I once had a Chinese teacher who was also a qigong master. I could tell she was different right away because of all the Buddhist paraphernalia in her classroom. She asked us what our hobbies were on the first day. But when she got to me, she simply asked what martial arts I do. I’ve had this happen a couple of times and it really un-nerves me. Some people can tell right away that I do the arts. IMO I should be able to completely hide this stuff. Surprise the enemy and all that.
So I told her Chen style taiji and some other things (that’s what I did at the time). She asked me how my gongli (martial power) was. That was a very penetrating question and again she caught me completely off guard. This woman was obviously very sensitive and penetrating. I had no idea.
She told us that she was a qigong master and was into physical and psychic healing. She said that she could tell our physical and emotional states as soon as we walked into the classroom. If we were sick, she would feel sick. If we were sad, she would feel sad. She said that sometimes she had broken down crying in class because a student was depressed and she could pick up on it. Us students kind of looked at each other wondering what we had gotten ourselves into.
I was intrigued and over time asked here about her practices. She practiced things that were all about “heaven qi” in terms of heaven, earth, and man. These practices were mind-expansive apparently. My practices at the time were more about concentration and grounding, and it showed I think. I stressed “earth energy” and being centered and stable. I think she found that offensive sometimes.
Class with her was an emotional roller-coaster as she surfed various emotions. She cried at the blackboard sometimes and went off on emotional tangents that had little to do with the topic at hand, apparently as the spirit or heavenly qi moved her. Needless to say, she was highly spiritual or a total whack-job depending on your view.
Interestingly enough, her qigong practice looked a lot like this:
This is a charismatic worship service. Notice the upraised hands and the head thrown back. This is a great way to bring energy to your head. I’ve had this posture recommended to me a number of times because it draws energy up the spine. Notice the upward orientation of the pose. It’s not hard to see channeling of energy from above when practicing/worshipping like this.
Charismatic worship is highly emotional to say the least. The audience is on an emotional roller-coaster, just like my Chinese teacher was.
Many people make fun of practices that use heaven energy but it isn’t hard to see the results of this practice. It’s both valid and useful in certain contexts. Unfortunately, it’s also problematic for the emotional highs it brings. Many people get addicted to it.
Funny how East and West both have this practice isn’t it?
13 responses so far ↓
1 CReidS // Aug 29, 2008 at 11:39 am
Is it really that hard to spot? You’ve spent a long time learning to do many things characteristic of CMA: moving the whole body as one, a posture that reflects core strength, and a relaxed rootedness. I’m a little surprised she couldn’t guess which ones you practiced!
2 J.K.S // Aug 29, 2008 at 11:48 am
David, have you ever asked any qigong teachers what they thought, apart from any political considerations, about Falun Gong practices? I know one practitioner and though I am no doctor I am sure that if he were to be examined by a mental health professional he would certainly be diagnosed with some kind of mental illness.
One might argue that someone who is mentally ill would be predisposed to seek out and join cults or cult-like movements and the fact that he wound up in Falun Gong is largely a matter of coincidence. However I am curious about the Chinese perspective on the uses and misuses of Qigong and their bearing on mental health.
3 Dojo Rat // Aug 29, 2008 at 11:49 am
How about Christian Evangelical God-Smacks that knock worshipers down– and martial arts “No-Touch Knockouts?
Some are fake,
Some are Mesmerism/Hypnosis,
Some may be something else…
– By the way, I had no idea you did martial arts…
4 Tabby Cat // Aug 29, 2008 at 12:02 pm
She sounds like a typical cold reader to me. Not that I’m a disbeliever in things psychic, I’m into Remote Viewing and other stuff. But she sounds like a typical cold reader. Somebody’s in the rooms gonna be sad, somebody sick, somebody’s gonna be into the ‘arts, etc.
As for that power gesture in the photo headlining this post, something to that for sure. Have a close look at timeline 6:36 to 6:38 on the vid you recently posted of judo master Yasuhiro Yamashita.
5 Hermann // Aug 29, 2008 at 12:50 pm
J.K.S ,
Falungong, better the practitioners of it, who I know, are also ‘mentally a bit unstable’. It makes me really wonder…
And I didn’t like their Master’s recommendation, not to get involved in mixed marriages, living himself in the States.
