This newsletter is mainly about the study of Neidan/internal alchemy and although recently we have been talking about more cultural subjects, Qigong and Taijiquan it is important that we don’t forget the original intention.

I hadn’t been paying attention to subscriber count recently and it seemed like at the turn of my head we went from 1300 to 2000+ viewers. That got me thinking, most of you folks who have been around here for a while should already have a decent idea of how Neidan works, but that may not be the case for everyone, so why not have a little article about what it is, what style of Neidan we practice here and a bit about what you can expect.

I have to go to a Gu Qin factory this afternoon (Gu Qin is a famous Chinese classical instrument and my wife is going to start studying), but hopefully I can get this little article out before leaving.

1: What is Neidan:

Neidan is a mainly Daoist, but also somewhat Confucian and Buddhist style of meditation from China. It has around 1200 years of history, but in the period leading up to its development it existed in somewhat less refined forms and if we go by the oldest Daoist documents dealing with this subject it is around 1800 years old if not older.

The founders of Neidan are typically taken as:

• Wei Boyang: an early and mysterious Daoist figure who wrote the Zhou Yi Can Tong Qi, the first major Chinese alchemical document. It uses the theory of the book of changes (Yijing/I ching) to explain alchemy theory. Some scholars believe it was appended over the centuries and it could be the case that sections about meditative concepts were added later, but many people take it to be the first Chinese alchemy document. It dates perhaps to the second century A.D.

• Lu Dongbin: technically Lu Dongbin and his teacher Zhong Liquan are considered as the founders of the Golden Elixir school, the first major school to separate meditative alchemy from external alchemy which used laboratory made medicines consisting of toxic metals. The importance of this school is that meditation became separate from earlier alchemical enterprises and was thought of as a direct path toward spiritual liberation.

• Zhang Boduan: Zhang Boduan is thought of as the founder of the Southern School of internal alchemy and is the person from whom Neidan gets its name. He was the first to record and entire theory of the process in his text Understanding Reality.

• Wang Chongyang: Wang Chongyang founded the Complete Reality School which can in a certain regard be understood as a Daoist religion primarily concerned with the cultivation of immortality through the practice of the Golden Elixir (it is a method which ceremonializes Neidan practice and is very popular even today).

The basic idea of Neidan practice is that the human body contains a small amount of primordial essence derived from the time before the universe was created. This primordial essence is the inheritance of every living thing and required to keep the enterprise of life going from generation to generation. The Yin and Yang energies of our mothers and fathers form our genetic inheritance and this energy is seen as being part of a lineage of creation that goes right back to the Dao. There are various ways of interpreting this concept from religious to secular, although the secular approach got its start in the twentieth century and the religious version is much older.

Neidan is a method of using our minds, breath and bodies to enter a state of profound meditation in which this original essence can be transformed into an alchemical form of Qi which repairs the body and can be stored and grown over time.

When people achieve the basic goal of fully transforming the body through meditation they will develop a second energetic body which is capable of serving as a foundation for further spiritual transformation and eventual liberation from the cycle of birth and death.

Neidan has four main levels of practice:

• Refine Essence and transform Qi: the first stage of practice is when people refine a small amount of original essence material into Qi which begins to travel around and build up in the body,

• Refine Qi and transform Shen: when the Qi is strong enough it begins to transform a person’s spiritual experience as a result of frequently travelling to the brain where it causes a breakthrough into an enlightened state of being over time,

• Refine Shen and transform emptiness: at a high enough level, the person’s spirit can begin to travel outside the body in the environment and gradually return to the empty nature of the Dao,

• Merge Emptiness and the Dao: at the highest level of practice a person can return back to the original nature present before the creation of the universe.

These levels of practice can be understood both as milestones you can pass as a practitioner and as having broader spiritual or religious connotations depending on your beliefs.

What school do I practice:

Myself and my two students who are qualified to teach (Felix De Haas and Wesely Tasker) practice what is called Neidan Zhong Pai/Middle School of Internal Alchemy. Our transmission comes from my teacher Hai Yang who studied with Cao Zhenyang, the past abbot of the White Cloud Temple Beijing, along with Hu Haiya, a major figure in secular Neidan studies, as well as other masters.

We mainly practice according to the teachings of the following texts:

• Dao De Jing Chan Wei: this annotation of the Dao De Jing is the only text to use the Dao De Jing as a a guide to internal alchemy practice and is a very beneficial document for learning the method of the single opening of the mystery gate, our most important practice concept.

• Le Yu Tang Yu Lu: this series of notes taken by students of Huang Yuanji, the author of Dao De Jing Chan Wei further clarifies the practice concepts and allows for a deeper, more nuanced understanding,

• Zhong He Ji: anthology of central harmony, this is the first text of the middle school tradition and clearly explains key Daoist concepts through the lens of Confucianism and Buddhism,

• Xing Ming Gui Zhi: this is by far the most complete document in Neidan and teaches all the way from the beginning to attainment of final Buddhahood,

• Thirteen Rules of Nurturing Life: this Daoist Qigong/Daoyin document teaches methods of inner practice which are fast acting and less abstract than Neidan meditation. We usually like to teach it to beginners so they can sense Qi quickly and make faster progress.

We also read many other texts, but those are our key ones.

Our method is secular and largely uses the teachings of Chen Yingning, the founder of secular Daoism through his Immortality Study School as a theoretical background. Our basic conceit is that Neidan can be treated as a lifestyle activity and a hobby which can help you attain better health through energy cultivation and can lead to realization of one’s essential nature. Our students include martial artists, Qigong practitioners, Chinese Medicine practitioners and even Daoist priests and some Buddhists.

Although we do not teach with religious belief in mind, we are also not adversarial to Daoist or Buddhist religious beliefs (or any other religion for that matter) and view ourselves as being part of the larger community. I have personally been lucky to interact with many Daoist priests over the years in a sharing capacity and understand this as being similar to the post opening environment in China in the 1980s when secular practitioners and religious practitioners cooperated without judgment.

What to expect:

the first two levels of practice (small and large heavenly orbits) take between five to ten years to complete normally. Neidan is not a huge repository of techniques, it really comes down to your own personal effort and the job of a mentor is to guide you in the right direction.

If you study seriously, focus on detail and come to understand the practice and core theory you can expect to make progress. Don’t expect to be enlightened early in practice or fly away on a cloud, but if you keep going you are likely to eventually transform yourself energetically and realize who you were before you were born as well as many other benefits.

If you want to study I have prepared many introductory courses and if you live near the Netherlands or Boston you can seek our Felix or Wes who you can study with in person.

After learning core foundations the best thing you can do is learn document reading and the bulk of my teaching is in the context of teaching documents of the tradition.

I charge for programs and private classes, but I do not charge my students for email consultation about practice (within reason) since meditation requires guidance and I view it as my responsibility to help my students as they make progress.

Feel free to reach out by email, you can reach me at immortalitystudy @ gmail . Com

All the best.

Now that I’m getting into full swing here in China I thought I’d do a few short articles about Yang style middle frame Taiji. I’ve been studying this style since 2012, but hadn’t seen my teacher master Yin Qing since 2018, so recently when I was able to visit him for some revisions it was very illuminating.

The study schedule is set up for every two weeks and I anticipate being in China for around two years, so I should be able to book fifty sessions with him which is wonderful.

One of the things that especially stuck out to me about his middle frame from Tian Zhaolin is how frequently the energies of Lie and Cai occur. Li and Cai are translated as rending and plucking respectively and are two of the “Ba fa” or eight methods of Taijiquan.

In the Yang style 108 these movements are often contained within other movements, for instance Lie is frequently found in aspects of single whip, slanted flying, etc... often people think of Lie as a rending, snapping, or hard horizontal or upward pulling motion, but in Tian style the movement is expressed in a few very direct was as a hard strike with different sections of the hand.

Here are a few specifics:

• zheng lie: zheng means vertical, so zhen lie is an upright rising rending action where the back hand holds a posture such as peng, and the attacking hand rises upward with the hand bent at the wrist. In this attack the back of the wrist is used to strike the crotch, body or under the chin while the defending hand keeps the opponent tied up,

• heng lie: heng means horizontal and in this case the radial side of the hand or forearm performs a chopping inward motion somewhat similar to a haymaker or cross punch, or even similar mechanics to a jab, but without retracting the hand.

The direction and mechanics of these strikes is different, but the basic principle is that the defending hand either performs peng or a grasping technique to control the opponent’s arm, then the striking hand attacks the body, neck or head.

The interesting thing is that while many large frame variations hide the strikes in the form and require direct pointing out by a teacher, the middle frame contains the strikes prominently visible in the form, although they require guidance to really understand.

Master Yin says that the monicker of “old frame” to define the middle frame routine is not correct, since Yang style has always had large, middle and small frames, but that the large frame has historically been more popular since it is easier to learn. He claims that the small frame is the most difficult and requires expertise in another frame before learning it or else the practitioner is likely to be injured and that while the middle frame is more difficult than the large frame, it is still possible for beginners to learn under the guidance of a teacher.

Anyway, the plan is to make more of these posts going forward, so let me know if there are any yang style Taiji specific topics you are interested in and I’ll see what I can do!

Since arriving in Kaifeng I’ve had a small chance to think about an important topic which although not directly related to what we usually discuss here, may still be of relevance to you in some way.

Often when we think about other countries we only really have media narratives to rely on.

This is true everywhere, it isn’t just a feature of the English world.

One major issue with media narratives is that in the current zeitgeist most media companies are owned by highly motivated billionaires who either allow their political leanings to color what is shown, or who model the discourse of their journalism to fit the algorithmic preferences of their viewership.

In this regard it can be difficult to obtain accurate information about life in other countries, since typically our perspectives are colored by crafted perspectives which relate to how power equilibrium in our own countries operate.

Another layer of the mess that is modern media are youtube channels and podcasts which are supposedly dedicated to telling us about topics like geopolitics, but often serve as a median between propaganda and entertainment.

Having spent much time in China and being familiar with Chinese language and culture I do not give much credibility to the youtube space, even though the people presenting are often Chinese expats. I also worry that there may be significant financial contributions to some of the channels by religious cults and other organizations who serve to gain politically and financially be slanting the narrative.

As a result, I’d like to give some on the ground perspectives of what China is like right now. Please understand that I’m only one person with limited experience and locality, but at least I can take a basic pulse and give you some reports which might serve to help you better understand life here.

Today I’ll talk about basic perceptions so far and perhaps follow up with other posts soon to go into more detail.

1: Local economies:

I live in Kaifeng Henan province, it used to be an administrative center for the province, but when Zhengzhou city was fully amalgamated, it took the role from Kaifeng. The local economy here is largely based on tourism since Kaifeng is an ancient capital with many tourist centers.

While there is industry here, it is not on the same level as Guangdong, Shandong or other areas.

Nevertheless, the local economy is very active and shops and malls are usually full of people going about their business just as you would in your home town.

I hear from locals that there is a long term economic stagnation, but this is not an all of a sudden thing impacted by covid or tariffs, but rather something which has been unfolding over a decade or so. You have to understand that Henan is landlocked in the center of China and largely an agricultural producer, so its relevance in international shipping and new tech is limited.

Nevertheless, the overall lifestyle here is slow paced and seems manageable for most people.

My impression of Shanghai is that it keeps going forward as before. It can be hard to judge since when Lin and I lived in Shanghai the commercial infrastructure was different, so many of our old stomping grounds have disappeared, but it seems that there is still much commercial culture to engage in if you have the time to discover it.

I hear a little grumbling from the older crowd about certain investment issues, but broadly the external impression both Kaifeng and Shanghai give me is of stability, business as usual and not of deprivation or anxiety.

2: Culture:

China is a country with its own culture(s) and I don’t think much has changed between the last time I was here and now, but aspects of this are subjective and it can be very difficult to judge. I get the sense that on average people seem comfortable going about their day to day business. Two obvious cultural changes since the last time I was here:

• Hanfu culture: traditional clothing culture has become commercially popular in Kaifeng, especially around the large park dedicated to Northern Song dynasty culture. There are probably a hundred different shops where girls can get Hanfu made. I’m personally not a big fan of Hanfu culture because it often appears to me to be poorly put together and forced, but then again it is designed for local people and my opinion doesn’t really matter in that regard. The last time I was here the Hanfu movement was just getting underway, so that is a new element for me, but not so new for people here.

• Yoga studios are everywhere: This is a huge change and it wasn’t like this before. The Yoga approach which dresses up in external elements of India and Tibet is popular here and there are many studios. I personally find this mind numbing, but I do have an answer to those sassy westerners who might find it strange that local Chinese people don’t just go learn their own traditions. If you haven’t spent significant time around Daoist temples, Qigong people and martial artists here you might not understand that those things have cultural baggage that some people don’t find very fresh. Just as we have plenty of good reasons to study another culture, so too do Chinese people. I think generally this is good, even though I find this particular form of contemporary Yoga culture to be hopelessly fake and pretentious.

Innovation:

electric cars are everywhere! This is the single biggest change I’ve seen and I have to say the Chinese auto industry is simply amazing!

I don’t have a great understanding of things like climate change, so I’ll defer from speaking about relative positive or negative impacts that electric vehicles have on the environment, but I will say that I think China has been very intelligent about the implementation of electric vehicles in light of the very real risk of global oil shortages.

Another innovation which my selfish side appreciates is that you can get a starbucks latte on the train now. I love my home country of Canada, but we could learn a lot from China about public transit and the trains are just outstanding (Via rail, I’m looking at you).

So generally speaking, from my limited perspective it appears that things are moving along as usual for normal people, the economy has its ups and downs just like anywhere else, and China has its own equilibrium just like every other major country.

