Qi Gong - Traditional Qi

Dan Tian 丹田– Qi Core of Humanity

by Angela Tian Zhu | Apr 16, 2021 | Exercises

Dan Tian

In Chinese, the definition of “Dan” 丹 is the color ‘red’. “Tian” 田 can be defined as paddy field, or an area that can be mined for treasure or minerals.

In the vast universe, no creature can exist without the core. The principle is that the rotation or revolution of everything in the universe moves around their internal core and external core.

In nature, the core of all kinds of plants, trees and flowers are their roots. Plants cannot exist without roots, for example apples, pears, peaches, and apricots, etc. all depend for living on their roots or core. Seeds are another form of core, which induce plants to germinate, grow and produce fruit. Similarly, a country, company, family, and each person require a core to develop and strengthen. Thousands and millions of cores rotate and revolve endlessly to move, restrict, oppose, wane, wax, and interact with each other to wisely achieve the balance between internal and external. The core unites all things tightly. Meanwhile, the core transmits energy and power to each part of a substance from the inside. Core energy is the vital energy of all creatures; they cannot live without core energy.

Where is this core of life – Dan Tian?
The Dan Tian is below the navel inside the stomach area.
What is Qi Core of the body? Human’s core (Dan Tian) of the body is the source of vital energy of life and blood, which includes innate energy, acquired energy, and root of wisdom.
Why is Dan Tian the Core?
- Dan Tian is the origin of the seed of humanity.
  The seed of mankind consists of ovum from female and sperm from male, which originates in Dan Tian.
- Innate energy comes from Dan Tian
  The Dan Tian is a deep source of innate energy. Ovum (Yin) and sperm (Yang) combine together in our body (Yin and Yang), to generate an embryo, and multiply the next generation. Dan Tian is the origin of the fetus, humanities’ innate energy and body. In addition, Dan Tian is vital energy to induce the fetus forming, growth, and giving birth. The innate energy of each person is inherited from parents; and it comes with uniqueness constitution of energy, which decides composition and personality of each person.
- Acquired energy comes from Dan Tian
  The Dan Tian is also a deep source of acquired energy. After birth, people rely on energy and blood to survive, and to maintain health. Energy and blood is obtained from nutrition of food and inhalation of oxygen. People digest and absorb nutrition to form energy and blood. The acquired energy from Dan Tian combines nutrition from food and oxygen, generates energy and blood, and supplies it to every part of body all the time. Therefore, people give birth and grow; internal organs work; and bodies do activities.
- Wisdom is from the Dan Tian
  Wisdom is from the Dan Tian, the sun in our body. It can be regarded as the “Gut Feeling” in western countries to some extent (to be continued).
How do we use and strengthen the Dan Tian?
1. Exercising the movement of Dan Tian’s energy can help improve energy and blood, and movement of internal organs. They are effective methods to balance Yin and Yang in our bodies, help cure and prevent disease, increase longevity, and improve the quality of life, nourish energy and blood, and maintain optimism and help prevent depression, anxiety and dementia,
Benefit for physical and mental health.

Qi Gong and Tai Chi are specially designed to make full use of the Dan Tian Energy.
Methods of daily exercise for Dan Tian:
1. Open up the body from Dan Tian.
  Standing: open up Dan Tian to straighten the spine and organs.
  Walking: heels down, toes up, open up Dan Tian.
  Sitting: open up Dan Tian – body up right.
  
  Benefits of this include:
  - Opening up of internal organs makes energy and blood flow and decreases stagnation.
  - Opening up Dan Tian pushing spine up nourishes the brain to help prevent dementia, depression and stagnation.
  - Improved blood circulation.
  - Opens up skeleton and ligaments.
  - Reduced stress and anxiety.
  - Maintains optimism and helps prevents depression.
  - Helps fertility and gynecology problems.
  - Helps the immune system to help prevent cancer.
  - Helps improve posture.
    - Breathing from Dan Tian
    - It is a strong performance of energy and blood when we are able to breathe by using Dan Tian. Breath will be weak and shallow when we are ill, weak, and getting older. Breathing from the Dan Tian improves blood circulation, enhances energy and blood, and maintains physical and mental health.
    - Strong energy from Dan Tian leads to strong energy and blood. Moreover, strong energy and blood result in physical health and psychological optimism to help prevent depression, dementia, and stagnation. To exercise Qi Gong and Tai Chi is not only to be undertaken in classes, but also to be considered as natural daily activities. Thus, we can be healthier and have more enjoyment in our lives.

