frffiil'.fi'"':fi;:: t'.

l, o ;:H :Ti;,li: i *i :T,n: "',* ff :

eisong-th_.

of proprieraryrighrs. when you srudy wirh someone, don,r make the mis_ rake of rhinkinglhr, ,hi;;'";;r reaches same s rhe one of them is nor originat. p.or.rro.s as another one so may use the

QtcoNG Brcath rraining.

will give somesense of eigong has a tong

#ifi illri:l*r:*:#ff .ffi i: ,1:$.i:."iu.'#:;:,'.::f

it, i-m.;;'il;:.tortant " . has evolved art, bur b.ief ou.rui.*

r..* ,i.-,...' ,r,. lli'ililll"ffilil: iTooi:Tn' ",0 ..,"i"ii,, ;* ar a consrantlvelevar.a uplifring.onr..riplrrio., pr... ir,. oi;;;;rtt

,.. conrracting. Brearhing ,.gurareJas "0."1]'rr,rlugh ,,r.r.hing and "na is a matrer course, of mersreportincreased andmanyswimlung1"p".iry, better .t.."rr,-", improved rone'andrerieffrom muscle rn. workingaga sr.rhe r.rir,"nl.'J r..."a .*r,npr.i, r,;;;r, whichdemands ",.rr] in i ri..t.na, .u9r, wirh changes ";;;;

#:ranvthing,n",#;:',1Ji:3:rti; pres effecrs or the or.r are affecred genrre ".,i.ui;;;;lFft I:,: :ffi;il H:.;:,*j* by rnou.-.ii

ffiffJffi:ltl',i';iT::,,:,

1r,:f..:i";;;;s

theqi_is breath

:,...#ff ffii:*ii, :*l: ff "ff:lil:i:f*xm i,.i d j;1,i"'fi,;,il:lr,i;jTTHJffi{};,.,:?",# ; l,:: naivery..";;;

t8
BEGINNINGS

bring rongeviry. #i l*,.",a *iir*'J;r, shouldbe rhe primary rheyferrrhar qi "r means serf-curriu"rioi. of qrgong rernained ri.'trr,. premise has cenrrar of r;;;;; ri,n., ir on. t;'r','rT:;: o*.rJ., andsrores qi, fo' t* t'" o'Ji narv fea "" ts r:- f";l ;. gevi ty. : rt".'t "

tead' ra rs ffi'::':f"lr*' other ois specur* a red *ii,i1ilii JTil:'#i:?::' wasenoughto ",

wereexperi,n.,,ri',lf

rhe .urii""n., of physical anl ffiT:Tilti.lJ,in'"n'orherbs "il ,;.;';i;.,",,,. compounds. manv

rherewere variousTaoists

or knowledge. ;;;';il1r. "nd D T;;';;hir," urint,h. { n,*;;,#j

*t,J-"iuo.rted

tffi T,:"#

of themdied.because they

rarion would exrend life. Other techniquesinvolved swallowing saliva, calledthe Jade Nectar, while engagingin different techniques holding of the breath. By the secondcentury e.n., Taoists were experimenringwith movemenrsmimicking the behavior of animals. Hua Tuo, of the Three Kingdomsperiod, createdthe Five Animal Frolics, basedon the movementsof cranes,bears,deer, monkeys,and tigers. He declared,"A used threshold neverrots, and flowing water neverbecomes stagnant."Thus,he reasoned, movement would extend life. Like other Taoists, he saw that animals had many qualities that humans lacked: long life, strength, flexibiliry, leapingskills, immuniry to illness,viriliry, and so on. The Taoisrsascribed many of the qualities to "exercises"or movementsthat the animals did, and sought to gain such powers by imitating theseactions.For example, they noticed rhat a torroiselived for a long rime, so they copiedits merhod of extendingand withdrawing its neck. They noticed that a deer was light in running and had great viriliry, so rhey copied its prancingmovemenrs. They noticed rhat a riger was unusually srrong, but rhar irs strengthwas relaxed, flexible, and effortless,and they copied irs powerful acrions. These observationsof animals included nodcing their still postures. The Taoistscopied rhesetoo. They concludedthat animalsmeditated,and that this also contribured to long life. They saw cranesstand for long periodson one leg. They saw turtles sit unmoving with their headsstretched toward the sun. They saw frogs sitting while puffing and conrractingrheir throats. standing and sitting meditation thus becameparr of qigong. Tai chi chuan evenruallytook its form in this way as well. originally consisting of thirteen static postures,it was only later that movementswere added. You can still seepart of this legacyin tai chi, as it is essenrially a seriesof still posrures strung together. Names like lfhite Crane Spreads sTingsand snake creeps Down indicare posruresthat were once held for long periods. Incessanr wanderers,rhe Taoistsalso appropriated breathingmethods from other cultures.By the time of the Tang dynasry, they had incorporated rhe Indian arts of pranayam4 manrra, kundalini yoga, and tantra wholesaleinto the arr of qigong. They appropriated methodsof Buddhist breathingand exercisesuch as Bodhidharma's Muscle change and MarTH R E E TR E A S U R E S