I think it is really important not to get carried away with social media and the news since their profits are directly improved by making you feel anxious. Personally I hope China continues to enjoy good success and prosperity and that despite the fact that the leaders of our countries do not always see eye to eye, we are all able to continue engaging in a (relatively) peaceful and prosperous global order. One of our jobs as private citizens is to facilitate bridge building which goes beyond the role of government. I personally believe that people can do wonderful things together which do not require authorization by our leaders and that by taking the time to share and grow together we can facilitate long lasting peace and friendship for decades to come.

Behind the paywall today is the first section of Ma Heyang’s entry from interviews with the Daoists. It is very useful as Ma explains many specialized aspects of internal alchemy, so check it out!

Read more

1: Introduction to the Tian Zhaolin lineage of Yang Style Taijiquan:

Introduction to the Tian Zhaolin Middle Frame linage of Yang style Taijiquan through transmission from Yang Jianhou - Wang Chengjie - Yin Qing - Robert Coons.

Get it here

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/tianstyle1

2: Overview of the Small and Large Heavenly Orbits:

An introduction into the small and large orbits, two key stages of practicing Neidan.

Get it here:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/biwllo

3:Eastern School Hundred Character Ancestor Steele:

A full reading and analysis of Lu Xixing’s eastern school interpretation of the hundred character stele. Very useful for novice and intermediate students or anyone interested in the Eastern school.

Get it here:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/orlioi

4: Internal Alchemy of the Dao De Jing Chapter 8:

Get it here:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/dvhfag

“People’s one heart is not dual at its root, but because we become lost in thought we split true and false.”

Neidan practice is an art of cultivating life energy (ming) through the use of nature (xing) and refining nature (xing) through the development of life energy (ming).

Xing and Ming have different meanings at different stages of practice and if we want to begin at the start and really cultivate the golden elixir so we stand a chance of later becoming enlightened and maybe something more, we must start by quieting the mind and forgetting ourselves. This is the foundational basis of using Xing to revert to the life root (what is called the “ming base,” similar to the base of a fruit where the stem inserts). To do this we must understand the formula of “forget to speak, protect,” an essential piece of information contained in Lu Dongbin’s hundred words (the foundational Neidan document). Every school of Neidan comes from this one document and all of them return to it. There is no Neidan without Ancestor Lu and incidentally my wonderful (verging on magical) friend Annie Pecheva told me that yesterday was Lu Dongbin’s birthday, so this seems like as good a time as any to talk about his deepest and most important ideas.

The secret doctrine of forgetting to speak is to break duality and enter the oneness of the pre-heaven so we can borrow directly from the one Qi of the Dao.

This is not the same as just closing the mouth and sitting quietly, it has a method, a small but important secret which is found in the way our spirits and breath merge. Beyond this secret is where the basic methods of each Neidan school differ, but the core secret is always the same, so in the end all schools revert to one.

People are disturbed because they are of two minds about things, but if we learn from the Dao De Jing and daily reduce and reduce again, we may find the real path to achieving non-duality and that it is very easy to practice, but hard to maintain.

Keep going in your meditation and don’t give up,

I wish you one day to fly away on a cloud and freely wander in the azure sky :)

Hi friends,

well, I’m in China and everything is going according to plan.

I managed to avoid getting terrible jet lag and basically got my sleep schedule changed within the first few days. I’m also very excited to continue my cultural studies in Chinese martial arts and music (I’m studying Erhu, a two string fiddel with a performer in the Shanghai orchestra).

This June I am offering three very special courses including:

1: Introduction to the Tian Zhaolin lineage of Yang Style Taijiquan:

Early bird sale: save $20 if you ues this link to buy the course before June 5

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/tianstyle1/sa8y9z3

The Tian Zhaolin lineage of Yang style Taijiquan is sometimes called Old Yang style and emphasizes the middle frame of Yang style Taiji practice as transmitted from Yang Jianhou, the son of Yang style founder Yang Luchan.

This lineage is especially famous in Shanghai and I was officially requested by my teacher Yin Qing to teach this style in 2012. I also have experience in another lineage promoted by Master Shen Zaiwan which I studied with various teachers in Canada before being introduced to Master Yin.

The Tian transmission has various special features not seen in the more popular large frame style from Yang Chengfu including:

• alternation between slow and fast movements,

• changes between high, middle and low postures,

• a rotating and circular approach to martial energy,

• much more emphasis on abdomen, waist and back flexibility.

After more than 16 years of studying this style I’ve decided to finally hang out my tile and offer detailed and authentic instruction online.

Tian style is much more complex than other branches of Yang style and the middle frame is halfway between the slow and steady large from and the fast and explosive small frame style.

The style is broken into three sections which depending on how the movements are counted may have as many as 150 movements. I will teach the first section this year and will start everything with this introductory class in which we will learn the first posture, a special kind of Neigong technique which teaches the essential methods of:

• Peng: the expanding power of Taijiquan which in our style is expressed as though rolling a ball,

• Lu: the rolling back power of Taijiquan by which the force of an opponent is absorbed and drawn inward,

• Ji: the pressing force which uses one part of the body to generate force through another part of the body,

• An: the pushing power which is often used to seal the hips in push hands and combat,

• Cai: a plucking power which strongly pulls an opponent out of their root,

• Lie: a rending or splitting power which can create whiplash in an opponent,

• Zhou: the power of the elbows,

• Kao: while often thought of as shoulder power, it is also the power of the body in general,

• Zhan Zhuang: Standing post exercise.

The opening movement can be thought of as consisting of as containing around eight movements and all of the famous eight gate energies of Taijiquan as well as the standing post method.

This is a much more complex and demanding movement than the opening form of any other Yang style variation and is perhaps more similar to the opening of Liu He Ba Fa in complexity.

As such you will need to learn the movements and the basic body method which includes detailed instruction about the activity of the head, chest, abdomen, back, waist, hip joints, knees, and feet.

The plan is to teach you these methods over the course of four weeks during June. Each week you will get a video lesson teaching you another layer of the movements as well as lectures when appropriate.

By the end of the month you can expect to have a good handle on this first movement which will establish many of the skills you need to go farther in the style.

The first class will be published on Gumroad on Saturday June 6 and all subsequent classes will be uploaded on Saturdays.

I am also happy to receive videos of your practice to offer correction and will give you instructions about how to share videos if you reach out to me.

This is a very unique method of Yang style and my hope is that in the future we may be able to set up some live classes with Master Yin who is the lineage bearer and gatekeeper of the style.

Our lineage is:

• Yang Luchan: Yang style founder who popularized Taijiquan in Beijing,

• Yang Jianhou: son of Yang Luchan who specialized in middle frame,

• Tian Zhaolin: the head student of Yang Jianhou,

• Wang Chengjie: one of the top disciples of Tian Zhaolin,

• Yin Qing: master Wang’s top student,

• Me: nothing special, but I hope that I can pass down this excellent style in a correct and authentic way which will benefit you.

Class details:

When and Where: recordings of movements and explanations will be uploaded to gumroad every four Saturdays starting June 6.

What’s included: full instruction of the first movement of the Tian transmission which includes the eight gates and standing post.

How much: $80 USD (around the price you would pay to attend four classes of Taijiquan in any major city).

What else: anyone who takes this course is invited to continue learning Tian style and it is my hope that we can spread this unique lineage in the West according to the request of my teacher. By joining this and future programs you will be part of an authentic and unique transmission of Taijiquan which is not compromised by the late 20^th century official standardization of the style and still contains all traditional elements which have often been lost in other methods. I will also be regularly visiting with master Yin over the next two years, so you will be getting access to my own development as I advance in the style (this is why I waited until now to start teaching online, although I’ve been teaching in person for many years).

Get the early bird sale and save $20 here:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/tianstyle1/sa8y9z3

2: Overview of the Small and Large Heavenly Orbits:

Get it here:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/biwllo

Neidan is a poorly understood subject in the West and there many arts like Qigong and Taijiquan use similar ideas such as the small and large heavenly orbits, but these subjects in Neidan studies are totally different in training methods and results.

In this four session pre-recorded program you will learn about the small and large orbits from the Neidan perspective.

This course is designed for three groups of people:

1: people who already practice and want to find out precise details about how the levels of Neidan work,

2: people who are starting Neidan and have already taken a course or two with myself or other teachers and want to know what to expect as well as how to adapt to chnages,

3: people who practice Taiji, Qigong or Chinese Medicine who want to understand the essential nature of internal alchemy as it pertains to the transformation of jing, Qi and Shen.

This course will have four units:

1: Interpreting the small and large orbits from the perspective of the three treasures:

in this unit you will learn the traditional meaning of “refine the Jing and transform Qi, refine the Qi and transform Shen” from the Neidan perspective. This subject is not just a meaningless form of lingo, it explains three key parts of practice from the beginning to advanced stages of practice.

2: The Small Orbit beyond the Ren and Du meridians:

the small orbit is so much more than Qi going up the back and down the front of the body, it is the means by which a subtle material hidden profoundly in the deepest part of the body is mixed with innate consciousness and turned into spiritual energy. In this section you will learn about how Jing becomes Qi, the relevance of the lower, upper and middle Dantians in Qi development, and how to recognize essential components such as the “closing of the yang gate,” “jade fluid,” and how to nurture the energy so it becomes bigger over time.

3: Understanding the large orbit: in an energetic sense the large orbit is about the connection of the three Dantian via the middle channel, but it is also concerned with the transformation of Qi to spirit and the gradual cultivation of the upper Dantian to maturity. In Neidan practice it is not possible to achieve advanced levels of practice without completing the large orbit process, but few people have explained it clearly in the literature, especially in English, so this is your opportunity to find out how it works.

4: My experience of the large and small orbits:

I completed the small orbit around 2017 and the large orbit in 2023 and will share a synospsis of my experience with both in their early, middle and final stages. The progression of Neidan experiences are somewhat subjective, but most people experience most of the same phenomena, so having an experienced practitioner guide you can be a great help.

Classes will be released on Sunday mornings starting June 7 and consist of a pdf and recorded lecture each week.

The course is $150 USD.

Get it here:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/biwllo

3:Eastern School Hundred Character Ancestor Steele:

Get it here:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/orlioi

Lu Xixing was a great secular master of Internal Alchemy during the Ming Dynasty who wrote extensively on the practice of Nature and Life Dual Cultivation. His approach starts with pre-heaven energy work as works toward the cultivation of the Yang spirit and merging nature with the Dao. Lu Xixing is also believed by many contemporary scholars in Asia to have specialized in dual cultivation partner practice which may either mean male and female parners meditating together, or even Neidan sexual practices depending who you ask. In this introduction to Lu’s methods we will learn his annotation of the Baizibei, the first Neidan document left behind by the immortal Lu Dongbin, but don’t expect a simple explanation of this 100 word document since Lu uses it to explain his profound Neidan method.

There are many subtle elements of nature and life cultivation which haven’t been well explained in the Western Daoist world so far such as how Qing/feeling interacts with Xing/nature/mind and yet concepts like this are the foundation of the mixing of water and fire and metal and wood.

The contents of Lu’s annotation of the Baizibei deals with these and other subjects such as why “forgetting to speak” doesn’t just mean sealing off the mouth, but has a much deeper meaning found in profound states of meditation in the pre-heaven state.

During the month of June we will read this text over four Thursdays starting on June 4.

I will be pre-recording the program and giving my translation and providing the videos in the gumroad space, although I’m certainly open to having a meeting to discuss the text.

I’ll be recording during my day time in Kaifeng, so if you live in North America or Europe you can expect it around the time you wake up every day.

The classes will be $150 USD for the month and you will learn true knowledge and practice of the Eastern school which is associated with the transmissions of Lu Dongbin and Zhang Sanfeng.

Get it here:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/orlioi

4: Internal Alchemy of the Dao De Jing Chapter 8:

Get it here:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/dvhfag

Chapter eight of the Dao De Jing reads:

“上善若水。水善利萬物而不爭，

the highest good is like water,

water’s good benefits all things and does not contend,

處衆人之所惡，故幾於道。

It stays in places all people despise and is thus close to the Dao,

居善地，心善淵，與善仁，言善信，正善治，事善能，動善時。

Stay on good lands, keep the heart in good depth, confer good humanity, speak in good faith, be upright in good governance, act with good ability, move with good timing,

夫唯不爭，故無尤

those who do not contend have no worries.”

Those of you who have taken my Dao De Jing courses before know that there are many ways to interpret the chapters, but usually there is one big thesis.

In our Dao De Jing series we look at the text from four perspectives:

1: the text and grammar of the text according to early Chinese literature:

we use documents such as the etymology text Shuo Wen Jie Zi to understand the meaning of the characters of the Dao De Jing, then we read the document according to the situation of the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods when the text was written.

2: Early annotations:

in the second week we look at early annotations of the text from Wang Bi and He Shang Gong. Wang’s annotation is largely metaphysical, while He Shang Gong’s attempts to merge inner practice with social philosophy.

3: Huang Yuanji’s Neidan interpretation:

in the fourth week we read the Dao De Jing Chan Wei, the only annotation of the Dao De Jing exclusively concerned with meditation. Huang teaches how to interpret the text in order to achieve the golden elixir.

4: Modern reading:

we read modern Chinese sources to understand how present day Chinese people understand the Dao De Jing as a work of ancient philosophy.

This is a good program with many students who have participated in every course, you should check it out if you are interested in the Dao De Jing.

This month the program will be released in pre-recorded format on Sunday mornings.

You will receive pdf translations of the documents we are working with and video lectures four Sundays starting June 7.

Get it here:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/dvhfag

• There are many orifices in the body you can focus on such as the lower Dantian, Yin Tang, upper back, Bai Hui etc...

• they all have their uses, but they are not as important as absolute stillness and silence,

• so don’t be fooled by people who teach about activating the third eye, or trying to suck the jing out of the genitals up the spine,

• these are false practices from the perspective of Neidan,

• the most important thing is to attain stability and tranquility,

• you can focus on your lower Dantian, or your whole body, or somewhere else, but the most important point is to make the true mind stable and enter profound meditation,

• then you can start to make real progress and not just imagine your are circulating energy even though you are cooking in an empty pot.

