Melt Stress & Gain Energy: The 5-Minute Daily Ritual You NEED to Try (Zhan Zhuang Taichi Meditation) 

Thank you thank you for that generous praise. I hope you benefit a lot from these practices! 😃🙏

Yea! I hope to see many people enjoying and benefitting from this type of standing practice. Because it will be great when more and more people become skilled at Tai Chi and enjoy being their natural and best selves! 🎉🙏

Thank you! The simultaneous duality is an ongoing theme in Phoenix Mountain teaching, flowing Yin and Yang until you discover harmony and blossom a new quality. 🏵️

​@@phoenixmountaintaichi yes, it's that simultaneous expression that most miss. They think either/or but not both at same time. I actually felt relieved when I heard you say it! You validated something I have been discovering and thinking but never heard anyone else say so clearly. Or at least say in terms I understood.😊 Thanks again.

Thank you for your comment! You can count on more and more sharing to come 😀

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That's very true! And to that extent, as people experience what it's like to move and feel better, the part of you that can understand and appreciate that experience, can grow and become your inner guide to success. It's like finding your way to a new place. The first few times you may rely on GPS or directions from a friend. But each time you go it becomes a little familiar as you enjoy the trusted guidance. And eventually, even though you didn't necessarily try to memorize it, you suddenly notice that you know the way, all on your own! Thank you for sharing your wisdom! It's a great thing to point out and appreciate! 🙏

Yes your understanding is spot on! By experiencing the two opposites you create the conditions for a harmony of the extremes to come into being. In Phoenix Mountain Tai Chi, we use this core concept over. Yin and Yang cycle until they harmonize and blossom. What does blossom mean? In a Tai Chi symbol, imagine the white and black part to rotate until they harmonize, but I don't mean that they blend into a grey circle. Instead, a dynamic balance forms and it's as if the spinning circles blooms into a 3 dimensional sphere, something more than the sun of its parts. Like you take a seed. And sunlight and water from heaven meets the physical nutrients of earth, and then, a tree grows, flowers bloom. In your body, you will experience a comfort, an unusual comfort. A balance, even though you may sway at first as you experience a new lightness. A tentativeness to your first movements, like a baby learning their arms and legs. And you may then experience again what we experience as children, an ease to movement that we don't have to think about, remember that? And then the conditions are there for a tree to grow, for you to become powerful, in time, in a natural, pleasant way. Thanks for your summary and I'm very happy you understand! That's what motivates me to share, seeing everyone improve together! 🙏🌲

Yes it is the unusualness of the thought that opens up the self to the complete experience. It's a physical meditation, like how Zen koans ask about trees falling in the forest and the mysterious sound of one hand clapping, opening up the mind to a greater awareness. It isn't as difficult as you would initially think, as long as you're open to whatever the opposites take you! Thank you for your comment and especially for trying it out! 😀

You might try other visualizations and you are welcome to. The ball of energy helps in detaching you from your conceptualization of your physical limitations. Because you may have thoughts like, my shoulders are tight, my back is stiff. So you visualize a ball of energy, and beyond visualization, experience, feel a ball of energy that pulses and inflated and deflates. Once you experience what it's like to freely inflate and deflate, you go beyond the quality of those two qualities to a state of real balance. And then you take that experience and begin to apply it to more and more of your body. In this way you create this capacity in yourself where you might not have thought possible, but can now begin to experience. If you are not particularly visual, but are kinesthetic focused you would do even better with focusing on feeling rather than visualizing. The expanding and shrinking is not limited by extensors or flexors distinction. Its more like a balloon animal that inflates and deflates slightly back and forth. Does this help you? Feel free to ask more questions if you like! And thank you so much for working on this, because I know you can succeed and enjoy something truly wonderful for yourself!

Thank you for telling me about this challenge! Perhaps the key is where you feel it and whether you feel it everywhere? Because you can feel expansion right? And you can feel shrinking yes? And when you intend for both at the same time, you may feel that some parts of you want to expand, and some parts of you want to shrink. It may not be both everywhere but that's fine. Because some parts of us are more yang and some parts of us are more yin. And the part of you that manages this balance of yin and yang knows which is which. So that means you can just aspire for expanding and shrinking both, and whatever you feel, is right, and that part of you that knows, alongside whatever you feel, can guide you to another feeling that you may begin to experience, or already experience but don't have a word for it yet. And that is what will guide you to a deeper relaxation and internal harmony, that you can begin to notice more and more as you continue this. The confusion you had felt is the right track. This is intentionally confusing for the mind, so that the mind can focus on the paradox and allow the spirit to take over. Or so that the mind can surrender and allow the spirit to take over. Either way is great. And confusion is the sign that you are on the right track. Success is just a little beyond it, or above it. You're almost there, and you can kind of feel it and that's why you commented and say you're going to have a few more trials, is it not? Enjoy your practice and I'll see you on the other side. 😃🙌

