zen-bear

Hi Sifu Garry, Just checking to see if you received my PM. I sent it a few moments ago. it's lengthy list of video contents, so you'll have this first. But when I sent it (twice) there was an unusual message from teh taobums software. let me know if it got through. If not, I'll send through outside email. I'm am now just digging out of what has been the roughest, most stressful challenging week of my entire life. Best, Terry

Sorry for late answer; I just saw your question now: No, unfortunately, I don't know of any teachers in the Pittsburgh area. (You must realize that Flying Phoenix Qigong and the White Tiger Kung-Fu (Bak Fu Pai) System that contains it are very rare and esoteric systems with only a small--and I mean real small--handful of qualified teachers.

Hi Lloyd, The 90-second Short Meditations (I call them "Flash" meditations) taught on Volume Five of the Chi Kung For Health series are very powerful stand-alone healing meditations in and of themselves. Yet they are also the "cherry" on top of the high-rise "sundae" that is the Flying Phoenix Celestial healing CHi Mediations system. I had hithertoo stated (quoting GM Doo Wai) that the Long Form STanding Meditation (taught on Volume 4) is the capstone of the entire system. That is entirely true. Once the student completes the basic level of the FP system with the Long Meditation with the breathing sequence 90-60-5-40-30, doing the Short 90-second meditations further solidifies the internal training...and also has a second very tangible effect that I will NOT describe here and spoil it for you (and for other readers); for it will only be disclosed to a student when he/she has just experienced the effect for him- or herself but can't quite put it into words, or is right on the verge of discovering it after putting in the diligent practice of long enough a time. That is when the teacher's teaching is most appropriate and effective. Thanks for your questions, Lloyd. Best, Sifu Terry

Hello Healerman, Depending on one's natural ability and background in Qigong and internal arts, and one's alchemic "compatability" with Flying Phoenix Qigong, it is possible to attain high proficiency in the basic level of the FP Qigong system from working with the DVD instruction. (And by high proficiency, I mean that a practitioner can demonstrate healing and rejuvenating effects on others by touch). However, there are advanced levels of the Flying Phoenix Qigong system that require the in-person instruction and supervision of a bona fide master of that system. Regards, Sifu Terry Dunn

Sifu Garry, Thanks for the corroboration on the wise words of Mencius. I just viewed your Short Forms Demo Pt.2. Wonderful, solid kung-fu. Was the first form (facing viewer) a YKM form? The opening looked very similar to what I learned aeons ago as YKM "Small Cross." (I also noticed it had a drop-to-knee take-down technique that you demonstrated in another clip shot in your studio.) And what was the last form in which you show (briefly) several symmetrical hand techniques in crane stance? Looking forward to chatting sometime soon on Skype or phone perhaps. Maybe towards end of next week or so, after I get clear of unexpected buzz around my recent business affairs. Your extensive offerings through your WBBM website is very impressive and I'm sure absolutely top-notch in quality. Be well. Terry

Hi Lloyd, Answer: No. Developing virtue--which to me is the same as morality-- is purely a function of a person's free will. If a person is not virtuous or moral, practicing Flying Phoenix Celestial Healing Qigong--or anything else--is not going to make him a virtuous or moral person. And if a person chooses to be virtuous, he will do virtuous deeds and life a virtuous life. If by chance he comes upon something as rare as Flying Phoenix Qigong and he utilizes it, it will certainly magnify his moral and virtuous spirit and empower his actions. The very best answer to your question is given by the great philosopher Mencius during one of those cyclical peaks of popularity of Taoist cultivation in ancient China, when lots and lots of people in places high and low were go gonzo over Taoist holistic health practices: martial arts, qigong, etc.: "Do not seek in your vitality (your health-preserving, longevity exercises) what you do not find in your heart." Best, Sifu Terry

Absolutely, Sifu Garry. I look forward to someday--hopefully soon--sitting down over Yum Cha and chatting about the remarkable arts that have somehow come to us...and then showing each other what parts of GMDW's Family system that we've managed to preserve. But that must proceed first through our video exchanges (--and thank God for our modern technology that makes this possible!). Best Regards, Terry