QTNSHTHUANC This cmperor was rcsponsiblc the for buitdingof thc Great Vall. Dctermincd that China'shistory should start with him, hc ordercd all books bumcd cxcept rhose dealingwirhdivination. Bccausc was he opposcd by scholars, he ordcrcd rhem burncd or buried alivc. Obscsscdwithimmortaliry, hc supported numcrousefforts to 6nd the clixir of immortaliry,and it is popularly belicved that hc dicd from ingestingan unsucccssful clixir.

39

*i' li"l';HIT,?ff';'d' and ""rv misconcep'.'".;;;;#iund rhe

A near carnivarshowcase for qigong has extended into the medical communirv' In rhe hospitars rr china' rhere are now "gigong ryi;1"gI sh"rgh;i,""nd orh., cities of crinics" *r*, ao.l*, *rr. craim that they can issueqi from rheir oJn p""t-. in,o the bodies of parrents, the parients tn and where learn qigo.,q ro recover rheir hearth. visiring doctors from the :::" West have .flr"_.a to have seen a m: move an object man from a distance. ,.^.J:';;':l'avc^seen "rra 'wesrern medicar.communiry has evorveato*ia.l*;;"r. programsand

A greardearof aftenrion has beenrecenrryfocused on qigong, both in china and the west. a.,di.n.., i' uorr, chi;; unired srareshave beengiven demonstrations of irs seemingty ""d;. powers. some of theseperformances show sronesbeing url[." -ir".urous ,;*;. headof an experr; orhersshow a man successfury ,eristing ,0.; ;;rt To the incredurous his throat. " qu.rrion, or *..ruai.n.., "g"rnrt ,h..yrt.rio* expranation

1
approaches a microcosm of the ,.."r.ri.r..rrof modern, science-based is gleof all rhe Scholar warrior traditions ro survive in rhe contemporary world. The old ways are cloaked in secrecy,held tightly 6y few, ani ^ placean enormous emphasis ethics and high standards.Healing is not on as seen a professionor a iob but an extensionof the total person.Learning how ro heal is not iusr masteringtechniquesbut culrivatingevery p"., oT rhe personality.skill, for the traditionalisr, cannor be divorced from the personpracticing it. Crearinga person who can heal as an extension of the total self demandsa lengthy apprenriceship systemrhat both imparts knowledgeand consrantlyteststhe ethical and perceprualcompon.nt, of the student'scharacter.There aren't many willing or many will_ ing studenrs, rhis arduousprocessroday. -"rr.rr, for The qigong of today came in the aftermath of china's 1949 revorution. Determined ro use rhe bestof rhe pasr, the governmentgathered all known qigong masrers and demanded rhat they divulge their secrets. Those who resistedwere eirher forced ro comply or were killed. The mas_ ters were required to show all that they knew for researchers analyze. to The informarion was then edited. supposedly..supersririous" and ..non_ scientific" pracrices were eliminated; practices were simplified; and differ_ ent setsof movements were combined. A careful readinlgof the literature will disclosefrequent references simplificadon, combinedforms, to modern forms, and revised forms. It is not difficult to seethat the old masters, resentfulof their rreatmenr by the government, did not revealeverything, or even taught techniquesthat would causedangerous side effects. rrrruJ of today's "scienrific qigong" is a producr of this sad legacy.In the new sciendficqigong that is coming to the fore, practitioners are not particularly well rrained, have not had long yearsof ethical testing,and have not been closely supervised. Above all, it is quite possible thar they do not have a sffong enough foundation in rheir chosen field. who can be sure that the heart of qigong was nor thrown our in their scientificanalysis? R A N G E OF QIGON G

rhat menrin"o,.uoo,l,'.',iiT:.ljT.f ,'d^!f,.,:.lJ*,.f#,*ilr,;ff ;il iilff ffiln: b e e'rh #il:';,';ji *"::::yt' ;;''';'* wi'l'l enw THE ;:till;::1,,::::f "l I ffi r hrs ",',:';Jff:::::';:*il::'HJ'#:",:;fT R U E
crashberween author rhe iry ofthe ord tradition and the asserrions
Iz
BEGINNINGS

fi,j,ilT.;heir

else,can be p.o'..t.J from one p.r*n'ro anorher ro, ,t.r.]1..l|^""y'hing lpeubc purposes,but the ,.rult, h"u. beeninconclusive. A few qigong healers have begun to-rrear padents in the vest. In rhe craims that have bren mrd. th. r,."ting powers of qi' qigong has been "'u""1 ," -irr.utou, .*.;;;;"., .i."ry*i"g rr.n, .*.., illnesses' ro psychorogical Vorumesh"". "ppii.J scienrificpaperspubrished, many peoprehavegone and ""a ro qigong hearers the in r,"0. ,r,", they wourd cured of their be Tod"|" iig.is practitioner, 'rnessesulrrrl,l-rr",..i__il ,ry rhat the qi they nade",,

