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Typical questions arise around the topic of Qi Gong and many have already been asked and answered. Below you will find the most important questions and answers on this topic.
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What is Qi Gong?
Qi means life energy, air, breath, smell. In Chinese philosophy Qi is the cosmic principle of being.
Gong means ability, method
Qi Gong is a traditional, practical art that harmonizes and trains body, heart and spirit.
Qi Gong has the objective of guiding the Qi consciously through the body while being completely relaxed.
Qi Gong is deeply rooted in the traditional Chinese philosophy and culture.
Qi Gong is based on the unity of the human being with the cosmos.
Qi Gong consists of simple, easy to learn exercises that already have an effect after the first lesson.
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What can Qi Gong do?
Qi Gong helps to maintain and stabilize a level of health by re-establishing the inner harmony.
Exercising for just 20 minutes a day helps your body to regenerate its energy level and will help you to better tackle the daily challenges.
The more often and continuous you practise, the stronger and more intense the effect.
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Origins of Qi Gong
- Qi Gong was developed through watching how the body reacted to certain movements. Therefore, it is quite difficult to define an exact date, but it is assumed that it is about 10,000 years old.
- Systematic exercises are at least 5,000 years old. According to ancient records, the origin can be found in dances and the copying of animal behaviour.
- Qi Gong comprises various different schools. There are about five mainstream teachings:
- Daoist School
- Buddhist School
- Confucian School
- Medical School
- Wu Shu School
- A distinction is drawn between soft, hard (self defense) and silent (similar to meditation) Qi Gong.
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Difference vs. Taiji
- Gong is easy to learn, as it consists of separate, short exercises which are repeated several times.
- Qi Gong takes effect immediately, even if the exercises are not executed perfectly.
- Qi Gong affects the body on a deeper level and thus the effect is bigger.
- According to my teacher, taiji is for fun und to maintain a certain level of health. Qi Gong is to improve your health.
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Who should practise Qi Gong?
- Qi Gong is not limited to a certain age, as everyone does the exercises as good as he/she can
- It is not some kind of sports, but a very gentle method to release blockages in the body and support the body in healing itself.
- Qi Gong helps to maintain health and is more and more used in China as well as in the West to regain one's health. It is mainly used in areas like: cancer, AIDS, cardiovascular problems, etc. (often in combination with Western medicine).
- Especially people who are facing daily challenges at work should use Qi Gong to balance themselves again.
- Qi Gong is not recommended during pregnancy.
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When to practice Qi Gong?
The best times for practising are:
- 5 - 7 am (sunrise)
- 5 - 7 pm (sunset)
- midnight (turn to the new day) - not for beginners
- In general Qi Gong can be practised any time.
- At least one hour after having eaten
- Never practise with an empty stomach (have some soup or tea before you start)
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Where to practise Qi Gong?
- The best effect can be achieved by practising outside (mountains, sea, big river, lake, where the air is clear and humid or near conifers, maple trees, weeping willows)
- In a quiet location where one isn't easily interrupted/disturbed, e. g. by dogs, telephone, cars, etc.
- It is better to practise inside in certain atmospheric conditions, e. g. strong wind, rain.
- Never practise near an oleander bush (they are poisonous and can cause pain)
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When not to practise Qi Gong?
- Around noon
- When being pregnant (except if you already have been practising Qi Gong for several years for at least an hour a day.)
- You have to be very careful when practising Qi Gong if you are in an emotionally affected state, e. g. death in the family, close relative, after having had a fight with someone, extreme stress
- During thunderstorms, dense fog, storms, hail, extreme heat, etc.
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What to wear when practising?
- Convenient clothes
- Warm socs or gym shoes (it is important that you don't have cold feet when practising)
- In winter, when practising outside: gloves, scarf, hat, etc.
- No jewellery (rings, bracelets, watches, etc.) - these would block the flow of the energy
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Is it ok to eat and drink before practising?
- In the morning you should have some warm soup or drink warm tea before you start to practise. It is important that your stomach is not completely empty. Otherwise this could cause stomach problems after a while.
- In general, you shouldn't start practising earlier than 1 hour after having had a meal. Otherwise the whole energy is concentrated in your stomach and cannot flow properly.
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How long to practise?
- You should at least practise 20 - 30 minutes a day, to achieve a continuous improvement of your health.
- There is no limit to the number of hours you can practise. However, you should have little breaks between the exercises as you need to concentrate during the exercise.
- Cancer patients in China practise Qi Gong between 6 - 8 hours a day, in 2 hour terms.
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What is the meaning of the Chinese characters?
Here a little excursion on the Chinese characters that you find on the homepage. Each letter combination is part of a whole and the whole is the balanced essence of Qi Gong.
 Qi Gong
 Long life
 Health
 Luck
 Harmony
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What's the difference between TCM and Western Medicine?
Western medicine mainly concentrates on treating symptoms. This can lead to side effects or the suppression of the origin of the disease and the disease will come back at a later point.
In Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) the person is seen as part of a micro and macro cosmos. The idea is that diseases can only exist if the body is not in harmony. Therefore, one tries to define the disharmonies and to re-establish the harmony.
Different techniques are used for the diagnosis: questioning the patient, face, pulse, eyes, tongue diagnosis
The treatment can be: Qi Gong, acupuncture, herbal therapy, moxabustion, cupping, scraping or massage.
This does not mean that Eastern and Western medicine are in competition with each other. Actually, they complement each other in certain situations extremely well and the biggest effect can be achieved by combining the two, e. g. cancer, Aids, etc.
In some cases Chinese medicine is sufficient and side effects of drugs can thus be avoided.
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