I should basically be over my jet lag by now and will start posting new articles and China updates soon!!

Read Fang Dao Yu Lu and find out more about how Neidan really works!!

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I guess by now I’m in Kaifeng resting up and trying to recover from jetlag. The article is behind the paywall and you should sign up to read it, but here is a free tip about meditation practice that could help you:

• internal alchemy follows the principle of the Dao De Jing,

• it is based on cyclical nature in which flourishing life comes from a Yin womb,

• after a plant flourishes its flowers and leaves fall to nourish the roots during the fall,

• when we meditate we develop true Yang energy by converting the spirit and essence in profound stillness without movement,

• after the energy moves to the upper Dantian it must be allowed to rest, then gradually return to the area behind the umbilicus to be stored,

• this is the same principle mentioned in the Dao De Jing and is the fundamental basic of Neidan practice.

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One thing I’m happy to share with everyone is this cool technique:

• if you have stiff legs when you stand up or first start walking, place your attention in the highest point of your arches behind the ball of your feet and send a message with your mind to relax,

• do this before you start walking and as your foot relaxes your legs will also relax a bit too,

• this can help a lot in making you feel more comfortable and also reduce possibility of injury due to extreme stiffness,

• this is good for people with leg issues, but can also help you in the morning when you get out of bed, or if your legs are tired from exercise,

Here is the translation of Fang Dao Yu Lu:

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Well the time is very close and I have all my bags packed, purchased all the toys and educational materials for my son, got all the supplaments for my wife and am just finishing up some final details before leaving for China on Wednesday morning.

I anticipate being able to get back into a pretty regular posting schedule here within about a week, but I thought I’d hedge a bit by doing two things:

1: for paid subscribers, I’ve gone ahead and scheduled four posts to be released over the next two weeks of my translation of “interviews with the Daoists” a seminal 20^th century internal alchemy document from Taiwan in which multiple Neidan masters were interviewed about their perspectives on practice. You will be receiving the Ma Heyang interview. Ma claimed to be a representative of the Western school and has many important ideas about the mystery gate among other things. His interview is very actionable and direct, so expect one today and then three more over the next two weeks.

2: I’ve decided to put a few courses on sale including the foundations syllabus already advertised earlier this month and some more courses you might be interested in. This is a great way to get useful and correct Neidan and Qigong teachings for half of regular price. Here is the list of what’s on offer (a short update about what I’m planning to do in China is at the bottom of this post, then Fang Dao Yu Lu is in the paid section):

New additions:

Rare Internal Alchemy Texts of the Tang and Song Dynasties:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/tangtexts/oxego21

Buddhist Meditation and Yang Sheng of the Zhiguan school:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/flqvq/yko3kgx

Ji Yangzi’s Mysterious Formulas of the Golden Elixir:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/jiyangzi/opvkxui

Dao De Jing Chanwei Chapters 1-4

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/chanwei14/jrxt08l

Thirteen Rules of Nurturing Life Daoist Qigong

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/thirteenrules/xaoqn5l

Already advertised:

Three approaches to beginning Neidan:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/threeapproaches/b8izlnr

The Wonderful Dual Gate:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/dualgate/0uv66vj

Three Treasures of Jing, Qi and Shen:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/sanbao/7qp1apu

Timing the Fire:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/glntd/c6ciz0z

Shao Yang and Yin Xian Schools:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/twoschools/d4g6rjf

Eight Meridians:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/meridians/ghyec78

Neidan intro to body cavities:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/cavitiesintro/6srn08g

Secret of the Golden Flower Min Yide interpretation:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/goldenflower/5x8bhxv

What I’m planning in China:

Aside from having a nice time with my family and continuing to bring you consistent content and courses I’m going to continue stuying the Tian Zhaolin transmission of Yang style Taijiquan with my teacher Yin Qing. I plan to offer a course in the first section of the Tian branch, a truly unique and special version of Yang style which emphasizes rising and descending, slow and fast, and spiralling power not seen in the large frame of Yang style popularized by Yang Chengfu.

I also plan to resume the study of Erhu and Gu Qin, to Chinese musical instruments. My teacher in Shanghai, Gong Xiu is an erhuist for the symphony orchestra which plays in the major concert hall on Yan’an Road. I’ll find a local Gu Qin teacher in Kaifeng where we will be living. Musically I’m currently working on transcribing what are called “Shi Dai Qu” or Period Music, a popular fusion of Chinese pentatonic folk music and early 20^th century Jazz that was popular in Shanghai during the Republic. Eventually my goal is to write a Guitar and Bass method for Shi Dai Qu, but realisticially this may require a few years of hard work and continued instruction from experts.

The other big plan is to start making media about consequential Chinese tourist locations such as temples, historical sites, tea culture, fine art etc... If there is anything you want to see, especially in North China, please let me know. I’ve purchased a decent camere and mic and am getting ready to start telling more visual stories about these wonderful things we are all so interested in :)

Wish me luck on my trip and please subscribe so you can read Fang Dao Yu Lu, a truly unique and important meditation document from the 20^th century!!

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Some good comments have been coming in recently since I’ve been talking about a few hot button subjects and readers want to share opinions. I try not to write long responses in the comments since it is more useful to make them into articles for everyone to enjoy if they wish to.

This article is about the six harmonies in Xingyi practice.

Let me start by stating where I fit into the Xingyi world:

I’m a student of Hai Yang who is a lineage holder and standard bearer of a number of lineages of Hebei style Xingyi, especially Zhang Zhaodong’s style which was passed to him by his grandfather Yang Qinglin, an inner door disciple of Zhang.

I have also been lucky enough to be introduced to and practice with major masters from Tianjin and Hebei province from Sun style, Fu Jianqiu branch, Li Nengran and Liu Qilan branches. In 2011 I was invited by by Shifu to Hengshui city Hebei on a group trip to make a proper tomb for Li Nengran as well as participate in a Bai Shi student receiving ceremony held by master Cui Jieli, one major inheritor of the old Li Nengran style of Xingyi. During that time I also met Li Nengran’s living descendant, so while I am not a practitioner of all these branches of Hebei style, I have seen many of the representative masters of Hebei style in person and had a chance to talk to many of them about practice.

The reason I mention this is not to try to position myself, but instead just verify that I’m qualified to talk about Hebei style Xingyi from an educated perspective, having followed master Yang since 2005 and seriously studied the Li Cunyi, Zhang Zhaodong and Xue Dian branches with him and spent hundreds of hours in private conversation about the subject.

The topic today is about how to interpret the concept of the six harmonies and behind the paywall we will keep going with the Huang Dabai chapter of Fang Dao Yu Lu a famous twentieth century internal alchemy document consisting of interviews with living masters in Taiwan.

1: Liu He Origin:

Zhuangzi talks about the six harmonies as effectively being six directions occurring in nature. They are forward and back, left and right and up and down.

These are the basic planes of movement and can also be used to define heaven, earth, and the four cardinal directions among other things. Chinese culture is highly symbolic and the six harmonies are too.

2: Liu He in martial arts in general:

Liu He is used in various martial arts, not just Xingyi, but of course it is well known in the ancestor style of Xingyi called Xin Yi Liu He Quan (heart and mind six harmonies fist) which is practiced by Hui Muslims in Henan province (many in my wife’s home town actually, they make great lamb soup).

The Xinyi Liu He Quan Pu (martial manual passed down to lineage holders in old time) says of the six harmonies:

“the hands and feet harmonize, the shoulders and space between the inguinal region harmonize, the elbows and knees harmonize, the eyes and heart harmonize, the heart and Qi harmonize, the Qi and strength harmonize.” In the text they do not explain what Qi means, we’ll get around to that in a bit.

Another martial art which uses the Liu He is Hua Yue Liu He Ba Fa Quan which believes the six harmonies are:

• the body harmonizes with the heart,

• the heart harmonizes with the mind,

• the mind harmonizes with the Qi,

• the Qi harmonizes with the Shen,

• the Shen harmonizes with movement,

• movement harmonizes with emptiness.

I’m lucky enough to have studied with Albert Chen, an indoor disciple of Chen Yiren, the most important modern teacher of Liu He Ba Fa after Wu Yihui who introduced the style to the general public. I asked him how to interpret the term Qi and he told me that it should be thought of as 气势 to have an imposing manner, not as Qi in the meridians.

Now let’s talk about Xingyi:

In Xingyi the Liu He are understood as:

Three external harmonies:

• the hands harmonize with the feet,

• the elbows harmonize with the knees,

• the shoulders harmonize with the inguinal region,

Three external harmonies:

• the heart harmonizes with the mind,

• the mind harmonizes with the Qi,

• the Qi harmonizes with strength.

Again, in the Xingyi literature there are not very many good definitions of Qi, but there is one from the Xingyi Quan Pu Jiang Yi (explanation of the Xingyi Quan Pu) which says “freely disolving the two Qi, extreme stillness generates movement, violently shaking the four limbs, penetrating the entire body, in the pre-heaven this is contained in stillness, in the post heaven it is contained as movement.”

In other words, movement and stillness are the two types of Qi used in the martial art of Xingyi Quan.

It also says: “during the winter solstice nurture Yang, during the summer solstice nurture Yin, I like to nurture the benevolent upright Qi of the universe. This is how to nurture the upright Qi.”

It goes on to explain that a posture which is excessively Yang tends to break and a posture which is excessively Yin tends to be weak, so a balance must be reached between Yin and Yang.

In other words, their understanding of Qi in this context was about the concept of Xiao Xi I mentioned in the last post. The Qi of Yin and Yang passes between two extreme poles and they each transform into one another. This is the classic Daoist and Confucian idea about Qi as a metaphysical concept, it has nothing to do with Qigong practice at all.

Now that we have that out of the way, let’s interpret the six harmonies:

The three external harmonies are about physical coordination, they don’t mean that the body parts all arrive at the same time, they mean that the body is connected so it can generate strong power during movements.

The three inner harmonies are about how the mind is used to generate power.

The heart in classical Chinese thought is the seat of awareness and the center of emotions and feelings, the mind is considered to be generated by perception and is thus the minister of the heart who carries out its commands. If we use the above definition of Qi, it is the Yin and Yang dynamics of stillness and movement and their correspondent transition back and forth. In other words, the mind is directed from within the center of our perceptual faculties to give instructions to the body about how to behave, then the Yin and Yang Qi become unified into the “true one Qi” according to the above mentioned document. This true one Qi carries the force to the end of the limbs.

The Six harmonies of Xingyi Quan are about how the power is developed in the body, but you can’t just practice based on those ideas, they need detailed teachings of every aspect of posture and movement dynamics as well as self defense applications.

This is the nature of traditional Chinese martial arts, they are based on physical instruction, verbal instruction, heart transmission (in other words the teacher shows you something that can’t be easily spoken) and only then through the classics. The classics are useless if you don’t have specific lineage based transmission.

3: The possibility of Liu He as Qi dynamics:

I mentioned to you that I’ve spent hundreds of hours talking to Master Yang about this stuff and have also had some engagement with other relevant teachers in the field who have mostly communicated pretty similar ideas. I was very surprised when I spoke with master Chan of Liu He Ba Fa fame since I did not anticipate that his answer would conform more or less precisely to what others told me. I guess that I thought since it is associated directly with a famous Daoist figure and the language of its classics have so many Neidan ideas that it would be a kind of energy martial art, but I found out that it is very practical and the ideas are meant to be applied in a martial way.

This really gets down to the core of learning Chinese culture, since the culture is so influenced by ancient philosophy you have to be careful to consider context. Terms like “empty the chest and fill the abdomen” take on totally different meanings depending on where you apply them. In ancient Daoism it means to keep the people happy and peaceful by providing sufficiency for them and not complicating them with state ideology, while in Neidan it means to silence the mind and fill the lower Dantian with primordial Qi, and in the martial arts it could mean anything contextually related to how the art uses the chest and abdomen or the mind and breath, or etc... you get the point.

If you want to think about Liu He as an energy dynamic there are a few choices:

1: six directions of movement: Qi can be defined as the activity of physical movement, so that is fine. This is one way Liu He Ba Fa thinks of Liu He.

2: Coordination of mind and body: Xingyi thinks of Liu He in this way and uses it to cultivate martial power.

3: A way to unify mind and body to generate oneness: this is my preferred interpretation since it indicates the coordination already becomes “pre-heaven” which in the martial art means trained to the point of being automatic.

No one in old documents made any claims about Qi connecting in meridians or outside the body as we do in Qigong. That makes sense since Qigong post-dates the period in which most of the martial classics were written by about fifty years. Qigong is a radical new way of understanding Qi which is hugely influenced by Western ideas about physics, somatics, and other areas which are mentioned discretely in the literature and not mentioned in the martial arts.

In the martial arts you sometimes see ideas like the hundred vessels connecting, but you should understand that vessel refers to blood circulation, not to an energy meridian and Qi in blood is one very authentic way to explain Qi in the martial arts which especially started showing up in documents after the 1950s.

People also talk about the rise of the Du and descent of the Ren meridians.

This has two major meanings:

1: internal martial artists copy the back of a defensive cat when they practice since they believe the spine is a good way to generate martial power and that when it takes on the shape of a bow it is more powerful. The upper back naturally rises up while the chest cavity naturally descends, thus the Ren and Du meridian follow a descending and rising activity.

2: the circulation of Qi passes around the microcosmic orbit: This is a legitimate reading of this concept in internal arts and can simultaneously be true with the other meaning I just mentioned. In that particular context, usually it is the adjustment of the back and front of the body along with sinking to the lower Dantian over a long period of time that opens the orbit. Some schools have extra Neigong exercises to help fulfil this, but this is lineage dependent and the practices vary wildly as I mentioned in my last article.