Hello Taobums and Flying Phoenix buffs -- I know this is quite far off the subject of Flying Phoenix qigong, but I'd like to bring to your attention to a legal battle that I have just instigated against a Hollywood film studio, Dreamworks Animation (and also Dreamworks SKG) that I contend in a lawsuit had pilfered my original concept, story ideas, key story elements, and the bulk of my cast of characters to make their film "Kung Fu Panda." In the months to come--for this will be a hard-fought litigation, I hope to continue my work as a teacher that the demonstrates my personal philosophy that "the art comes first". Regards to all. Sifu Terry Dunn http://thresq.hollywoodreporter.com/2010/06/tai-chi-expert-claims-kung-fu-panda-stolen-from-his-pitch.html http://abcnews.go.co...ory?id=10802772 http://today.msnbc.m...-entertainment/ http://www.imdb.com/news/ni2683505/ http://www.247online.ro/tag/kung-fu-panda/ http://news.yahoo.co...n_nm/us_panda_3 http://misstilaomg.c...con-fool-panda/ http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/reuters/100602/entertainment/centertainment_us_panda?printer=1 http://us.mg2.mail.yahoo.com/dc/launch?.rand=6e99vlp4qjs9c

Hi Garry (Sifu) Sihing, As I declared on my website (section Affiliated Links), and on Youtube comments under this clip of short form demos', you practice GM Doo Wai's Bak Fu Pai (White Tiger) Kung-fu and Ehrmei Mountain Bak Mei (white Eyebrow) Kung-fu at a very impressive high level. I have not seen any other student of GM Doo Wai demonstrate anything close to your level of kung-fu. This is naturally so because of your certified mastery of Yau Kang Mun, which is the rebel offshoot style of Bak Mei (for all you folks out there non initiated in southern boxing styles). GMDW's Bak Fu Pai is historically related to Bak Mei through the close friendships between GMDW's father and between GMDW with grandmaster Chun Lai Chueng, the last great master of Bak Mei Kung-fu. I have to check my notes and my tapes, but I believe the Bak Mei dragon forms came from GMDW's father's Bak Fu Pai. BFK has same the basic body mechanics as Bak Mei, Yau Kang Mun,and Southern Praying Mantis. And although I know you have worked your butt off and still are doing so, it is most fortuitous that GMDW had you, a sifu at your level, who was able to learn his Ehrmei Bak Mei and BFP and preserve it for the next generation(s) after GMDW passes. As I mentioned, because of my background in Tai Chi Chuan and northern internal arts such as Liu He Ba Fa and strong interest in energy healing after learning Tao Tan Pai, GM Doo Wai taught be a vast amount of his internal arts that complement my background. the most profound gift that he taught me was the 8 Sections of Energy Combined, a rare, ancient and remarkable Buddhist internal martial art that he learned from a monk at the Goddess of Mercy Temple in Macao (extensive clips of GMDW training me and 2 others in this system in the early 1990's will soon be on their way to you). Between the two of us, I think we might have a small percentage of GMDW's knowledge: maybe 40-50% I would you venture guess? btw, I also found the video clip on GM Doo Wai's Myspace page where he acknowledges you as, I recall, the sole recipient of his family's Ehrmei Bak Mei kung-fu. Congratulations. And take care of yourself because you've got a lot to preserve and teach! best, Sihing Terry Dunn P.S. I'm so thrilled to know you through this new technology--the web--it is quite amazing that we can now collaborate and help each other preserve GMDW's positive legacy. AND THANK YOU, LLOYD MCCLELAND, FOR ASKING ME TO SIGN UP ON TAOBUMS AND CHIME IN ON THIS DISCUSSION THREAD THAT YOU STARTED! OTHERWISE, I WOULD HAVE NEVER KNOWN ABOUT SIFU GARRY HEARFIELD!

