The Basics of Chi
Chi is the energy created by awareness and is used to trigger physical movements. It is stored in the belly and can be influenced by factors such as air quality, food, and stress levels. Chi exercises start by focusing on deep belly breathing and expanding awareness to physical sensations. By pushing the energy to a specific location, the person can become more aware of the sensations, memories, emotions, and thoughts associated with it. Regular practice will increase the strength of the energy and it can be gathered from natural sources. Tai Chi and Qi Gong are recommended for learning additional chi exercises.
Chi represents the Need of Consciousness – to Do.
**Note: there are many other aspects of Chi/Qi that are beneficial to understand and work with, however, they are excluded from this introduction in order to apply a laser-like focus on the aspects we all share in common with one another: a physical body. The descriptions included are purely my own.
Chi generally follows the pattern of being stored in the belly by the process of breathing and digesting food and is transferred to the various areas of the body as needed for the speeding up or slowing down of our natural rhythms and activities. The quality of air you breathe and food you consume, the purity of your water and the level of stress you are used to will all have subtle (and some not-so-subtle) impacts on the intensity and strength of your chi. Beginning to be mindful of the quality of your nourishing (external) environments is a good first step in becoming more aware of your internal environment.
Let's begin with some basic chi exercises. Start by taking a few deep breaths through your nostrils. The air should fill your lungs, with your belly expanding outward on the inhale, and contracting inwards on the exhale. Be sure to keep your diaphragm rested and as still as possible. It can help make sure that your waistband or belt is loose during this exercise.
Continue to focus on your belly during this breathing for a few minutes, then expand your awareness to physical sensations in your body: hot spots, cold spots, tingling spots, and placid spots. When you have a place that consistently feels one of these sensations after several breaths, you will have located the objective of this exercise. If you have never worked with chi before, burping and mild shaking are expected at this stage. A warm sweater or blanket can be handy!
Take a deeper breath into your belly. Feel the sensations as they run from your nostrils, under your brain, down your throat, and into your stomach. Feel the swelling and heat of your vital energy. On the exhale, push that energy consciously to the objective you located. Pay attention to all physical sensations, memories, emotions, and thoughts that arise. Allow the energy to move around this space for a few breaths, then on the inhale, draw that energy back down into your belly. Always finish your energy work with this final step to recover the energy expended in this exercise. Afterward, write down the sensation type, location, and what happened when you moved your energetic presence to that location.
The more you work with this energy, the stronger it will get. You can also gather energy from natural sources like breathing fresh air, consuming fresh produce, or pulling in the energy through your hands. We do not draw energy directly from other living beings, as this is stealing. If you are interested in learning different methods of Chi exercises, I recommend taking up practices like Tai Chi or Qi Gong.
