Yi Jin Jing vs Qi Gong

[Daryl Forsythe]

Forgive me if this is a previously answered question:

As I understand it, yi jin jing is actually an exercise that belongs in its own category outside of qi gong. This is possibly confusing since "qi gong" is often used as an umbrella term for all exercise systems from china dealing with internal energy. Also, I believe I read on another, much older post, that it was ill-advised to practice both yi jin jing and qi gong simultaneously.

Is this an accurate summation? I am looking for a deeper understanding to the reasons for this.

I realize this is a vast subject that cannot be covered in a single thread of posts, or a dozen for that matter. Please point me in the right direction to begin my homework.

Thank you

Peace

[opendao]

Forgive me if this is a previously answered question:

As I understand it, yi jin jing is actually an exercise that belongs in its own category outside of qi gong. This is possibly confusing since "qi gong" is often used as an umbrella term for all exercise systems from china dealing with internal energy. Also, I believe I read on another, much older post, that it was ill-advised to practice both yi jin jing and qi gong simultaneously.

Is this an accurate summation? I am looking for a deeper understanding to the reasons for this.

I realize this is a vast subject that cannot be covered in a single thread of posts, or a dozen for that matter. Please point me in the right direction to begin my homework.

Thank you

Peace

 

Yi Jin Jing is a part of Chan Buddhist legacy. Originally it's parallel in Daoist world is Neidan, Internal Alchemy.

 

Qigong, both Buddhist or Daoist, has different methods and results.

 

To practice them both or not - teacher has to decide. There are many variants of Qigong, there are many variants of Yi Jin Jing...

[Michael Sternbach]

Forgive me if this is a previously answered question:

No worries, that happens all the time. This is a fairly relaxed forum.

 

As I understand it, yi jin jing is actually an exercise that belongs in its own category outside of qi gong. This is possibly confusing since "qi gong" is often used as an umbrella term for all exercise systems from china dealing with internal energy.

Right on! There are hundreds of methods that can be summarized as qigong, and I'd regard yi jin jing as one of them anytime.

 

Also, I believe I read on another, much older post, that it was ill-advised to practice both yi jin jing and qi gong simultaneously.

Is this an accurate summation? I am looking for a deeper understanding to the reasons for this.

Yes, there is a chance of doing exercises that aren't compatible with each other, and also of simply doing too much overall (leading to some kind of chi overtraining).

 

But for attempting to tell if this is the case here, more would need to be known about the kind of qigong you (intend to) pursue, how much you would train in both systems, and perhaps other factors would have to be taken into account as well.

 

I realize this is a vast subject that cannot be covered in a single thread of posts, or a dozen for that matter. Please point me in the right direction to begin my homework.

Thank you

Peace

Feel free to let us know more about aforesaid aspects.

[Mudfoot]

Yi Jin Jing is a part of Chan Buddhist legacy. Originally it's parallel in Daoist world is Neidan, Internal Alchemy .

Do you really mean the muscle tendon changing classic and not the Bone marrow classic?

[opendao]

Do you really mean the muscle tendon changing classic and not the Bone marrow classic?

 

both

[小梦想]

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Edited August 10, 2018 by 小梦想

[Wuwei88]

Is there an exercise to restore and balance Jing energy?

[小梦想]

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Edited August 10, 2018 by 小梦想

[Sudhamma]

I had for years regard Qigong as the umbrella classification for both soft and hard qigong and neigong. That comprises also jinggong, and donggong. In another thread, a member enlightened me that the term Qigong was used in the 1950s by the Chinese Government to include also neigong practices. There is indeed a distinction, though fine, between neigong and qigong. However, there is no harm in grouping both practices together. The Tendon Changing Classic is very similar to classical yoga and as it requires 'gong', persistent effort, to lengthen tendons as the pathway to better health. Whether or not you could practise Yijinjing with other forms of qigong practice depends on your teacher's advice. But if you are practising without a teacher, then the primary consideration should be the breathing system. My suggestion is to choose the other system with the same breathing method.

Edited March 30, 2017 by Sudhamma

[Daryl Forsythe]

Wow! Thanks for the feedback!

At current I practice yijinjing once in the morning (after a set of breathing exercises) and then one time later in the day. The instructions I read were such that I needn't be concerned with breathing (hence the pranayama first.) The only other qigong I practice is the Embracing the Tree pose. Typically I hold that pose while maintaining reverse breathing. Sometimes I combine the pose with bone breathing or power breathing, and sometimes if I'm feeling extra peppy I attempt the packing breath.

It occurs to me that perchance I should rephrase my question;

Should I use the same breathing pattern for every qigong exercise I perform?

Thank you all for your time.

Peace

[Sudhamma]

From my understanding, Yijinjing requires the exhalation through the mouth. The Tendon Changing Classic is Buddhist and natural abdominal breathing is used. Embracing the Tree, Standing the Post, Hug, Zhanzhuang are common names of a particular static pose, but the breathing system differs from one practice (school) to another. To answer your rephrased question, i would suggest to choose a practice that uses the same breathing system as Yijinjing. Breathing system is important in the development of qi. but, getting the physicals right at the beginning is definitely important before concerning with the breathing system. It is unwise to impose your breathing technique/system, eg RAB onto Yijinjing practice when it is NAB. Same consideration is given to MCO. The Chinese MCO system is not the same as Pranayama. Don't mix them up.