Hello Nic, a) With good posture and two-shoulders' width horse stance, just hold a stationary and enlarged wuji (wu chi) posture with back straight while keeping shoulders relaxed and sunk. How you hold that wuji circle completely relaxed will show you how far forward to bring your shoulders when you do Bending the Bows. Besides that basic benchmark, it really doesn't matter how far forward the shoulders come as long as you stay relaxed, the shoulders do not rise, and you don't create tension. Hope this helps. Great that you're doing 40 minutes a day of Flying Phoenix. Best, Terry Dunn P.S. To add new meditations to your training, you can follow this schedule which is close to how I teach my Qigong classes: (Again, your start is a good one with Monk Gazing at Moon and Bending the Bows 40 min. a day.) You can work up to this sequence by adding one new exercise each week: Gazing at Moon, followed by Monk Holding Peak, followed by Monk Holding Pearl (3 stationary med's). Then do Bending the Bows. Then add Wind Above the Clouds (50 40 30) and do every weekday for a week. Next add Wind Through the Treetops (80 50 30) and do everyday for a week. That's 4 new meditations added one per week (or faster if you want---no harm in that). Then do these 6 FP meds for a good 3 to 4 months. Then learn Moonbeam Splashes on Water (90 60 50 20), which is more complex form. [Make sure you do this and all the other FP moving meditations at a speed 3x slower than typical tai Chi form speed.]

Hello Biff, Yes, one can do the Flying Phoenix seated meditations in crossed position as opposed to 1/2 lotus or full lotus position. Many people of leg injuries or conditions don't permit them to sit in half lotus comfortably for any length of time. But if it's only a matter of stretching and conditioning to get into the position, then I would recommend trying to do them in 1/2 lotus. --And if one is confined to a chair or wheelchair and can't sit on the floor or ground, then seated that way will also work. As long as one is seated with back straight (even with back propped up against a wall or piece of furniture is fine, btw), and can breath deeply, the Monk Serves Wine meditations will work well. I have gotten reports back from students and dvd users that say that they get good results from doing the FP meditations (MSW) seated in a chair. This includes two amputees back in the 90's. I myself have not done the MSW exercises in a chair so I can't say with any certainty whether doing them in 1/2 lotus is more effective than doing them seated in a chair. All I can say is that the MSW meditations were designed to be done in 1/2 lotus. I hope this helps. Terry Dunn

Hi Lloyd, 'surfacing momentarily to respond to your post: First, I'm glad to hear that you're feeling bountiful energy from the FP practice that allows you to go longer in your cardio workouts. Are you certain that the performance enhancement is fueled by the FP energy--as opposed to just plain old cardio conditioning increasing your stamina? Just playing devil's advocate for a second to make sure that you're being objective. About using FP med's for illness: Be careful not to confuse it with a spedific cure or remedy for a particular disease. It is NOT. FP qigong's forte is threefold: (1) strengthens immunity; (2) Dissipates/transforms stress like few other qigong methods can; (3) cleans and purifies the human organism so that it functions better (is more perfect in its self-regulation) and thereby imparts longevity. Its practice will definitely strengthen your immunity so that you're less susceptible to illness. it will definitely dissipate stress, including chronic, somaticized, time-bound tension. and if you practice it daily, it will definitely lengthen your life span (you can feel it actually happening once you've been practicing it for a few years). But once you are ill, you need to use whatever traditional western medical remedy or holistic, naturopathic remedy, or Chinese medical treatment is called for. Proven fact: FP Meditation is effective to accelerate healing and recovery from a major surgery, after the whole bodily system has been "flattened"--and can replace the use of pain-killing drugs in many situations. But its therapeutic application is only ancillary--not principal. It's not meant to replace medical care--western or eastern. Through regular practice (and not even that long-term), FP Qigong can develop profoundly high levels of energy--but it's a distinctive healing energy that cannot ever reach an "O.D." level. The Qigong method is so simple and natural that once a maximum duration of the vibratory state has been reached (and it varies form person to person according to the total amount of tension and the "configuration" of the tension in their system), the vibration automatically shuts down. Also, the more one practices, the vibrations become more refined and the body shakes less, until every cell of the body is permeated by the FP energy and, like GMDW, the body doesn't flinch one 1/100 of a millimeter while practicing the Qigong. The fact that you find some patterns and directions of movements more powerful or energetic than others jibes with what the ancients discovered when they created internal martial arts like Tai Chi, Bakua and Hsing-I, etc. They made key martial movements out of the most powerful patterns: outward circling = Wave hands like Clouds; inward circling == "brush knee" and "Snakes Creeps Down"; tangent to any circle. Like other martial arts based on perfect natural movement (e.g., Tai Chi, bagua, etc.) the FP meditations become easier to, more effortless, and more health-giving with more practice. That you find some movements easier or more effortless to do than others is purely a function of the unique "tension quotient" in your mind-body. All the movements of the FP Qigong exercises are purely natural and "frictionless" and therefore can be practiced to point of being totally relaxed and effortless. The solution is simply to PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE and PRACTICDE. day in and day out--but without strain or obsession. (That is what makes for better kung-fu, btw) Hope this helps. best, Sifu Terry

