QA with Bruce

[Anonymous]

The audio skips in the Q&A for Module 2.
There’s a jump in the audio at 00:10:02. The question I asked was about Binaureal Beats Meditation, but the answer corresponds to another question (which is not completely heard) about Bulging disks.
Is it possible to replace the audio with a complete one ?

Erwan

[Anonymous]

I was trying some of the lengthening training sessions from Bruce’s lectures from the 3rd month Training Circle Session. Couple of days I have tried to practice by implementing the concept of “Lettign Go/Lengthening” into Dragon and Tiger Qiqong and Taichi.

I had a history of shoulder injury and had a flare up almost a year ago when I started learning Taichi. Then I figure out to practice Qiqong and Tai Chi without aggravating the issues. So for almost a year I was pain free and doing great. But I had a flare up the other day when started implementing this lengthening into the practice, not only the already injured shoulder also my other shoulder started hurting too.

So my question is, is the 70% rule applicable to the lengthening too? Is lengthening also supposed to be gradual phenomena like you have mentioned with sinking and feeling the Qi and all the good stuff?

Thanks in advance,

Till

[Anonymous]

Sifu Frantzis,

For Longevity Breathing, should one gently expand the Hui-yin on inhaling and contract the Hui-yin on exhaling? (Or, for reverse breathing, contract the Hui-yin on the inhale and expand it on the exhale.)

I’ve read that this is a “secret” and I would like to ask your advice about the practice.

Thanks!
Jeff

[Anonymous]

Hi Bruce
A question on beginners’ qi gong:
Largely thanks to following your advice in these Training Circle videos, I can clearly feel my qi sink down to my diaphragm and also down my left and right channels to the kwa (perhaps because I also do Dragon & Tiger regularly). In the rest of my belly, though, the feeling is pretty inchoate.
When I do the weight shifting exercises, I have been dropping my qi only to the diaphragm because that is the lowest stable level that I can currently achieve. Is that the most effective thing to do, or would it be more effective if I drop down to my kwa in the left and right channels and let the rest of my belly catch up in its own time?

Best wishes

Geoffrey

[Anonymous]

I was wondering about this in the last couple of days as well. This advice seems most frequent when dealing with the microcosmic orbit.
Is there any particular relation or connection between “opening the dang” and intentionally lifting the hui-yin?

[Anonymous]

When seated sinking to the dantien do you sink qi down the arms and torso or just the torso?

[Anonymous]

Meditation/Sinking Chi…/Dropping Chi from Brain?
As outlined in modules I,2 & 3 I have tried very hard to aquire some feeling of Chi…. Is it synced with rhythmic breathung? …Is it a seperate entity ?
Since joining the Circle (which I very much enjoy and look forward to each month),I do not appear to be makeing any inroeads with Quigong & Meditation, haveing practiced each for half an hour each day, since beginning The Circle. When standing I feel most of my musculature is relaxed, similarly I concentrate on this,together with generally “opening up” in sitting, to no avail that I am aware of.
I “feel” I’m getting somewhere in Tai Chi (practiced Yang for some years),especially with silk reeling..however, altho “relaxed” I just cannot understand or get any feel of “dropping chi” .
Any guidance gratefully accepted. I have alraedy taken onboard explainations in feedbacks.

Oh yes! Some of the Beginners feedback gets very detailed, they feel Chi all over their bodies..how do they recognise this phenomenan? Would it be possible to differentiate in feedback question between Beginners, Intermediate and advanced practitioners?

I have found section 3.5 in Tai Chi modul, re opening paricularly helpful. Great demo’s and explainations. Thank you Bruce

David c

[Anonymous]

Question/Problem: Head – lack of feeling and inability to dissolve qi.

From the shoulders down to my feet, the process of feeling an energy buzz is increasing, but my head remains isolated.

Scanning procedure:

– top third of head, a sensation of opaqueness from crown down to cheekbone-ear area,
– in this second zone, I am aware of a pressure in my sinuses (full of liquid accompanied by a post-nasal drip) and ears where I also have a low-level of tinnitus. I have tried to focus on these zones to see if I could start an unblocking process, so far without success,
– lower third of head: mouth-jaw area often tight feeling especially when I am concentrating on some other activity – working at computer or practicing some taiji forms as kicks – a problem similar to the one of holding my breath in the same circumstances.

Request: suggestions on ways to work on and improve the blockage situation in the second zone of my head.

I am thoroughly enjoying the program and find that my reviews of previous sessions uncover elements that – in that moment – have become meaningful and therefore can be incorporated into my practice. Thank you for your help.

CJ

[Anonymous]

Hello,

Hope I’m not too late for the Module 4 Q&A.

I started adding kwa squats into my routine and I was wondering if you could talk about how to best incorporate kwa squats into a standing practice ( before or after standing, how many to do) and the benefits/functions of kwa squats as well as the kwa in general (types of imbalances that can result from tight/closed kwa, etc.)

