The Art of QiGong Breathing

Breathing Process

QiGong is an ancient Chinese health care practice that comes out of the Taoist tradition which has been used for over 5000 years. It is the ancestor of acupuncture, Traditional Chinese Medicine and Chinese martial arts. QiGong's' primary purpose has always been to promote a long and healthy life by balancing the energy within one's body. Balancing your energy will allow your body to relax and your mind to be peaceful, which promotes good physical, mental and emotional health.

Breathing is the primary element in QiGong, as it is in most Eastern health practices. Visualization and imagery are used extensively. When you learn to balance your energy through QiGong breathing and visualization techniques, you become acutely aware of when you are in or out of balance.

Proper breathing can calm the mind, lower blood pressure, and provide other benefits to the mind and body. Through proper abdominal breathing, lung capacity can be improved promoting the circulation of oxygen in the blood, massaging the internal abdominal organs, and helping digestion and assimilation of food.

Mastering QiGong breathing is the key to improving and maintaining your health.

Health care professionals who practice QiGong will recognize when to teach aspects of QiGong to clients, and what to teach, such as a simple breathing technique or a healing visualization.

QiGong Breathing Techniques

Preparation:
Relax (whether sitting or standing) - take a deep breath, hold that breath for a few seconds, release the breath and mentally tell yourself to relax.

Repeat - three or four times.

Inhaling:
First and foremost, become mindfully aware of your breathing. Gently inhale (slowly and quietly up to the count of 5) guiding your breath into your abdomen. Feel your abdomen expand as air fills up your stomach. Visualize and feel energy (Qi) being transported into your body cleansing and healing it.

If you have a health issue, visualize your breath transporting the energy (Qi) into your body - traveling to the targeted area. See the healing Qi replacing the sick cells, killing the virus, or repairing the injured bones or tissue.

As you inhale, feel abundance, love, gratitude, joy, happiness, acceptance, peace, health and well-being spread throughout your mind and your body.

Exhale:
Gently exhale (slowly and quietly up to the count of 5) using your abdominal muscles to guide the air out of your abdomen. As you exhale, be mindful that you are ridding the body of old, negative and sick energy.

If you have a particular dis-ease, gently focus your mind on pushing out the sick energy. Use your mind and breathe to transport it into the surrounding area. Sometimes it is helpful to visualize the exhaled breath as a dark cloud.

As you exhale, allow tension, stress, fear, anxiety, frustration, anger, pain, sickness and disease to leave your mind and body.

Repeat process several times a day to feel the benefits of a healthy state of being.