After a Yuan Qigong practice many experience a state of calm – a relaxed, natural state from which life can be approached with more ease. But an externally focused life, emotional reactions, and overactivity can quickly deplete the Qi that enables that state. Nourishing Qi (Di Yuan) teaches how to build up a reservoir of Qi in the body, specifically in the special storage areas called Dantians, to extend the state.
Nourishing Qi is a “standing” practice: Held postures and graceful transitions bring the focus inward, correcting the outward-going habit and fostering integration and unification in stillness. Because of its focus on breathing, its inward focus, and the strong Qi effects it engenders, Nourishing Qi may be difficult to begin with. Persisting in its practice helps to curb the external-going habit. And changing focus can completely change one’s life!
The course is presented in three sessions, with four or five topics in each session covering the how-to of the physical movements and the accompanying mind activities. The audio guides of this method are longer than in many of the other methods. Nourishing Qi is a quiet, peaceful practice that requires time to be fully appreciated. The course also includes videos on Dantian breathing and a short, supplemental practice.
"I've received positive comments from everyone in my family about my change in attitude as I've become more calm and stable. Practicing to stay still and focussed is exactly what I needed." B.S. France