Chinese Medical Qigong Therapy

[Teddy]

Hi! On amazon, I came across a five volume set of books entitled 'Chinese Medical Qigong Therapy' by Jerry Alan Johnson. It looks fantastic. However, it is expensive and I am not rich. So, I wondered if anyone here has read them, and what their opinion is. From browsing the contents it looks very theoretical. Are there practical explanations of exercises? How much actual qigong can somebody learn from these books? I practice yiquan at the moment.

[Sahaj Nath]

Hi! On amazon, I came across a five volume set of books entitled 'Chinese Medical Qigong Therapy' by Jerry Alan Johnson. It looks fantastic. However, it is expensive and I am not rich. So, I wondered if anyone here has read them, and what their opinion is. From browsing the contents it looks very theoretical. Are there practical explanations of exercises? How much actual qigong can somebody learn from these books? I practice yiquan at the moment.

 

 

the exercises are simple. the expensive books are unnecessary unless you're interested in becoming a certified medical qigong therapist.

 

his books set the standard in many of the hospitals in Beijing that incorporate TCM. he's about as good as it gets. but it's all highly academic, and what you're looking for wouldn't be best served by purchasing those books.

 

once upon a time (1993) he had a VHS entitled Chi Kung: The Healing Workout. it would probably be cheaper to find a copy of the VHS and then get a used VHS player to watch it. sounds silly, but true. his movements in the video are the most precise and exquisite that i've ever seen from ANYONE on video. even before i knew anything about him, i knew he was a master.

 

if you don't care about that kind of percision, there's a sort of crappy dvd on amazon that has the exercises. it's cheap & very easy to learn from, but it's NOTHING compared to johnson's perfect movements. but whatevs. like i said in the review of the video, sometimes you gotta work with what's available.

 

http://www.amazon.com/Reduce-Stress-Improv...=cm_cr-mr-title

 

 

my review is the 3rd one down. you'll see my name.

 

the guy went through johnson's certification program, but he obviously didn't graduate at the top of his class. that's all i'm sayin'.

[dragonslive]

once upon a time (1993) he had a VHS entitled Chi Kung: The Healing Workout. it would probably be cheaper to find a copy of the VHS and then get a used VHS player to watch it. sounds silly, but true.

 

A DVD vesrion of this title is available via redwing books here: -

 

http://www.redwingbooks.com/products/books/ChiKunHeaWor.cfm

 

They actually have a good selection of his other DVD's and books available also:-

 

http://www.redwingbooks.com/products/autho...n%20Johnson.cfm

 

Hope this helps,

 

Steve

[Sahaj Nath]

A DVD vesrion of this title is available via redwing books here: -

 

http://www.redwingbooks.com/products/books/ChiKunHeaWor.cfm

 

They actually have a good selection of his other DVD's and books available also:-

 

http://www.redwingbooks.com/products/autho...n%20Johnson.cfm

 

Hope this helps,

 

Steve

 

 

hell yeah!

 

[SiliconValley]

A DVD vesrion of this title is available via redwing books here: -

 

http://www.redwingbooks.com/products/books/ChiKunHeaWor.cfm

 

They actually have a good selection of his other DVD's and books available also:-

 

http://www.redwingbooks.com/products/autho...n%20Johnson.cfm

 

Hope this helps,

 

Steve

 

 

Just borrowed the DVD from a friend and watched it! Truly Amazing. The best Chi Kung video I have seen...

[sheng zhen]

Just borrowed the DVD from a friend and watched it! Truly Amazing. The best Chi Kung video I have seen...

Really? What makes it so good?

[SiliconValley]

Really? What makes it so good?

 

 

- Simple, easy to learn exercises

- In the pattern of a workout which is what I liked best

- Exceptional demonstration of the postures, which clears a lot of doubts that would arise when watching most other videos of such kind.

Edited July 22, 2008 by SiliconValley

[Gerard]

This book contains Medical Qigong exercises and it is highly recommended:

 

http://www.amazon.com/Qigong-Empowerment-M...n/dp/1889659029

 

Make sure you have live help available just in case something happens.