No one is claiming that martial arts don’t also have energetic qualities, or even that new ideas can’t be absorbed into the martial arts over time, but it is very important to get the meaning of the older generations of the styles straight. Martial arts styles do not appear fully developed, they develop over time just like every cultural form. During the Li Nengran, Dong Haichuan and Yang Luchan era of internal arts the styles were not performed the same way they are today. As I mentioned, I met two lineage holders from Li Nengran style Xingyi (including Li’s family descendant) and practitioners of Liu Qilan style. Their approach to Xingyi looks totally different to any style you would see in Beijing or Tianjin today. They use squatting monkey to provide launching power to the lower Dantian and then practice big Dantian rotation and a kind of stuttering hopping motion to generate force. This is a very old way to practice martial power and is primative compared to later Xingyi styles from the main Hebei and Shanxi lineages, most of which are considerably more subtle and nuanced.

Assuming that these inheritors are practicing approximately the same way that Li Nengran and Liu Qilan did and knowing that the first time sophisticate discussion of Daoist style energy cultivation entered the documents of Hebei style Xingyi was during the Chinese republic (1911-1949) and that it tended to either use Daoist language (Xue Dian’s Dantian Chongshi Fa which is based on Neidan) or concepts from the Yi Jin Jing (Sun Lutang’s Quan Yi Shu Zhen) which do not directly appeal to Liu He as an energy method, it is safe to say that the ancestors of the style also did not intend it to be so, otherwise this would be passed down in the lineage transmission over the generations and would have been included in the literature.

Anyway, I guess you can see that I basically have a thesis about this and have been developing it for a while with the assistance not only of my own reading, but also by talking to and visiting as many relevant lineage representatives as possible. I can’t guarantee 100% that it is right and you are welcome to keep probing since it provides me with good content to write about. Having said that, I’m about to be in transit to China starting next week so I may not have time to follow up for a bit.

The good news is I’ll visit with Master Yin, so I’ll definitely follow up with some questions about Yang style Taiji from the Yang Jianhou lineage.

Now for this week’s installment of Fang Dao Yu Lu. I’ve put together sections three and four which are an explanation of Huang’s thirty six levels of achieving Neidan. Basically they are ways to practice in order to go from the start of practice to the final level from his experience. This is a very special document and not so many people have shared so openly so make sure to subscribe if you aren’t already, because I’ll be posting the whole book over the next several months!!

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When I started studying inner cultivation from the Chinese perspective I relied on a combination of Qigong, martial arts and Daoist books without any epistemic root. I think most people start out this way, but in the long run if we are attentive we may find there are certain contradictions in practice that seem eternally unanswered. As a result of training with a number of high level Chinese masters as well as having been able to have deep conversations with several more, I’ve been able to ask many of the questions I personally held about the inner dynamics of energy theory and have also conducted significant research on my own part through reading books from a span of 2500 years on this very topic in classical Chinese with the guidance of my main teacher Master Hai Yang.

As a result of having resolved many of these questions for myself, my deepest wish is to contribute a sensible perspective on the inner structure of the concepts of inner cultivation from the perspective of those arts which are related to the cultivation of the three treasures.

I write various articles on this subject here and since it is a big subject there is much to say. Today we look at the transformation of the concept of Qi in inner cultivation and how we came to the particular understanding we hold today. This topic is too big for one article, so I will specifically look at it from the perspective of the impact of modern thought on Qigong and the martial arts from a Daoist perspective.

1: The old view of Qi:

Qi has many meanings in China which are not related to inner cultivation, but in the world of inner cultivation it traditionally broadly accorded to the theory of the Yijing.

The basic idea of Qi as viewed through the Yijing is that it serves as the agent which communicates between extremes of Yin and Yang. Essentially Qi is the represantion of phases of Yin and Yang as expressed in the change and transformation of matter over time.

Yin tends to collect and become still while Yang tends to scatter and move, Yin condenses toward the earth while Yang disipates into the sky. Everything is some phase of either the pure forms or mixtures of Yin and Yang.

2: Daoism before the Song Dynasty:

Qi in old Daoism included the concept of Yuan Qi, but more importantly it was commonly explained as something related to the breath. Old Daoist practices tended toward the cultivation of deep breathing and saliva swallowing practices and did not contain much alchemical language. Visualization practices were an evolution which were able to allow people to sense specific generation of Qi in various parts of their bodies, so from that time forward the dynamics of Qi began to be better studied, but at that time the language of meridian activity was still mainly a Chinese Medicine idea and not related to inner cultivaiton in a deep way (that doesn’t mean meridians were not activated, it means a different language was used).

3: Daoism after the Song Dynasty:

in very old golden elixir books the main emphasis is on Jing and Shen coming together to form an alchemical Qi which is expressed by the character 炁 Qi, not 气 Qi. These two characters have no relationship. Alchemical Qi was originally conceived as a product of the union of Jing and Shen which then travelled between extreme Yin and Yang poles of the body. This is defined in Daoism as 消息 Xiao Xi which means either waxing and waning or sending a message between two places.

4: Qi from the Ming to the late Qing:

although the concept of Qi became more subtle in Daoism it did not greatly change its character for the subsequent thousand years before Chinese modernity. Qi in Daoist meditation if not defined according to the previously mentioned standard was typically discussed as 气质 Qi Zhi, a characteristic of a body. This has negative implications in texts like Xing Ming Gui Zhi and is seen as something which should be burned away through the alchemical process.

5: Entering the twentieth century:

Chinese civilization underwent a tremendous intellectual boom between the late nineteenth and mid twentieth century which saw the rise of a modern view of science including life sciences. The idea of Qi was hotly contested by some modernist intellectuals while other intellectuals attempted to create scientific justifactions for the it. This led to a great mixing of Chinese Medicine knowledge with the physical sciences and importantly resulted in the old view of Qi being largely replaced with a new one.

Three major events changed Chinese perspectives about how Qi was viewed in inner cultivation:

• Daoist modernism: thinkers like Jiang Weiqiao and Zhao Bichen attempted to define Qi dynamics through analysis of the nervous, circulatory, and pulmonary systems along with the metabolic process.

• Integration of Wu Gong and Dao Gong: thinkers like Sun Lutang attempted to systmetmatize a form of Daoist practice in martial arts.

• Development of Qigong as a somatically driven form of Qi development.

Let’s briefly address each:

1: modernism:

Daoist adjacent thinkers attempted to create a scientific paradigm to define the activity of the three treasures with a special emphasis on things which could be said to be true about Qi. This often related to human life processes which appear to have bivalent elements such as the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems, gas exchange in blood, inhalation and exhalation, anabolism and catabolism etc... Many of these ideas are hidden within Chinese Medicine manuscripts, but are less well explained in Daoist writings, so the application of these processes to self cultivation was completely novel and represented a major intellectual shift with profound implications (be honest, I bet you didn’t know about this part of history before you started reading IS).

2: Wu Gong and Dao Gong:

there had been some minor interaction between martial arts and Daoism since the Ming Dynasty, but the writings on the subject are contained within only a couple tracts and those may have been added to over time. The formal induction of Dao Gong into Wu Gong came about around the 1920s and consisted of an intellectual movement driven by martial artists who also followed Daoism or Yi Guan Dao. The discussion at that time was still extremely limited and the theories of Qi were all over the place without any formal agreement about the precise definition of terms or even how practice was supposed to work. Forged documents were also very common at that time, so it is a difficult period to study. We do know that some martial artists such as Sun Xikun followed Daoist practitioners and added Daoist alchemical methods into their martial arts, but this was a minority perspective and still does not represent the majority of martial artists in China.

3: Qigong somatics: after 1956 Qigong became a national craze in China and the research of Qigong went far beyond the traditional literature of the three Chinese religions and Chinese Medicine. It is well established that modern Qigong thinkers also often borrowed from Western, Indian and Russian ideas such as somatics, magick, Yoga etc.. to formulate their ideas. Especially during the 1980s there was a strong movement in Qigong to incorporate a sophisticated perspective of energetic cultivation which borrowed from many genres.

The most important transformative feature of this approach was to view Qi as a somatically accessible material which could be modified through the use of the intention (a quick note, this period was also when people began to use the idea of energy to define Qi, it is not older than modern Qigong).

This might strike you as funny since it seems like many ancient Daoist arts such as breath retention and visualization also have similar somatic elements, but this is a result of a historicist view of the past in which present day assumptions are built into our account of things which came before.

The perspective of classical Daoist literature on the subject of Qi always falls into the following boxes:

• cultivation of spiritual traits associated with the Dao, the bodies of deities, or a pre-heaven source point, or supplanting regular nutrition with breath which is perceived as containing subtle and clean nourishing materials that can support the organs,

• return to primiordial unity.

This concept of return to primordial unity underlies the majority of Daoist practices related to what we might consider somatic elements of Qi cultivation. Practices like the five animal plays do not fall into this category and are also not based on a somatic model of cultivating Qi. When we consider practices which do cultivate felt Qi it is almost always related to using the Qi to return to a state of original oneness which is close to the Dao and not for the purposes of adjusting energy in the post-heaven cognitive environment. Qi can be manifested in the post-heaven, but this is as a result of practices which abut on the pre-heaven and the regular cognitive experience of cultivating Qi is not the primary concern of those practices except when Qi is phrased as the union of Jing and Shen, or in internal alchemy post Song dynasty as the union of the pre-heaven three treasures.

It is much more common in pre-heaven Daoism to see appeals to seven treasures including various fluids and organs than a specific appeal to the cultivation of Qi. This is because their understanding of the body was unique to Daoism and had not yet fully absorbed Chinese Medical thought and certainly did not absorb any modern ideas about somatic values.

Now let’s talk about implications:

It was noted recently in a comment that old martial arts manuscripts fail to mention important features about Qi cultivation such as how specific energy centers are aligned in practice. The reason for this is simply because those practices did not exist at that time in history. As I mentioned in the beginning of this article, many of us at the outset of our journeys are faced with the insurmountable task of making sense of the smorasbord of concepts in the English language literature on the subject. We may practic Yang style Taiji but we also read books about Daoism and Qigong, or any other arrangement of unrelated subjects. These subjects are all deep studies in and of themselves and are only meant to be mixed after a certain level of proficiency has already been gained in more than one area.

When we look at the twentieth century literature of martial arts and Qigong some things are very clear:

1: evolving knowledge:

the earliest works of modern martial arts literature are crudely worded and vague. Words like Qi are used without any explanation. Traditionally the transmitters of Chinese martial arts have a vested interest in promoting the authenticity of their lineage perspectives, thus make appeals to hidden information in the documents, but miraculous claims require miraculous evidence and simply practicing a certain way and claiming it to be traditional does not provide sufficient justifaction for such claims. In point of fact we can go to old documents such as the Nei Gong Jing and find out what people thought were correct Daoist practices in martial arts as far back as 400 years ago. The practices detailed tend to be consistent with popular Dao Yin practices during the late Ming and early Qing dynasty which are designed for health preservation and typically involve various forms of circulating the small orbit using breath, intention, visualization and saliva. They are predicated on a very specific late imperial meridian based view of inner energy and tend to be among the most poorly written inner cultivation documents of that period. Comparing them against sophisticated Daoist texts like the secret of the Golden Flower or Xing Ming Gui Zhi only shows how little the authors of those documents really understood and how much they wanted to copy Daoist alchemists, even though they knew nothing of the subject.

By the early twentieth century we can see an active discussion in the internal martial arts community about the correct role of inner cultivation in practice. More complex Daoist, philosophical, medical and even biological language is used to describe practice which often follows the model of the tendon changing classic. The most common perspective in the writings of this period show that practitioners believed the stages of inner training began with loosening the sinews, then over time transforming the inner body through specific application of martial arts postures. The idea that martial arts could be useed to achieve spiritual englightenment is sometimes mentioned, especially in relation to Boddhidharma, but no concrete method is given. Another view expressed by a small contingent such as Xue Dian of Hebei Xingyi fame is that martial artists had misunderstood that nature of inner cultivation and actually had not sustainable way of cultivating inner energy. Xue was one of the few martial artists to propose an orthodox Neidan method of inner practice for martial artists around that time.

As martial arts moved into the mid twentieth century and the rift occurred between different parts of the Chinese world there came to be a lively and somewhat disjointed discussion of inner cultivation in the martial arts.

In mainland China traditional martial arts practice remained largely centered in orthodox lineages which have been passed down in the regional locales where certain martial arts are famous. For instance Hebei style Xingyiquan lives in Tianjin, Hengshui and to a lesser extent in Shandong province while Xinyi Liu He still finds its main home in Henan province with satalites in different areas where it has spread. The same basic criteria is true of most martial arts in the mainland. Lineage views are influenced by the community of specific styles, for instance in Tianjin it is common to see a certain approach to practicing Xingyi and Bagua, while Hengshui, a city close to the original birthplace of Xingyi has a different perspective which arises out of the older variation of the style popular there.

This means that certain things like Dantian method vary radically place to place and there is often inter-lineage sharing in those areas leading to a basic general understanding among representative masters.

In Taiwan the situation was quite different on account of being cut off from the mainland. Taiwan has an active culture of folk religion which for various reasons was not popular in China after 1949 and Taiwanese people are much more comfortable to define culture in a language of supernatural events than people in the mainland. This has led to an infusion of a generalized form of Daoist mysticism into Taiwanese martial arts which significantly diverged from the initial character of the styles during the Chinese republic (1911-1949). The Taiwanese claim until quite recently was that true martial culture died off during the cultural revolution, but this belief became untennable after cultural opening and the international promotion of Chinese martial arts.

