by Dr. Her Yue Wong
Internal Kung
Fu is a form of exercise to enhance the energy of whole body in order to resist
biomechanical damage, bacterial invasion, and spiritual disruption.
The exercise is
composed of four elements:
posture, sounds, breathing and mental imaging. The postures can be moving, standing, sitting or lying. The sounds can be different tones. The breathing can be normal, reverse
or whole body. The mental
imaging is to direct energy circulation.
The moving
postures are those such as found in the martial arts of T’ai Chi Ch’uan, Pa Kua
Chang and Hsing Yi Ch’uan.1
The exercise moves from one posture to another. The movement coordinates with breathing
and mental imaging. When the form
is striking, the mind is focused on attack, the breath is exhaling and the
energy goes to the striking direction.
A sound may follow the move, such as "Hai" for an upward
movement or "Ha" for downward, to release internal tension.
Examples of
standing postures for Internal Kung Fu are those in the Muscle Change Classic,
Xuan Yuan Gong, Wai Dan Gong, He Xiang Gong, and Da Yan Qi Gong.2 The exercises can be done standing
still or by repeating a single movement a number of times. Breathing and sound coordinate with the
postures. The mind is concentrated
on the circulation of energy; the energy “in” feels cool and is of the Yin
element, and the energy “out” feels warm and is Yang.3
The sitting
postures comprise what is called Meditation. Actually, the exercises can be performed sitting down or
standing up with the knees slightly bent.
Mental imaging is the main component of this type of exercise, and I
will describe that in detail independently.
Lying postures
are usually directed by Chinese traditional medical doctors. The prescribed posture is related to
the particular ailment, the sound is to stimulate the trouble spots, and the
mental imaging is concentrated on the affected organ.
Breathing is one of the
key aspects of Internal Kung Fu exercise.
It is divided into three types:
normal, reverse, and body breathing. Actually, breathing can be only through nose or mouth which
connects the lungs and outside air.
We breathe all the time without paying attention.
In the
exercise, we prefer to use nose for inhalation and exhalation because the nostrils have hairs to
filter the dust and the wall of nostrils has mucous glands to hold the fine
particles, therefore the air that runs into the lungs contains no dust. Only if the nostrils cannot open for
some reason may people use the mouth for breathing.
If the
breathing is through the mouth, the mouth will lose moisture and feel
thirsty. When performing internal
exercise, the tongue will naturally curl up and touch the roof of the mouth to
serve as a bridge between Governor Meridian and Conception Meridian.4 The tongue will not curl up if
breathing through the mouth.
Fortunately, Internal Kung Fu practitioners will overcome any problems
in using nose breathing, so breathing through the mouth will not be necessary.
Normal
breathing is the natural one. When
inhaling, the abdomen goes out.
While exhaling, the abdomen comes in. Everyone does normal breathing without consciousness. However, concentrating on normal
breathing will increase its function.
Reverse
breathing is the opposite of normal breathing. When inhaling, the abdomen moves in and the Ch’i moves up
along the back (Governor Meridian).
Exhalation relaxes the abdomen and the Ch’i goes down the front. This
breathing will make the circulation of Ch’i move progressively along the
Governor and Conception Meridians.
Most Kung Fu teachers instruct students to use reverse breathing.
Whole body
breathing is a very soft breathing coupled with imagining that the hair
cavities also function in breathing.
When light and soft inhalation takes place, the whole body will feel
cool and the air penetrates into the skin through the hair cavities. While exhaling, one will feel the heat radiating
from the whole body and air also emanates from the body through the hair
cavities. The body is like in a
dormant condition.
Internal Kung Fu sounds are tones to
vibrate the internal organs, and comprise a type of exercise. If there are some parts of the body
where the blood or energy cannot pass through, the tone can vibrate it and let
it go through as it would under normal conditions. The most familiar and natural manifestation of this concept
is when a sick person lies in bed and groans, generally a sign of progress
toward recovery.
The tones can be
different to serve different purposes, therefore a Chinese traditional medical
doctor will decide which tone to give the patient. In Kung Fu circles, the tone is a secret asset of the teacher.
Different schools have different tones which may relate to the postures and
breathing.
The sound
"Ha---a" is usually used to reduce body heat. If a person is irritated, his face may
turn red and his blood pressure may go up. The sound "Ha---a" will make him calm down and
return to a normal condition. If a
baby's bowels cannot move, the mother may use a sound "Ng---a" to
help the baby make a bowel movement by forcing the diaghragm to squeeze the
bowel. A monk who sits for a long
time may use "Oum Ma Ni Ba Mee Hun" to vibrate the internal
organs. I once asked a student who
had asthma to use "Hen---n" for inhalation through nose and
"Ha---a" for exhalation through mouth in mediation, and the result
was miraculous improvement of his asthma. A sound "Den---n" is used
for irregular heart pumping and "Owm" is used to reduce chest pain or
discomfort.