 

Going through the mandatory warm-up and cool-off exercises (not included in the book) are a must.

[Sahaj Nath]

This book contains Medical Qigong exercises and it is highly recommended:

 

http://www.amazon.com/Qigong-Empowerment-M...n/dp/1889659029

 

Make sure you have live help available just in case something happens.

 

Going through the mandatory warm-up and cool-off exercises (not included in the book) are a must.

 

 

it's an excellent reference book. every teacher should own it.

 

but it's dense and overwhelming for anyone new to qigong. and if you don't have a lot of experience, it's easy to get the movements wrong. not very beginner-friendly, IMO. too much stuff to wade through.

[Christoph]

Based on this thread I ordered The Healing Workout since it was only 20$.

 

It is really good....I like it very much. He also has a Tai Chi DVD from qi-journal for 20$.

 

I will get that too.

[bindo]

Based on this thread I ordered The Healing Workout since it was only 20$.

 

It is really good....I like it very much. He also has a Tai Chi DVD from qi-journal for 20$.

 

I will get that too.

I ordered it too. Should be here today.

[Adam West]

Hi Hundun!

 

I get the impression from your response you have read or looked at Jerry's Qigong textbooks, is this so? Assuming one were interested in studying and learning medical qigong informally, what would be your review of the books? Are they the best out there for this purpose. What can you say about the specific practices? You say they are quite simple. Are they unique to the magical lineage he is an adept of, or will one find them to be more or less the same as those found in the book "Qigong Empowerment" and others etc?

 

Many thanks for your reply!!

 

In kind regards,

 

Adam.

[bindo]

I ordered it too. Should be here today.

Hundun,

 

Thanks for the tip on JAJ's Chi Kung workout. It's quite good. I see what you're saying about his form.

 

Have you seen his Tai Chi Workout as well?

 

Thanks,

Gordon

[Sahaj Nath]

Hi Hundun!

 

I get the impression from your response you have read or looked at Jerry's Qigong textbooks, is this so? Assuming one were interested in studying and learning medical qigong informally, what would be your review of the books? Are they the best out there for this purpose. What can you say about the specific practices? You say they are quite simple. Are they unique to the magical lineage he is an adept of, or will one find them to be more or less the same as those found in the book "Qigong Empowerment" and others etc?

 

Many thanks for your reply!!

 

In kind regards,

 

Adam.

 

i've looked at one of the text books, but i don't own any of them. i know people who trained with him, and i know a lot about him, but i don't really feel qualified to answer this in any depth.

 

but, IMO:

 

his text on medical qigong are perhaps the most thorough anywhere. however, if i wanted to study informally, i wouldn't go that route. i would study and memorize both ken cohen's Essential Qigong Training Course (universal/conventional knowledge and practice), and Chunyi Lin's Spring Forest Qigong levels 1 & 2 (some fresh ideas that challenge some of the conventional stream of qigong). i don't think wading through Jerry's texts are going to get you very far very fast. i don't even think that he would recommend it.

 

your best bet for the most solid and accessible material on medical qigong is suzanne friedman. she was his student years ago, and now she has her own program that she teaches. she'd be my go-to person if i were doing the informal thing. her materials are easier and cheaper to acquire. i'm sure you can get some of her stuff on amazon.

 

Hundun,

 

Thanks for the tip on JAJ's Chi Kung workout. It's quite good. I see what you're saying about his form.

 

Have you seen his Tai Chi Workout as well?

 

Thanks,

Gordon

 

 

no, i haven't. but i may buy it tonight!

 

[bindo]

Thanks for bringing up Suzanne Friedman. I've been considering her stuff for a while now. I may purchase her Guigen DVD.

 

Several of the reviews on Amazon seem to be from collegues and students, so I was hesitant to buy.

 

Here's a video of her.

[guangping]

The best book for studying I Chuan ( yiquan ) is The Way of Energy by Lam-Kam Chuen.

 

I have studied with Jerry and took some of his medical qigong courses when he was first offering it. His textbook is good if you are studying to become a certified Chinese Medical Doctor at an acupuncture college. If not, don't bother buying it.