The Nei Gong Process
Whilst most people have heard of the term ‘Qi Gong’ nowadays, some of its true meaning has been lost in translation. Qi Gong is not something that you ‘do’ but something that you seek to attain. Qi can loosely be translated as energy and Gong means mastery or skill. Therefore the proper translation of Qi Gong would be – ‘the mastery of your body’s energy system’. When you first start out you do not have Gong, this is something that must be strived for and achieved through many years of practice.
Another lesser known example of the Chinese arts has a similar meaning. Whilst Qi Gong and Tai Chi set off around the World, another of the ancient practices, Nei Gong was kept a closely guarded secret. In this instance Nei means ‘internal’ and Gong once again means ‘mastery’. Defined simply it is: ‘The process by which a person may condition their physical body, cultivate their internal universe and elevate their consciousness’.
Nei Gong is not a set of specific exercises or movements. Rather it is a series of stages that a person may move through in their practice, given the right instruction. It utilises many different techniques including stretching, standing postures, Qi Gong movements, Dao Yins, mudras and meditations to allow a person to gain control over their internal energy systems. In the modern world where our physical bodies, our minds and our energy systems are constantly under attack by a myriad of different pathogens, it may well be beneficial to have a practice that can create strength and robustness throughout these three ‘bodies’ of man.
However good health is only a very small part of the Nei Gong process and for the adventurous few, the ultimate goal is the merging of the Spirit with the Tao and the subsequent achievement of immortality! Sadly, this may well be out of reach for most of us but the stages of practice have been developed and mapped out for us to follow if we so wish. In the school that I attend the Lotus Nei Gong School, the stages are as follows:
- Conditioning and preparing the physical body.
- Regulation of the breath and mind.
- Beginning the conversion of Jing to Qi.
- Awakening the energy system.
- Movement of the Yang Qi
- Attainment of internal vibration.
- Conversion of Qi to Shen
- Conversion of Shen to Tao.
Whilst this list is seemingly linear it is quite often common to jump between stages and to continually go back to the earlier stages and work at them from a different level of understanding.
Going to a Nei Gong class however is not for the faint-hearted. You would be forgiven in thinking that there might some be lovely graceful flowing movements, resulting in a deep sense of peace but this is rarely the case. The first time I went to one I thought it was more akin to a lunatic asylum than the Qi Gong classes that I had been to before. People were shaking, spinning and rolling around all over the floor. Others were laughing, crying and shouting with general hysteria. But what I really like about Nei Gong is that these things are perfectly explainable. As you start to build Qi, more energy starts to flow through the meridians. Sometimes this energy hits a blockage which can then result in a spontaneous, uncontrollable movement. Sometimes these blockages can be emotional in nature, and when this blockage is released, the emotion is often expressed.
Eventually (I am told) these things die down, as all of the junk and debris have been cleared from the energy system. It is then possible to go about working with the higher aspects of the spirit and the later parts of the process. Even before that though Nei Gong is a very intriguing and powerfully transformative experience. It is still relatively unknown in the West and we are fortunate to have a great class and a highly accomplished and knowledgeable teacher here in Glastonbury.
Trust in the process.