Hello Rene, The reaction you described that your girlfriend had (pressure in the head and heart starting to race) is unusual and not the typical contact high that folks in proximity with FP practitioners feel--which is becoming more relaxed and feeling "mellow". This is especially true of pets. FP meditations are very calming and so benign they will calm and put your pets to rest! Not that we will all become like St. Francis of Assisi, and have wild animals cooo and lie down at our feet, but I've experienced and my qigong students over years have reported very calming effects that are "contagious". But NEVER has anyone reported that their FP practice had brought on a stress or panic reaction in others closseby. My students, friends, my girlfriend, and my unusually hyperactive 4 year-old beagle all get mellow and cozy during and after my FP practice. It sounds like your girlfriend might have suffered a possible panic attack. It's possible that being around your FP practice caused her to subconsciously relax some repressive mechanism that was holding back the hypertension symptoms, and caused those symptoms to be released. Or, if you happened to be carrying a lot of serious stress and heaviness, and were to venting or exorcising it through the FP practice, because of your psychic and sexual connection with your girlfriend, that energy might have transferred to her. Question: Were you thinking of and concentrating on your girlfriend when yo were doing the FP meditations? At any rate, without being there to observe both of you individually and the dynamic between you two, I can only conjecture as to what might have happened to cause your girlfriend those symptoms. There are too many variables for me to say anything conclusively. (And too bad I wasn't present because those symptoms are very easy to take off a person...after one has completed the FP training and learned GM Doo Wai's healing methods.) At the previous location where I taught my FP Qigong every week for 7 years (the 2nd floor studio a major ballet school in Los Angeles where I rented space) , the caretaker of the studio always said to us on our way out that he was regularly "blown away" by the effects he felt downstairs underneath us when we were doing the seated FP Meditations (the "Monk Serves Wine" series). He described feeling the same effects that we all felt from doing the seated FP med's: a = "swooshing", liquid, washing sensation throughout the brain matter underneath the skull, which at first was totally startling, but then he got used to it and said that it was a cool "high." So the effects of group practice of FP meditation can be quite profound and far-reaching. Also Rene, I recall that you said that you practice Santeria to some extent. You might thus examine what type of spiritual work or operations you've been doing lately (if any), because your girlfriend's experienced pressure in the head (throbbing temples???) also sounds very much like spiritual fallout. Flying Phoenix qigong will only intensify the energy impact of spiritual work--whether it's clean work or sloppy work. Best, Sifu Terry Dunn P.S. If any other practitioners of the FP Qigong have experienced any type of "unusual, untoward, perplexing, non-ordinary phenomena ...please feel free to share your experience and I'll try to clarify for you (if I can).

