What is the essence of Qigong? Is there any scientific basis?

Qigong is a unique fitness technique in China. Basically divided into two categories, one is static, standing still, sitting still or lying still, so as to concentrate, breathe in a special way, and promote the functions of circulation, digestion and other systems. The other is mainly about exercise, generally adopting moderate exercise, massage and other methods, and insisting on regular exercise to enhance physical fitness. In ancient times, according to different techniques, they were called breathing, guiding, activating qi, convincing, eating qi, practicing qi, sitting still, meditation or internal work. Its characteristic is to combine mind, spirit and body through the subjective efforts of practitioners, so as to achieve the purpose of fitness and disease prevention.

Qigong 1 Interpretation

Qigong has a long history in China. In ancient times, the contents of Qigong were usually called spitting, guiding, moving qi, convincing, alchemy, cultivation, meditation and so on. The word "Qigong" is rarely used in ancient books, and it is occasionally mentioned, and there is no complete explanation. Until 1950s, Liu wrote in the book "The Practice of Qigong Therapy": "The word" Qi "here represents breathing, and the word" Gong "is the practice of constantly adjusting breathing and posture ..." It is generally believed that the word "Qigong" has been confirmed and spread since then. Some foreign materials have translated Qigong into "deep breathing exercise", and some domestic reference books have also been copied. Obviously, the true meaning of Qigong has not been realized. In fact, qigong exercise includes three means: breathing, posture and mind, and each means has a variety of exercise methods. Deep breathing is just one of many breathing exercises. It can be seen that it is too one-sided to interpret the definition of Qigong as "deep breathing exercise".

If we define Qigong from the perspective of traditional Chinese medicine, Qigong is an exercise method that makes people's qi coordinate through self-exercise.

With the development of science, we can use the relevant knowledge of modern science to understand Qigong, which will further deepen our understanding of the nature of Qigong.

From the perspective of modern behavioral medicine, Qigong exercise is a behavioral therapy that studies and trains a benign behavior that is beneficial to physical and mental health through conditioned reflex and finally fixes it.

From the psychological and physiological process of Qigong's function, Qigong can be defined as a self-exercise method, which mainly uses self-suggestion as the core means to promote consciousness to enter a state of self-hypnosis, and adjust the balance of body and mind through the psychological-physiological-morphological self-adjustment mechanism to achieve the purpose of fitness and treatment.

We can also sum up the above knowledge in one sentence: Qigong is a kind of self-psychosomatic therapy with China national cultural characteristics. There are many kinds of psychosomatic therapies. Qigong is different from many other self-psychosomatic therapies in that it has the national cultural characteristics of China-a kind of practical activity that is unique to China people and guided by the theoretical content of "regulating the mind" of traditional Chinese medicine.

Interpretation of Qigong II

Qigong has a history of thousands of years in China. The word Qigong first appeared in Xu Xun's Ling Jian Zi in the Jin Dynasty. Although Qigong here means practicing Qi and Xiu De, it is not used as a special term. It was not until the late Qing Dynasty that the word Qigong was clearly put forward in the definition of Qigong in the book "The Secret of Shaolin Boxing". It was not until 1953 that Liu named his martial arts "Qigong Therapy", and later established a Qigong sanatorium and wrote books such as "Qigong Therapy Practice" that the word Qigong was widely used and known by the masses. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, Qigong has developed into a special knowledge established by people.

What is Qigong? At present, there are dozens of standardized definitions of it. Although each has its own reasons and basis, it has not been recognized by everyone. Based on the connotation of the definition of Qigong, intelligent Qigong is defined as: "Qigong is an exercise that transforms, perfects and improves human life function through active and introversive conscious activities (adjusting the heart, body and breath is its extension), and transforms natural instinct into conscious intelligence." This definition points out the theoretical basis of Qigong-the holistic view of life, including that the universe and nature are a whole, man himself is a whole, and man and nature are a unified whole (harmony between man and nature), and its holistic view of harmony between man and nature is the theoretical basis of all Qigong. It is pointed out that the special exercise method of Qigong-the exercise of active introversion using consciousness, that is, the concentration and singleness of mental activities and the combination with one's own life activities, is the fundamental essence of Qigong exercise which is different from other exercise methods and the soul of Qigong definition. The purpose of qigong exercise is clear-to transform, perfect and improve people's life function, get rid of the bondage of natural instinct and enter the free kingdom of consciousness and intelligence; It is pointed out that Qigong is a practice of using Qigong to improve one's body and mind and improve one's life function-Qigong is a practical knowledge, and the process of Qigong exercise is a practical process of using Qigong science to transform and sublimate oneself. This definition summarizes all the connotations of Qigong and is a complete scientific definition that meets the requirements of modern scientific norms.