Prevention and wisdom are the principles of Traditional Qi.

Written by: Angela Zhu (TCM Practitioner, Qi Gong & Tai Chi Instructor)

© Copyright Angela Zhu 2021

Seniors wellbeing with Qi Gong

by Angela Tian Zhu | Nov 7, 2019 | Seniors & Dementia

The Qi or energy state of seniors may be one of deficiency due to age, illnesses and their lifestyle.

Wellbeing For Seniors

Qi Gong can help increase energy and make seniors stronger. With stronger energy, blood circulation improves nourishing the skin and muscles while helping the internal organs function well.

Circulation and Wellbeing

If you think about blood circulation, blood as fluid tends to flow down due to gravity. We need our circulation to go up to nourish the brain, eyes, hearing and our teeth.

When we get older, we tend to be energy deficient and our circulation doesn’t pump the fluid as efficiently. This can lead to reading problems with our eyes, problems with our teeth and can also affect the brain with memory issues.

Without good blood circulation to the brain, brain cells can then die very quickly reducing the size of the brain. This leads to a loss of brain function which may include dementia and even stroke.

Qi Gong Helps Reduce Inflammation

Throughout our life’s journey, we build up stagnation (Chinese Traditional Medicine), or inflammation (Western Medicine). Inflammation occurs when our body fights sickness —infections, toxins, injuries or stress. This may lead to heart disease, diabetes, cancer and more. Stagnation is a sickness. For example, if you have dementia your brain cells stagnate and they die or they shrink. Cancer is stagnation, so is arthritis —where your body is not working properly.

When your whole body stagnates your life is finished because movement and breathing become difficult and you don’t have warmth— you don’t have energy.
Qi Gong can help.

Increasing Your Energy

You’ll have increased energy helping to fend off the stagnation or inflammation. Your organs will be stronger, circulation better and tend to live longer. You will move better and be more flexible and active, leading to a better quality of life.

We should encourage seniors to use their Dan Tian (their energy centre) for walking and standing upright as much as they can. When they walk we recommend that they try to put their heel down, otherwise they shuffle, as when we age we take smaller steps and use less Dan Tian.

We encourage seniors to walk early morning using their Dan Tian to be proud of their body and to visualize putting down the heel down first and if you can, and more difficult, putting your five toes down evenly. That takes concentration. If you can encourage them, safely, to take larger steps they will use your Dan Tian. steps became smaller.

Stages of Women’s health

by Angela Tian Zhu | Nov 7, 2019 | Women's Health

Women have four special stages in life:
1.Puberty,
2.Menstruation,
3.Pregnancy and birth,
4.Menopause.

In Chinese medicine, we say the blood carries the energy that we need, and our energy moves the blood. So, with healthy energy and blood flow, it makes the four stages easier.

But most people don’t think about this.

Women’s mental health can be linked to blood and energy flow in these four stages.

Puberty

In puberty, when the blood starts to flow, it indicates a change in your body and your moods.

Menstruation

When you have a difficult period, then your energy doesn’t flow freely and can cause PMT.

After Birth

After birth, with blood and energy loss, women can suffer post-natal depression.

Menopause

At the last stage, menopause, means you stop having a period and you no longer have the energy to produce eggs, your body is getting older, and you don’t have enough blood nor energy to get pregnant. That’s a very simple way to explain menopause but it also depends on the previous three stages in your life.

Transitions

The best time to change your mental and physical health is when you are in one of the transitions. For example, you could adopt Qi Gong, change your diet, stop any habits such as heavy drinking, drugs or smoking.

