marko Posted November 2, 2019 When I sink deeper in Zhan Zhuang and keep my knees from extending forward beyond my toes I cannot maintain the 3 points in a line. What would you think is more important and why? How do others deal with this? Â Thanks in advance, Â Marko Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Creation Posted November 3, 2019 (edited) 19 hours ago, marko said: When I sink deeper in Zhan Zhuang and keep my knees from extending forward beyond my toes I cannot maintain the 3 points in a line. What would you think is more important and why? How do others deal with this? This happens if you sink without the hips and spine changing their position.  To fix this, the hips have to fold ("sink into the kua" aka "sit on the bar stool"). At first the the spine will tilt forward slightly and the butt might stick out a bit to keep everything else (feet, knees, kua) correctly aligned. Then as you continue to refine things will straighten out without compromising the sinking - sink the sacrum and tailbone, raise the occiput/rear crown, press into the bubbling well point, keep the knee joint open and not collapsed in any direction. One thing that I didn't understand for a long time is that to sink properly things have to be raising properly. Otherwise, sinking becomes collapsing or simply lowering down.  EDIT: Another thing that is easy to misunderstand is that the instruction that the pelvis is tucked is not an active thing, that is, you don't engage the hip flexors to pull the pelvis forward. As I said above, you get everything else lined up, and if the butt is sticking out, you put your mind in the sacrum and relax it downward. Then the pelvis tucks automatically.  Edited November 3, 2019 by Creation 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
marko Posted November 4, 2019 Thanks for your explanation, but I still have questions remaining. In e.g. Wujishi Breathing Exercises, Cai Songfang writes Quote The middle point of the line linking the two Yongquan points faces squarely to Huiyin (Perineum) above , and Huiyin faces squarely to Baihui ( at the head-top) above i.e . Yongquan - Huiyin - Baihui. That is what we call "three-point-on-the-same-straight-line" . When I stand higher the three points form a line, but when I lower and at the same time ensure that my knees remain at most as forward as my toes, then I need to lean a bit forward and my butt sticks out a little. In this position the three points are no longer on a line. I was wondering whether there is some generalization of the rule "all three points on a line" that applies when one sinks lower.... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
doc benway Posted November 4, 2019 5 hours ago, marko said: Thanks for your explanation, but I still have questions remaining. In e.g. Wujishi Breathing Exercises, Cai Songfang writes When I stand higher the three points form a line, but when I lower and at the same time ensure that my knees remain at most as forward as my toes, then I need to lean a bit forward and my butt sticks out a little. In this position the three points are no longer on a line. I was wondering whether there is some generalization of the rule "all three points on a line" that applies when one sinks lower.... Â I would advise against sticking the bottom out or leaning forward. Proper alignment is more important than depth of stance. A slight bend in the knees is all that is needed. Some qigong is done in lower stance, such as ma bu, but those stances have different considerations and intentionally engage more muscle tension. Natural standing should not hold tension. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Creation Posted November 5, 2019 On 11/4/2019 at 11:40 AM, marko said: Thanks for your explanation, but I still have questions remaining. In e.g. Wujishi Breathing Exercises, Cai Songfang writes When I stand higher the three points form a line, but when I lower and at the same time ensure that my knees remain at most as forward as my toes, then I need to lean a bit forward and my butt sticks out a little. In this position the three points are no longer on a line. I was wondering whether there is some generalization of the rule "all three points on a line" that applies when one sinks lower.... There is a slight bend forward and bottom stick-out if you don't engage your kua correctly, and almost no one can engage their kua correctly at first. Do you have good instruction on the kua? If you have the money, this course breaks all these things down in extreme detail: https://vimeo.com/ondemand/qigongfoundations  Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