,i:;::::Ji,J,i,:."TT*:,,r,,:,1..|i#ff ho,ding;:il;;ll"ffi I;'I.*ffifi:fti*;i ;ffi l":u.."g" i",r,. w.,i "" ,"e,.,.",..r,

,;r*l in a way

whenpracriced for a long period and with great dedication and discipline, qigong can reach spiritual levels. \il7henone practices rhe proper proceTH R E E TR E A S U R E S

43

it allows us to find our own speciar areasof interest.Learning makes life vital' srimulating' lifr llowlldge and the culdvatio.,of intellectualabiliries,you neednot be buffeted byirr^tforces o, ui.ri-rred by the rirnits of your own minuscure poor of thoughts. you can ,r,i"['rn-rgh your prob_ lems and realize your aspirarionr.The diversiryof knowredgereaches the.rearning rearning.Through of rhe constanracquisitionof kriowr.dg. ,h. ;.;i;xercise of rearning, one can masrerrhe skiils of investigation, "nd .*ptor"rio.r, experimentation, and application. Thlolshout rife, one's quesrions w'i never cease;new frontiers and menrar chailenge, *itt ,rir.; to be abre to apply the urmosr in one's inre'il.ct "nJ.".'r*a, ro conquer rhemThe crux of the mafter is that you shourdminimizeyour rimirations. you don,r understand If why a *". i, qoi:g on in a p"rti.,1l", land, or if you don'r comprehendthe socio..o.,orrii. fo1.., ,r,rr'a.nn. sociery,or if you fail to seerhe rikety outcomes oigou.rn-enrar poricy,you wi, graduary be hamperedrnore.and more Uylou, lack of neitherread nor write weil, "rra.rr,inaing. If you can evengrasp "o, "aa ".rd subtr".r,;i;;"""or how your own hearthi. ,"" are quire rimited. It is important to gain freedom of thought by -."r,i'gi;, kiowrng rheseir,i"grlx""wredge need nor be acquired mereryfo, flrthe."r...r.*.er, or for prestige,or to become a pompous know-ir-ar. Knowredge dispers;;;#;;orance s*u'L r5'r' thar is so ramPant today. . Yet it is important to take schorarriness srepfurther a roward creadv_ iry' Even learninga myriad of subjecs, evendeveloping rhe skill ro learn more, w'r amount ro mere accumurarion of rr.rr. s. i.e not receptacres or machines be programmed. to !7e musr inreracrwith knowredge. the greatestrimitarionsof one of chinese ,.n or".rt,ip was i{ lopsided insisrence on pure rriemorization and its excrusive venerati"\ past crassics. creadviry was not .*oi";l;d. "r Arthouj-..-*,r"tion llways spectfor rhegrearachievemenrr and re_ or rrt. osr fundar.rror, schorarry suits shourdn'rread ro dead pur_ "re ,'"ugir.'co-pori.,t;"&;. music, draw_ ing' designing'experimendng, t.irrr"gi"g-p"*.;nr-ii onry you, furnirure or surroundings-are wonderfur ways to express our creativiry. Esrablishing erhicsbuirds .tt"r".r.r. Academici'uot*_.nt bu'ds in_ telligence-wirh theserwo assers, rhe third rreasure,shen, is safeguarded. t4
BEGINNINGS

Once the mind is disciplined,it becomeslike a skillful generalwho can command the troops of jing and qi. In this chapter,we have tried to define rhe basicareasthat a beginningstudent in Taoism musr cultivate.Jing can be preservedby sexual conservationand augmentedby diet. Qi is culticleanliness all levelsof life and by circularingthe qi. on vated by assiduous When all three levelsare brought into harmony and are made secure,one can truly be said to have the Three Treasures. rhe remainingchaptersof In this section,we will examineactual methodsfor achievingthesegoals.

