Hun Yuan Qigong Part 1

Introduction
The twelve movements of the Hun Yuan Qigong are the foundation of the Hun Yuan tai ji system as
taught by Master Ma Bao Guo during his five year stay in th UK. Students practice this qigong until
a good level of competence is achieved before moving on to any of the Tai Ji forms.
History and Lineage
The Hun Yuan Qigong was developed by Grandmaster Feng Zhi Qiang. Grandmaster Feng, already
an accomplished eternal gongfu fighter, studied Xinyiquan with Han Xiao Feng and Chen style
Taijiquan with Chen fake. He went on to create his own style known as Chen style Xinyi Huan Yuan
Taijiquan and is recognized today as one of the most skilful and innovative living masters in China.
The Hun Yuan Qigong is an integral part of this system.
Master Mao Bao Guo Honorary President of the British Hun Yuan Tai Ji Association studied the Hun
Yuan system with Feng Zhi Qiang,s disciple Master Wang Chaihai and has since developed the
qigong set in a unique way incorporating his own insights. In particular Master Mas qigong has a
strong flavour of Wudang and Emei styles in which he is also a lineage holder.
Function
The Hun Yuan Qigong serves three functions:
1. To build up the student's health by improving the circulation of blood and qi, massaging the
internal organs and loosening and opening the joints.
2. To train the student in the basic body alignments and structure of Hun Yuan Tai Ji. Without this
foundation the more complex forms are no more than empty displays and true martial power is
unattainable.
3. To provide advanced training in the various forces and fa jings, most particularly to
comprehensively train silk reeling force, the whole body twisting and spiralling which in Master Ma's
Tai Ji is developed to a very intense level.
Characteristics
The Hun Yuan Qigong is practiced at three levels. At the first level the movements are slow, large
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and relaxed moving in simple circles and lines. At the second level many variations are introduced
with the movements increasingly emphasising whole body twisting and spiralling. At the third level
the forms become less distinct. The practitioner freely explores change: from large to small, from
fast to slow, form soft to explosive. At this level martial power generation is fully developed.
In addition to mastering the external physical movements which in the higher levels can be intricate
and complex, there are specific breathing patterns which strongly open up different parts of the
body. However theses patterns are usually only taught to indoor students and Master Mas advice to
beginners is to simply breath naturally without strain or effort.
Each form within the Qigong activates specific qi pathways and centres. However Master Ma warns
against trying to direct the flow of qi with the imagination. It is better simply to do the movements
with calm relaxed awareness and let the movement direct the qi.
The Wu Ji Stance
The starting point as with most qigong sets is the Wu Ji stance.
The feet are comfortably shoulder width apart, knees slightly bent and the weight focused on the
Yongquan point, not the heels. The back is held straight with the head gentle lifted from the
occiput. Shoulders relax out to the sides so the armpits open naturally. Arms hang loose with
palms soft and slight rounded.
There are two distinctive features of Master Ma's interpretation of Wu Ji. One is that the tailbone
hands down straight in a natural position rather than tucked under. Master Ma believes that many
western students tuck their tailbones in an exaggerated way which causes instability. He often
demonstrates this with a push!
Secondly the ribcage is naturally open and rounded. Master Ma believes that both in China and the
west many teachers misunderstand the classical saying that the chest should be empty by an
exaggerated dropping and depressing of the ribcage. The true meaning of the saying, according to
Master Ma is that the qi should be allowed to descend by releasing any tension in the solar plexus
and diaphragm.
Closing Movement
Master Ma completes each movement of the Hun Yuan Qigong with a simple closing action intended
to focus the practitioner's awareness in the lower dantien.
(These instructions follow the male sequence, women reverse all directions) The hands are held in
front of the abdomen in a gesture similar to the zen/chan meditation mudra , left hand outside the
right hand. The arms are circled three times clockwise and three times anti-clockwise and then
returned to Wu Ji.
First Movement - Sink the Qi and Cleanse the Organs
This movement encourages the pracitioer to relax and release tension downward through the body.
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This is viewed as a cleansing function in which sick qi is eliminated through the Yong Quan point.
The movements are a variation on a very common qigong movement with one important distinction
: the use of opposite force - as the arms rise the body sinks and as the arms sink the body rises.
Opposite force is the foundation of martial power in Master Ma's system and this simple exercise is
the first step in its development.