Even with women’s illnesses, such as breast cancer, it has much to do with our energy. When your energy doesn’t flow well, it can lead to stagnation or inflammation that may affect your breasts, uterus or ovaries.

If you have strong energy you can counteract the stagnation and rid yourself of it.

With healthy energy circulation, you can stay well. But if you don’t look after yourself—a bad diet, no exercise or you are negative it may lead to illness.

Mental Health

The same goes for our mental health too. If I feel low or depressed for just one day, it’s not depression. If you are a little bit anxious for some reason, that’s very normal, it doesn’t lead to a mental disorder. It’s only when it is too extreme, or goes on for too long, that it leads to a mental disorder. The quantity changes the quality of your mental and physical health.

Qi Gong For Preventative Wellbeing

Practising Qi Gong assists in changing the quality as a preventative.
Whoever you are, or whatever you do, if you practice Qi Gong, it helps you make better decisions because physically and mentally you are balanced, have a clear mind and more energy.

By practising Qi Gong, it gets you to a balanced state where you make better decisions, not only in your life but about food choices and your habits along with becoming more aware of how those habits affect you.

Daily Tips

Here are some of the daily tips that we can suggest for women:
First of all, be aware of the Dan Tian and your energy when walking or exercising.

There are two other important things for women in modern society: one is to keep warm because your blood and energy circulates more easily and the other is to control your emotions. Healthy energy and blood flow, together, look after the four stages.

Practising Qi Gong helps you become more aware of your wellbeing and your energy levels. By increasing your energy levels other things are going to change as well. When your energy flow improves you are likely to move through the four stages of life with greater ease.

From Exhaustion To Depression

by Angela Tian Zhu | Oct 15, 2017 | Mental Health

Often, when people get exhausted, they feel depressed or easily get upset, on the other hand, when people are depressed, angry, they may feel tired and even exhausted.

For many years, I have seen that a lot of my patients, friends, family members and even myself would have a bad temper and get depressed when we are very tired. If the mental and physical exhaustion lasts and our bodies feel “overdrawn”, there is a possibility that it could lead to depression.

Patient A: I feel exhausted and depressed. I work full time and I’m a single mum. A few years ago, I bought a house. I had to manage everything by myself,to work getting and paying for the mortgage, packing, moving and redecorating the new house. When I moved into the new house, I was too tired even had no energy to appreciate the new house. I felt exhausted and buried myself in the depressing mood. I suffered from stress, anxiety and insomnia. My periods became irregular, it seemed menopause happened to me out of the blue. I felt that everything became meaningless. The pressure of the mortgage was overwhelming and I always got angry with my child. I hated myself, the new house and I regretted that I bought it. (In reality, the new house was very good).

I told her that in Traditional Chinese Medicine, overexertion causes loss of Qi (energy). It is because the physical and mental exhaustion made the Qi (vital energy) become deficient, which caused the depression and other symptoms. Mental and physical health always connect.

Patient B: Because of my son’s death, I immersed myself into the deep grief. I couldn’t get out of bed and had no appetite, no energy to do anything, all I can feel is endless sadness and exhaustion.

I told her that in Traditional Chinese Medicine, excessive sorrow dissipating Qi (energy). Because of the extreme mental trauma, the Qi (vital energy) in our bodies maybe damaged or stagnant and become weaker, which could lead to exhaustion and depression.

Given the two cases above, we can see that exhaustion and depression are co-related and co-existing, one triggers the other one and one affects the other one. Exhaustion reflects the weakness of Qi (vital energy) and blood circulation. When the Qi (vital energy) and blood circulation of the brain becomes deficient, the brains chemicals would lose balance, which would lead to depression. Also, the deficiency of any other parts of the body would also lead to this psychological condition. In modern society, due to exhaustion from physical and mental stress, a considerable number of people are diagnosed with illnesses such as anxiety, depression, high blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes, infertility, impotence, irregular menstruation and irritable bowel syndrome even cancer.

What can we do?