As an example, both of my teachers lived during the cultural revolution and their teachers were members of the old generation including direct indoor disciples of Zhang Zhaodong, Cheng Youlong, Tian Zhaolin etc.. These are the legendary figures of the styles to which everyone, including those from Taiwan all appeal to as the standard bearers of the styles. I would like to ask how it is possible that Mr. Wang Chengjie who learned from Tian Zhaolin directly and taught my teacher Yin Qing, or how Mr. Yang Qinglin the grandfather of Master Yang who studied directly under Zhang Zhaodong since childhood could have possibly forgotten their authentic martial arts transmission during the ten years of the cultural revolution? Did Will Smith appear wearing a suit and zap them with a special laser of forgetting?

Thus the induction of Taiwanese spiritual values into the internal martial arts although having some roots in martial thinking during the republic also gradually took on its own character as Taiwanese masters were excluded from the broader community of traditional martial arts in the mainland.

This explains the substantially different perspective held by those figures emerging from Taiwan who make various energetic claims. It should also be noted that Taiwanese culture is substantially more synchretic and open to outside ideas than that of the mainland, thus meaning that many ideas have also filtered in from Japan and the West. A good example is master Su Dongchen who combined Xingyi with Japaense martial arts. This is not meant as an attack on Taiwanese practitioners at all, it is just a statement of various social forces which caused the evolution of martial practice to take on a different form there. In many ways the changes are interesting and valuable, but we need to name things according to their proper names and work to repair the confusion which plagues the community.

In terms of Qigong the historical transformation is even more obvious.

Before 1950 there were no modern Qigong documents and what we call Qigong today largely consisted of disorganized family lineages of life preservation practices. My own family has their own Dao practices passed down at least since the generation of my grandfather in law if not earlier and although they were never formalized into a Qigong system, this was the case for many influential styles such as Nei Yang Gong which formed the first generation of Qigong practitioners in the 50s.

The first generation was typified by a focus on practice and less discussion of theory.

During the suppression of Qigong during the 1970s only a handful of people were allowed to teach in public including Guo Lin who suggested her system of Qigong was essentially medical in nature and used to treat tumors, thus allowing Qigong to acquire a language of medicine which persisted into the development of medical Qigong in Chinese Medicine institutions during the cultural opening of the 1980s. It was at this time that Qigong especially developed a medicalized view of the body and further integrated biological notions about the function of Qi as a way to describe particular processes. At the same time a different branch of Qigong associated with a more Daoist approach also became fortified. This approach has its roots in the early development of Qigong during the 50s and was influenced by Chen Yingning who advocated the idea of stillness practice as a way to tap into the original primordial energy of the universe. It was in the 1980s that these ideas were synthesized with concepts like meridian systems, somatic practices, particle physics and all those things we know from the Qigong fever craze. These ideas were potent and meaningful to tens of millions (if not more) Chinese people who were suddenly granted economic and cultural freedoms not available to them at any other time in history. The impact of the Qigong fever through its development, excess and up to its fall from grace in 1999 was massive and profoundly impactful not just on China but on the whole world. Pretty much the totality of what we conceive of as Qigong today came from that period and the bulk of our understanding of Qigong is defined by the ideas of masters who developed their practice during that time.

This era of practice also seeped into internal martial arts practice in the west on account of Qigong being carried by many Taijiquan teachers, thus our biased and incorrect perspective about what accounts to orthodoxy in the internal arts was largely derived from this confluence of factors which shaped the discourse of the publishing environment of the 1980s, 90s and 2000s.

Qigong had significantly less meaningful impact on internal martial arts in China, although some martial arts styles adopted Qigong practices in place of traditional Neigong (largely centered around sinew changing), so the discussion of these topics in the mainland also tends to be restrained within a relatively smaller area of the martial arts community.

Significant enclaves of that community exist in the Wudang area where Qigong, Daoism, Chinese Medicine and Martial Arts are mashed together in a hellscape of hyper-capitalist wealth acquisition. I’ve written extensively about the origins of internal martial arts at Wudang as a result of Fu jianqiu’s 1929 trip to the area and will not mention it in detail here, sufice to say that Wudang has a lot of soul searching to do if they ever want to truly recapture the authentic Daoism associated with that mountain range, notwithstanding a few exceptional hermits and priests of the old generation who are quickly dying out.

Justification:

Depending on your position in the community you might be having one of four reactions to this article:

1: you don’t care because you don’t have a dog in the fight and aren’t that interested in this topic,

2: you did not previously know much about this topic and are interested but perhaps incredulous about my statements since they actively contradict the received wisdom,

3: you know about the topic and have been nodding your head the whole way through this article, but maybe sometimes finding mistakes in what I’m saying (I don’t know everything about this subject, no one does),

4: you strongly disagree with me and may even be angry and feel attacked.

To address the fourth group, I want to say clearly that I am not attacking anyone and however you and your lineage practice as between you, your teachers and your classmates. All I am trying to do is point out that there is clear literary evidence we can use to trace notions of Qi cultivation back to their sources, analyze them, compare them against modern notions, and try to understand when, how and why the notions changed over time.

Let me be clear, no one in the 14^th century could have imagined either martial artists practicing tendon changing and marrow washing, or modern intention driven Qigong. These ideas were simply not part of the vernacular of that period of history.

China is a diverse country with people of many different perspectives and some people like to promote the idea of an ancient origin of highly sophisticated cultural ideas which was transmitted from 5000 years ago to today while others understand culture as an evolving and changing organic entity which gradually becomes more sophisticated over time.

The way to identify who is telling the truth is as follows:

• claims require justification through evidence and a historical lineage claim of secret oral transmissions is not credible in the face of substantial literature which paints an entirely different picture,

• if a person or group relies on critique of everyone in the community who does not hold their views the only possibilities are that you are dealing with the only authentic holder of wisdom in a certain tradition or that bias is at play.

• There is a substantial body of knowledge about Daoism, martial arts, and Chinese Medicine which can be researched in Chinese and to some extend in foreign languages. It is not perfect and famous historians such as Kang Gewu and Hu Fuchen have their biases, but it is still the most reputable information we have on the subjects.

Martial Arts, Qigong, Daoism and Chinese Medicine are all evolving genres just as are guitar, oil painting and skateboarding. Practices which were not authentic to the original historical conditions of those arts are not automatically incorrect, they are simply relatively new and not fully proven.

As a person who attempts to talk straight about these things in public from a reasonably informed perspective (again, I don’t know everything but I’m doing my best) I often have trouble answering comments where people talk about very specific practices or expected outcomes since while I may have subject knowledge, the application of the knowledge is simply outside of the framework which I understand to be the general nature of the subjects in question.

As an example, someone recently made a claim on my facebook page that he completely cured himself of crepitus through the attainment of “Song” in Taijiquan practice and implied that this was a universal feature of correct practice. I found myself incapable of answering his comment since number one, I disagree that correct practice produces universal and miraculous results and number two, This has never been a major claim made within the mainstream of Taiji, if there even is a mainstream.

My basic position is that as claims become more extreme it is better to exercise caution, humility and the recognition that there are no universals in these practices.

I’m pretty good at using my spine in martial arts practice and I can teach my students how to do it, but I would never make a universal claim that the way I do it is the only correct way or that other schools are lacking something because they don’t have this specific practice. At the same time, it is not well to make such claims about energy practices either since there is no concrete agreement about what the standard is for such things. It is categorically wrong to claim that other people in the community are lacking something, hiding something, or are otherwise incapable because they do not share your sentiments about a certain way of practicing.

It is very good to find your practice rewarding, take benefit from it, be proud of it, and promote it, those are all great attitudes, but remember that these practices are a vast ocean and significantly diverse, spanning a long history, vast geographies, languages, perspectives, understandings, traditions and worldviews and they can’t be essentialized down to one specific right way of doing them. The right way to do things is based on lineage understanding and personal insight, not universal truths.

It took me a long time to write this article, I hope it was useful to you.

An email I received recently stimulated me to write on a topic which I think probably frustrates many readers here and ought to frustrate more people in the Daoism and Qigong world, principally what the difference is in the pre-heaven state between Neidan and Qigong practice.

I don’t want to be long winded today so let me spell things out in simple terms and perhaps return to make another post at a later time to flesh the topic out farther.

Pre-heaven has two completely different meanings depending on which model you are referring to:

1: Daoism:

Pre-heaven in Daoism means the time after the initial seed of the universe is created but before it has formed into a tangible character perceptible to the senses. This applies in a layered way to all things that exist from the universe after the big bang, but before matter had condensed into the bodies of space all the way to a gestating fetus which has been conceived but has yet to be born into the world. It also applies to seeds which have yet to germinate but have sprouts slowly growing inside, birds inside of eggs who have yet to hatch etc... Daoism views this as a universal principle which applies to all things including events which have yet to transpire, thus Daoism places the pre-heaven state as a consistent bridge between the Dao (the creative source of all things) and the myriad things (the event of all things already being in action). All things have the trace of the pre-heaven in their bodies and human beings can revert to the pre-heaven through meditation practice in order to obtain its energy and repair their already born bodies.

2: Chinese Medicine:

Chinese Medicine views the pre-heaven as the state achieved after union of the reproductive materials of both parents and up to birth. Since Chinese Medicine mainly applies to humans, but also can be applied to other animals, the pre-heaven is especially associated with mamalian life. Chinese Medicine holds that pre-heaven material is still left over in the body after birth and that it drives the deeper functions of our organ and meridian systems. It is lost and damaged over a lifetime, but can be assisted with medical intervention.

In Neidan the pre-heaven is largely predicated on the Daoist idea and the practice of reverting to the pre-heaven is associated with returning the body and mind to a static, unknowing state which is compared to gestation. This is why Daoists developed the idea of embryonic breathing, since it is seen as the closest thing to the development of an energetic womb humans can achieve in practice.

The purpose of this practice is to syphon not only some of the pre-heaven material of the body, but also to revert to the original nothingness of the Dao and obtain some of its energy. The short term goals are about longevity and the long term goals are about union of the void spirit with the Dao beyond the constraints of the human flesh body.

In Qigong the pre-heaven state is a combination of Daoist and Chinese Medicine ideas, but borrows more from Chinese Medicine since it typically refers to using the innate energetic capacity of our jing, Qi and shen to develop hidden abililities within the body and mind. Since these abilities tend to be guided by intention, they cannot be associated with a total state of void and unknowing as is the case with Daoism. Qigong and Neidan work with many of the same materials in the body, but at different levels, one by entering into a profoudn original state of non-being and the other by working with sensation, guiding and adjusting energy available to our regular daily senses.

Neidan also has some overlap since we have to deal with Qi after it returns to the post-heaven sensory environment, but ultimately the practice especially emphasizes non-being while Qigong typically does not do this unless a meditation system is built into the method.

I hope this has been helpful.

Behind the paywall today is the second chapter of Huang Dabai’s interview from Fang Dao Yu Lu, a very important modern Neidan text in which secular practitioner Li Leqiu travelled around Taiwan to interview Neidan masters. It is quite a unique document and in this section Master Huang talks about the stages of Neidan practice, what to practice and what to avoid, the relationship of Neidan and Buddhism, and gives some general instructions on practice and its deeper points. I’m publishing a little of the book each week in periodical form here since although an English translation has been in the works at an academic press for several years, it seems not to have been released and I think this text is one of the clearest and most worthy Neidan documents of the last 100 years.

Read more

Here are the details:

1: Modular Qigong: Interaction of Aura and Body:

This program will meet over the course of the first two Saturdays in May and cover the interaction between the first layer of the Hun Yuan Qi field with the interior body in the context of Qigong with inspiration from Daoist practice.

Get it here:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/suvoji

2: Two views of the Daoist Energy Body: Top to Bottom and Bottom to Top:

This four week pre-recorded course will delve into pre and post Tang Dynasty conceptions of the energy body in Daoist practices with an emphasis on the early system which builds the energy body from the upper to lower body and the Neidan and Yangsheng Qigong view that the energy body is better built from bottom up.

Get it here:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/vijwn

3: Internal Alchemy of the Dao De Jing Chapter 7:

In this course you will learn the Dao De Jing from the perspective of textual analysis of the original text, three of the most famous annotations (including Huang Yuanji’s Dao De Jing Chan Wei, the only Neidan annotation of the Dao De Jing) and modern Chinese analysis of the text. Since the Dao De Jing is the first and most important Daoist text, we will try to understand it more deeply in order to improve our practice.

Get it here:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/oxnzqg

Here is what the sale is about:

In preparation for my trip to China I’ve decided to put on a sale of eight of my courses at a steep discount of 50% so if one of them is interesting to you, now is your time to take advantage of a good deal (sale links at the bottom of the page).

Course ads:

1: Modular Qigong: Integration of First Aura Level and Body:

Get it here:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/suvoji

Pang Ming put forward the idea that the energy field around the body consists of three parts:

• proximal: the nearest section of the Qi field to the body, it is the part that directly interacts with the tissues on the body surface and allows Qi to travel back and forth between the inner body and area directly surrounding it.

• Medium distance: this area extends in the area less than a meter outside the body and reflects the extension of Qi into the environment and how Qi approaches the body.

• Long distance: this section extends farther from the body and can be conceptualized both as beyond arm’s length and even farther, it represents the extreme point of the field where it is weaker, but can be modified through practice to become stronger.

Although many people know how to practice these fields, they may not be well acquainted with the physical relationships between various points in the field with the actual body. In short, as the field goes farther it corresponds to deeper places in the body and it is important to train the Qi field in both directions, leaving and returning to the body.

In this two week course we will learn how to practice the first layer of the Qi field using the opening and closing movements of Zhineng Gong and put a special focus on developing the meridian and cavity infrastructure associated with the specifics of the field at its most proximal level.

You will learn:

Practice section:

• the movements of the Zhineng Gong opening and closing routine (3 -5 minutes to perform once and can be repeated several times),

• Where to place your attention when you practice in order to sense and absorb the Qi field into your body,

• Daoist pore breathing made popular by Chen Yingning (a method of sitting in forgetting which directly adjusts the exit and entering of Qi on the body surface).