From Wu Ji raise the arms up in an arc until the palms face down over the Baihui point. At the
same time sink into the kua. Bring the arms down with the palms facing the body until the palms
are pressing down towards the ground. The body rises out of the kua. Allow the intent to release
tension right down to the feet. Breath in as the arms rise and out as they fall. Repeat 9 times as
described and then a further three times bringing the intent and the arms no lower than the lower
dantien. Finish with the closing movement as desribed earlier.
Second Movement - Gather Qi to the Three dantiens
This movement trains the practitioner to store and release force is the tendons and ligaments. It
loosens the joints and powerfully stretches the fascia connecting the arms to the spine. It is an
essential preliminary in the development of peng, liu, ji and an forces. The movements are guided
by the image of gathering qi into each dantien in turn. With practice this gathering feeling can be
experienced as a relaxed, expanded springiness throughout the body.
Part 1. The movements are the same as the !st movement except that the hands are brought not to
the Bai Hui point, but round in an arc in front of the body level with the Yin Tang point. Repeat
9-12 times and perform the closing action.
Part 2. Repeat Part 1 but this time bring the hands round in an arc level with the middle dantien.
In Master Ma's system this is accessed at the solar plexus rather than the centre of the sternum.
Repeat 9-12 times and perform the closing action.
Part 3. Repeat as above but arcing round to the lower dantien between the navel and the pubic
bone. Repeat 9-12 times and perform the closing action.
Third Movement - Open and Close and the Three Dantiens
This movement strengthens the arms, open the armpit and helps to expand the body laterally.
Regular practice will lay the foundation for a strong and stable peng force. The movement is guided
by the image of each dantien in turn expanding and contracting like a ball in coordination with the
arm movements.
From Wu Ji bring the arms up the front of the body into an "embrace tree" position level with the
upper dantien (yin tang point). As you breath in, expand the arms away from each other, as you
breath out compress the arms towards each other. Keep a strong mental intent of connection
between the hands. Repeat 9-12 times. Finish with the closing action.
Repeat with the arms at the middle and lower dantiens.
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Conclusion
We hope to outline the rest of Master Ma's Hun Yuan Qigong in later articles. What is presented
here is the bare bones of the first three movements. Even at this elementary level there are many
subtleties and details, which have been omitted because they require transmission from a skilled
instructor. The British Hun Yuan Tai Ji Association has instructors who are indoor students of Master
Ma, mainly in the North East of England.
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Hun Yuan Qigong Part 2
In my previous article on Master Ma's unique interpretation of the HunYuan Qigong, we looked at
the lineage and principles of these exercises and described the first three forms. To recap, practice
of these forms helps to programme into the body the relaxation, alignment and tissue stretching
which serves as a foundation for the HunYuan system. The forms also train the basic mechanics and
feel of peng, lui, ji and an, albeit in a very subtle and unobvious way.
In this article we are going to look at the next three forms of the qigong set. It is in these forms
that the silk reeling principle begins to be developed. In each form a chain of rotational movement
is established which, to paraphrase the classics is rooted in the legs, directed by the pelvis, flows up
as a wave through the spine and is expressed through the as a circle or spiral. Each form explores
the potential for movement in a particular plane.
Although there are no obvious martial applications to these movements, they contain the seeds of
most of the defence and attack strategies in Hun Yuan Tai Ji Quan. In the early stages of my
training Master Ma placed great emphasis on these movements, sometimes spending and entire
lesson weaving a continuous flow of improvised strikes, parries and throws out of the seemingly
simple forms. Later when I began to study the more intricate Tai Ji forms I was glad of this
repetitive grounding in basic movement.
Fourth Movement - Rub the Tai Ji Ball
This movement is easier to do than to describe! Starting from Wu Ji position, each arm in turn
makes a circle in the forward, vertical plane, rising up close to the body, extending directly forward
and then dropping down and circling back. The action is a chopping action similar to Xing Yi Quan's
Pi Quan although it is the little finger edge of the hand that chops down rather than the palm. The
two arms work in coordination: one arm extending while the other is withdrawing. Master Ma
emphasised that the arms should be coordinated and linked: "The two hands talk to one another."
The engine behind this movement is a horizontal rotation of the pelvis around the body's centre
line. As the pelvis rotates right, the left arm is extended and vice versa. It is essential that the legs
remain well rooted and the knees do not drop in as the pelvis rotates. With practice one can feel
the powerful torsional movement in the legs, pelvis and spine, which translates smoothly into a
linear movement in the arms. This is an example of seeking the straight from the curved.
