Who invented the Five-Animal Exercise

I. The Five-Animal Play is a set of guiding techniques created by Hua Tuo, a famous medical doctor at the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, based on the principles of traditional Chinese medicine and imitating the movements and demeanor of five kinds of animals, such as tigers, deer, bears, apes, birds and so on.

On May 23, 2011, Hua Tuo's Five Birds Opera was approved by the State Council to be included in the third batch of national intangible cultural heritage list.

Two, the practice of the Five Animal Circle:

1, tiger play

natural standing, bent over, both hands on the ground, and force the body to drive forward shrug and with the inhalation, when the former shrug to the extreme and then stop; and then, the body backward contraction and exhalation; and so on for three times. Following the two hands first left after the right to move forward, at the same time the two feet backward to move, in order to stretch the waist; press the head up to face the sky, and then lowered the head forward to look at the flat; finally, such as a tiger walking to the limbs of the front to climb 7 steps, 7 steps back.

2, deer play

Press on the four limbs on the ground posture. Inhale, head and neck to the left, eyes to the left side of the back of the eyes, when the left turn to the extreme after the tip of the stop; exhale, head and neck back, when the turn to the face to the ground and then inhale, and continue to turn to the right, as in the previous method. Turn left 3 times, turn right 2 times, and finally return to the starting position. Then, lift the left leg and stretch it backward, pause for a moment, then lower the left leg and lift the right leg and stretch it backward as before. So the left leg backward stretch 3 times, the right leg 2 times.

3, bear play

Supine style, two legs bent knee arch, two feet away from the bed, two hands under the knee, head and neck force upward, so that the back of the shoulders away from the bed; a little pause, the first to the left shoulder side of the bed rolled, when the left shoulder touched the bed and immediately return to the head and neck force upward, shoulders away from the bed; a little pause and then to the right shoulder side of the bed rolled, and then back up. So the left and right alternately 7 times. Then get up, both feet on the bed degree into a squatting style, both hands press the same side of the foot; then like a bear walking, lift the left foot and the right palm off the bed degree; when the left foot, the right palm back behind that is to lift the right foot and the left palm. So alternating between left and right, the body drive with the left and right swing, a moment and stop.

4, ape play

Choose a solid pole (such as a bar, door frame, tree fork, etc.), slightly above themselves, standing fingers can touch the height, such as apes climbing things with both hands to grasp the pole, so that both limbs are suspended in the air, for the pull-up 7 times. Then the back of the left foot first hooked on the pole, put down both hands, head and body then downward inverted suspension; after a short pause to change the right foot as the method of hooking the pole inverted county. So the left and right alternately 7 times.

5, bird play

Natural standing. Inhale the left leg, two arms raised sideways, raised eyebrows, drumming up all the energy, such as a bird spreading its wings and wanting to fly; exhale, the left leg back down to the ground, the two arms back down the side of the leg. Next, stilt the right leg as the operation. So the left and right alternately 7 times. Then sit down. Bend the right leg, hold the knee with both hands, and pull the leg and knee near the chest; after a short pause, hold the left knee with both hands and operate in the same way. So the left and right alternately also 7 times. Finally, the two arms like a bird wing stretching each 7 times.