Theory section:

• How the Qi field enters and exits the body during practice,

• activity of Jing Well points and special points at the end of fingers in activating the six meridians of the arms,

• Use of the palms to regulate blood flow to the hands and improve circulation,

• How to transfer Qi from the Sheng Que point to the Ming Men in order to gradually open the spine,

• How to adjust the Du meridian and central channel by combining Dao Yin and visualized intention,

• Opening the Qi from the Bai Hui in order to achieve “pushing the energy to the peak” an important standard in Zhineng Gong.

The course will include video instruction and two meetings on Saturday 2^nd and 9^th on ZOOM to discuss theory.

Here is the information about the class:

What: Modular Qigong series, developing the Qi field and its relationship with the body interior and exterior.

When and Where: recorded materials and meetings on Saturday 2^nd and 9^th May from 8 – 9 AM New York Time.

What’s included: video lessons, lectures and PDFs.

How much: $60 USD for the program.

Get it here:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/suvoji

2: Two views of the Daoist Energy Body: Top to Bottom and Bottom to Top:

Get it here:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/vijwn

There are three models of Daoist inner cultivation which can be broadly defined as:

• Physical movement and breath work,

• Visualization,

• Internal alchemy,

These practices are related, but have different conceptions of the energy body related to the difference in practices.

In this four week pre-recorded course we will learn the theory and practices of the energy bodies of visualization and Neidan including practices for both.

Content will be uploaded Mondays starting May 3 around 8 PM Eastern (Maybe earlier some weeks).

The schedule is as follows:

Week 1: Establishing the goals of Daoist energetic practice:

before you practice you have to understand what you are trying to do, how Daoists thought about inner cultivation, the role of Jing, Qi and Shen, and what different Daoist schools believe immortality is. We will look at these subjects relative to the visualization school and the Internal Alchemy school. Our focus on visualization will center around materials from the text Yun Ji Qi Qian, a famous compendium of Daoist practices collected during the Song Dynasty, but who’s documents are from much earlier. Our Neidan view will be based on the small and large heavenly orbit model made popular by the Wu Liu and related schools.

Week 2: Visualization, why the mud ball is the commander:

many visualization approaches in Daoism start from the “Mud Ball” another name for the brain and work downward in the body. We will investigate how these practices work and use two popular visualizations from Daoist texts as our methods to investigate this approach.

Week 3: The Yellow Court Model, visualization and Neidan:

Another model of visualization begins from the umbilical area and moves outward. This approach was made famous in the “Yellow Court Classic” and is also frequently referenced in Neidan materials to explain the function of the Dantian.

Week 4: Neidan small and large orbits:

Neidan follows a unique reverse course of practice in which the lower body is used to send Qi to the upper body through the communication of water and fire. In this section we will learn the nature of this “rising and descending” skill and discuss how the lower, middle and upper Dantians work in the small and large orbits.

Course information:

When: recordings released four Mondays starting from May 3 around 5 PM.

What: a pre-recorded program about different models of Daoist energy practice, especially focusing on top down and bottom up models.

What’s included: recorded classes including theory and instruction as well as PDFs,

How much: $150 USD.

Get it here:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/vijwn

3: Internal Alchemy of the Dao De Jing Chapter 7:

Get it here:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/oxnzqg

chapter 7 of the Dao De Jing reads:

“天長地久。

The heavens are long, the earth is lasting,

天地所以能長且久者，以其不自生，故能長生。

Heaven and earth are long and lasting because they do not generate themselves,

thus they can be long generated.

是以聖人後其身而身先；外其身而身存。

This is why the sage puts their own body last and the body comes first,

puts the body outside and the body is always contained.

非以其無私耶？故能成其私。

Could it be that because they have no personal motive they are able to achieve their motive?”

In this program we read the Dao De Jing chapter by chapter and analyze it according to:

Week 1: Situating the chapter:

We read the chapter character by character so we understand the basic Chinese writing, then we discuss the meaning of the chapter relative the the realities of the Spring and Autumn and Warring States Period when the Dao De Jing was written. This gives us a good balance to understand the text as social philosophy in its original context rather than only viewing it as a spiritual or self help document.

Week 2: Early annotations:

We read the Wang Bi and He Shang Gong annotations of the chapter in order to understand how the Dao De Jing was viewed early in Chinese history. These documents teach the metaphysics, some practice related topics and general philosophy of Daoism.

Week 3: Dao De Jing Chan Wei:

the only Neidan oriented Dao De Jing Annotation, the Chan Wei especially focuses on developing pre-heaven energy by adjusting Jing, Qi and Shen in order to experience the Single Opening of the Mystery Gate.

Week 4: Modern Chinese perspectives:

We read the annotation used on the website 5000yan.cn a popular Dao De Jing analysis page which gives us perspective on what present day Chinese scholars believe to be true about the text.

We don’t take a position about which interpretation is ultimately right, instead our goal is to advance understanding of the Dao De Jing as a multi-faceted text which can be applied across a number of conditions. This ultimately not only teaches us Neidan, we also learn how to understand Daoist views of life, society, and the ever changing political realities of Medieval China in relation to our present world. I believe the Dao De Jing has great wisdom and have been working with it in detail for many years. I’m happy to share this evolving research with you.

You can join for any chapter you want and all the programs will be available in the future, so there is no pressure to sign up for every course when they happen. Having said that, the benefit of joining the live classes is that we can chat about the meaning of the text together and learn from each other.

Details:

When: Four Sunday mornings starting May 3 from 8 – 9 AM New York Time (we are moving earlier than past classes since I am changing time zones and don’t want to disturb my son while he is sleeping).

Where: online meetings in ZOOM, videos and texts available on gumroad after class.

How much: $100 USD for the month.

Get it here:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/oxnzqg

Sale!!

Click the links to get 50% off selected courses and support my trip to China!!

Three approaches to beginning Neidan:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/threeapproaches/b8izlnr

The Wonderful Dual Gate:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/dualgate/0uv66vj

Three Treasures of Jing, Qi and Shen:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/sanbao/7qp1apu

Timing the Fire:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/glntd/c6ciz0z

Shao Yang and Yin Xian Schools:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/twoschools/d4g6rjf

Eight Meridians:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/meridians/ghyec78

Neidan intro to body cavities:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/cavitiesintro/6srn08g

Secret of the Golden Flower Min Yide interpretation:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/goldenflower/5x8bhxv

The name of the practice is self descriptive and consists of four characters:

闭目养身 Bi Mu Yang Shen,

it means “close the eyes and nurture the spirit.”

This is a very common practice among the older generation in China and in fact the first time I heard it mentioned was when my father in law closed his eyes while sitting in the passenger seat on a car trip. My wife asked him if he was asleep and he replied “闭目养身.”

This practice is very easy and you can do it any time as it has very few regulations.

How to practice:

• Stay somewhere where you can sit still and do not have to perform any tasks,

• place your hands on your thighs or over your belly button, or wherever it feels comfortable,

• sit comfortably, preferably with something to support your back,

• lightly close your eyes,

• breathe gently through your nostrils,

• allow yourself to enter a state which is dark and murky, quiet and peaceful,

• stay that way as long as you like.

You might ask why people call it “nurturing the spirit” when there is no fancy Neidan or visualization stuff involved and that is a valid question.

Spirit in Chinese culture often means perceptual consciousness, so nurturing the spirit in this context means to quiet your mind and give your senses a break.

Because I am a maniac and don’t recognize the limitations of my own age I hurt my thigh a couple weeks ago while practicing martial arts, so I’ve had to spend a lot of time on the sofa while the injury recovers. When lying on my back (supported so my upper body is on an upward incline) I’ve found it easier to enter the pre-heaven meditation state through closing the eyes and nurturing the spirit than formal Neidan. This is a totally valid practice and can be combined with other practices such as the dual gate to connect the Shen and Qi of the body.\

My experience is that after a while of being in deep darkness I emerge and feel totally refreshed, invigorated and most importantly my leg hurts less.

I’m saying this as a 15 year practitioner of internal alchemy, this approach to meditation is not a trivial throw away, you can apply if even if you have a good level in another system and it can be quite beneficial when applied at the right time.

Today behind the paywall is the first section of Master Huang Dabai’s interview from the modern Daoist classic Fang Dao Yu Lu (interviews with the Daoists, an important secular Neidan text compiled by Taiwanese master Li Leqiu in the 1970s when he travelled around the island interviewing secular practitioners, some of whom were from Chen Yingning’s school and some from others. A student asked me to share my translation, so I’ll be posting it behind the paywall over the next few months). Huang elaborates a bit on Xing Gong (nature cultivation skill) which we also discussed in the above article about Bi Mu Yang Shen. He also talks about how to use the Ren and Du to connect all meridians and the hiding of the horse penis (I’ll explain that in the notes).

Read more

Dao cultivation in the internal martial arts is kind of a black box of sorts where everyone has their own unique opinion about what methods, theories and approaches should be used. It isn’t easy to understand for anyone and the historical documentaion does not provide a clear picture either.

This makes it difficult for people from different styles, or even different branches of the same style to communicate effectively about this and many other subjects, often leading to great discrepancy in ideas about practice, conflict between factions, and general confusion for the student population who just want to access good practices that can help them.

I’ve been trying very hard for a number of years to understand this area and would like to discuss five interesting models of Dao cultivaiton in the internal martial arts which are presented in documents from Xingyi, Bagua and Liu He Ba Fa, so let’s go!!

1: Nei Gong Si Jing:

Nei Gong Si Jing, or the Four Classics of Neigong (translated by Tom Bisio and Josh Paynter, available on Amazon) is reputed to be a Ming Dynasty classic of inner skill development for martial arts kept by Song Shirong of Shanxi Xingyi fame. The document explains inner practice largely from the perspective of the interaction of body cavities, meridian paths and postures. While this in and of itself is not Dao Gong, there is a section about internal energy circulation which teaches how to circulate Qi around the entire body through a form of seated Dao Yin inner observation/Qi guiding technique.

The basic idea is that by practicing energy circulation sufficiently the martial artist may obtain Qi in their bodies during practice and use it as a means to improve their martial art practice.

2: Dantian Chongshi method:

The Hebei Style Xingyi master Xue Dian and founder of Xiang Xing Shu wrote a document called Dantian Chongshi Fa/Dantian Filling Method. It is based on standing or sitting in a neutral posture, using post-heaven breathing to the lower abdomen, then reverting to pre-heaven breathing to enter the meditation state. It is based on Neidan and I have heard from my teacher (he studied under a disciple of Xue Dian in Tianjin) that Xue had an entire inner cultivation system, but unfortunately the written records of it were destroyed. This method is designed to get Qi to rise from the lower Dantian to the Baihui along the Du Meridian and can be considered a kind of Neidan training.

3: Sun Lutang’s ideas:

Sun Lutang shared as essay attributed to Liu Qilan in his text Quan Shu Shu Yi/The Meaning of the Martial Arts which explains that Neidan begins from stillness and results in movement, while martial arts go from movement to stillness. He put forth the idea that martial arts follows the path of changing Jing, Qi and Shen through sinew changing and marrow washing. In effect the martial arts provide a post-heaven cultivation approach which changes the body first at the level of connective tissue, then later on the spiritual level.

4: Su Xikun’s Wu Gong and Dao Gong:

Sun Xikun was a Cheng style Bagua master who learned with Cheng Youlong and wrote the text Bagua Zhang Zhen Quan/The True Teaching of Baguazhang. In that book he wrote an essay about combining Wu Gong/Martial Skill with Dao Gong/Dao cultivation skill. He believed that martial arts cultivates movement while Daoism cultivates stillness and that martial artists could use a Neidan approach to circulate energy through each of the major joints of the body during practice. His Daoist teacher was Zhao Bichen, a popular promotion of a relatively post-heaven Neidan school called Qian Feng Pai. Sun adopted Neidan ideas into his martial arts and put forward a clear idea about energetic circulation during practice. His Bagua was often practice a little more slowly than other styles for reasons of attaining energetic connection.

5: Chen Yiren’s Liu He Ba Fa Book:

Chen Yiren inherited Liu He Ba Fa from Wu Yihui and wrote several important textbooks on the subject.

His system does include energy meditations, but in the main textbook he does not emphasize them, instead using the Dao De Jing as a way to describe physical transformation in practice. He uses ideas like emptying the chest and filling the abdomen as a way to describe how the center of the body allows all surrounding parts to move in unison. His approach is relatively physicalized and less focused on meditation than the other approaches.

These are just short examples of the contents of some books, not oral teachings and they do not describe the full systems of the people mentioned. The reason why I wanted to provide these as evidence was to point out how different the various flavors of Dao Gong are within the martial arts. This is a subject which is still under discussion today with the addition of Qigong ideas into Taijiquan and a gradual growth in interest in Neidan within Chinese society. This means the practices will continue to change and grow, it is highly doubtful any concensus will ever be reached about standards, and it will remain an interesting subject far into the future.

Behind the paywall today is a short annotation of the Ten Points of Baguazhang, a formula discussing proper use of posture during practic to allow you to become powerful and understand Bagua strategy and tactics. I’ve written the annotation under various points in order to help you understand some of the hidden meanings of the document, I hope it is useful to you.

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Hello friends, I hope you are enjoying the spring so far.

Here they say “April showers, May flowers,” and certainly it has rained sufficiently here.

This May I am happy to announce three courses and a sale event which I think might interest you.

Here is a brief introduction to the courses:

1: Modular Qigong: Interaction of Aura and Body:

This program will meet over the course of the first two Saturdays in May and cover the interaction between the first layer of the Hun Yuan Qi field with the interior body in the context of Qigong with inspiration from Daoist practice.

Get it here:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/suvoji

2: Two views of the Daoist Energy Body: Top to Bottom and Bottom to Top:

This four week pre-recorded course will delve into pre and post Tang Dynasty conceptions of the energy body in Daoist practices with an emphasis on the early system which builds the energy body from the upper to lower body and the Neidan and Yangsheng Qigong view that the energy body is better built from bottom up.

