qigong...But Where?

[Suburi]

I want to add some form of medical Qigong to my daily routine, and would appreciate some input from you guys on where to start. I've done a good amount of research and reading online and narrowed it down to three. If somebody could give me advice on which one to start with and WHY it would be appreciated. I stress why because I have found people saying the first two are anywhere from good to amazing, but no reason behind it. My goals are long term health, feeling more energized my daily life and having the extra chi assisting in my occult studies.

 

I'm new to Qigong, but not new to martial training. I wrestled for years, currently do yoga everyday and working my way through doing 1000 men suburi for 1000 days on the kendo path to enlightenment if that makes any difference.

 

I thought the CG added into the discs from qigong.com was a novel idea and strongly considered getting those before reading up on them here. I feel like I dodged a bullet on that one.

 

Anyway, I narrowed it down to these:

 

http://store.99estore.com/hebarpa.html

If anyone recommends this, I'd really like to know why. I've found a few people online raving about it when Googling it, then saw the first few minutes of the iron penis DVD on Youtube and was less than impressed. Taking advantage of the synergistic relationship between sexuality and health greatly appeals to me though. I would just like to know why 3 DVDs and a couple trinkets are worth 400 bucks because no one who says they are great addresses why. I'm completely willing to save up for it if it's worth it.

 

http://www.healingtaousa.com

Specifically, just about everything that comes after the Fusion set. Seriously. I wish I were exaggerating, it all sounds great and then some. Does anyone here use the higher level material? Something that is different and I don't know what to make of it is how much of it comes on audio CD. I'm used to learning by watching. Searching the forum I've seen people here recommend his stuff. Is anything lost with audio only, or is it all internal so there is nothing to see? Seeing as I'm interested in so much of his advanced stuff, should I just start here? The other two don't seem to overlap much with the Fundamentals and Fusion material so I'd have to start over from the beginning with these anyway.

 

https://www.taichimania.com

Also considering the Flying Phoenix discs, completely because of the 90+ page thread here. Still have about 70 more pages to read there but I've been extremely impressed with Sifu Terry thus far.

 

Thoughts? Suggestions? Something else seem like a better idea? Thank you in advance for any and all advice.

[Edward M]

Zhan zhuang or stillness movement neigong is my advice for what it is worth.

 

Depends how much money you have.. if you can afford it go with the nei gong, or if no money look for standing like a tree on youtube, easy to learn and effective plus will help with your martial arts as it is part of martial training..

 

Peace

[Edward M]

here is the first posture of zhan zhuang:

 

This will deff help with your kendo, you need a strong structure.. it will also relax and open the body including the energy channels.. good luck!

[zerostao]

suburi , go with what resonates best with you.

there is no one answer of which is the best qigong system.

each of us are different, for many taijiquan is a great choice,

but even with that , there are different styles with somewhat different results.

if you know what your specific goal is, then you will find your qigong system.

more money doesnt neccessarilly equate to a better system.

sincere and consistent effort on your part is what will be required for success.

[joeblast]

the why, love it! I have been saying this for a while, especially when talking to many of my friends who are having kids these days - be able to explain the why if you really want to connect well.

 

the why here are the fundamentals, which are basically common to most systems - coherent breath mechanics, focus, calm mind; an important prerequisite for the best integration of any energy work lies in realizing utter and complete stillness, on an experiential level where the breath is below the threshold of turbulence, the body's signals well attenuated, calm, harmonious; the awareness shining; thought-stream-energy not even sufficient to arise thought.

 

once you've got that stuff down and habits ingrained and continued, any energy work you do will be easily and well integrated.

[Protector]

Why can't people get into qi gong after finding a master instead of the other way around...

[i am]

Why can't people get into qi gong after finding a master instead of the other way around...

 

 

When did you change to "protector"?

[Protector]

When extreme yin turned to yang, isn't that how it works?

[GrandmasterP]

8 pieces silk brocade standing form QiGong is easy to learn and does the trick.

http://m.youtube.com/#/watch?v=3Plz9IXLZqM&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3D3Plz9IXLZqM&gl=GB

Ken Cohen is good for medical QiGong.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Way-Qigong-Science-Chinese/dp/0345395298/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1358895718&sr=8-1

Avoid the system sellers, they repackage free stuff and whack on hefty mark up.

 

HTH

Edited January 22, 2013 by GrandmasterP

[voidisyinyang]

results speak for themselves --

 

 

 

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20626055

 

Yeah that's the peer-reviewed randomized controlled "external qi" healing results for Spring Forest Qigong - -the Mayo Clinic doctor said it was

 

"very impressive."

 

 

stage four cancer healed -- doctors say it's a "walking miracle."

 

Still like people say -- just enjoy the energy -- find a qigong practice -- stick to it. Enjoy.

 

But you can also get phone healings, etc. at http://springforestqigong.com

 

I was at the center for my first time on my B-day 1/11/13 -- awesome!!

 

Yeah I first did SFQ training in 2000 to finish my masters degree at the U of MN.

 

The healing center is by Mall of America.