Hello Nic, Thanks for sharing your background and recent experience of the FP Meditations enabling your best running time ever. Answer to your question: Yes, it is quite typical for Flying Phoenix Qigong practitioners to feel a boost in their energy reserves and enhanced athletic performance right after practicing FP. As for your reported enhanced performance from just one session of the 5 basic Standing FP exercises: I have similar experiences reported to me over the years by students (and dvd users) who are martial artists, top athletes in various sports and professional athletes. As I related to Bill (Baguakid), I regularly use the FP exercises before and sometimes during a grueling long-distance bicycle ride or everyday during a backpacking trek. (In my own experience as a teacher, I was fortunate to have as a laboratory control group the Los Angeles Lakers in 2000 - 2001...when I trained them in basic Tai Chi and the FP qigong for 50 minutes at the start of every home practice session in Los Angeles. While I can't claim FP Qigong as the prime factor, it certainly was a contributing factor that year, as the Lakers won their 2nd World Championship in the NBA. I will venture to explain the benefits you experienced were a function of: (1) Your already excellent state of health and fitness made more efficient and "frictionless" by the Flying Phoenix Qigong. For the functional definition of this style of qigong as given by Grandmaster Doo Wai is: "FP Qigong puts all the organ systems of the body under the regulation of the subconscious mind." so when you are doing an sustained workout such as running a couple of miles, a 5k or 10K, you enter that meditative "zone" that many long distance runners speak of. For that is precisely the same Zen state of "no-mind" or "not doing" that allows the energizing effects of the FP meditations to manifest. (2) the fact that you have NOT had other Qigong training that require too much conscious focus or visualization to muster internal energy.[footnote A] And thus your system was the perfect tabula rasa. Your body and mind was unpolluted, and the power of the Flying Phoenix Qigong--which purely lies in its simplicity of method--was able to empower and enhance your athletic performance in a tangible and measurable way. Thanks again for sharing. Best, Terry Dunn P.S. Footnote A: Many systems of Qigong require elaborate and mindful visualizations in order to muster or generate supernormal levels of internal energy, qi. I do not favor these methods for athletes --especially pro athletes because some (not all) of those visualization methods can become mental hinderances or blockages to attaining peak performance. Because in peak athletic mode, you are accessing the primitive ("reptilian") mind that governs "fight or flight", and you don't want to program extraneous psychic or philosophical GUNK in there. As you know, the FP meditations work without any type of visualization: you do the breath control sequence and then hold posture and perform the movements. Then the energy comes. It just comes...as every practitioner has reported. btw, here is one of the nicest AND most accurate reviews of the effects of Flying Phoenix Qigong (Long Form Meditation) from another very happy DVD user who posted it on amazon.com: Review Just Do It!!! May 10, 2007 By Four Tusk Njoku "Njoku" (Philadelphia, USA) – I could have given it 4 stars for still being in DVD. First, this is a superlatively beautiful form to watch and to perform. Secondly, this is an advanced practice. It would take most people at least 6 months of regular practice going through the first three phases of this practice to develop the skills to take on Volume 4. It takes a special committment and perhaps that is not you and it is definitely not most people, so I have found. I give out Part OneChi Kung For Health ( Qi Gong ) - Five Standing Meditations of this practice to everyone I know, and about 20% of them take it up and they are most grateful. This is a great practice for body, mind and spirit. It is holy; it is healthful; it is scientific. Yet, there are no words. Just do the movements, memorize the movements, do the breathing exercises before. Do not argue, do not think. Just do, and you will see results. How did the ancient Chinese discover this? I discovered Terry Dunn's series about 12years ago. They were then on clunky VHS, very hazy looking tape (he called them poor production values), but his instruction was just as detail oriented and precise. His voice was just as calming and the taiji background music, he still uses. This tape is much better than the first and the second editions, but it really needs to make it into DVD with all the great navigation. But, get Part 1 and Part 2 and Part 3 and this. You will get to know your body and mind like the back of your hand and have access to reserves of energy. You will radiate it like the sun to others around you.Chi Kung for Health ( Qi Gong ) - Six Seated MeditationsChi Kung for Health ( Qi Gong ) - Two Standing Meditations SOURCE: Njoku, Philadelphia, PA P.P.S. Nic, make sure you always perform the breath-control sequences for each FP exercise EXACTLY as given. If you make a mistake in the sequence, stop, take three breathes to count yourself out of the meditative state, walk around a little bit, and then start again from the top.

F. Y. I., check out: Flying Phoenix Chi Kung thread ...here on the Forum.

"Man, who cut the cheese?? I think my eyes are burning!!" Vintage Cheech and Chong.

Just found this haiku chain. (I've been spending most of my taobums time on the Flying Phoenix Chi Kung discussion thread.) I actually wrote this on March 2 after I got totally moonstruck doing Tai Chi sword under the virgo-pisces full moon on that preceding Sunday evening. But am glad I can whip it out now to share: Dismissed from Heaven, He embraced the river's moon. Poet transcendent. It's my homage to Li Bai, towering Taoist genius (and China's most famous poet/wino/humanitarian) who wrote gems like this spontaneously and without correction while often totally sauced : 花間一壺酒。 A cup of wine, under the flowering trees; 獨酌無相親。 I drink alone, for no friend is near. 舉杯邀明月。 Raising my cup I beckon the bright moon, 對影成三人。 For her, with my shadow, will make three people. 月既不解飲。 The moon, alas, is no drinker of wine; 影徒隨我身。 Listless, my shadow creeps about at my side. 暫伴月將影。 Yet with the moon as friend and the shadow as slave 行樂須及春。 I must make merry before the Spring is spent. 我歌月徘徊。 To the songs I sing the moon flickers her beams; 我舞影零亂。 In the dance I weave my shadow tangles and breaks. 醒時同交歡。 While we were sober, three shared the fun 醉後各分散。 Now we are drunk, each goes their way. 永結無情遊。 May we long share our eternal friendship, 相期邈雲漢。 And meet at last on the Cloudy River of the sky.

