One of the major purposes of this book is to stimulate Western scholars and medical society to get involved with and study this newly-revealed science. Hopefully other Qigong experts will be encouraged to share their knowledge with the public. I believe that in a short time Qigong will reach new and exciting heights in the Western world. This would be one of the greatest cross-cultural achievements since East and West opened their doors to each other.
Most available documents are not systematically organized and do not explain the subject very well. As I compile them and try to explain them in a logical and scientific way, I must use my own judgment, and I must explain them based on my personal Qigong background and my understanding of the documents. It is impossible for one person alone to do justice to this enormous field. You are encouraged to question everything stated in this text, and to always remember that many conclusions come from my own judgment. The main purpose of this book is to lead you to the path of study — it is not meant to be the final authority.
When you read this book, it is important that you keep your mind open, and let go of your habitual ways of thinking. When we find ourselves in a new environment or start studying something new, it is human nature to view the new from the standpoint of what we have already learned. Unfortunately, this tends to make us conservative and narrow minded. This is commonly seen in tourists who visit another country, but judge the local customs and behavior according to their own country’s standards. This usually leads to a lot of confusion and misunderstanding. If, however, you try to understand other people according to their own culture and historical background, you will have a much better chance of understanding their behavior. Please do this when you start studying this science of Qigong. If you keep your mind open and try to understand it according to its historical background, you will find it a fascinating and challenging subject.
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It is true that it is very hard to break from tradition. In many old cultures, tradition must be obeyed absolutely. If anyone is against the tradition, he is considered a traitor to the culture. However, the correct approach to research and study involves questioning tradition and proving its inaccuracies through the use of modern thought and technology. This is especially necessary in regard to ancient sciences which were developed before this century. New study will allow us to prove and establish their accuracy. You should understand that this is not a form of betrayal. It is our responsibility to prove the truth and bring facts to light.
Many of the theories which have been passed down were based upon many years of experience. Regardless of how you modify a theory, the fact is, it is still the root of the entire science. Therefore, the correct approach to study and research involves respect and study of the past. From this respect and study, you will be able to find the root of the entire science. If you forget this root, which has been growing for thousands of years, you are studying only the branches and flowers.
You should judge this inner science of Qigong in a logical and scientific manner. Of course, the words “logic” and “scientific” are not absolute terms. They are relative to the science and understanding which we possess. Remember, though, that although science has been developing for thousands of years, it was only in the last hundred years or so that it suddenly began to swell in the width and depth of its understanding. We can be sure, therefore, that our understanding today is still in its infancy. There are many facts and phenomena which cannot be explained by today’s science. Therefore, when you read this new inner science, be logical and scientific, yet don’t reject explanations which lie outside of what you presently accept as true. What is accepted as true in a few years may be quite different from what we now accept.
All sciences were developed from daring assumptions which were then proven by careful experimentation. The results which we get from our experiments allow us to modify our assumptions and to create new experiments which explore our new hypotheses. This process enables us to develop a complete theory, and determine what next needs to be studied.
It is the same with Qigong practice. If you look and study carefully, you will see that, although many of the Qi-related theories were proven accurate and have been widely used in China, there are still many questions which still need to be answered.
During the course of study you must be patient and persevering. Strong will, patience, and perseverance are the three main components of success. This is especially true in Qigong training. Your will and wisdom must be able to dominate and conquer your emotional laziness. I believe that a person’s success depends on his attitude toward life and his moral character, rather than his wisdom and intelligence. We’ve all known people who were wise, yet ended up losers. They may be smart, and they pick things up more quickly than other people, but they soon lose interest. If they don’t persevere, they stop learning and growing, and they never achieve their goals. They never realize that success demands moral virtues, and not just wisdom. A person who is truly wise knows that he must develop the other requirements for success.
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In addition, a person who is truly wise will know when to start and when to stop. Many opportunities to succeed are lost by people who are too proud of their intelligence. There is a Chinese story about a group of people who competed in a snake-drawing contest. One man completed his drawing of a snake faster than anybody else. He was very proud of himself, and he thought “I’m so fast I could even draw four legs on the snake and still win!” So he drew the legs on, but when the judge chose the winner, it was somebody else. The man was very upset, and asked the judge why he didn’t win; after all, he had finished before everyone else. The judge said: “You were supposed to draw a snake. Since snakes don’t have legs, what you drew was not a snake.” So, as smart as the man was, he didn’t have the sense to know when to stop.
A person who is really wise understands that real success depends not only his wisdom but also on his moral character. Therefore, he will also cultivate his moral character and develop his good personality. Confucius said: “A man who is really wise knows what he knows and also knows what he does not know.”2 Too often people who are smart become satisfied with their accomplishments and lose their humility. They feel that they know enough, and so they stop learning and growing. In the long run they will only lose. Remember the story of the tortoise and the hare. If the rabbit had not been so proud and satisfied, he would not have lost the race.
Once you understand what has been passed down to you, you should be creative. Naturally, this creativity must be under one condition: that you must understand the old way clearly and thoroughly. Only after you understand the old knowledge to a deep level will your mind be qualified to think “what if...” Then you will be able to come up with good ideas for further study and research. If all Qigong practitioners only practice the old ways and never search for new ones, the science of Qigong will stagnate at its current level. In that case, we will have lost the real meaning of and attitude toward learning.
This book is the most fundamental of the YMAA Qigong book series. It offers you the foundation of knowledge and training practices which is required to understand subsequent YMAA Qigong books. This book consists of four major parts. The first part will briefly summarize Qigong history, explain the necessary Qigong terminology, and discuss the major Qigong categories. The second part will discuss the theory and major keys to Qigong training. This will enable the Qigong beginner to enter the door to the Qigong garden, and will offer the experienced practitioner a directory to the various types of Qigong. The third part will review the Qi channels and vessels to help you understand the Qi circulatory system in the human body. Finally, the fourth part will conclude the discussion in this book, and list some of the many questions I have about Qigong.
References
1. When Chinese medicine refers to an organ, such as the spleen, kidney, or bladder, they are not necessarily referring to the physical organ, but rather to a system of functions which are related to the organ.
2.
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