 

 

[zerostao]

nice way to get your masters degree and cant go wrong with SFQ either.

[Alchemistgeorge]

http://www.healingtaousa.com

Specifically, just about everything that comes after the Fusion set. Seriously. I wish I were exaggerating, it all sounds great and then some. Does anyone here use the higher level material? Something that is different and I don't know what to make of it is how much of it comes on audio CD. I'm used to learning by watching. Searching the forum I've seen people here recommend his stuff. Is anything lost with audio only, or is it all internal so there is nothing to see? Seeing as I'm interested in so much of his advanced stuff, should I just start here? The other two don't seem to overlap much with the Fundamentals and Fusion material so I'd have to start over from the beginning with these anyway.

 

I've done virtually everything of Mantak Chia's up to and including Fusion I, II, and III. Fusion is, imho, pretty trippy stuff. Knowing so little about you, I'd guess it could take a year (or more) to work your way through the pre-requisites just to get to Fusion, and you could spend a year there easily. The advanced stuff is purely internal, sit, close your eyes and go within. I learned the 6 healing sounds in 1987, they are still part of my tool kit.

 

Ultimately it seems to me to be sort of arbitrary where you start - you pick something that seems good and practice. Since you are the kind of person to do 1000 cuts a day, you know that 'sticking to it' is half the battle. And without any experience it seems hard to make a good choice, so you pick something to 'get experience.' As you learn, you might change systems. or not.

 

A pretty standard piece of advice is to find an instructor you like and learn from them. If they have kendo where you are, there is probably qigong. I've learned lots of things from books and tapes and CDs and DVDs, and it is so much easier to learn from people, and the energy of an instructor and / or fellow students will definitely help get the engine cranking and catching.

[Suburi]

Thanks for the input, all is appreciated.

Hadn't considered Zhan zhuang at all, definitely going to look into it more.

I considered Taiji as well, and may look into it or some form of martial Qigong down the line. My intuition tells me that isn't what I need right now.

I had Spring Forest on my list of maybes after reading about it here, but that was before their website drove me away. You wouldn't think it would be so difficult just to find the CD/DVD courses for each level. Their store would lead you to believe that the only thing they offer are short books for levels 1 and 3, with level 2 being the only thing that gets a DVD. Yet reading about them on the net there is at the very least CD courses for all of them and a DVD for level 1. I definitely need more than a book right now. If I could find what I would need to buy on their site, I would give it more consideration.

 

I could probably find an instructor, paying for it and being able to commit to times when classes are held are different issues. My work schedule bounces around a lot and as a result much of my training gets done after 10pm. My kendo is completely from videos, the first DVD from Inoue Hidekatsu covered everything I wanted to learn. My interest there is internal, not in competition. There is definitely something that happens there with the number 1000, the last one brings a feeling over the body that is very different from the first 999, and I do that for me. My interest in Qigong is for similar purposes.

 

George, you mentioned that you've done a lot of Mantak Chia's stuff. I'm assuming that's the 58 DVD set he sells? How is the instruction in that? I had some of his old stuff yeeeeeeears ago and found it practically unusuable. Between his accent, bad audio and slower than turtle's pace of teaching it crossed the line between patience and exercise in futility.

[Gerard]

.

Edited September 13, 2013 by Gerard

[ChiDragon]

Try here....

http://thetaobums.com/topic/26237-a-good-start-for-chi-kung-practitioners-to-know/

 

[thelerner]

Careful what you wish for, sometimes you get too much information. Kudos on 1000 days of 1,000 cuts w/ suburi, very impressive. Years ago when I told a senior student I was doing a 1,000 cuts w/ a bokken <easier> a day, he replied "In the ancient days that would be considered the bare minimum". There is no pleasing some people.

 

Another direction I might point you in is feed the head. Schedule in listening to Dharma talks. Search out Ajahn Brahms talks on the internet or podcasts from Infinite Smile or Zencast. Listen to the wise to get wisdom, its not always innate.

[Suburi]

Funny you should bring up too much information, seeing as I now have way more material to go through than I can possibly use in the short term. I mentioned I was looking into Qigong to a few friends and ended up getting a ton of DVDs for my birthday. I got this:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Shaolin-Taoist-QiGong-Health-Preservaton-Series-15DVD-/320835602728?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item4ab34ac928

 

a friend is letting me borrow Mantak Chia's 58 DVD set and says it's only an intro the Winn stuff?!?!? (she...likes to justify every penny she spends and may not be reliable on that)

 

plus the first two Terry Dunn FP discs.

 

I started going through the second FP disc and got quite a surprise. Half lotus is harder on my legs than I thought. Are there any recommendations for stretches to strengthen it? It's fine for the first 15 minutes, but after that my knees don't want to stay put. Even more than that, I found the muscles right around my spine in the middle of my back revolt after being straight up in half lotus after 15-20 minutes. It forces me to lie down for a minute so they can calm down. Any recommendations for strengthening that area of the body?