Thank you,

Tim

[Anonymous]

Chi Gung and Sleep,

Hi,

I often wake up at 4 or 5 in the morning, practice for an hour to an hour and a half, and then go back to bed and get up at 7. I then wake up feeling incredibly fresh, awake, smooth and flexible.
After a normal night’s sleep, even if I practiced Chi Gung before going to bed (which tends to make it harder to find sleep), I always wake up feeling rather “rusty”.
How is it possible to get the benefits of Chi Gung to extend to a full night’s sleep and always wake up feeling as refreshed as I found it to be possible?

Thanks in advance,

Erwan

[Anonymous]

Hemorrhoids

Hi again,

I recently worked on developpping a regular SanTi practice, but as I reached 40 minutes (20 on each side) I got hemorrhoids, as I sometimes do, and I got afraid I had caused them by practicing incorrectly, so I backed off.
I would like to know what elements of Chi Gung practice could lead to hemorrhoids and should therefore be avoided when one has a hemorrhoidal crisis, and which ones could be helpfull in relieving them,

Thanks in advance,

Erwan

[Anonymous]

Hi Bruce
Thanks for these training videos; I feel I have made considerably more progress than I would have done on my own. If you have the time to answer the following questions, it would be much appreciated.

I seem to have accessed a deeper level of sinking, so that I don’t quite get down to my belly and lower tan tien within my allotted hour. Would it be more effective to sink a little less and cover more of my body or continue at my current level and wait for the sinking to speed up naturally?

Also, in one practice session I felt a shaft of emotional energy zip through my body – the first time I have had a very clear sensation of emotional qi as opposed to etheric qi. It felt a pity to waste it, so I checked out where I had already sunk etheric qi to test whether I could spot other places filled with emotional qi and sink those. (I found a couple). Is it best practice do this if the sensation occurs again or better to treat it as a distraction and continue working solely on etheric qi?

While following standing with energy gates cloud hands, I find the “down hand ” causes the “up hand” to rise but the points of most extension don’t reach a 70% stretch. Would it be better to let the energy take me as far as it can or to extend that extension with physical stretching?

Many thanks

Geoff

[Anonymous]

Module 5 question

In the qi gong section Bruce talks about sinking the chest. He says we should not drop chi below the tan tien in the beginning to the public bone and groin.

Question- When do we know we are ready to drop chi to pubic bone and groin? What is the reason for not doing this in the beginning? I assume its because nothing will drop there anyway. Once we do drop chi to pubic area. Is it true that we dont want to stop there and want to continue dropping chi in sections until we reach our feet?

Thank you

[Anonymous]

Sinking or dissolving downward

Hello,

While sinking we are instructed to always go downward equally front back and sides of the body, like a water level going down inside a container. This is easy to understand when standing in neutral posture with arms at the sides
(I sink the elbows at the same time as the diaphragm, the wrists at the same time as the pelvis, etc.)

But how should we proceed when we are sanding in other postures where the arms are at different heights?

For example, in San Ti, where the upper hand is at face level and the fingers point towards the sky, do we start sinking the tips of the fingers as we sink at nose level, then go down the fingers as we sink down the face, all the way down into the wrist, which we sink simultaneously with the shoulder and end in the elbow ? If the hands are above head level, do we sink them first and only start sinking the head as the “water level” reaches it?
Or should we sink all the parts of the arms in the same order AS IF we were standing in neutral position (for example, always sinking the wrists at the same time as the pelvis), whatever their actual position in space?

Also, are the guidelines the same for dissolving downward or are they different ?

Finally, how should we order our sinking and our dissolving when performing them during a moving practice (3 swings, SPC, TaiChi form, etc…)

Thanks,

Erwan

[Anonymous]

This circle is doing wonders – many thanks.
2 questions have developed as I practice:

– Concerning taoist breathing:
I am a flautist, so I am trained to breath in in under a second whilst the outbreath can be over 30 seconds and more. I have mindfully emptied my cup seeking to also be able to balance the in and out breath with the wonderful instructions and exercises you have given. Whilst I see progress I have wondered if there is something I can focus on specifically or practice to help my inbreath relax more/even better into equal balance with the outbreath.

– Concerning beak hands:
Thanks to Cavel’s instruction I have already come a long way, from barely being able to get four fingers to meet to now the left hand’s fingers finding each other, though still feeling a little tension – from the sword hand becoming uncomfortable after a couple of repetitions to easily moving through D&T movment 6&7 without strain in my hands and fingers. As I patiently practice, I have wondered if it is better to abide by the 70% rule and just allow the fingers to go as far as they can on the day, or if a closer resemblance to the beak hand would help the fingers “find their way” due to the energtic advantages of it, despite a slight tension being caused.

Many thanks for this learning opportunity and your wonderful guidance.

[Author]

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