Take a rest before you get exhausted, otherwise, you are overspending the energy and over using your body.
Drink before you get thirsty. Do not drink too much coffee to borrow energy.
Try to figure out the reason when you start feeling worried, depressed and stressed and than avoid it.
Appropriate good diet. Trying to lose weight too fast sometimes can weaken the Qi (vital energy) and you might also can feel mentally stressed .
Sleep before you get too sleepy. From Traditional Chinese Medicine point of view, the night belongs to Yin (as in Yin and Yang philosophy), Yin is static. Therefore, night is the time for us to replenish the Qi and blood circulation, and to get rid of exhaustion. Inadequate sleep could weaken the Qi and blood circulation, decrease the oxygen in the brain and dehydrate the body. If we still have to work and study hard the following day, our Qi gets more deficient.
Eat before you get too hungry. Make sure to have meals on time. When we feel hungry, the sugar level in our blood drops and the Qi (vital energy) weakens. Bad temper and tension are common. After having some food, the blood sugar level increases, but the Qi (vital energy) may not be replenished straightaway. Our bodies have to spend energy to digest food first, then the Qi can be replenished. In order to adjust the blood sugar level, our body keeps working constantly, which damages the pancreas, and maigth lead to diabetes.

Written by Angela Zhu

Threats – Seeds of Depression

by Angela Tian Zhu | Aug 29, 2011 | Mental Health

threats - nobody wins

One day as I walked down the street I saw a little girl of four or five years having a tantrum and hitting her mother. The mother was very angry and said “if you hit me, tonight you are on the street”. The little girl stopped.

I asked myself:

If the girl didn’t stop, would the mother really put her on the street?
If not, will the threat still work?
How does the little girl imagine the street at night?

A friend of mine told me that when she was about seven her mother told her “if you do that you are out of the car”. My friend opened the door and walked away. The mother, feeling helpless, got out of the car and ordered my friend to get back in.

Have you heard sentences such as these?

“if you don’t change I will leave you”
“if you do this I will kill myself”
“if you don’t pass this exam you can’t have a holiday”
“if you don’t listen you can’t have a bicycle”
“if you do that again I will throw you out of the house”
“if you don’t stop you will get a hiding”
“if you tell anyone about this, you’re dead”

Sometimes people will try to get a quick result without thinking through the right way to achieve what they want.

What is a threat?
It is to try to get what one wants by frightening others.

Why threaten?
People try to frighten others because of their own fear, or because they have learned it from their parents or other people.

The damage done:

Threatening someone will only either undermine trust, or put you in a dead corner. It also sets a bad example to others.
Resentment and disharmony will remain.
A threat has the potential to damage mental health especially in children.
Whatever the outcome, a threat damages both parties. Either the threatened person gets frightened into obedience but is left with fear and resentment or the threat doesn’t work and the person making it is left in a dead end. Both cases plant the seeds of depression.
Subconsciously, a threat relies on the belief that everything has a price.
A threat brings disharmony into all aspects of a relationship.
To threaten is to misuse one’s own power at other peoples’ expense.
A threat plants the seeds of ill will and reprisal.
A threat plants the seeds of depression. It can bring worry, fear, anger and grief.
In Chinese Medicine:
- Worry can damage the stomach and spleen energy, leading to stagnation.
- Fear can damage the kidney energy.
- Anger can damage the liver and heart energy.
- Grief and resentment can damage the lungs.

All these emotions can lead to depression.

What can be done?

It is important to ask ourselves what we are afraid of.

What might happen and what would be the worst?
How do we face our fear?
How should we behave?
- For example if you are afraid your children will not listen to you then you must first make sure you are listening to them. Always be sure to explain to them the reasons kindly, reasonably and wisely.
- Do not misuse your power to push those around you down. Especially with children, who are dependent and vulnerable.
- A threat can be counter-productive.

Wise persons will maintain their own mental health to help the people around them.

True love does not ask for reward. Threatening — what are you asking for?

Traditional Qi’s two concepts are prevention and wisdom.

Written by Angela Zhu, Traditional Chinese Medicine practitioner, Qi Gong & Tai Chi instructor.