Northern
Chinese martial artists normally do not use sounds in their exercise, only when
they are tired, but Southern Chinese martial artists often use sounds in their
exercise in order to increase lung capacity and to frighten an opponent during
fighting.
Mental imaging is a very
important part of Internal Kung Fu.
It is better to have an experienced teacher explain and demonstrate this
concept. If the exercise produces
negative results, it is better to give it up.
Martial arts teachers believe that the mind creates energy and the
energy creates strength. Modern
medical doctors often tell their patients to picture themselves as happy and
healthy, thus promoting a faster recovery. That is one of the more obvious results of mental imaging.
The most difficult aspect of mental imaging is maintaining one’s
concentration. It is easier to
concentrate on a mental image in moving exercise, because the concentration is
on attacking and blocking. On the
other hand, it is far more difficult to concentrate during sitting exercise;
the mind may keep changing from one scene to another.
If a person has an injury or an abnormal situation of the internal
organs, he may use soft and long inhalation and exhalation to find out which
part has a problem. Then he may
concentrate on that part and imagine the Ch’i passing through it. Quickly he will feel a strong pulsation
in the trouble spot. After a
while, the pulsation goes away normally, signaling that the problem has been
overcome.
Mental imaging requires confidence and persistence, never giving
up on the exercise. A University
of Oklahoma law student who had asthma once came to practice Hsing Yi with
me. He told me that his Medical
Doctor had said there was no medicine that could cure this kind of sickness. The student therefore believed the only
thing that could help him was to practice Internal Kung Fu. He learned Hsing Yi and Pa Kua, and
finally got rid of his asthma. The
reason is that I asked him to do hard inhalation and exhalation, while imagining
the Ch’i passing through the vessels, veins, arteries and cells without
blocking. One year later, he was
no longer affected by changes in the weather and lived like a normal
person. Following that, he learned
Pa Kua for six months to relax his breathing, then practiced both Hsing Yi and
Pa Kua on his own until he moved away to pursue his legal career.
Meditation
Meditation (“to sink in thought”) is done
to concentrate the mind for the purposes of:
(1) moving the Ch’i for circulation to direct strength to any part of body, as
the mind enhances the Ch’i and the Ch’i enhances strength, which is called hard
Ch’i Kung;
(2) moving the Ch’i through any part of
diseased organs to recover from illness, which is called soft Ch’i Kung; or
(3) concentrating the mind to cease
thinking in order to reach peace of mind and to finally reach spiritual
enlightenment.
When exercising
Shaolin forms, one has no time to think about anything except remembering the
sequence of kicks, punches, jumps, and other movements. During such a short period of exercise
the mind is empty. If one cannot concentrate
in meditation to reach peace of mind, it is better to exercise Shaolin forms or
to spar with friends.
Exercising with T’ai Chi Ch’uan is a kind
of meditation because moving is accompanied by mental concentration, therefore
the movements should be slow in order to coordinate with breathing and
visualize the movement of Ch’i and strength. That concept is accepted by hard, soft and Taoist meditation
Ch’i Kung. If one is in an anxious
condition or if there is insufficient time to practice, it is not suitable to
practice T’ai Chi Ch’uan. It is
said that the exercise of T’ai Chi should be done as leisurely as a cloud
moving across the sky.
Exercising Pa
Kua Chang is also a form of meditation because the movements are accompanied by
the same mental concentration as sitting meditation, only with the hands and
feet moving. In standing and
moving, a single form is easier to handle, while changing forms is more
difficult. Since it is not
necessary to coordinate the movements with breathing, Pa Kua exercise can be
done either fast or slow. The
whole sequence of exercise should be done smoothly, like flowing water.
Exercising
Hsing Yi Ch’uan is also a type of meditation because each movement should check
position, breathing and circulation of
the Ch’i and strength. An
instructor may ask students to pause between moving from one posture to the
next. With hard inhalation and
exhalation in breathing, coordinated with explosive movements, Hsing Yi is
described as thunder.
Sitting meditation
is more difficult to handle, but for some people it is an easier way to
exercise. The difficult part is
concentration. In a sitting
position, it is easy to think about something else and forget the movement of
Ch’i. There are many kinds of
sitting meditation done by Taoists.
“Small Cauldron” is a simple one. By keeping the back straight and legs loosely crossed,
concentration is on moving the Yang Ch’i from the kidneys to the heart and Yin
Ch’i from the heart to the kidneys by imagination. It also involves imagining swallowing the saliva down to
the Dan Tian5 to “Cook the Golden Pill.” Breathing should be soft and continuous. If the concentration is good, it is
easy to feel the Ch’i boiling in the Dan Tian “cauldron” and then spilling over. After a while of this type of
meditation, one is ready to sleep soundly or go to work energetically. I usually meditate 20 minutes before
sleeping and again after waking up in the morning.