Bill, You're welcome. I hope the FP Qigong system works for you and that you get good results. Make sure in the beginning to try to do ALL of volume One in a session (about 55 minutes), and at least 2/3 of Volume Two at a sitting (about 30 minutes). Each FP meditation imparts tangible energizing and healing effects, but when done as a system, they have a profound cumulative effect. A lot of dvd users have asked me how much of the material in the DVD's to practice at a time. In addition to what I've recommended here on this blog in past Q&A postings, and in addition to the Training Schedule in "Essential Guidelines for Flying Phoenix Training" on my website, -- last Wednesday in my 2hr. evening Qigong class and just today in my morning Qigong private lesson, I taught the following--each for 10 minutes, with constant form corrections: All 5 meditations of Volume One: 1. Monk Holding Pearl 2. Monk Holding Peach 3. Monk Gazing At Moon 4. Bending the Bows 5. Wind Through Treetops Plus: 6. Wind Above the Clouds (vol.3) twice 7. Moonbeam Splashes on Water (vol.3) twice I know that the FP Qigong is very effective and fast-acting, as many students and users of the Chi Kung For Health DVD series have reported and critiqued. Since you've practice a long time in various Qigong systems, i will add this additional commentary on FP: If you get this system under your belt (i.e., learn the material in Vols. 1 through Vol. 4...(vol. 5 and 7 are "extra" cultivation that deepen everything, but if you do Vols 1 to 4, you have gotten the basic foundation of the FP system. Besides a solid, tangible taste of the FP healing energy, you will also know enough about Qigong in general in order to evaluate practically all other medical Qigong methods. let me know what happens as you progress with your training. Best, Terry Dunn

Hello Bill, Thanks for explaining your particular problem with chronic fatigue and energy depletion from physical exercise. I cannot diagnose what might be the cause of your enervation from a distance. If GMDW is still practicing healing, you could consult him for dietary advice and Chinese herbal supplements as well as direct-from-the-source instruction in Flying Phoenix Qigong and other BFP internal methods. (Over the years, I have heard nothing good about the GMDW's students in the San Diego area,so I would recommend going to the source--if possible). You said that Cai Sang Fong told you to practice a lot of the standing wuji. But did you get personal instruction in wuji from him? Or did you use the instruction in the "Wujishi Exercise" book? I ask because 2 hrs a day of Wuji is good--but if you're not carefully taught and guided through practice and don't have near-perfect form, 2 hrs a day may be too much and--depending on your level of tension in your system--might be counter-productive. 2 hrs a day of Wuji should done under superior instruction and in the context of Tai Chi or other internal training. This is what I mean by context: When i was studying with Master Abraham Liu (1980-1992), he did not emphasize standing wuji--other than occasionally holding the wuji positions at the start, end, and separating 1st/2nd and 2nd/3rd sections of the Yang Long Form. I remember he specifically told all his students during a retreat (after someone asked him about standing wuji) that he would have us all do the circling exercise ("Wave Hands Like Clouds" in the bow stance, which I teach in my 1990 Tai Chi For Health DVD's) or just "flow the form", rather than stand in wuji. Also in 12 consecutive summer retreats in La Honda that I took with Master Benjamin Lo (another sr. student of Cheng Man-Ching, again, the only wuji standing we did was within the Yang Short Form. (in private instruction, Master Lo does tell students to do lots and lots of wuji standing--but this is after being completely versed and immersed in Form and his Push-hands, which he rigorously trains to the highest standards--to the nth degree.) In my Qigong classes, we do about 30-40 minutes of FP meditations that are very similar if not identical to Wuji. In my Tai Chi classes, on very rare occasions, I have my students do up to 1.5 hr of wuji standing (without a break) using a number of wuji positions. My way (as learned from my teachers) is to teach Wuji (the yin of stillness) to balance and ground Form training, which is the "yang" of activity. Thanks for you compliment about xintian/houtian. I think that the FP Qigong practice could be one effective means to address your chronic fatigue. Keep at it and let me know how it goes. Good Luck, Terry

