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Tai Chi Ruler
One of the most effective forms of Qigong for overall balance is a set of exercises called Tai Chi Ruler (taijichih). It’s a great exercise for people who want to strengthen their legs and physical balance, as well as improve their breathing, mental clarity and digestion.
If you haven’t heard of it, Tai Chi Ruler is a series of movements, most of which involve holding a small wooden stick (the “ruler”) between the palms. The ruler, also called the “immortal’s wand”, moves in a slow, circular movement coordinated with the breath. It’s a very meditative, yet also invigorating set of exercises.
The ruler itself has a distinctive shape. Typically the two ends of the ruler are somewhat rounded to accommodate holding it easily between the palms. The center of the ruler is spherical, and is the specific area that people focus on when practicing the exercise.
Each woodworker has their own unique twist on the design, but here is a good image of a typical ruler:
Tai Chi Ruler
I learned Tai Chi Ruler from Master Share K. Lew. In old China such exercises were traditionally kept secret. He originally learned it from a member of the family that created the exercise originally.
The story goes that in this family the exercise was practiced, but over time was forgotten. Then, after a couple of generations, one of the matriarchs of the family found she was getting stiff joints. She looked until she discovered this old family exercise and began practicing. After a short time practicing, her joint pain was relieved.
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Side note: I will be teaching Tai Chi Ruler in Reno this coming March 6th, 2010 from 9:00 to 3:00. There will be a follow-up class to correct form and complete any movements we don’t get to the first class. That follow-up will be on March 20th.
You can learn more about that class here: http://www.RenoAlternativeMedicine.com/classes.html
Qigong for Healthier Organs
One aspect of qigong that gets a bit less attention is its effects on the body’s internal organs. It’s an important topic that goes to the heart of why qigong is so powerful for improving and maintaining great health.
In previous posts you’ve read about the kind of abdominal breathing done in most qigong forms. I won’t review that here since you can go back and read that post if you like.
What I want to mention here is how this kind of breathing affects your internal organs. These organs (kidneys, heart, liver, spleen and lungs, plus the organs of digestion and elimination) keep blood and nutrients flowing through our bodies, allowing them to function at their best.
So how can the simple act of breathing during qigong be any different than normal breathing throughout the day?
First, when you’re practicing qigong you typically enter a much deeper state of relaxation. This allows you to breathe deeper by using your diaphragm more. The relaxation response opens circulation to your internal organs and they get more nourishment to work better.
In addition, the physical act of contracting your diaphragm when you inhale provides a kind of gentle internal massage for all of your organs. This gentle kneading action is greatly enhanced during qigong. The effect of this is that toxic materials being held inside organs get released. At the same time, oxygen and nutrients enter into every cell to replenish and regenerate them.
When your internal organs are working better, you feel better all day long. That’s why starting the morning with a round of qigong sets you right for everything else you do.
Be well,
Dr. Bruce
What Does It Mean?
I’ve gotten some interesting responses to some of the posts on this site. Most are very supportive and helpful. Then, of course, there are people who like to type before they think. This must be the modern internet version of speaking before you think…
All good entertainment in any case. I really want to thank those who’ve commented and sent interesting emails. I read every one.
You might, by now, be wondering about the title of this post and where I’m going with it. Glad you asked.
By asking, “What does it mean?” I’m referring to the calligraphy you see at the top right of every page on this site. Have you noticed it before? If not, take a look at it now…
Here’s a bigger version:
Pretty, isn’t it?
I especially like the way it flows from one stroke to the other. This is taken from a calligraphy scroll I got in Shenzhen in 1996. I was there finishing my doctorate and doing hospital rounds, but in the meanwhile, a group of us went to a street market. One of the vendors there was doing custom calligraphy.
After watching his work for a while I thought that he’d do a lovely job making this, so I asked him to make a scroll of the words, “wu wei.” Wu wei, for those not familiar, is commonly translated as “not doing.” This image is a dragon form calligraphy of these words.
But even knowing that doesn’t answer the question, what does it mean?
I would love to get your thoughts on the meaning of the idea of “not doing” and how it might relate to qigong or life in general. I’m leaving the comments open for this post so feel free to chime in.
Be well,
Dr. Bruce
Outside vs. Inside: Hard and Soft Qigong
If you do much reading on qigong, you’ll eventually run across the idea of “hard” versus “soft” qigong.
Each has teachers that prefer it and each has its place in the overall scheme of qigong practices. I’ll offer my opinion on these two, but first I’d like to clarify what they mean.
The simplest way to describe hard qigong is to say that it focuses on strengthening the body in various ways. There are exercises for strengthening muscles, ligaments and tendons as well as improving endurance and stamina. Hard qigong is especially popular with martial artists and others who rely on physical strength in their pursuits.
Soft qigong is more focused on the internal aspects of health. It includes exercises for stretching, deepening breathing, massaging and balancing the internal organs and even psychic development. It supports a healthy life and increases longevity. People of a more contemplative nature tend to like soft qigong better.
So you can see that each of these have a place in the ‘world’ of qigong. And depending on your personal goals, one or the other may be more appropriate.
However, if you had to make a choice between them, I’d recommend soft qigong. The reason is simple. By emphasizing health and longevity you are improving the overall quality of your life. And soft qigong offers an outstanding complement to the more ‘external’ disciplines such as martial arts, etc.