Qigong 3 explanation

Qigong is a kind of physical and mental exercise method with the means of regulating heart, qi and body, preventing and treating diseases, strengthening body and prolonging life, and developing potential. Self-adjustment means adjusting psychological activities, breathing movements, body posture and movements. These three tones are the basic methods of qigong exercise and the three major elements or basic norms of qigong discipline.

The original qigong has no name, and the latter part is called "dance". For example, in Lu's Spring and Autumn Annals, "The bones and muscles can't be contracted, so dance is used to promote them". During the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, Qigong was summarized as "guiding on stilts", such as "flaccidity, cold and heat should be guided on stilts" in Su Wenyi's Treatise on Prescriptions and Medicine, while meditation, fetal interest, moving qi, convincing, regulating qi, Sunday, Neidan, etc., which are scattered in famous works of all ages, also belong to Qigong. As for the word "Qigong", it was first seen in the Ming History by Xu Xun, a Taoist priest in the Jin Dynasty. Even the later works are the Sui and Tang Dynasties at the latest. The book Qi Jing, which appeared after the Sui and Tang Dynasties, recorded that "Qigong is wonderful, and the way of Qigong is similar ...", but its connotation is not completely in line with what we are talking about now. Qigong, which is widely used now, was gradually popularized after the establishment of Beidaihe Qigong Sanatorium in the 1950s.

Qigong is gradually formed in people's practice in production, life and medical treatment. Qigong therapy and exercise therapy are both related and different. Exercise therapy can include exercise therapy, but exercise therapy cannot replace Qigong therapy. Physical exercise is always just one of the means of qigong to adjust the heart, and breathing exercise is also for adjusting the heart. The three tones are a unified whole and must be centered on the adjustment of the heart. The combination of internal training and external training, mainly internal training. Qi in qigong refers to "internal qi" and "true qi", which has a deeper meaning. Qigong therapy has comprehensive characteristics, at least it is a combination of psychotherapy and physical therapy.

Qigong therapy includes psychotherapy, but it is different from psychotherapy. Psychotherapy generally refers to the use of language, expression, posture and attitude by doctors. Reasoning patients who are awake and proposing treatment suggestions; Or use some special induction methods to induce a hypnotic state that is somewhat similar to superficial sleep, and then give treatment suggestions to patients under hypnosis. Therefore, patients are always passive. Qigong therapy is characterized by giving full play to patients' subjective initiative. Under the guidance of doctors, patients can strengthen their self-control ability through self-exercise.

Qigong is essentially different from religion. Qigong, as a science, does not involve the purposes and teachings of various sects, but only extracts scientific connotation from the practice of believers. This is reflected in the Taoist scriptures and Buddhist scriptures, which also record a lot of information about ancient Qigong. In addition, some theories in religion are often used for reference by practitioners.

content

Qigong has a wide range of contents, including body (posture), heart (mind and relaxation), qi (breathing), self-massage and physical activities. There are many qigong exercises, including breathing for breathing, static exercises, standing pile exercises, dynamic exercises, guiding exercises and self-massage. There are many schools of Qigong in China, which are generally divided into five schools: medicine, Confucianism, Taoism, Buddhism and martial arts, and each school is divided into several small schools. Physician qigong mainly aims at preventing and treating diseases, preserving health and strengthening the body. Confucian Qigong mainly aims at cultivating self-cultivation and nourishing qi. Taoist qigong is mainly aimed at recuperation, fellow practitioners and meditation. The main purpose of Buddhist Qigong is to cultivate the mind and seek spiritual liberation. Among them, there are two schools, one is called Ba Ding, which emphasizes that everything is empty, and the other is called meditation, which emphasizes self-cultivation, family harmony and universal salvation. Wushu Qigong mainly aims at exercising, self-defense and improving fighting skills. Although different schools of Qigong have different methods, they all practice their hearts and spirits. Qigong can be divided into static qigong and dynamic qigong in form. Static qigong is also called internal strength, because it takes lying, sitting, standing and other postures, uses mental internal defense and adjusts breathing, and focuses on practicing the inside of the body. Dynamic qigong is a variety of physical exercises that combine mind and qi, such as walking qigong, Tai Chi stick qigong and self-massage. Because of its function, it is also called external work.