Get it here:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/vijwn

3: Internal Alchemy of the Dao De Jing Chapter 7:

In this course you will learn the Dao De Jing from the perspective of textual analysis of the original text, three of the most famous annotations (including Huang Yuanji’s Dao De Jing Chan Wei, the only Neidan annotation of the Dao De Jing) and modern Chinese analysis of the text. Since the Dao De Jing is the first and most important Daoist text, we will try to understand it more deeply in order to improve our practice.

Get it here:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/oxnzqg

Here is what the sale is about:

In preparation for my trip to China I’ve decided to put on a sale of eight of my courses at a steep discount of 50% so if one of them is interesting to you, now is your time to take advantage of a good deal (sale links at the bottom of the page).

Course ads:

1: Modular Qigong: Integration of First Aura Level and Body:

Get it here:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/suvoji

Pang Ming put forward the idea that the energy field around the body consists of three parts:

• proximal: the nearest section of the Qi field to the body, it is the part that directly interacts with the tissues on the body surface and allows Qi to travel back and forth between the inner body and area directly surrounding it.

• Medium distance: this area extends in the area less than a meter outside the body and reflects the extension of Qi into the environment and how Qi approaches the body.

• Long distance: this section extends farther from the body and can be conceptualized both as beyond arm’s length and even farther, it represents the extreme point of the field where it is weaker, but can be modified through practice to become stronger.

Although many people know how to practice these fields, they may not be well acquainted with the physical relationships between various points in the field with the actual body. In short, as the field goes farther it corresponds to deeper places in the body and it is important to train the Qi field in both directions, leaving and returning to the body.

In this two week course we will learn how to practice the first layer of the Qi field using the opening and closing movements of Zhineng Gong and put a special focus on developing the meridian and cavity infrastructure associated with the specifics of the field at its most proximal level.

You will learn:

Practice section:

• the movements of the Zhineng Gong opening and closing routine (3 -5 minutes to perform once and can be repeated several times),

• Where to place your attention when you practice in order to sense and absorb the Qi field into your body,

• Daoist pore breathing made popular by Chen Yingning (a method of sitting in forgetting which directly adjusts the exit and entering of Qi on the body surface).

Theory section:

• How the Qi field enters and exits the body during practice,

• activity of Jing Well points and special points at the end of fingers in activating the six meridians of the arms,

• Use of the palms to regulate blood flow to the hands and improve circulation,

• How to transfer Qi from the Sheng Que point to the Ming Men in order to gradually open the spine,

• How to adjust the Du meridian and central channel by combining Dao Yin and visualized intention,

• Opening the Qi from the Bai Hui in order to achieve “pushing the energy to the peak” an important standard in Zhineng Gong.

The course will include video instruction and two meetings on Saturday 2^nd and 9^th on ZOOM to discuss theory.

Here is the information about the class:

What: Modular Qigong series, developing the Qi field and its relationship with the body interior and exterior.

When and Where: recorded materials and meetings on Saturday 2^nd and 9^th May from 8 – 9 AM New York Time.

What’s included: video lessons, lectures and PDFs.

How much: $60 USD for the program.

Get it here:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/suvoji

2: Two views of the Daoist Energy Body: Top to Bottom and Bottom to Top:

Get it here:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/vijwn

There are three models of Daoist inner cultivation which can be broadly defined as:

• Physical movement and breath work,

• Visualization,

• Internal alchemy,

These practices are related, but have different conceptions of the energy body related to the difference in practices.

In this four week pre-recorded course we will learn the theory and practices of the energy bodies of visualization and Neidan including practices for both.

Content will be uploaded Mondays starting May 3 around 8 PM Eastern (Maybe earlier some weeks).

The schedule is as follows:

Week 1: Establishing the goals of Daoist energetic practice:

before you practice you have to understand what you are trying to do, how Daoists thought about inner cultivation, the role of Jing, Qi and Shen, and what different Daoist schools believe immortality is. We will look at these subjects relative to the visualization school and the Internal Alchemy school. Our focus on visualization will center around materials from the text Yun Ji Qi Qian, a famous compendium of Daoist practices collected during the Song Dynasty, but who’s documents are from much earlier. Our Neidan view will be based on the small and large heavenly orbit model made popular by the Wu Liu and related schools.

Week 2: Visualization, why the mud ball is the commander:

many visualization approaches in Daoism start from the “Mud Ball” another name for the brain and work downward in the body. We will investigate how these practices work and use two popular visualizations from Daoist texts as our methods to investigate this approach.

Week 3: The Yellow Court Model, visualization and Neidan:

Another model of visualization begins from the umbilical area and moves outward. This approach was made famous in the “Yellow Court Classic” and is also frequently referenced in Neidan materials to explain the function of the Dantian.

Week 4: Neidan small and large orbits:

Neidan follows a unique reverse course of practice in which the lower body is used to send Qi to the upper body through the communication of water and fire. In this section we will learn the nature of this “rising and descending” skill and discuss how the lower, middle and upper Dantians work in the small and large orbits.

Course information:

When: recordings released four Mondays starting from May 3 around 5 PM.

What: a pre-recorded program about different models of Daoist energy practice, especially focusing on top down and bottom up models.

What’s included: recorded classes including theory and instruction as well as PDFs,

How much: $150 USD.

Get it here:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/vijwn

3: Internal Alchemy of the Dao De Jing Chapter 7:

Get it here:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/oxnzqg

chapter 7 of the Dao De Jing reads:

“天長地久。

The heavens are long, the earth is lasting,

天地所以能長且久者，以其不自生，故能長生。

Heaven and earth are long and lasting because they do not generate themselves,

thus they can be long generated.

是以聖人後其身而身先；外其身而身存。

This is why the sage puts their own body last and the body comes first,

puts the body outside and the body is always contained.

非以其無私耶？故能成其私。

Could it be that because they have no personal motive they are able to achieve their motive?”

In this program we read the Dao De Jing chapter by chapter and analyze it according to:

Week 1: Situating the chapter:

We read the chapter character by character so we understand the basic Chinese writing, then we discuss the meaning of the chapter relative the the realities of the Spring and Autumn and Warring States Period when the Dao De Jing was written. This gives us a good balance to understand the text as social philosophy in its original context rather than only viewing it as a spiritual or self help document.

Week 2: Early annotations:

We read the Wang Bi and He Shang Gong annotations of the chapter in order to understand how the Dao De Jing was viewed early in Chinese history. These documents teach the metaphysics, some practice related topics and general philosophy of Daoism.

Week 3: Dao De Jing Chan Wei:

the only Neidan oriented Dao De Jing Annotation, the Chan Wei especially focuses on developing pre-heaven energy by adjusting Jing, Qi and Shen in order to experience the Single Opening of the Mystery Gate.

Week 4: Modern Chinese perspectives:

We read the annotation used on the website 5000yan.cn a popular Dao De Jing analysis page which gives us perspective on what present day Chinese scholars believe to be true about the text.

We don’t take a position about which interpretation is ultimately right, instead our goal is to advance understanding of the Dao De Jing as a multi-faceted text which can be applied across a number of conditions. This ultimately not only teaches us Neidan, we also learn how to understand Daoist views of life, society, and the ever changing political realities of Medieval China in relation to our present world. I believe the Dao De Jing has great wisdom and have been working with it in detail for many years. I’m happy to share this evolving research with you.

You can join for any chapter you want and all the programs will be available in the future, so there is no pressure to sign up for every course when they happen. Having said that, the benefit of joining the live classes is that we can chat about the meaning of the text together and learn from each other.

Details:

When: Four Sunday mornings starting May 3 from 8 – 9 AM New York Time (we are moving earlier than past classes since I am changing time zones and don’t want to disturb my son while he is sleeping).

Where: online meetings in ZOOM, videos and texts available on gumroad after class.

How much: $100 USD for the month.

Get it here:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/oxnzqg

Sale!!

Click the links to get 50% off selected courses and support my trip to China!!

Three approaches to beginning Neidan:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/threeapproaches/b8izlnr

The Wonderful Dual Gate:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/dualgate/0uv66vj

Three Treasures of Jing, Qi and Shen:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/sanbao/7qp1apu

Timing the Fire:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/glntd/c6ciz0z

Shao Yang and Yin Xian Schools:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/twoschools/d4g6rjf

Eight Meridians:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/meridians/ghyec78

Neidan intro to body cavities:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/cavitiesintro/6srn08g

Secret of the Golden Flower Min Yide interpretation:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/goldenflower/5x8bhxv

I do requests!

A long time reader of IS recently asked me to talk a little about embryonic breathing and I’m delighted to comply since it is one of the most important topics in Daoism, but also has been badly confused by lack of historical clarity.

Let’s try to fix that problem!

1: Origins:

Embryonic breathing should probably be more correctly called fetus breathing, since it is a breathing approach which attempts to copy the characteristics of a fetus attached to its mother’s umbilical chord during gestation. Fetus breathing doesn’t sound as nice as embryonic breathing, but anyway..

No one knows exactly when this practice originated, but it is mentioned as far back as the writings of Ge Hong, a Daoist innovator who lived around 300 AD. It was not systamatized as a practice until much later around the Sui Tang period, but there are worthy mentions before that time such as in the work of Sun Simio who recommended a practice called Ding Guan Tai Xi/Stable Observation Embryonic Breathing which uses focus on the umbilical region to center the mind.

By the Tang dynasty the first document solely dedicated to Embryonic Breathing was in circulation, it is called the Embryonic Breathing Classic and consists of a very short essay about how to practice this mode of breathing. It reads:

“The Fetus comes from the hidden Qi in the center and collects there, the Qi comes from

the Fetus Center and Breathes there. Qi enters the body center and generates birth.

Spirit Leaves the body and causes death.

Knowing Spiritual Breathing causes long life. Making the core void is used to nurture

spiritual breath. When the spirit moves, the Qi moves, when the spirit rests the Qi rests.

If wishing to achieve longevity, the Spirit and Qi must reside together, the heart must not

move in thought, no coming, no going, no leaving, no entering, self according and long

residing, if studied assiduously it is the road of long life.”

In its original form the document does not explain a specific technique of practice, but instead the requirements of practice and expected outcomes which include:

Requirements:

• breath is hidden in the umbilical area,

• there is no sense of the breath entering or leaving the body,

• the spirit is not stirred in mental activity,

• practice Wu Wei,

Outcomes:

• correct practice leads to longevity,

• purification of the mind and spirit.

Over the years two distinct variations of Embryonic Breathing developed:

1: Tu Na school:

The deep breathing school of life nourishing which is also often associated with Dao Yin practice came to believe that Embryonic Breathing is the outcome of opening the body through specialized inhalation practices and perhaps Dao Yin stretching. When this stage of practice was achieved, the Dao Yin master could reach a deep state of meditative tranquility in which the breath totally stopped in the abdomen.

2: Neidan:

Neidan absorbed embryonic breathing into its currciulum as a natural outcome of the large heavenly orbit and beginning of the formation of the sage fetus. This practice happens as a spontaneous outcome of the lower and upper abdomen forming one Dantian as a result of the completion of the small heavenly orbit and results in a sense of being completely absorbed into the abdominal core during meditation so the breath and spirit seem to mix together and be totally forgotten.

The Neidan school eventually ended up being more reputed than other Daoist methods and the Neidan variation of a more natural form of embryonic breathing ended up being viewed as the cultural standard, especially in the 19^th and 20^th centuries. The breathing school variation ended up being absorbed into several modern Qigong systems and modified in order to suit the needs of contemporary practitioners. Some martial artists in South China also like this approach and it has been widely disseminated in Taiwanese American books published during the 1980s and 90s.

2: How Embryonic Breathing acually works:

In Neidan there are a number of views of EB with some schools claiming it is present from the beginning of practice, while others claim it only starts after the breath totally ceases and there is no sense of breath.

My personal sensibilities on this matter lean toward the first interpretation since from the perspective of Neidan practice, noticing you do not seem to be breathing is less important than being absorbed in the pre-heaven state and having no knowledge of your current circumstances. What I will say is that embryonic breathing is a process which matures over time and that as the small orbit completes, the practice matures to the extent that you will frequently sense your energy and spirit are absorbed together in the umbilical area and breathing becomes more subtle until eventually you no longer notice your breath coming and going.

This is because the breath becomes very subtle, it is not because you really stop breathing, since if that happened you would die.

My personal journey involved sometimes entering the EB state and sometimes leaving it and I think this is probably standard for most people. The key is not to hold your breath and imagine it is doing the work of EB. The process is meant to be natural and develop over time.

Eventually it becomes a spontaneous aspect of practice and around that time the large orbit is typically mature and the next stage of refining spirit and returning it to the void begins, after which embryonic breathing is no longer a major concern in practice.

3: the key point is not embryonic breathing, it is congealing the sage fetus:

the key point of this stage of practice is not about whether you can feel your breath or not, it is about developing spiritual Qi in the entire abdomen, but especially behind the umbilicus. This spiritual Qi stops following the ren and du orbit and begins rising up the central channel, eventually making it to the brain and Bai Hui.

This is how the track is gradually set down for the Yang spirit to develop into maturity and be able to exit the Bai Hui and enter the environment outside the body. Embryonic Breathing is the stage in which the upper and lower abdomen join and the breath becomes more subtle and it symbolizes the energy congealing and changing forms so that it transforms into Qi which is infused by spirit, rather than Qi which is simply noticed by spirit (this is an advanced discussion that maybe we can have another time). It is a very important stage in practice, but it will be of little use to you if you haven’t already completed the small orbit.

Having said that, I taught two mini courses which might be useful to you about these subjects:

1: EB mini course:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/cnkdt

2: Small Orbit course:

https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/bzsdpm

These courses not only show you how to practice, they also set you straight about the core differences between traditional Daoist practices, health practice, and modern Qigong. They are also two of the most affordable and complete programs I offer, so if you have always been interested in Chinese energy work and you want to go to a deeper level I can certainly recommend these two courses, both of which incidentally have received great feedback since being published!!