This isn’t just my opinion either. I recall visiting with a very highly trained kung fu (gungfu) master in the San Francisco area many years ago. He’d spent most of his then 50 years of practice focusing the harder, more external arts.
The conversation turned to the hard vs. soft question and he said, “I now wish that I’d spent more time doing the internal practices. After all these years emphasizing the external arts, my body and health have suffered.”
This means that if you practice hard qigong, you must practice soft qigong to heal and balance yourself. But if you practice only soft qigong, you may or may not want to practice the more external forms.
Be well,
Dr. Bruce
What Is The Best Way To Practice Qigong?
I often get asked what the best way is for practicing qigong. And I have several answers to the question. Here they are:
- Practicing is better than not practicing. I say this to emphasize the idea that you get no benefit from not practicing.
- That being said, if you can practice at a consistent time every day it will help. Partly this is because developing a regular habit supports the progress you’re making. For many people this will be in the morning, first thing on arising. You’ve done your practice for the day and kicked off your day by increasing your balance, energy and focus. What’s not to like?
- Sifu Lew had us start practicing twice daily – once first thing (and I mean first thing) in the morning and once before bed. This is a great way to begin and end your day.
- Be mindful when you practice. If you remember from an earlier post on “mind,” letting yourself become totally absorbed in the movements gives them additional power and effectiveness.
- Avoid overdoing it. Some people, particularly beginning students, think that if a little is good, a lot is better. Not necessarily so with qigong practice. In fact, using the “pieces of paper” analogy from before, it’s actually better to do just a bit at a time, but be consistent with it over time.
Hope that helps!
Be well,
Dr. Bruce
If you didn’t get the password…
If you didn’t get the password for the previous post, I’m sorry, but it’s too late. Passwords are only sent to people on the announcement list.
I will be posting more excerpts from the upcoming book. These future posts will also only be viewable to those on the list.
Are these going to be worth signing up for the free announcements? Here’s a comment offered by Angie B. after reading the last excerpt:
The truth unveiled.
Thank you
Here’s what you do to sign up:
- Find the sign-up form at the top right of every page on this site. It’s below where it says,
Get Updates
Sign up below to receive
a short email each time a
new blog entry is posted: - Just below that you enter your name (first name is fine) and a valid email address.
- A few minutes later you’ll receive an email asking you to confirm that you want to receive these notifications. The subject line of that email will be:
“RESPONSE REQUIRED: Confirm your request for information from qigong-secrets@aweber.com”
- Within that email will be a link. You’ll find it just below the words,
CONFIRM BY VISITING THE LINK BELOW:
- Once you click on that link, you’ll start receiving notifications whenever there’s a new post.
I promise to guard your privacy and to treat your email information as if it were my own. And I think you’ll be very happy with the information you’ll get in the password protected posts.
Be well,
Dr. Bruce
A Qigong Story…
Some readers will know that I’m in the midst of writing a book.
It’s about a specific qigong set from the Qing Yi Pai (School of Pure Intent) tradition. This set of movements draws it’s effectiveness from the Chinese 5 Phases, also called the 5 Elements.
If you’re unfamiliar with the 5 Elements, it is a map of relationships among cyclic natural processes. In other words, it describes everything from the seasons to times of the day. It also applies to medical issues since each of the five elements relates to a set of organ systems, foods, tastes, etc. There are entire healing systems based on the 5 Elements.
The reason I prefer the term 5 Phases is that the word “elements” usually refers to things. The 5 Phases aren’t so much things as they are phases of an ongoing process. Each phase is related to every other phase in a very specific way and there is constant movement and interaction between them.
Starting with my next post, I’ll be offering periodic excerpts from this upcoming book. The first of these excerpts is a story that I think describes a great deal about the deeper meaning qigong for self growth and personal development.
However, I’m only interested in sharing this with people who want to get a glimpse into this deeper aspect of qigong. Because of that, I’ll be password protecting these posts.
Getting the password for each post is easy – everyone who’s on the announcement list for this blog will receive a short email when the next post is ready, giving them the password for that post.
I’d also love feedback from readers about what they like and what could be clearer. You’ll be helping make the final book the best it can be. And only readers with the password will be able to comment.
If you’re not on the email announcement list, you can be. It costs nothing and I won’t be bombarding you with unwanted messages. If you sign up, you’ll only hear from me when there’s a new post, and you can opt-out any time you want. I hate spam email at least as much as you do, so I don’t send it.
Here’s what you do to sign up:
- Find the sign-up form at the top right of every page on this site. It’s below where it says,
Get Updates
Sign up below to receive
a short email each time a
new blog entry is posted: - Just below that you enter your name (first name is fine) and a valid email address.
- A few minutes later you’ll receive an email asking you to confirm that you want to receive these notifications. The subject line of that email will be:
“RESPONSE REQUIRED: Confirm your request for information from qigong-secrets@aweber.com”
- Within that email will be a link. You’ll find it just below the words,
CONFIRM BY VISITING THE LINK BELOW:
- Once you click on that link, you’ll start receiving notifications whenever there’s a new post.
I promise to guard your privacy and to treat your email information as if it were my own. And I think you’ll be very happy with the information you’ll get in the password protected posts.
Be well,
Dr. Bruce