Hi Bill, On the contrary: intense, prolonged cardio-vascular physical exercise in a person's early development, youth, up through adulthood and even old age is important to keep the whole organism strong and fit. Especially in America, where diet and healthy lifestyle (relative to the rest of the world--e.g., no death squads cruising your neighborhood and shoddy buildings collapsing on you when you're in grade school or crocodiles snapping you in two when go fetch drinking water) affords a strong people (from a vigorous gene pool of immigrants from all over for past 300 yrs) the luxury of having stronger Chi to work with from the outset. If you didn't grow up with an athletic lifestyle, one should at the very least do a lot of walking or hiking for up to 45 minutes aday. Basic stuff, listen to Dr. Mehmet Oz, who I know, and whose colleague and friend, dr. Greg Fontana, I worked under at Cedars-Sinai med. Ctr. in L.A. Regular aerobic, cardio-vascular exercise will open up and strengthen your system so that you'll benefit more from the Tai Chi or Qigong. I've taught Tai Chi and Qigong to a lot of pro athletes after they get into their late 40's when they start to feel their raw muscular strength starting to leave. Then they see the value of the internal arts. One tradition in China has young people practicing Shaolin "young or small forest" in their youth, and as they mature, they shift to "more" internal arts such as Tai Chi (this is not to say that Shaolin does not have its own internal methods, btw!!) My first Tai Chi master, Master Abraham Liu, a sr. student of Cheng Man-Ching, advocated doing all kinds of fitness training in addition to Tai Chi. He enjoyed playing golf and tennis and liked to do lots of pull-ups and chin-ups. If you don't have time because of work and family obligations, and you want to spend your exercise time on Tai Chi and qigong, that's wonderful. But if you have time and can afford lots of additional athletic activities, all the better. I love running and long-distance cycling (biking can get up to 7-10 hrs per day). Both become meditations for me where I blend in some of my Qigong methods. I also do lots of backpacking in the High Sierras and Rockies and push myself beyond past limits in terms of endurance--in order to build endurance. Like going from 16 miles a day to 22 miles a day above 11,000 feet with a 65 lb. pack.--and sometimes cross country with map and compass (I weight 155 lbs.) I never feel better than after a 5-6 day trek like that. No! doing aerobic exercise does not "deplete" the Qi. --whereas a lifestyle of drugs, sex and rocknroll if carried into adulthood will definitely shorten your life. Or if you do very dumb, unnatural exercise, in an unhealthy environment or with the wrong attitude, that will certainly deplete one's life force...and there are some really bad, hokey forms of exercise fads out there that fit that bill. (Tai-Bo was one of those. Geesh.) Anyway, even Cheng Man Ching said that Tai Chi well suits the Chinese culture's more sedate lifstyle--compared with the more vigorous American lifestyle. So, just fit Tai Chi, kungfu and Qigong into your lifestyle. And if one's athletic, everything reaches a higher peak experinece because of the internal training. And if one's lifestyle isn't highly active or athletic, then just enjoy the additional energy that Tai Chi and Qigong brings. As I said in my first answer to your question: you are asking about lifestyle--and how to complement it with Tai Chi/Qigong...or to anchor it with Tai chi/Qigong. Hope this helps. Terry Dunn

Hello Nic, You are very welcome. Enjoy your practice and of course feel free to ask questions here on this blogspace. It's pretty handy. For Qigong training is very nuanced and requires ongoing calibration--even with a system as self-contained as the FP. Best, Sifu Terry