The circles of the arms start small and close to the dantien and gradually expand to the maximum
extension that is compatible with good alignment. The direction of the arm circles is then reversed
and the arms gradually wound back in from large to small. Finish with the closing movement
described in the previous article.
When this simple circle is working smoothly, the practitioner can begin to add coiling to arm circles
so each arm-twists around its axis in coordination with the arms circles and pelvic rotation.
Fifth Movement - Sun and Moon Circles
This movement works with the same forward plane vertical circle as the forth movement. However
the way power is generated is totally different. In Sun and Moon circles the arms move together
rather than with opposite motion. From Wu Ji position, the first circle is forward up and out. Begin
by twisting the arms out so that the backs of the hands face each other in front of the dantien.
Raise the arms in front of the chest to the height of the middle dantien. As you do this the elbows
move up and out to the sides. Continue the circle by sweeping the arms forward and then down. At
the top of the circle the backs of the hands face forward and the elbows point downward. At the
bottom of the circle the arms twist back to the starting position.
As with the forth movement, the circles start small and get progressively bigger with each
repetition. The direction of the circles is then reversed and the movement winds down from big to
small. The Movement finishes with the closing sequence.
Three key areas of power generation are trained in this movement. Firstly the torso movement.
This is based on the same opposite force between the body and arms that is found in movements
one to three: As the arms rise the body sinks. In Sun and Moon circles we are looking for a flexing
wave force that travels up the spine and drives the arms out like a whip.
The second aspect of power generation is in the shoulder blades. This is the link between the spinal
wave and the arm circle. Many Tai Ji practitioners are weak and immobile in this area and would
benefit from this exercise. Each cycle of movement involves a rolling of the shoulder blades so that
at the top of the circle the blades have spread forward and out from the spine and at the bottom
they have drawn back close to the spine. The knack is to accomplish the shoulder blade movement
without hunching the shoulders at the top of the circle.
Finally as you perform Sun and Moon circles you will begin to experience a continuous spiralling and
unspiralling of the arms. This is the first clear expression of silk reeling in the Hun Yuan Qigong. At
an advanced stage this spiralling becomes an ever present aspect of Hun Yuan movement. The
combination of the torso movement, shoulder rolling and arm spirals creates a very smooth,
adaptable and powerful whipping action.
Sixth Movement - Earth Closes, Heaven Opens, Heaven Closes, Earth Opens
This movement works a similar circular force in a vertical but sideways plane. Much of the body
mechanics: opposite force, whipping force, spiral force have already been explored in previous
exercises. Master Ma emphasised the sixth movement in the training of explosive "Fa Jing and
shaking force. At an advanced stage this exercise was the basis of innumerable variations involving
twisting stepping and spiralling.
Starting from Wu Ji position, the arms move in and cross in front of the lower dantien (it is not of
great importance which arm is in front). The arms then rise continuing to stretch to opposite sides
until at the height of the upper dantien they draw apart and circle out to the sides and down. The
opposite force in the torso and the spiralling in the arms is the same as movement five. This
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constitutes Earth Closes, Heaven Opens. After a number of repetitions, the direction of movement
is reversed to form Heaven Closes Earth Opens. As ever we finish with the closing movement.
When the movement is done correctly, the practitioner will feel a compressive force n the torso and
spine as the arms cross, which releases like a spring as the arms separate. This adds a further
dimension to the expression of power. Master Ma stressed that the release must be allowed to
happen as a result of correct alignment, movement and timing rather than being made to happen by
muscular effort.
Movements Seven to Twelve
I do propose to describe the remaining movements in detail as they introduce little new material
and detailed description may seem tedious to the reader. Their names and functions are as follows:
7. Circular Extension and Contraction: Links arm circles and spinal wave to leg movement and
stepping.
8. Single Leg ascending and descending: Explores connection between Kwa, dantien and legs,
develops powerful ability to uproot an opponent.
9. Double Leg ascending and descending: Continues ideas explored in 8, strengthens wave action
in the spine.
10. Belt Channel Winding. Works with horizontal circles and explores torsional storing and release
between upper and lower body.
11. Returning Qi to Lower Dantien. A cool down movement to close the set and strongly store Qi in
the lower tantien.
12. Health Massage. Further cool down movements that rebalance the Qi in the rest of the body.
There are a number of teachers, mainly in the North East of England, authorised by Master Ma to
teach this set in its entirety. We also hope that Master Ma will return to the UK during 2008.
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