I hope you found today’s article useful, let me know if there are other topics you want to hear about in Neidan, Qigong or classic Yang Sheng and I’ll be happy to oblige if I have sufficient knowledge to share something useful on the subject.

Qigong methods typically follow two modes of organization:

1: emphasis on adjustment of physical tissues to promote circulation,

2: emphasis on development of Qi sensation and connection.

Some styles focus on one aspect while others focus on both, but the second variation is the most valuable contribution of modern Qigong to the global health discussion.

Qigong is largely based on classic Chinese philosophy derived from Daoism, Confucianism and Buddhism with healthy doses of Chinese Medicine and a pastiche of modern scientific ideas thrown in for good measure.

Since Qigong is based on a holistic philosophy which must answer fundamental questions about the nature of our existence, there is an attempt among many masters to create a holistic theory to describe the energetic nature of reality.

These ideas go from being aligned with Chinese religions like Daoism to rejecting these notions in favor of modern bio-medical explanations. They all have something to share and deserve our critical attention rather than either simply following or rejecting notions about Qi out of hand.

In the book Zhineng Qigong Science Pang Ming investigates traditional philosophical ideas about Qigong and attempts to build a bridge between them and modern science, especially physics. His theory is often speculative and not well defended, but I prefer to view his work as an effort to think creatively about the potential mechanisms of Qi action during practice, rather than an authoritative statement about definite facts about nature.

There is much to be said about Pang’s body of work, but today I want to talk about three features:

Qi, Character, and Form.

1: Qi: Qi in this context refers to Hun Yuan Qi, the original primordial material that exists in a formless state and creates all matter by congealing into tangible form starting from the subatomic level.

2: Character: character refers to the characteristics of material things in the universe. It does not describe a quantitative element of reality, but rather the perceived quality of specific types of matter and the energy that produce tangible changes within it.

3: Form: form refers to the material body of things which exist in the universe from the cellular level up.

Pang’s basic principle is that primordial Qi exists as the foundation of the universe and is the original energy that produces form, but it exists both as congealed form made of Hun Yuan Qi and diffuse Hun Yuan Qi which is naturally in the environment at various levels. He believes that once things take on form, they attain characteristics which are tangible and can be understood through their energetic expression.

Thus something like the skin of the human body can be perceived as the form of congealed Hun Yuan Qi with specific qualities such as excretion, limited respiration, moisture, density etc... Since the skin is essentially made of congealed Qi it also has a relationship with other tissues and the space around the body. The other tissues of the body are also typically some level of congealed Hun Yuan Qi, but the space around the body is thought as containing a larger amount of diffuse Hun Yuan Qi. This means that the physical tissues of the body are directly situated and energetically related to the quality of the environment around the body.

A good example would be UV radiation causing the body to form vitamin D, but burning the surface of the body in large doses. In this case the UV radiation is seen as an expression of the Qi of the sun as its rays pass through the atmosphere and shine on our skin.

The body is the ray of light, the Qi is its activity and the characteristic is the quality of the activity of the Qi and how it changes both itself and things in the environment around it, as well as how it is changed by things in the environment. For instance, the light does not fully pass through your body, so it is absorbed by your body and although some aspects of it may pass through, much of its energy is received by your body and absorbed there after shining on you. This directly impacts your physical form by gradually turning you into BBQ, but it also affects the Qi of your body since the body has to produce a physiological response to being burned which will cause things like inflammation and redness around the site of the burn, sometimes response of various fluids etc... This responses are regulated by your body and are understood in this context as being controlled by aspects of Qi physiology. The character of the body changes after being burned by the sun since features such as color, texture etc... change under these conditions.

These are just simple examples which are not directly related to Qigong practice, but instead are meant to explain the view in which people like Pang conceptualize the desired functions of their systems of practice.

The core assumption is that when we do Qigong we are working with these three layers of Qi, form and character within our bodies, on the surface of our bodies, outside our bodies and in relation to other bodies. This is one reason why modern Qigong styles often emphasize the practice of the Qi field around the body, since it is thought of as being impactful on our overall energetic health.

The key points is that when you practice Qigong there are three major considerations in relation to these ideas:

• what is the body like: what form does your body take during practice, how does it change when you practice, how does it change over time?

• What is the Qi doing: how do you use your mind to direct Qi so you can use it to your advantage, how does this change over time?

• What is the characteristic of the Qi: how do you perceive the Qi as a feeling and as the result of practice over time.

If you understand these ideas well it becomes possible to attain autonomy in your Qigong practice and work on the things you want to master, thus leading to a more fulfilling experience of practice and life.

Behind the paywall today is a detailed lecture about the concepts discussed above with more emphasis on how Qi feeling produces interaction with the primordial energetic state through physical and qualatitative levels.

Read more

Recently I saw a post on social media where a popular influencer claimed that most people are spiritually dead. I think it was in relation to Easter and the idea of Christ having risen, but I personally found it to be an interesting exploration. The first thing I want to say is that everyone is entitled to their opinion and I do not begrudge the poster for having stated their perception of spiritual truth, but I do have a different opinion and would like to share it here.

For starters, I’m just some guy on the internet and I’m not a professional theologian so even though I’ve read lots of spiritual literature, follow a master and have thousands if not tens of thousands of hours or practice in meditation and Qigong, I won’t claim to be a spiritual professional.

Having said that, we’re all entitled to our opinions and I want to share mine based on some particular readings both East and West.

The idea of a spirit and a soul have never been fully standardized and there is always discussion and debate about precisely what these things mean.

In the Helenic world a convergeance of Greek thought, Judaism, Christianity, Gnosticism and other views came together in much heated debate.

Some schools of thought had quite complex notions of the origin of the soul while others took it to be something akin to the innermost aspect of the mind.

I am personally fond of the Neo-Platonic idea that the soul at its most essential nature is pure being. In this version of soul, a person’s consciousness originates as perfected light, but gradually as a result of being farther and father away from original being, people enter into a state in which that light is obscured and cannot be perceived. Through the practice of reasoning one may come to recognize the innate original nature of the soul and thus enter into a state of illumination which reveals the truth unto them.

These practices partially survived in the Catholic Church with such masters as Bonaventure, Ekhardt and a number of others, but came to be coated in Church symbolism. Nevertheless they managed to encapsulate the idea that God is all of being and that all people’s souls are aspects of that being, thus to obliviate the worldly mind it could be possible to return to perceive the light of the Godhead.

Daoists have the notion that the Soul originates as a numinous Yin nature which is attached to the original character of creation. That Yin nature produces the original foundation upon which our perception rests and all activities take place.

The theory of Neidan is that if we revert the Yin back to primordial union with the Yang essence of the body it is possible to transform the spirit through the alchemical transformation of the Qi produced by their union.

The transformed spirit becomes clear, open, illuminated, and enlightened and if we understand the alchemical process we can grow it over time and increase the range of its awareness.

Again, a profoundly hopeful idea which is certainly practicable in this lifetime if you have the resolve to spend a few years of hard work and can humble yourself sufficiently to understand the teachings of a Daoist master.

In either account, all people have souls, we all have the light of perception and are all capable of cultivating it to transform, ascend the mundane, and become healed.

To have a dead soul implies no activity and yet during this precious life we have many chances. I believe the key is to recognize the chance and take it!! I also do not believe that the message of Jesus Christ and his ressurection was meant to be used to bully people into conforming to a personality cult, even though the Church has certainly been guilty of this on ocassion.

Let’s be kind to each other and try to help.

This will help us realize the power of compassion and unity and understand that we rely on each other in our spiritual journeys just as much as we rely on ourselves.

I usually include a paid section after each post, but it doesn’t seem appropriate here.

Enjoy my translation of section 2.11 of Huang Yuanji’s Hall of Raising Joy. It is far from perfect, but I think the main points are mostly covered :)

十一

11:

學人欲歸根複命，唯將此心放下，輕輕微微，以聽氣息之往來。若氣太粗浮，則神亦耗散，而不得返還本竅，為我身之主宰。若聽其氣息似有似無，則凡息將停，胎息將現，而本心亦可得而見矣。古人謂「心易走作，以氣純之」是矣。苟不知聽息以收心翕氣，則神難凝，息難調，而心息亦終難相依。此聽息一法，正凝神調息之妙訣也。

Students wishing to study returning to the root and reverting to life must direct their heart to put everything down, lightly and subtly listen to the breath circulation coming and going, if the Qi is too heavy and floats the spirit will scatter and be lost, then you will not attain the reversion of the original orifice which is the commander of the body. If listening to the Qi as though present and not present, then the normal breath will gradually cease, the embryonic breath will become conspicuous, the original heart can be attained and perceived. The ancients believed “the heart easily wanders, the Qi is full.” (Rob’s note: in old Daoist manuscripts the term Qi sometimes means breath. This may mean that if the breath is too conspicuous it will be difficult to make the mind stable) if you do not know how to listen to the breath and absorb the heart Qi, the spirit will be difficult to congeal, the breath will be difficult to adjust, and the heart and breath will both be difficult to put together. This listening one method is found in the secret formula of congealing the spirit and adjusting the spirit and making the breath subtle.

果能以神入氣，煉息歸神，則清氣自升，濁氣自降，而一身天地自然清寧。到得天清地寧之候，瞥見清空一氣自回環於一身上下內外之間，而非第胎息發現已也。

In the case that one’s spirit can enter the Qi, refine the breath and return the spirit, the clear Qi will naturally rise up, the turbid Qi will naturally descend, the one body of heaven and earth’s spontaneous nature will be clear and peaceful. Arriving here heavenly clear Qi and earthly turbid Qi will be perceived as a clear and empty one Qi naturally returning and circulating in the body interior and exterior, this is still not the embryonic breath appearing.

尤要知此個胎息非等尋常，是父母未生前一點元氣，父母既生後一段真靈，性得之而有體，心得之而有用，在天為樞，在地為軸，在人為歸根複命之原。

人欲希賢希聖希天，舍此胎息，無以為造作之地也。

Embryonic breathing is not something that you can measure out, it was a little original Qi before mother and father birthed me, after mother and father birthed me there was one piece of true spirit, nature attaining it is the body, heart attaining it is the use, in the heavens it is the pivot, on earth it is an axle, in people it is returning to the root and going back to life’s origin. If people wish for what the few experts, few sages and few heavens have, without this embryonic beathing there is no way they can do it.

諸子近來用工，唯將心神了照不內不外之際，虛心以聽氣息之往來，庶幾神依息而立，氣得神而融，未生前一團胎息可得而識矣。由是言之，此個胎息誠修煉之要務也。夫豈易得者耶？

All the disciples use their skill, only if they direct the heart to illuminate a place which is neither interior or exterior, void the heart and listen to the breath coming and going, then perhaps the spirit will cover the breath and they will both be established, the Qi can obtain the spirit and melt together with it, before birth this one ball of embryonic breathing can be perceived. In this regard, the embryonic breathing sincerely cultivated is the key task. Is there anything easier?

古云：「入定工夫在止觀。」何以止？止於臍下丹田。何以觀？觀於虛無法竅。如此則心神自定，慧光日生，以之常常了照於不睹不聞無聲無臭之地，而胎息常在個中矣。

The ancients said: “entering stability, the work is in stopping observation,” what is stopping? Stopping is stopping in the lower Dantian under the umbilicus. What is observation? Observation is void non being dharma orifice. If you can make the heart and spirit naturally stable the wisdom light will be generated daily, after enough time it will illuminate and can’t be seen, heard, or smelled, the embryonic breathing is always in the center.

若但粗定其息，未入大定，此個胎息尚非真也。吾恐諸子未到如如自如之候，而凡息暫有停止，即謂胎息自動，則失之遠矣。

If the stability breath is thick it has yet to enter great stability, this embryonic breathing is not true. It is fearful the students have not arrived at this natural time, then the regular breath must stop and embryonic breathing will occur naturally, otherwise they will lose it in the distance.

人到胎息真動，一身蘇軟如綿，美快無比，真息衝融，流行於一身上下，油然而上騰，勃然而下降，其氣息薰蒸，猶如春暖天氣熟睡方醒，其四肢之快暢，真有難以名言者。

If people arrive at the true movement of embryonic breathing the one body will be entirely connected like cloth, beautiful and happy without compare, the true breath will mix and melt, flowing around the whole body top to bottom, suddenly rising up, suddenly coming down, the Qi breath will steam, like spring’s warmth and the heavenly Qi’s heat sleeping and then awakening, the four limbs so comfortable and spreading out, it is truly impossible to explain in words.

到此地位，清氣上升於泥丸宮內，恍覺一股清靈之氣直衝玄竅，耳目口鼻亦覺大放光明，迥不同於凡時也。他如凡息初停，胎息亦不無動機，總不若此大定大靜之為自得耳。吾昨教棲神泥丸，只須以一點神光默朝上宮，不可太為著意。

Arriving here, the clear Qi will rise up to the mud ball palace interior, unclear and obscure one piece of clear spiritual Qi will direclty arrive at the mysterious orifice, the ears, eyes, mouth, nose all sense great light emerging, returning, it is different from normal times. It is like normal breath beginning to stop and the embryonic breathing before moving, it must be totally subsumed in great stability, then in stillness you can naturally achieve it. Then the shen will be in the niwan and a bit of spiritual light will rise to the heavenly palace, you must not use your intention to do this.

著意則動後天濁氣，猶天本清明，忽然陰雲四塞，則清者不清矣。此中消息，說來爾諸子慢慢揣度。

After the mind moves the post heaven turbid Qi will appear, the heavenly original clear Qi will suddenly be covered by a yin cloud stuffing up the four directions, then the clear will not be clear. Waxing and waning in the center is slowly fills everything up.