The Position. There are many positions In which to do Standing Qigong, but I’ll use the one with feet a shoulder’s width apart, knees bent, and hands lifted to opposite the upper chest, as in the picture.
What does ‘balance’ mean in this context? In this context, balance means the sense of the left and right sides, the front and the back, and the top and bottom sides of your body all working equally together, so that no area is more dominant than any other area. It is the feeling that a balloon might have (if a balloon were able to feel) both on its skin, as well as internally (equal pressure to all parts of itself).
Feeling the position – the concept. When you squeeze a balloon, two forces come into play – an inward and an outward force. 1) The pressure that your arms exert inwards, so that you don’t drop the object, and … 2) The pressure inside the object which pushes your arms outwards. A balance is therefore achieved. In other words, in Standing Qigong positions, you are being expanded whilst at the same time holding on.
The legs. Hold the legs as though you have a ball between thighs and knees. As above, this is a two-way sensation; you feel an outward expansion (as though the ball were pushing your knees apart), but at the same time, because you don’t want to drop the ball, you squeeze inwards. If you get the idea for the legs, the rest will be easy to follow.
The arms (1). The arms use the same idea. The ball is between the elbows/upper arms and the front-sides of the torso (in other words, it’s not exactly the sides, nor is it the front… it’s what you might call the anterior-lateral aspect of the body). Again, the same principle applies – the ball is pushing your arms/elbows away from your body, but simultaneously you don’t want to drop it.
The arms (2). Feel as though there’s a ball within the circle of your arms. It expands your arms, but you don’t want to drop it.
The arms (3). Feel as though there’s a ball outside the arms and around your back. Your back and arms expand, but simultaneously compress inwards.
The legs & pelvis. Your knees are bent; you are sitting on a ball. The ball is pushing your knees forwards (which lowers the buttocks), yet at the same time you want the buttocks to be lifted by the ball. This is similar to how it would feel if you were to attempt to push an aerobics ball into e.g. a swimming pool; whilst you push down, the surface tension would be pushing up against the ball.
The fingers. This is exactly the same principle as above.
Other applications. You can apply this concept in many other ways: • The same idea between the toes as between the fingers. • Ditto from the backs of hands/outsides of arms to the back. • Ditto feet to head.
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James Drewe teaches Taijiquan and Qigong in both London and in Kent. Details of weekly classes can be found on the website, and there are classes for 2-person Taijiquan on one Saturday a month.
CONTACTS: http://www.taiji.co.uk http://www.qigonghealth.co.uk Email: taijiandqigong@gmail.com Phone: 07836-710281 or 020-8883 3308