Chi Kung Rocks

In this world full of message alerts, retweets and mounting debt it is becoming increasingly harder to find a quiet spot. People tend to underestimate the importance of mental stillness and spiritual revitalization. The information age has people spending an extra twenty minutes on the porcelain God to check their timelines and distribute millions of bacteria strains; to their phone screen that is. Our brains never get a break from being attacked on all fronts. I am pretty sure the Mr. Burns hump will become a fashion statement in the near future. It will be the result of constantly bending your neck to look at your phone screen for the latest thing to be faux outraged over. I often find myself trying to steal moments of solitude whenever I can.

That in and of itself is a herculean feat of Olympic proportions. In my quest for solitude I began exploring alternative ways to maintain my inner peace and most importantly, my sanity. I began exploring yoga and meditation but the yoga gods are not too fond of me. Meditation went well but frustration mounted internally when Outside forces continuously sabotaged my tranquility. Fast forward weeks later I find myself in Books A Million in the health and fitness section look at these glossy books with smiling faces. These people on the cover are clearly not human beings. They were so thin I could tell what seasoning the chef used in the chicken at lunch.

In the midst of walking away from the section feeling hopeless a tiny little book caught my eye. I know refer to it as the little book that could because it has change my life for the better. The title read Chi Kung in non-threatening faded red letters. The premise of this science is breathtakingly simple. The majority of the body ailments are due to blockages of your chi or life force. The body has a network of not only nerves but meridians that distribute your blood as well as life force throughout the body. Most maladies all seem to boil down to the chi not flowing properly through your body’s network of highways. Chi Kung is a set of exercises that stimulates proper blood flow and helps clear these blockages naturally. When blood stops flowing through an area of the body, vital nutrients and oxygen can’t flow. When this happens cancer ensues; all it take is for one cell to stop function properly and the rest is history.

I was quite skeptical to these claims and considered them treasonous. However it was this sensationalism that made my buy the book. It collected dust in my closet for months until I cracked it open when lazy Sunday. I thumbed through the book until I stumbled across an exercise call raising the moon. It was so basic that I questioned why it was called an exercise. None the less I began to perform the elementary maneuver. It consisted of standing in a relaxed position and placing your hands in front of you and turning them inwards so that your fingers are parallel. Once that is done you simply take a deep breath in and raise your arms in the position they are in. Once they have reached your crown you slowly lower your arms to their respective sides and exhale at a snail’s pace. You also must focus on your breathing. By doing that it incorporates a form of meditation into the mix.

When I began to perform this regularly I noticed that I would let out ridiculously long yawns and my eyes would water profusely. The yawns would be so forceful that I would feel my throat throbbing after I was done. Over time I noticed that I began to feel more peaceful in my daily life and I didn’t feel as sluggish by just performing this one simple exercise. I began to practice more and more exercises and I could not deny how good I began to feel over a 3 month time span. This my friends is why Chi Kung rocks. You balance your energy while at the same time improving your blood flow. It also gives your brain a break from the world at large. Thank you Chi Kung for giving me the peace I have been searching for.

By James Eddie

Sources:
The Art Of Chi Kung by Wong View Kit (print)