When you really consider if zhan zhuang is the only way to build Qi, you can consider how zhan zhuang, as people understand it today, is really only about a hundred years old. And how did all the legendary masters, Yang Luchan, all the members of the Chen Taiji family, Sun Lutang, and more, build their Qi, before Zhan Zhuang standing, that made them the masters they are? You're right to think that forms are not the primary avenue to build Qi, and you'd be right to realize that the essential training, in a complete curriculum, always had the exercises to sink chi to Dantien, complete the body and immerse it in Yi, and build Qi, and to do it before one begins practicing forms. Because the essential foundation of Tai Chi, Song Gong (Song Practice), efficiently does all of this. In this video, which is a standing meditation that gives you the quality of Song and improves both the Yi and unconscious connection of the body, you see that as the gentleman relaxed, his Qi naturally sinks. And as he sends this relaxation and awareness of expansion and condensing to every part of the body, the body is connected by Song and the Yi becomes aware of every part of the body. That is why his punch push becomes more effective. And when it comes to building Qi, does our Qi magically increase as we do zhan zhuang or any other exercise? If not, why does our Qi feel more powerful with practice? Because what really happens is that we are removing the obstacles to the full function and flow of Qi in our body. And the biggest obstacle to Qi flow within us is our intent and our tension. And that means Song, as it releases all of our tension and frees our mind, is an incredibly effective way to improve the power of your Qi. So while many people have attributed all benefits of Qigong, meditation, Neigong, all to Zhan Zhuang, history has shown us that in the era of the highest levels of Tai Chi skill, a multitude of great masters achieved the most profound Tai Chi skill using the essential Tai Chi Neigong, Song. I myself practiced standing in Zhan Zhuang, 45 minutes a day, for an entire year. It was beneficial for body integration. And when I really understood Song in Tai Chi, my skill in the internal arts entered a whole new realm. Today, when I teach my in person students, Song is what we begin with and it brings their body integration even beyond where I had reached doing standing meditation, in less time than it took me. And I am happy they can be successful, in less time, with more comfort. 😄 Thanks for the question! Check out our other videos on the channel about Song and let me know how it helps you improve! ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-J0RRN0bDxf4.html

@@phoenixmountaintaichi Zongqing Lin, Thankyou kindly for the time you took to write such a detailed explanation and reply. To paraphrase your reply to make sure i understand, It all Starts with Song to free our mind and tension, then our Qi will naturally sink. If we are aware of the expansion and condensing our yi becomes connected to every part of the body. The great masters didn't use the current static competitive Zhan Zhuang. Hence why your teaching a more dynamic way to discover Song and Yi Connection? The reason for my original question was I've heard a couple Influential neigong and Tai chi Teachers who seam to have real skills claim, That building Qi, is done through stillness like Zhan Zhuang or seated meditation. And that moving exercises just unblock, open, move, release and access the Qi you already have. I learnt Yang Tai as a kid, and i'm quite alliterate on the theory and technical aspects of Tai chi. All of my very limited understanding has come from direct introspection, curiosity and playing. And the Above statement Chi is only built through stillness, Just doesn't make sense to me. And goes against my personal experience and understanding. I am curious to hear your perspective on that. Thank You

@@phoenixmountaintaichi It is a great boon to humanity when a Teacher arrives and is able to communicate complex topics and distinctions in a clear and simple way. This is so evidence in the comments section of your videos, not just from newbies like me, but from advanced students who have been on the path for a long time. Also, by your personal example, you embody the deeper principles of the psychospiritual integration that one exhibits through deeper internal practices including kindness, generosity, and a buddhic faculty. Thank you Shifu Lin, I'm glad you've remembered who you are !!

​@@DrEricRobinsThank you for the beautiful comment! I have Tai Chi practices to thank for being able to live happily and fulfilled, in a way that makes it easy to be kind and generous. And that's part of why I want to share these methods, easy methods that anyone can benefit from, and deeper ones too that can help people really become who they are meant to be. Good point too about remembering who I am! I have taken detours before in my journey of life, that may not have been as completely me as they could have been, but perhaps that is just how this journey was meant to be. 😀🙏

​@@Ninjaotakudirect introspection, curiosity and play is the best way to gain skill and experience. All you need is a little guidance on ways to play and explore! There are more than one path to develop the awareness and control for energetic and spiritual mastery. What one needs is something that bridges the different realms of the physical, energetic, and spiritual in a way that allows you to experience the connection between them. One such method is by breathing, because breath affects your entire physical being, and is related to how energy flows, and how your consciousness comes into existence. Sitting and static meditation tends to use this method. The challenge is that this is subtle, you essentially sit or stand still until all distraction, physical or mental or emotional, falls away, until you notice something even more subtle. One tradition, for instance, says to meditate until you can feel the beating of your heart, the pulsing and pumping of each organ. I think one would have to be incredibly talented and focused, to reach this goal. Another method is via fascia, because fascia spans your entire physical being, and is where the energetic meridians and channels embed with your physical being, as well as where our spiritual self aligns with our physical existence. Consider how you imagine your soul or spirit to look, is it more like a ball in your gut or brain, or more like an outline of you that is attached to you? This is the fascia way of bridging all the layers. And because fascia is so related to movement, intentional movement practices can be very effective ways of developing our awareness of our energy and spirit. Because it's easy to feel when your movements feel good, and easy for good movement to affect our mood, and energy, and spirit. So this is, in many cases, just the easier way. In the later history of Qigong, zhanzhuang became popular, and certainly has a minimalist appeal. And there are great, minimalist masters out there. I don't advocate for unnecessary complexity, and you can see that in the videos on here. We can definitely appreciate the benefit of having easy to use tools, to help us achieve meaningful goals and clear milestones though, can we not? So go ahead and play and trust yourself to the extent that is good for you. Because a part of you really wants the best for you, aside from any intentions regarding you the other masters may have. And that spiritual and playful part of you is the part of you that really learns and masters these internal practices! Feel free to ask any more questions. Welcome to our community! 🙌🙏😀