QI GONG & MINDFUL

MOVEMENT PRACTICE

I have been teaching Qi Gong and Taiji practice as mindful movement meditation since September 2010.  The practice sessions currently take place between 9-10am CT in Grinnell on Tuesdays, and via Zoom at 9-10am CT on Thursdays.  The  sessions are offered on a free-will donation basis to a charity of your choice.  Suggested donation amount is $5 to $10 per session.  It is open to anyone 14 years and older.

Hun Yuan Qi Gong is the focus of this group movement practice.  It is the internal practice of Xin Yi Hun Yuan Chen Style Tai Chi developed by Master Feng Zhiqiang. "Qi" is the Chinese word for the breath/ life force; it is also used in the context of describing the relationship between physical form, energy and spirit. "Gong" is the Chinese word for practice/achievement. The two words are combined to describe systems of cultivating vital energy and its unobstructed flow to enhance the health of the body, mind, and spirit. Hun Yuan Qi Gong is gentle and accessible. It entails a combination of relaxed and spacious breathing with circular and repetitive movements, and specific mind-intent/ visualizations.  The movements are simple and adaptable, accessible for people with a wide range of physical capacities. As a supplement to the Qi Gong practice, I began teaching Simplfied 24 Yang Style Taiji form in 2017. In addition to 30 years of Taiji and Qi Gong practice, I bring to the group my own cultivation of mindfulness.  I also bring my deep aspiration to meet life with curiosity, trust, kindness, compassion, and love.

Qi

Active cultivation of life force/vitality and its unobstructed flow. As an aikido master describes: “It is the activity of life, the essence of spirit. … It is tinier than an atom and more awesome than the galaxies. It is the vital essence of the universe, the creative energy of God. It fills the universe and all it contains from its beginning to eternity.” (Quote from The Way of Aikido by George Leonard)

Spiritual

Expansion beyond ideas of fixed and separate selves to connect with the universal and dynamic unfolding mystery; harmony with the natural flow of the universe; embody the interconnectedness and balance of phenomena – stillness and movement, rootedness and uprightness, relaxation and alertness, humility and power, softness and strength, precision and fluidity.

Mindfulness

Open, curious, unconditionally befriending, non-judgmental awareness of direct present moment experience, including sensory perceptions, emotions, thoughts, behavioral impulses and actions.

Breathing

Natural, relaxed breathing. Visualize expansion of the whole body with the inhalations, and throughly relax and release through the exhalations.