Dear Lloyd, You're welcome. As you progress through the longer moving meditations of the Flying PHoenix system ("Moonbeam Splashes on Water", and the FPHHCM Long Standing of Vol. 4), you will discover that it is a very complete and balanced system that really is NOT as "yin" as you initially perceive it to be. Although it may seem "yin" because the it generates a purely healing energy. In terms of "yang" activity to balance your "yin" experience of the FP system thus far, you are asking about lifestyle. I have been very athletic all my life and live a very active lifestyle. I played seasonal ball sports all through my early teens, then was a gymnast in high school and college for a total of 8 years, got my first exposure to real kung-fu when during my sophomore year in college and these are the sports that I still do avidly: long-distance cycling, running, backpacking and trekking, mountain climbing (about once a year), swimming, surfing, and river sports. I tell all my students that for general fitness they should do long, sustained aerobic exercise (and I don't mean "aerobic" calisthenics popularized in the 80's by Jane Fonda!)--for at 45 minutes a day (minimum). But teaching for this long, I realize that everyone leads a different type of lifestyle. Most of my students of late are not highly athletic. That said, your alloted 25 minutes a day for aerobic exercise is not very much. If you can afford the time, I would up it to 45 minutes to an hour. (at least 4 times a week, I do 2 hours of aerotic workout--running, cycling, or both). At any rate, to answer your question: if I was limited to 25 minutes a day, I would be running, cycling or swimming during that whole time period. Back to FP: the Flying Phoenix qigong system is the medical (purely healing) qigong component within the White Tiger Kung-fu tradition. The "yang" arts that balance it are naturally the White Tiger martial arts. The intermediate Forms of the FP system need to be practiced until one can do them effortlessly. That means that to master the FP system, practitioners ultimately need to develop the same quality of stancework that's developed through Kung-fu or Tai Chi, which normally takes 3-5 years. While you've been feeling the energy effects of the FP Qigong from the very outset, they get stronger and more profound the better "form" you develop through the Intermediate and advanced FP meditations. Enjoy the practice and stay in touch as you work on "Moonbeam" and "FPHHCM"(the long standing med.) Best, Sifu Terry Dunn

Hi Sifu Garry, I forgot to answer this posting of yours. I guess my usage of the term Chi Kung (qigong) dates back to the mid 1970's about 3 years after I started training in kung-fu (Sil Lum 5 Animals). As I explained to Michael ("Tao Wizard") in my last posting: "I remember in the early 1970's when I was beginning my kung-fu training with Sifu Douglas Wong, there was hardly any mention of Chi Kung. There were hardly any books on the subject because it was jealously guarded secret. 40 years later, there are shelves and shelves of books on Qigong! What happened?? Did all the martial fraternities in China, all the Taoist and Buddhist spiritual orders suddenly decide to cough up the Whole Truth about their highest secrets? NOT ON YOUR LIFE. The fact is that many masters and adepts starting writing about (mostly) medical qigong systems for health because found out there's a market for it in the West. But starting in the early 1970's when we students and when our sifu's spoke about "the internal" it was with a grave reverence because we knew Chi Kung (how it was romanized back then) was most deadly and dangerous, because there are some forms martial qigong that can kill without leaving much of a trace, and undo a life system that no western physician (or most eastern doctors for that matter) can possibly explain through an autopsy." I think of Tai Chi Chuan as a complete martial art. It has what is known as tai chi chi kung (taiji qigong). But I would not describe the entire art as "martial qigong" because one can do the Tai Chi Chuan Forms for many years as a student without doing qigong. Likewise, LHBF is a complete martial art like Tai Chi Chuan. And it has its internal energy components. Likewise, Bak Fu Pai and YKM are complete martial arts. And one can go one for years and years and practice only the kung-fu forms, and not be taught the internal training, and so not reach the level of martial qigong. (Of course, once one masters the complete art of BFP or YKM, one is cultivated to the point where everything is martial qigong.) But would you describe BFP or YKM to the general public as systems of "martial qigong"? I just prefer to them kung-fu systems. Also, to give you an idea of how my usage of the term "martial qigong" developed, I only started using it after learning the Eight Sections of Energy Combined (BDG) from GM Doo Wai. This is because unlike any other kung-fu system I learned or have been exposed to, every single Form and exercise in BFP had an esoteric breathing formula attached to it--including all of the 8 Sections (or Forms). And one feels a distinct, martial energy with the practice of every component of this system. **I realize I might seem to be splitting hairs here in what I describe as "martial qigong" what I do not, but I make the particular distinctions based on: 1. what I understood Tai Chi Chuan and LHBF to be since I first started practicing them in the late 70's. 2. how my definition and usage of "martial qigong" is based on my experience with the BDG since 1992. 3. how since that time as well, I learned from training under GM Doo Wai the vast difference between purely medical qigong from the GM (Flying Phoenix Qigong), and purely martial qigong (the most destructive, life-dismantling energy arts that the GM taught--in addition to BDG). Sorry to be so long-winded. But that's how my usage came about. Hope all's well with your family emergency, Garry. Terry