Function and curative effect

China ancient Qigong was used to treat diseases and keep fit from the beginning. Treating diseases with qi function is mainly because it can play a beneficial role in regulating the autonomic nerve center and cardiovascular system in the cerebral cortex and subcortical, can correct abnormal reactions of the body, can massage abdominal organs, and can control its own physiological functions. Acrobatics has many effects on the human body, which can eliminate the interference of emotions and keep the physiological and biochemical conditions of the human body in the best working condition; Relaxation, quietness and breathing in Qigong can reduce the preparation of cerebral cortex for the overall emergency response, provide favorable conditions for the rest, repair and adjustment of the body, and also eliminate the interference of "seven emotions" on the body, reduce the sensitivity of the body to inferior stimuli of the external environment, and weaken the harm of "six desires"; After slow adjustment, the overall energy consumption is reduced and the body's disease resistance is enhanced.

Natural relaxation of posture (body adjustment) is the premise of qigong breathing smoothly and inducing mental relaxation. Different postures have different physiological characteristics, and postures themselves have certain therapeutic effects. Common postures are sitting flat, free cross legs, single cross legs, supine, lateral lying, standing, walking and so on.

Tranquility (mental adjustment) Tranquility refers to a stable and quiet state, without distractions, focusing on one point, that is, staying in the abdomen or paying attention to breathing, weakening the feeling of external stimuli, and entering a state of waking but not waking, which means that the cerebral cortex has entered a state of protective inhibition. There are five common ways to enter silence: ① obeying the law. ② Interest-bearing method. ③ Interest-bearing method. 4 dark thoughts. ⑤ auditory method. The above five methods can be practiced from observing the law, gradually transitioning to the interest following method or the interest listening method, or practicing one all the time, which varies from person to person.

Breathing (pranayama) is an important part of qigong therapy. Through exercise, change chest breathing into abdominal breathing, change shallow breathing into deep breathing, and finally practice spontaneous abdominal breathing. There are eight commonly used breathing methods: ① Natural breathing. ② Forward breathing. ③ Reverse breathing. ④ Stop breathing. ⑤ Breathe through the nose. ⑥ Breathing method of activating qi and acting as governor. ⑦ Breathe underwater. (8) Real interest method. Breathing exercises should be gradually deep, long, thin and slow under the guidance of the basic laws of softness and nature, and we must not rush for success.

general idea

Different qigong exercises have different characteristics and requirements, but the same requirements are: relax nature, follow one's inclinations, combine training and recuperation, combine static and dynamic, step by step, treat people according to their illness, persevere in life and be moderate. Most of the above requirements apply to all kinds of qigong. Practitioners should also refer to the specific requirements of this qigong when practicing a certain skill. Generally, people suffering from mental illness, massive hemorrhage, high fever, various acute diseases and acute infectious diseases should not practice Qigong.

Combine acquired qi and innate vitality into a noble and upright kung fu; The science of self-regulation, self-exercise, health and longevity in the process of life. In ancient times, the appellation was very chaotic, including breathing, guidance, alchemy, metaphysics, static, fixed, sexual, internal, as well as monasticism, meditation, internal cultivation and fitness. The word "Qigong" first appeared in Xu Xun's Jing Ming Jiao Zhi in Jin Dynasty, in which "Qigong Commentary" was recorded. Before liberation, Dong Hao mentioned the word "Qigong" in his books, such as Qigong Therapy, the special recuperation method of tuberculosis, and The Secret of Shaolin Boxing by Zhonghua Book Company. However, it was not until 1953 that Qigong was completely explained in the book Qigong Therapy Practice edited by Liu et al. As a formal term, Qigong began to be confirmed and became popular.

It is generally believed that Qigong originated in Shang Dynasty. By the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, Qigong had formed a certain theoretical system. Taoism, Confucianism and medicine all studied the laws of life movement and put forward their own opinions. After Buddhism was introduced into China, it combined the theory of the universe and human life in Buddhist philosophy with the life research in ancient China, and combined the traditional practice method of Buddhism with the self-cultivation of ancient Qigong in China, thus promoting the development of Qigong science in theory and practice.

