This article is part of a series on the Clear’s Tai Chi Big 8 Move Set. As you learn the set pay close attention to the following principles in all of the postures. Not just while doing Wu Chi. Eventually you want to be able to maintain this alignment while flowing through all of the postures in the set.
The following is from my book: Chi Energy Activation Cultivation & Flow. There’s a lot more instruction in the book on Qi Gong as well as more information & diagrams on Wu Chi so please check it out.
1. Hang From an Invisible Thread
Imagine that you are hanging from an invisible bungee cord that is lifting your body upwards and straightening your spine. The idea here is to feel buoyant like a ball floating on water and yet gravity is pulling your body weight down.
The cord attaches at the top and back of your head directly above the spine. Every other part of your body is hanging.
At first just stand this way and after you have practiced long enough that you can easily get into the feeling of this posture then see if you can walk around this way. Getting the feeling of the Invisible Thread is very healthy for the body as it aligns your posture and allows the energy to flow unrestricted.
2. Shoulders Hanging & Relaxed
Raise only your shoulders as high as you can so that you can feel the effort of holding them up. Then let the shoulders drop and relax as much as possible while breathing out to help to get the shoulders completely hanging and relaxed without tension.
If you are really standing with the shoulders correctly relaxed and hanging then It should be easy to swing the arms a little just by swaying the body back and forth. Also, the arms may feel a little heavy.
3. All Joints Slightly Bent & Relaxed
A simple way to help get the right position for this is to stand up straight and rigid then let go and relax everywhere just enough so that no more excess tension is being held anywhere in the body. In other words it feels like you just relaxed every part of your body.
Then sink a little and relax again the same way about another quarter to half inch everywhere. This should put you into the correct posture.
4. Eyes Relaxed & Look Slightly Down
The eyes are about half way between open and closed and very relaxed while looking slightly down. This helps to conserve energy and it actually increases the field of vision and helps make it easier to quickly perceive motion.
5. Relax & Drop Down the Lower Back
The ideal situation is to have the lower back drop so that there is no bend between the middle of the back and the bottom of the buttocks. This often takes work on the part of the beginner to get it right and may well require the assistance of another person.
It is possible to help develop this posture by stepping back against the wall so that the back of your heels are against the wall and placing your back flat against the wall and trying to get your entire back from the middle of your shoulders to the bottom of the buttocks on the wall.
After this can be done with comfort then step away from the wall and maintain the flat back position.
6. Spine is Pulled Straight by Gravity
Strive to keep your body weight under you and pulling down by keeping the head pulling up as if it is being pulled up by a bungee cord and the body is relaxed and the weight of the body is relaxed and dropping so that you feel the weight of your body as if hanging from the bungee cord.
7. Point Index Fingers Straight
Point the index finger while staying relaxed and keep the rest of the fingers relaxed and not bent but not particularly straight either.
8. Breathe In & Out From Belly
The beginning way to breathe is to breathe in and out from the belly. This may be a little difficult at first but it will become much easier with practice.
If you have never practiced belly breathing before it may be easier to learn to belly breathe by practicing the following exercise by itself first. Push into your belly with your fingers. When you breathe in use the air to push the belly out and move your fingers out of your belly with the air.
9. Tongue Lightly Touches Roof of The Mouth Behind the Front Teeth
The tongue lightly touches the roof of the mouth behind the front teeth while keeping your mouth closed.
Lightly means let the tongue rest there while keeping the mouth closed and breathe in and out through your nose.
This will connect the energy circuit between the Ren Mai and Du Mai Governing and Conception Vessel meridians causing the energy to flow without interruption. One of the first effects you may notice from this is that you will have more stamina.
10.Weight is slightly to the Front of Center over the Feet
You do not have to bend and drop into an uncomfortable position while you practice standing in Wu Chi.
You can actually stand up tall while you are practicing as you only need a few inches of drop. The biggest trick is to unlock your legs and let the rest of the body fully relax to the same extent. This is true for most of the standing Chi Kung presented in this book. my book Chi Energy Activation Cultivation and Flow.
Energy Activation
Wu Chi activates the energy and then builds and circulates it.
When practicing Wu Chi beginners may feel any number of sensations including but not limited to hot, cold, electricity, the micro or macro cosmic energy circuit or magnetic sensations.
Work with Wu Chi until you can feel the slight sensation of electricity or heat or until the veins on your hands look full when you look at them.
really awesome master.
So much useful information, thank you, you are appreciated.
Nice work Richard, great to see someone putting some quality instruction out there.