jeffrey yuen qigong

Jeffrey Yuen Qigong

Last year, I had the opportunity to take a qigong meditation course

with Daoist Master Jeffrey Yuen. It was held at the classrooms at

Daoist Healing Arts in Asheville, North Carolina. Parts of the state

had been hit hard by hurricanes but things were pretty much back to

normal while I was there. Perhaps, the weather had something to do

with the packed class. But, there was space for all and it was a

particularly learning time for me. I'm not new to qigong, several of

my Asian bodywork teachers have taught me the various styles they have

learned. My experience in Asheville was special, and one that I may

not forget for a while. I learned about an amazingly simple yet

complex method to stay balanced when all about may be confusion.

We often have these ideas about what we think qigong is, based on our

practice of yoga, or other disciplines. Jeffrey stated out by telling

us what Daoist Meditation was. Here are some things he had to say:

Daoist Meditation is different than other meditations; also involved

is healing.

It focus's on the physical body. The body is the vehicle to redeem the

spirit.

It is not about achieving a particular state. That becomes an obstacle

of itself.

It is not necessarily exhilarating. There is difficulty looking at

oneself; pain comes to term.

You relax, concentrate and if you are able to maintain concentration,

you meditate.

In meditation you are doing nothing and becoming one with silence.

Anywhere you wait you are given the opportunity to meditate.

Meditation is a form of qigong. Qigong is not necessarily a form of

meditation.

It was a day long session and the entire morning was filled with a

detailed explanation of the basics: breathing, postures and awareness

or the preliminaries in preparation to meditate. One discipline of

meditation is perseverance, where if you faithfully practice you will

"reach sensation". He says that pain in the body is its way of saying

to give it more attention. Meditation is the arousal of yang qi to

move obstacles. The best time to practice is the dawn when the suns

energy is about to rise. It is a good time to develop psychic

energies.

Focusing to the point of exhausting our sense organs we reach pure

sound etc., where there is noting left to see, hear or feel. That is

called the surrender to nothingness or Wu way or Tai Qi (not the Tai

ji you do in the gym). He shared with us special breathing techniques

and ways of sealing organs. He says it is important to discover the

microcosmic and to relax the points associated with it. You can

meditate sitting as it is the most popular but you could stand which

strengthens the kidneys or lying down which affects the lungs or you

could walk which affects the liver.

The experience of Qigong meditation with Jeffrey Yuen was most

enlightening and refreshing. There is a set of preparation excercises

that we did to prepare for meditation in the afternoon. I'm was

impressed that just doing the preparation I saw immediate improvement

in my health. I have a tendency toward lung problems and wheeze at

times. but not as I walked the steep walkways of the city when I went

to get my lunch. My lungs were as clear as if I'd gotten a shot of

something to open them and No wheezing! This was an unexpected benefit

which made me look forward to the afternoon session even more. I was

not disappointed and would highly recommend Daoist Meditation to

anyone who askes me which method I think is best. In terms of which is

best depends on what the person is looking for. As complicated as life