Generally speaking, Qigong can be divided into nourishing qi and refining qi. Nourishing qi is the meditation of Taoism, which transports qi in Tian Dan to make it stick together to prevent it from leaking out due to the induction of external scenery. Gas refining is mainly based on operation. If the boxer wants to use his arm strength when practicing boxing, he will send gas to his arm; There is strength in the waist, and qi is transported to the waist; If all limbs exert force, qi will be transported to the whole body. Qi is different from breathing, calling for yang and sucking for yin; Call for action, the suction is static; Call for rigidity and suck softness. It needs to combine yin and yang, rigidity and flexibility, and movement to complete its function. If qi wants to run, it will go irreversibly, and you have to move forward. If you go forward, not only the viscera are comfortable, but also the speed is comfortable; If you are unlucky, your internal organs will be injured. Some practitioners have seen it from time to time.

Ancient Qigong is generally divided into five schools: Confucianism, medicine, Taoism, Buddhism and martial arts. Confucian qigong aims at "cultivating self-cultivation and nourishing qi"; Physician qigong aims at preventing and treating diseases and strengthening the body. Taoist qigong pays attention to "double cultivation of body and mind" and "double cultivation of life". Buddhist qigong needs to "cultivate the mind" in order to get rid of the spirit. Among them, the concentration school emphasizes "everything is empty", while Zen emphasizes "self-cultivation" and "keeping the family in order". Wushu qigong is mainly to exercise and improve skills. In recent years, according to the characteristics of Qigong, ancient Qigong is divided into static and dynamic, and divided into five schools: breathing, meditation, thinking, Sunday and guidance. Tuina school emphasizes breathing exercise; Meditation emphasizes the exercise of ideas, requires the internal connection of ideas, meditation and concentration, and adopts some uncomplicated methods to concentrate ideas. Meditation in general belongs to this school. Existentialist school also emphasizes mental exercise, but requires to look at things in an imaginative way. On the basis of ideological interconnection, Zhou Tianpai emphasizes emotional interdependence and promotes the feeling of internal qi to flow on the meridian lines such as Ren and Du meridians in the human body, also known as Neidan School. Instructors emphasize dynamic exercise, which is characterized by body manipulation combined with emotions or as self-massage.

Qigong research

From 65438 to 0955, Liu's qigong works were translated into Japanese, English, Indonesian and other languages, and his qigong ideas spread all over the world, which caused the first national qigong climax, and leaders such as Chen Yi, Lin and Xie Juezai also practiced or wrote inscriptions. During the period of 1978, Ms. Gu Hansen of Shanghai published many research reports in the journal Nature, claiming to have found physical evidence such as electromagnetic wave, particle flow and static electricity of Qigong's "external qi". The following year, Tang Yu's special function of reading ears was discovered in Sichuan Province. These two events caused a craze for learning Qigong. 1In the mid-1980s, Dr. Yan Xin, together with Dr. Lv Zuyin and Dr. Li Sheng from Tsinghua University, conducted an experiment on the influence of external qi of Qigong on molecular structure. Published in the journal nature and the journal of biophysics. Guangming Daily and other important media widely reprinted. Zhang Zhenhuan, president of Qigong Association, Qian Xuesen and Bei, famous scientists, recommended the report after confirming its reliability. Chinese Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine 1983 set up Qigong laboratory, 1986 set up Qigong master's degree.

Principles and Special Functions of Qigong

Do qigong and psychic phenomena exist? Science or superstition? Can science be used as a criterion now?

Similar to other traditional cultures in China, Qigong has been questioned by many people, many people believe it, and many people oppose it. But whether you believe it or not, it needs to be based on facts and practice. There are still many phenomena in the existing scientific theory that cannot be explained, and it is still not a complete theory. So we can only use it for analysis, but not as a weapon to affirm and deny unknown phenomena. Those who are sure need to present evidence as much as possible, while those who are against it mean that since they want to oppose it, they must practice and verify it in person.

False phenomena are also common in our known fields. In the unknown field, because it is difficult to identify, more false phenomena may appear. Therefore, we can't take a negative attitude just because we find some false evidence, but as long as we develop an exact evidence, we can explain its authenticity.

I have the same attitude towards Qigong. In order to verify China's traditional thought, I have extensively studied a lot of Qigong techniques (because I don't have a master, I'm afraid I'm possessed). After consciously understanding the principle of Qigong, I began to practice Taoist Sunday exercises. On the seventh day of practice, I began to have a fever on Sunday, and soon there was a hot air from the governor to the top of my head. I felt Tang Yin's beating, cicada singing in my head, pure fragrant juice from Lian Quan and other feelings, all of which were consistent with the description of the achievement method, and I accidentally broke the window glass with my fingers. It is because of my personal practice that I have determined the existence of Qigong and its special function.

At present, there is no suitable explanation for Qigong in science, and even some explanations are limited to scientific thinking methods. In fact, we need to understand Qigong from China's traditional systematic holistic thought.

