IS PRACTICING EXERCISES NECESSARY TO OVERCOME PAIN AND ILLNESS
Sifu Leonard performing Plucking Stars
Sifu Leonard Lackinger
Shaolin Wahnam Austria
14th August 2013
At a certain point of one's progress, students can enter chi flow directly without having to practice an exercise first. (Nowadays even fresh beginners get this skill transmitted in Sifu's Generating Energy Flow courses!)
We in Shaolin Wahnam know that it's not the exercise, but the chi flow that clears blockages and therefore overcomes away and illness.
So, in theory, there is no more need of exercising. Just entering chi flow regularly should be sufficient.
But it is still more effective to practice an exercise before entering chi flow! Even for masters who can tap energy from the cosmos and have the skill of directing chi to wherever they like.
Why?
Sifu had some fun with letting us guess the answer at the courses in Austria this year. Now it’s your turn to guess!
Sifu Leonard performing Flicking Fingers
It's time to solve the riddle.
Thanks to everyone for participating!
Talking about a regular practitioner the cost-effectiveness is greatly enhanced by choosing an appropriate exercise for his current needs and aspirations.
In this respect Andrew's and Stephen's answers are correct:
"A river can be allowed to flow freely and provide water, but with tools like canals, dams and pumps it can be manipulated as necessary. A practitioner can allow their chi to flow freely and receive benefit, but with certain exercises it can be greatly enhanced as needed."
"The external forms give different kinds of chi flow which can then set a precedent as to how one would practice."
But a master with highly developed skills is able to generate a small universal flow or bone marrow cleansing, tap energy from the cosmos, have a cosmic shower or massage internal organs without practicing any exercise first. So, in theory, he could just tap the needed amount of energy and send it to his blockage.
The question was why it is even better to practice an exercise for masters with these skills to overcome pain and illness. Overcoming illnesses is more of a theoretical subject for these masters as they should rarely occur, but for speeding up the curing of injuries, practice of lower level exercises like from the 18 Jewels followed by self-manifested chi-movement is still the best choice.
Although being the least important factor, the physical movement is still an essential part of medical Chi Kung practice.
David's answer "Is it because the techniques themselves give benefits by affecting certain aspects of our energy systems?" is not very precise, but yes, they are affecting a certain aspect of our energy systems.
Roland Siheng hit the nail on the head!
"An exercise like Lifting The Sky as an example may help a practitioner to loosen and open the muscles, tendons, joint and meridians more and more which will result into a enhanced chi flow."
Often energy gets blocked in the muscles and joints. Especially at the knees it is often not the meridians being blocked, but the energy being stuck in the flesh around, that is causing pain. The physical movement of the exercises helps to release the blockage on this level.
Sifu also explained that often pain is overcome by everyday tasks and gentle movements like walking, cleaning or washing the dishes, especially for non-practitioners. So every single movement one makes (without tension) results in an energy flow. The energy flow from everyday movements takes a lot of time and might not be strong enough to push through a bigger blockage, so practicing Chi Kung will greatly enhance the speed and power of the recovery.
As a side note this also explains why Rotating Knees is helpful to people suffering from knee pain even when practiced on the level of form and why we are allowed to show it to them. Of course they would not gain the benefits of strengthening their kidney system and the holistic benefits of Chi Kung, but they have a good chance to overcome their knee pain.
I raised the question here, because interestingly most initiated practitioners (including myself at the mentioned course) tend to think of highly sophisticated answers.
But the answer is so simple: "It is the physical movement."
Best wishes.
Sifu Leonard Lackinger
Shaolin Wahnam Austria
http://www.shaolin-wahnam-wien.at/.a?
The above discussion is reproduced from the thread Is Practicing Exercises Necessary to Overcome Pain and Illness in the Shaolin Wahnam Discussion Forum.
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