Qigong, or ch’i kung, translated means breath work or breathing exercises and we can use it to build up our internal energy or ch’i. We need an adequate supply of ch’i to each organ to maintain good health, but just as important is the free flow of this energy through the meridians.

In China there are Qigong clinics where people can go to be treated with Qigong either by a doctor or as a self help exercise.

The patient learns the Qigong exercises so that self-healing takes place and this is obviously the best way. If however the patient is in no fit state to perform the exercises, then he must first be treated externally. This involves the doctor ‘putting in’ his own ch’i into the affected part or into the whole body.

If we are to heal ourselves we need a normal flow of ch’i, but if we are to heal others we need an extra amount of ch’i. This means that we ourselves must be fit and healthy, and apart from building up an extra supply of ch’i, we must also learn how to put it into others. This is a very simple practice physically but is quite difficult to learn mentally.

In order to heal others with ch’i we must know the meaning of yin and yang and how to cause different parts of the body to become yin or yang by using the mind. Once this is known, usually after many years of practising an internal art such as T'ai chi ch’uan or Taoist yoga, we then have to build up our supply of ch’i and learn how to get it into another person. A Chinese doctor confronted with a mild disease will stand in a Qigong posture for around 10 minutes to build up his immediate supply of ch’i. When he knows that he has enough to give he will either place one palm onto the affected area, use point massage, acupuncture or tui na (Chinese massage). All of these healing arts make use of ‘putting the ch’i in’. The first method uses a point called pericardium 8, near the centre of the palm. This is the healing point and is where the ch’i is able to escape and enter another either for the purpose of healing or in the martial arts. Point massage uses acupuncture points, pressing the relevant ones with the fingers and ‘putting the ch’i in’.

Acupuncture also uses this putting in of ch’i via very fine needles. The acupuncture point is activated by the needle and then the doctor puts the ch’i in via the conductor. This is a more effective way of getting the ch’i in as the electrical resistance of the skin is overcome. Tui na is a massaging technique that makes use of points and squeezing, manipulating techniques.

If someone has to be treated for a major ailment the doctor will fast or only eat fruit for 10 days and practice Qigong three times each day for at least 20 minutes each time. Only in this way will the doctor’s body and mind be strong and clean enough to perform the difficult healing session.

From - Buddhist Meditation - Contemplation of the Mind