First, the principle of Qigong

Qigong's "Qi" refers to non-Qi "Qi", which is not a simple subtle substance of human body, but a systematic whole of physical functions and functional substances relative to the body.

Qigong has many kinds and skills. However, no matter what kind of exercise method, it is to enhance and balance the system function of the human body or some parts of the human body through certain methods and procedures of training. Therefore, proper martial arts training has a systematic benign effect on human body, while improper martial arts training may only balance and enhance some systematic functions of human body, but it will destroy people's physical and mental balance. Only by understanding qigong and its cultivation principles can qigong be beneficial and can it be called a human life project.

Qigong mainly has the following cultivation methods and approaches:

Cultivation: Sex, body and spirit constitute three talents, body is the earth, spirit is the sky, and sex is human. By practicing the systematic balance of body and mind or directly through the experience and understanding of sex, the function of balancing body and mind can be achieved.

Static work: the human body is an automatic balance and stability system, which makes the human body automatically balance and adjust through physical and mental quietness.

Intention: By observing the mind, some important balance centers or guiding qi and blood to run according to certain rules with ideas, the balance between the system and the human body can be adjusted.

Observing achievements: By observing some people, sights and things, we can adjust the balance of the human body system.

Dynamic work: Through a series of sports, qi and blood are guided to run according to certain rules, so as to achieve the balance and adjustment of the system.

Wai Dan: With the help of drugs, the human body is systematically balanced and adjusted.

Bigu: Adjust the balance of the body system through reduction, control and short-term hunger strike.

No matter what the achievement method is, it is to achieve the systematic balance and adjustment of body and mind. If you only practice part of it, it will easily lead to the balance of the whole system and cause physical and mental damage.

Second, acrobatic reaction.

Because acrobatics is a series of balance and adjustment to the human body, therefore. In this process of balance and adjustment, there will be some acrobatic reactions:

Touch: In the process of body balance and adjustment, there will be fever, numbness, pain, sensory perception, muscle beating and other feelings.

Automatic: In the process of balancing and adjusting the body, natural movements of the body may occur.

Hallucinations: In the process of balancing and adjusting the body, various hallucinations (similar to dreaming, but awake) are produced because the brain automatically releases harmful information.

Diet increase or decrease: at the beginning of the exercise, the diet will increase due to the enhancement of visceral function. However, after the balance of zang-fu organs is reached, due to the enhancement of absorption and nutrient transformation ability, the diet is reduced, or some foods are rejected.

Dreamless: After the balance between body and mind is achieved, the invalid information in the brain is reduced. Sleep decreased and sleep quality improved, so I didn't dream.

Third, special functions

The specific function can't be well explained yet, but some inferences can be made by combining Yi-ology with western scientific reasoning.

The so-called special functions are actually just the natural physiological and biological functions of the human body. It is concrete because these functions are difficult to show under general conditions. These functions are either degraded or lost by human evolution, or naturally produced by the further systematization of the human body, or are innate functions concealed by the human body. As long as the system is trained and in a certain or a certain state, these functions can be brought into play.

1. Functions degraded or lost due to evolution: The process of biological evolution is a process of adapting to the environment. Therefore, in the process of evolution, some previously owned functions will be covered up, lost or degraded due to changes in the environment. For example, after bacteria evolved into animals and plants, the ability to use special minerals and anaerobic respiration would be degraded to some extent. After animals evolved into humans, their dormancy ability deteriorated, and so on. The degradation of these functions is actually caused by the complexity of the system, the division of functions and the directional evolution of the system.

2. The innate function of acquired concealment: refers to the functions and abilities possessed by organisms since they evolved into human beings, but in the process of physical development and adaptation to the acquired environment, these functions or abilities are suppressed due to the need of system balance and coordination. With some training, they can develop easily. Such as pineal gland, caudate gyrus, appendix, etc. Actually, it is also caused by biological evolution.

3. Functions generated by further systematization of human body: Biological evolution is realized through changes in the functions of biological systems and the complexity of the systems. After some practice, people may produce more coordinated and systematic system functions and molecular structures, which may produce some new functions.

Now qigong: broadly speaking, it is generally divided into two categories.

1. Fitness Qigong, mainly used for fitness, nothing magical. Certified by the state, China Qigong Association is mainly affiliated to the General Administration of Sport.

Second, practicing Qigong, to a certain extent, is said to have all kinds of magical powers mentioned above, but it has not been widely certified.