[hydrogen]

I started going through the second FP disc and got quite a surprise. Half lotus is harder on my legs than I thought. Are there any recommendations for stretches to strengthen it? It's fine for the first 15 minutes, but after that my knees don't want to stay put. Even more than that, I found the muscles right around my spine in the middle of my back revolt after being straight up in half lotus after 15-20 minutes. It forces me to lie down for a minute so they can calm down. Any recommendations for strengthening that area of the body?

 

Being comfortable and pain free is more important than posture for now.

 

You don't have to sit lotus or half lotus. You can sit cross your leg on a cushion. Even sitting on chair works well for most practice.

 

The middle back pain may indicate you have locked shoulder blade problem. Stretches would help.

 

I have stiff joints. I have to stretch every day. I use simple tai ji form to do dynamic stretch, one form for five to ten minutes. And yoga for static stretch.

 

There are tons of good information online about stretching. The key point is breath, slow and every day. After a while, my bonefied tendon became soft and release electric charge. It's very pleasant to stretch after one year.

[voidisyinyang]

http://www.learningstrategies.com/Qigong/Course.asp

 

That's the Spring Forest Qigong "package" - from Learningstrategies....

 

 

 

 

Thanks for the input, all is appreciated.

Hadn't considered Zhan zhuang at all, definitely going to look into it more.

I considered Taiji as well, and may look into it or some form of martial Qigong down the line. My intuition tells me that isn't what I need right now.

I had Spring Forest on my list of maybes after reading about it here, but that was before their website drove me away. You wouldn't think it would be so difficult just to find the CD/DVD courses for each level. Their store would lead you to believe that the only thing they offer are short books for levels 1 and 3, with level 2 being the only thing that gets a DVD. Yet reading about them on the net there is at the very least CD courses for all of them and a DVD for level 1. I definitely need more than a book right now. If I could find what I would need to buy on their site, I would give it more consideration.

 

I could probably find an instructor, paying for it and being able to commit to times when classes are held are different issues. My work schedule bounces around a lot and as a result much of my training gets done after 10pm. My kendo is completely from videos, the first DVD from Inoue Hidekatsu covered everything I wanted to learn. My interest there is internal, not in competition. There is definitely something that happens there with the number 1000, the last one brings a feeling over the body that is very different from the first 999, and I do that for me. My interest in Qigong is for similar purposes.

 

George, you mentioned that you've done a lot of Mantak Chia's stuff. I'm assuming that's the 58 DVD set he sells? How is the instruction in that? I had some of his old stuff yeeeeeeears ago and found it practically unusuable. Between his accent, bad audio and slower than turtle's pace of teaching it crossed the line between patience and exercise in futility.

[joeblast]

I started going through the second FP disc and got quite a surprise. Half lotus is harder on my legs than I thought. Are there any recommendations for stretches to strengthen it? It's fine for the first 15 minutes, but after that my knees don't want to stay put. Even more than that, I found the muscles right around my spine in the middle of my back revolt after being straight up in half lotus after 15-20 minutes. It forces me to lie down for a minute so they can calm down. Any recommendations for strengthening that area of the body?

Its more a function of open hips than it is knees. Do a forum search for full lotus, there's a couple threads that contain plenty of info. Since the psoas attaches the anterior lumbar spine to the medial epicondyle of the femur, the lotus actual introduces a bit of static rest-tension in the psoas. Proceed gently, slowly

[Ya Mu]

I want to add some form of medical Qigong to my daily routine, and would appreciate some input from you guys on where to start. ...

 

Thoughts? Suggestions? Something else seem like a better idea? Thank you in advance for any and all advice.

You say "medical qigong". But from reading the links posted very few are medical qigong. Do you mean self-healing qigong? Medical qigong is what is referred to as ability to help others through wai qi liao fa, or manipulation of energy. Self-healing qigong is varied ranging from calisthenics to internal energy development; most all qigong should meet this definition. If you really want medical qigong then your choices become much more narrow.

Here is a resource for qigong teachers.

http://nqa.org/find-member/

Level IV teachers have at least 10 years of teaching experience with the NQA doing extensive evaluation of the teacher's credentials.

[GrandmasterP]

Edited following moderator's advice.

:-)

Edited January 25, 2013 by GrandmasterP

[Alchemistgeorge]

George, you mentioned that you've done a lot of Mantak Chia's stuff. I'm assuming that's the 58 DVD set he sells? How is the instruction in that? I had some of his old stuff yeeeeeeears ago and found it practically unusuable. Between his accent, bad audio and slower than turtle's pace of teaching it crossed the line between patience and exercise in futility.

 

I learned directly from Master Chia and various of his senior students.

 

I'm pretty used to Mantak Chia's accents, and once you know the material the DVDs/ CDs are great as references - but mostly I used his books. I've also had good luck with Michael Winn's CD/DVDs.

[Jetsun]

The simplest but also the best healing Qigong teacher I have come across is a guy named Yap Soon Yeung who teaches a method called CFQ Qigong, which is used for self healing and for healing others. He doesn't come from any long lineage or have any famous teachers or anything but he gets results.

Edited January 25, 2013 by Jetsun

[Friend]

Edited March 29, 2013 by Friend