As I’m happily married to a Taiwanese women for 25 years in Oct., I could not hear anything more of such a person ….
6 Jay Gischer // Aug 29, 2008 at 12:53 pm
I find the notion that posture affects mood to be pretty solid, at this point. I’ve seen tons of solid research into the way the body affects the mind, and in particular how affecting a posture that is associated with a mood will, in fact, move you toward that mood.
7 Morgan Buchanan // Aug 29, 2008 at 5:30 pm
some thinking out loud :
spiritual
mental
emotional
physical
in that order from the bottom up. emotional isn’t spiritual by definition any more than the physical is - it’s just easy to get confused with spirit because its non physical. a cathartic release whether is comes in church, at the movies, or doing qigong is just that. it can be healing, uplifting, etc… but it is what it is and isn’t what it isn’t . sensitivity is all well and good but i think both ancient western and chinese philosophy is telling us that balance and gradual/consistent improvement is the key to spiritual practice not swinging between extremes of the body, mind or heart.
cheers
morgan
8 Joseph T. Oliva Arriola // Aug 30, 2008 at 12:02 am
Morgan…ditto.
Like the physical practice. You don’t ever truly master the technique. If you continue the quest, you hope to “see” more in your 40’s. 50’s 60’s and 70’s.
The mental, allows for reflection and structure. It too, continues should the practitioner be open to it. As such, the practitioner seeks “life mastery” vs. “martial arts sectarianism”.
Spirituality is not opinion or religion. It is connection to higher vibration. We connect with those at said higher vibrations and say…ditto when it happens
9 Scott // Aug 30, 2008 at 12:23 am
Cultivate qi.
Nourish Life.
Do Long life practices.
What you have described is none of these. It is wasting qi. It is shortening life. And it is welcoming possession by spirits of the dead.
Animism is universal. The milieu which inspired the internal arts is not universal, although it obviously has roots in Animism.
What separates us from these animists is that we are hopelessly moral. We get upset at that thought that someone might be getting hypnotized out of their money. That someone might teach a style of Qi gong that wantonly kills people is beyond what moral people can imagine.
I might add as well, that morality separates most of us English speaking people in Protestant countries from the murky roots of Chinese martial artists–whether those artists focus on cultivating qi or not.
10 Joseph T. Oliva Arriola // Aug 30, 2008 at 1:26 am
Morality of the dark ages…kill everyone in the name of chrisitanity.
Morality of the inquisition…kill all muslims, jews, and those who believe that the earth revolves around the earth.
Morality of Hitler…Kill everyone who doesn’t look like me…and worse who doesn’t agree with me.
Morality of the Internet…age, experience, rank, doesn’t count. Everyone is equal. The popular vote wins against age, experience, rank
Morality changes with each generation. I’m an old foggy. I think it is immoral when you open the door for someone and you don’t say thank you. Most young people say “Chill out…it’s not problem”
11 Chris | Martial Development // Aug 30, 2008 at 3:10 am
Resonating indiscriminately? With skills like that, who needs problems?
My old teacher once told a story about one of his peers, who had gained the “extra ear” skill. She was constantly tormented by it. Finally, she had to ask someone to terminate her gongfu so that she could live in peace.
12 Chris // Aug 30, 2008 at 4:00 am
There’s really nothing remarkable about being highly intuitive, energetically sensitive or empathic.
We’ve just gotten so thought dominated, and are nervous systems are so jacked up, that we’re less able to take in intuitive data easily. Sometimes what looks like the result of “cultivation” is really just a feature of the natural, relaxed “satvic” human organism. We’re an animal and animals sense things about what is going on around them.
It’s more about letting go than adding on to.
13 Tabby Cat // Sep 3, 2008 at 9:47 am
By the way, raising the arms above the head is the Ka sign of ancient Egypt, used by initiates to gain possession of the cosmic forces of mystery. It appears in many tomb paintings. It means: ‘I am master of the spells. Strength is mine. I impart strength.’
But be vewy, vewy quiet. Don’t say anything. I’d hate for anybody to have to burn themselves at the stake.
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