In sitting meditation, the legs can be
loosely crossed, one leg laying over the other as single cross or double
cross. Hand positions can be
various. It depends upon what
purpose is desired. I usually make
a circle with the left thumb and index finger and the other three fingers
slightly curved, and the right hand thumb goes through the left hand circle to
press the base of left ring finger with four right fingers covering the left
hand. Both palms face down and are
placed in front of the Dan Tian.
My purpose is to reduce body heat because my blood sugar is high and to
feel more comfortable in the summer.
Some people may put the left palm above the right palm with two thumbs
pressing each other and both palms up and placed in front of the Dan Tian. The
palms up meditation can bring body heat up, and that is good for winter
weather. Some Kung Fu men use the
four fingers to press the thumb as if holding fists and place the fists on the
knees. They press hard when exhaling
and imagine that strength goes to the fist, and then relax when inhaling and
imagine that strength comes in to the Dan Tian. T’ai Chi people make their arms as a circle held at shoulder
level, with palms facing inward and finger tips slightly touching. Pa Kua people do the same, making their
arms as a circle, only with the palms facing out and the fingers up.
When in
meditation, one imagines that Ch’i building up in the Dan Tian goes back to
“Wei Lu” at the bottom of the Governor Meridian, moves up along Governor
Meridian, then moves over the head, then flows down the face to the Conception
Meridian, eventually returning to Dan Tian. This kind of circulation is called the “Great Cauldron.”
The eyes can be closed to relax or slightly open to look at the
nose for concentration. The ears
can either refuse to hear any sound, or try to listen only to the heart pumping
or the sound of soft breathing.
If doing
meditation with palms up, the meditator will build up hot energy by
concentrating on soft breathing.
This stage is called a combination of concentration with breathing. After the hot Ch’i goes through
Meridians, it will go to the sensation paths of the whole body. The
concentration will be focused on the sensation paths to find the accupuncture
points. This kind of meditation is
called “Zhou Tian Ban Yun Fa,” or “Small Cosmos Circulation.” If the body heat is too high and the
body sweats, it is better to use the sound "Ha---a" to release some
heat, otherwise the meditator could get a bloody nose and burn out the sensation
paths.
If doing meditation with palms down, the
meditator will build up cool energy by concentration on soft breathing. The sitting and leg postures can be the
same as the Small Cosmos Circulation.
This method will produce no trouble with body heat and the feeling is
cool along the sensation paths.
This is called “Gui Yuan Qing Jing Fa.” Sometimes I use this kind of
meditation and get pretty good results.
Taoist
meditation can be any of the methods mentioned above, but the purpose is
different. To build up heat in the
Dan Tian is called “Zhu Ji,” or “to build foundation.” It was translated as “Lian Jing Hua Qi,”
which means to “refine sperm (semen) to obtain energy,” and the concentration
is on the Lower Dan Tian. After
the energy is built up and circulates through the meridians, the concentration
is on the Middle Dan Tian. This
stage is called “Lian Qi Hua Shen,” which means “to refine energy to obtain
spirit.” The last stage is called
“Lian Shen Fan Xu,” which means “refine spirit to reach emptiness.” In this stage, the concentration is on
the Upper Dan Tian.
There are, of course, numerous other
meditations practiced by Taoists and martial artists alike, and subtle
variations in posture and visualization are used according to the particular
objectives of the individual practitioner. However, what I have presented here covers the essence of
Chinese meditation, and should prove useful in achieving strength, health and
peace of mind.
- Dr. Her Yue Wong
June 2005
1 Wade-Giles Romanization. Pinyin Romanization would be Tai Ji
Quan/Taijiquan, Ba Gua Zhang/Baguazhang and Xing Yi Quan/Xingyiquan.
2 Wade-Giles Romanization. In Pinyin, “Ch’i” is rendered as “Qi”
and “Kung” as “Gong.”
Internal Kung Fu techniques are therefore often referred to as “Ch’i
Kung” or “Qigong” in popular writings.
3 Referring to the well known Yin-Yang
duality of Chinese cosmology.
4 Referring to the two
major energy meridians of the torso.
The Governor Meridian flows up the midline of the back, over the top of
the head, and is alternately known as the Governing Meridian (or “Vessel” or
“Channel”), Du Meridian, Du Mai, etc.
It is usually abbreviated “GV” (Governing Vessel) or “DM” (Du Mai) in
Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) texts.
The Conception Meridian runs down the front midline of the body and is
also called the Ren Meridian (“Vessel” or “Channel”), Ren Mai, etc. and is
abbreviated “CV” or “RM” in TCM.
5 The “Dan Tian” of the
body is usually defined in most Internal Martial Arts texts as a point in the
lower abdomen, three finger widths below the navel, and a couple of inches back
inside the body. Actually, there
are three Dan Tian areas – Upper Dan Tian, Middle Dan Tian, and Lower
Dan Tian. This first reference is
to the Lower Dan Tian, located below the navel. The Middle Dan Tian is found in the center of the torso near
the bottom of the sternum, and the Upper Dan Tian is in the middle of the
forehead above the eyebrows and below the hairline.