Qigong

One of the things I love about qigong is that it gives us a way to feel ideas in our bodies.

Qigong is a modern name for Chinese practices that include movement, breath, sound, visualisation and intention. Many of these practices draw on the observations of nature - the movements of animals, the strength and flexibility of trees, the flow of water, and the Five Elements of Chinese philosophy.

So we might imagine being a tree, with roots growing down from the balls of our feet into the earth. We can feel what it’s like to be held there, steady enough to rise up high. Similarly we can wonder what it means to be strong like a tree, whilst staying flexible enough to move through a storm. These aren’t just ideas to understand, but what we can explore through our bodies.

For me, that’s the gift of an embodied practice. I can read about the Wood Element, or hear someone speak about roots and growth, and qigong gives me a chance to feel those things. To sense my connection with the ground and with the world around me, and then to move from that knowing.

We need this medicine now more than ever. Our bodies are shaped by the lives we live - from the land we are on, to the work we do, and people around us. Times are hard at the moment. Many people are struggling and the world is too.

Qigong won’t change those conditions on its own, but it can remind us we are we are powered by the same energy that moves the sun, moon and stars. A re-membering that can make us both powerful, and humbly connected to everything and everyone around us.