Qigong and Health

By Frank Chan

Qigong is a Chinese art (body and mind exercise) with more than five thousand years' history. Qigong consists of two words: Qi and gong. In Chinese culture, they believe all things in the universe, visible or invisible, are the manifestation of Qi. In other words, Qi is the source or the matter that makes up the universe. Qi is formless and invisible. The appearance or disintegration of matters (birth, death, etc.) is the transmutation (concentration or dispersion) of Qi. Qi exists in and permeates everything. In Qigong exercise, Qi means life energy - an invisible and formless substance that powers the functions of human life. Gong means practice; together, Qigong means by practicing (cultivating) Qi daily; one can achieve and maintain health and harmony.

How does it work? Qigong involves the concepts of open/close, concentrate / disperse. To practice qigong is to strengthen this process. If this process is functioning normally, then the human body will be operating up to its potential. The reason we have illness is that this process has been interrupted and therefore functions in an abnormal way. For example, in the case of cancer, the qi is concentrating too much in an abnormal way and is not being dispersed in a normal way, so there is too much qi in an area, creating a tumor.

If we can disperse, or let go, then the function will go back to normal. Practicing qigong is getting rid of everything in the body (open/disperse) and then rearranging it back to the normal way.

We will use a movie theater to illustrate the importance of practice. In a crowded theater, if someone yells fire, and everyone rushes about in a panic, stepping on each other, people get stuck and there is a disaster. However, if a few people go and get fire extinguishers, and the rest line up in an orderly way to get out of the building, then the process becomes fast and effective, with no disaster. That's what practicing qigong is all about. Once we train the body to operate in a normal way, the body will know what to do to keep itself functioning and effective.