Class 25: Finding the Spring Equinox in Everyday Life: Balancing Yin and Yang, Finding your Central Equilibrium, etc.

Description

This class focused on the Spring Equinox, the time of equal balance of light and dark days, emphasizing balance of opposites and new beginnings. We explore the fundamental role of the balance of opposites in Chinese Qigong practice in our everyday lives for our mental , emotional, and spiritual health: balancing yin and yang, finding our central equilibrium, and balancing excess and deficiency. The interplay and balance of opposites is shown to be an essential part of creating chi for healing in our postures, movements, emotions, and thoughts.

Some specifics:

• Bodymind Healing Qigong practices for birthing energy when we’re feeling stagnant or depressed.

• Practicing  Standing Meditation, Tai Chi, and Qigong as pathways to repeat the cosmogenic creation myth and give birth to light from “no-thing.” Cross-cultural creation myths in China from Wuji to Tai Chi; in Jewish mysticism from Ain soph to the Tree of Life.

• A next step on the path of Herbert Benson’s “relaxation response:” The Chinese relaxation response involves discovering “fongsung” (relaxed aliveness). Balancing the opposites: Experiencing light and heavy simultaneously in your practice.

• Healing imbalances in the body through a return to the origin of things. What is “the prima materia” in Western alchemy and how does it relate to “Wuji” of Chinese Qigong?

• Postural corrections and alignment in Standing Meditation for finding the stance of equanimity and “fongsung” (relaxed aliveness) .

• Balancing meaning and non-meaning, intention and no intention, in your practice.

• The story of the legendary founder of Tai Chi, Chang San Feng, tells of his finding such equanimity and “no thingness” that a bird couldn’t take off from his hand because there was nothing to push off from— an inspiration for how to practice of the Tai Chi movement “Grasping the Bird’s Tail.”

As always, the Bodymind Healing Qigong Extended Short Form set will be used to illustrate and build upon the topic of the day. To see the PDF description of the 9 sets of Bodymind Healing Qigong Extended Short Form set CLICK HERE.