Requirement: Qigong 1 and 2
Chinese Medicine and Qigong enjoy a long history of relationship, mutually influencing each other in their approach to health and longevity. The Gourd is the symbol of Chinese medicine, and the cauldron is the symbol of the Taoist arts of health and longevity.
Your introduction to the Gourd and the Cauldron begins with Hua Tu Five Animals Qigong, one of the most well-known systems of health practices. Hua Tu was the founder of Chinese medicine, and his animal qigong forms are designed to enhance both physical and energetic health. In this qigong, the tiger trains tendon strength, the bear trains bone strength, the deer focuses on preserving generative energy, the monkey trains agility, and the bird sends energy from the base of the spine to the head.
As you continue to explore the Gourd and the Cauldron, you will enter the world of Immortals’ Guide to Self Massage and Breath Regulation and the Red Phoenix Calisthenics. Here, you will learn how to use techniques of breath regulation to work on specific health needs such as improving knee and hip mobility, introducing flexibility into tendons and ligaments, aligning the spine, stimulating bone marrow growth, and strengthening qi stored in the internal organs.
The highlight of Qigong 3 is an evening practice that is designed to strengthen bones and increase bone marrow density. Minimizing the risk of bone fracture and breakage is an important part of preventative medicine.
Our exploration of the world of the Gourd and the Cauldron ends with learning how to let qi that is circulated soak deep inside the body. After we have moved qi through the body, we rest in the relaxed stillness of four more standing qigong postures, allowing what we have practiced to have long lasting benefits.
Everyone who has taken Levels 1-2 is encouraged to come to Level 3. This includes those who have been doing little, or even none, of the earlier Qigong practices. The Qigong path is not strictly linear, and it is not to have achieved some mastery of Level 1-2 to move on to Level 3.
If you have taken Levels 1&2 at Sky Lake in December 2019, we are offering a 10% ‘repeater discount’. If you are taking advantage of this, please leave a note in your registration and pay just the deposit, NOT the full amount. We will then revise your balance. Thanks!