Qigong History


Ta Mo

Qi is the Chinese word for ‘life energy’ that flows through every living thing. Gong translates as ‘work’ or ‘benefits acquired through perseverance and practice.’ Together the two words mean; working with life energy – cultivating and accumulating an abundant energy flow through practice. The practice involves a system of self-healing techniques; balance, relaxation, healthy breathing, good posture, exercise and meditation.

There are numerous theories as to the origins of qigong. The earliest evidence of qigong type movements’ lies in the animal dances performed by shamans. Depictions of these animal dances and postures have been found in rock paintings throughout China. From dance it evolved into exercise. The recorded history of qigong development in China is often divided into four periods.

The first period begins around the time of Yi Jing (1122 BC) - the Zhou Dynasty (1122-934 BC) until the Han Dynasty (206 BC). The practice of Daosim and the desire for good health and divinity had a major influence on qigong development in this era. Daoists of that time were known to have used breathing exercises to circulate qi. Lao Zi’s classic Dao De Jing makes reference to breathing techniques to obtain health through working with qi.

The Han Dynasty (206 BC – 220 AD) to the beginning of the Liang Dynasty (502 AD) became the second period of qigong development. “The Yellow Emperors Classic of Internal Medicine” describes how with the understanding of yin and yang in life, exercises which combined stretching, breathing and meditation were formulated to promote energy flow. Around this time Buddhism also came to China from India. It is said a combination of movements was developed and introduced that incorporated the Buddhist mediations with qigong practices. This also bought qigong practice into the religious qigong era.

The third period is from the Liang Dynasty to the end of the Qing Dynasty (502- 1911AD). With qigong now in the religious sector, the combination of Buddhist mediation and movement forms were found to be invigorating and increasing power. The Shaolin priests integrated this training with martial arts and this expanded the strength and effectiveness of the techniques both for health and as a martial art. Many well-known styles of qigong were developed in this period and their theory documented. The fourth period is from the end of the Qing Dynasty to present . For the first twenty years or so after the founding of the People’s Republic of China, qigong was practiced and researched and the first qigong clinic was established in 1955. During the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976) qigong was prohibited although interest was still high and many still practiced. Now, qigong has spread worldwide and is practiced by millions. Today modern technology is being used to measure human energy field to discover how qigong benefits human health. This research is producing a lot of interesting studies and literature.