The Million-Dollar Point

by Angela Tian Zhu | May 13, 2011 | Exercises

Hui Yin

People ask eye doctors for help if they have problems with their eyesight. Better vision can be obtained by wearing right eyeglasses. When people suffer from poor hearing, they turn to hearing aids. Dentists help to fill and extract bad teeth, and to perform dental prosthesis to patients when they need it. Not only can Qi Gong, this well-known wise exercise with a long history since ancient China, help people to exercise the sensory organs, but also to other parts of body. People can receive far-reaching benefits by practicing Qi Gong; such as toning the Qi, enjoying a long life expectancy and prolonging youth.

There is an old story about a millionaire. He came to an old temple and asked the monks for help about how to have a long life span through practicing Qi Gong. After a while of learning and practicing, he acquired the knowledge of preserving health by practicing and making the use of ‘Hui Yin’. When he decided to leave, he donated a million dollars to the temple. Since then, Hui Yin had been widely-known as the Million-Dollar Point.

1. Where is the Million-Dollar point?

The Million-Dollar point is one of the points in TCM, called the ‘Hui Yin’. It is between the anus and the external genitalia of the body. It is called the perineum in English.

2. How do we exercise the ‘Hui Yin’?

Lift up the ‘Hui Yin’ gently. Then connect to Dan Tian, (The Dan Tian is the very core of the Qi. It is under the navel, inside of stomach (abdomen). One of the most important theories of Qi Gong is to imagine it and then bring the mind into the body and picture it. Imagine and picture the ‘Hui Yin’. And then lift it up gently to connect it to the Dan Tian (the core of the Qi, life energy). Try to practice it every day. Start by practicing it a few times on a daily basis and then this will become a habit of yours.

3. Why do so?

The ‘Hui Yin’ is the strongest and biggest point of the Yin energy. (Please click https://www.traditionalqi.com/about-traditional-qi/tcm-sydney/ to find out about Yin and Yang). Lifting the ‘Hui Yin’ up gently is greatly favourable to strengthen, store and exercise the Qi (life energy).
When we are lifting the ‘Hui Yin’ up, the anus, the external genitalia and the prostate glands are lifted up simultaneously, which helps relax and contract the muscles of these parts of the body alternately.(Please reference the articles ‘the Two Directions Wisdom part 1 &2’ at the link https://www.traditionalqi.com/2011/03/31/the-two-directions-wisdom-part-1/ and https://www.traditionalqi.com/2011/04/07/the-two-directions-wisdom-part2/). The energy and circulation of these parts of the body become weak gradually as we grow old and even our physiological activities such as defecate, passing wind, urination, having sex, giving birth and having periods also consume the energy and circulation of these parts of the body. Therefore, by lifting the ‘Hui Yin’ up gently, both of the anus and the external genitalia can be helped to relax and tighten the muscles of these parts of the body, at the same time, can get exercised.
For women, lifting the ‘Hui Yin’ up gently and connecting it to the Dan Tian can help to nourish the blood and tonify vital energy to the vagina and uterus.
For men, lifting the ‘Hui Yin’ up gently can help get the prostate glands exercised.
Lifting the ‘Hui Yin’ up gently, at the same time, helps to strengthen the deep muscles of the bottom and the preaxial thigh.
Lifting the ‘Hui Yin’ up gently and then connecting it to the Dan Tian can also help keep the good body figure and maintain better posture. This is one of the important Qi Gong movements.

4. What are the Benefits?

Help nourish vitality, improve life span and anti-aging.
Help keep body up right and posture.
Help prevent and treat urinary and fecal incontinence.
Help prevent and treat vaginal diseases and make vagina tight.
Help prevent and treat hysteroptosis.
Help prevent and treat prostatosis.
Help prevent and treat the diseases of the colon and anus.
Help improve sexual life.
Help strengthen the deep muscles of the bottom and the preaxial thigh.

We today are living a busy life. Therefore, it has a very point of advocating preserving health by exercising the Qi core, Qi gate and the Qi point as part of our daily life. It will benefit us for the whole life.