THREE

TREASURES

55

rhe body is sure that it wiil have sufficientwarer thar ir wirr rerease irs with the wonderful bv-product .r n"riri"s roxins our of rhe ;::ff:' Eat the proper amount- Do nor fastwirhout guidance and supervision; don't undereat,and don't overeat.you must-remember that some_ one engaged arhretic acdviry in wilr ear n'rr. f;;;. Lurr.n, studiesand dietary theories focus on the n..d, of-a_verage peopre,who quite often are sedenrarycompared with a Schorar .ivarrio-r.A, ;"; exercise more, you will requiremore caloriesand berternutririon. In generar,the schorar rTarrior avoidsfasting. There are rwo rypes of fasring. one is the abstenrio' iro- a, sorid roo'ar. irris rype of fasring requiresrhe guidanceof an experienced person.Ir is roo easy ro fail into fanadcismor to deprereyour ;;;; ,rr.cessariry- Such fasdng is usuary ceremoniesor i' casesof .*r..-. lrness. otherwise, H:*:r::if]ous ir is The secondtype of fasting means the earing a severery of restricteddiet for the sake of some goar th-aryou wanr to achieve. For exampre,when eating ginseng,one should all acidic f;;;r, ;iuding cirrus, and "r,oid spicy foods, as rhey w'r neutrarize the effects.; ;i; roor. somerimes fasting meansavoiding foods i*"Tp"rgre with sporrs rraining. carbo_ hydrate loading is an exampre of whar Taoisr, *.'"ra'iassify as fasring.

ffr:J'i#

in season. vegetabres. Vegetabres "r. shourdmake up rhe b"r[;;.;.,s dier, but you neednor excrude mear and other foods. rr,. modern sociery ofren precrudes rife crose a ,o u"riJ"gricurmrar .r,yJr,-r. -.rpi.*;; But eating is more than devouring the food or, ,h. rabrein front of you. It is parr of a whole process: planting, growing, luiriurring, obr.;;;;]"nd rh.., finally absorbing.There is something more integrated ab-our person who a tends rhe harvest untir it ir -";.h .J"ay io ."t. Th. f.o*.. r,.,o*, the soir, the weather' the sunlight, and rtt. rim.itl, *.n, inro rhis food. By earing,he or she becomes part of rhe a n"rur"l .y.1..
z8
BEGINNINGS

ir rh ra r.'$rh." srowersatisp *i ca J J," i:n;'i.TI *TT.::,Trt: rhat you eat shourdbe organic. [J,;.';1 r..ril"a E"r ,..a*r,r,

Eat foods fresh and in season. Gt

fim:

of fasring,is cruci"l do,hi, ."..furry it to and

An Ar each meal, eat at least three differenr types of vegetables. easy is way to combine vegetables by colors: one red (carrots, beets,radishes, sweetpeppers), one yellow (squash, yellow zucchini,corn), and tomatoes, one green(broccoli,cabbage,spinach,mustard greens,greenbeans,peas, and so on). to It is unnecessary be a completevegetarian.In monasteries such as thoseon Huashan in Shaanxi province, for example, rhe residentssomerimesate fish, frog, and game given by hunrers.Vegetarianism was sometimes an economic necessity, done for specifichigh meditations.The or eatingof meat was thought to make a student too activefor the quiescent activitiesof a meditator. But temple living was a very specialized activiry in a protectedenvironment.The ScholarWarrior considers pure vegetarianism to be impracticalin a competirivesociery. Meats, fish, and poultry. Fish should be rhe primary sourceof animal protein, and it should be fresh and pollution free. Try to eat the 6sh steamed, poached,or broiled. Avoid deep-friedand breadedfish. Chicken is a second alternative source of meat, and rabbit is also acceptable. However, both thesemearsshould be avoided if you have a cold, fever, red eyes, liver trouble. Avoid turkey and pheasant, rhese or as are thought to createillnessand irrirarion in the body. Among red rileats,it is bestto ear lamb, veal, and lean cursof beeflike the shin and the tail. Red mearsare rhought to build blood and muscle. About rwice a weekis the righr frequenry.Eating more mearis permissible in the winter, when one needsto stay warm. Organ meats may be earen sparingly and are best combined with Chineseherbs to offset their bad qualities (chiefly high cholesterol)and enhancetheir nurritive qualitiesfor one's own organs.The Taoists believe that animal organs combined with herbs supplemenrrhe corresponding organs within the human body. Chapter 5 has some recipes for these dishes. Avoid rhe fleshof scavengers like pigs, ducks, and geese; filter-feeding shellfishlike shrimp, clams, oysters,mussels,crabs, and lobsters; deepfried, greasy,or heavily spicedfoods; and heavily sugaredfoods. Grains. Among the grains,rice and wheat are most favored,with oat, millet, and barley used sparingly, and only when cooked soft enough to

THREE

TREASURES

z9