The Master Key

Qigong.

Qi is for Life Force.

Gong is for “work or practice.”

Put the two together and we have the science of cultivating our Life Force plus the art of applying this energy in service to the greater good.

Hard to imagine something more powerful to master, eh?

That’s from a chapter called “University Days” in which Robert walks us through his experience as a student and then as a professor of English literature at a university in China.

Think about that for a moment.

Robert STOPPED the second hand on a clock with the power of his Qi.

*rubs eyes*

Can you believe it?

Robert shares a number of truly astonishing stories to capture the power of mastering our Qi via Qigong. He tells us: “Many of the events I describe in the early chapters might sound surreal because they defy the laws of physics. For a long time I refrained from sharing these stories publicly, but I eventually discovered that people who heard them became profoundly inspired to study Qigong. Therefore, I decided to include them, for I trust these stories will expand your vision of your own human potential and inspire your practice.”

In addition to the clock-stop, Robert can also slice a chopstick in half with a “Qi-energized” dollar bill. He and his Qigong club buddies could also press a chopstick against their throats and break it in half. Oh, and, perhaps most impressively and importantly, they can heal people with the force of their Qi.

As astonishing as those feats are, they’re nothing compared to what his Master could do.

Quick backstory on his Master: Xiao Yao. When Robert was 8 years old, he had a heart condition that kept him out of school. He wandered into a high-end resort’s boiler room where he met a kind, older man known as Mr. Nan. That boiler room attendant had a secret identity.

In 1966, China went through it’s Cultural Revolution. During this time, all religious temples were forcibly closed as the government attempted to eliminate all hints of traditional elements of Chinese society and capitalism.

It wasn’t safe to be associated with any religion during that time. As it turns out, Robert’s new friend Mr. Nan was, in fact, Xiao Yao—a renowned Qigong master and senior monk of a Buddhist temple.

Xiao Yao healed Robert and taught him the martial and healing arts. Robert trained with him for 2 hours every morning before school and 2 hours every day after school. For years. Then the Cultural Revolution ended and Xiao Yao headed back to his temple. Robert visited during his breaks and experienced even more profound teachings.

In addition to being able to withstand axe blows to his chest with no blood or wounds and perform incredible healings, Robert tells us his master could also walk on water. I kid you not.

I’m sold. Qi is pretty powerful.

All those astonishing feats of Qi are amazing.

But what’s the real point of Qigong and any spiritual development?

Happiness.

Stable, enduring happiness that needs no external reason. Happiness that just is.

Reminds me of Marci Shimoff’s book Happy for No Reason where she tells us: “Happy for No Reason isn’t elation, euphoria, mood spikes or peak experiences that don’t last. It doesn’t mean grinning like a fool 24/7 or experiencing a superficial high. Happy for No Reason isn’t an emotion. In fact, when you are Happy for No Reason, you can have any emotion—including sadness, fear, anger, or hurt—but you still experience that underlying state of peace and well-being… When you’re Happy for No Reason, you bring happiness to your outer experiences rather than trying to extract happiness from them. You don’t need to manipulate the world around you to try to make yourself happy. You live from happiness, rather than for happiness.”

The ephemeral nature of the happiness that follows a promotion reminds me of Sonja Lyubomirsky’s The Myths of Happiness where she walks us through the science of “hedonic adaptation” and tells us: “One of my primary scientific interests is in the area of hedonic adaptation—namely, the fact that human beings have the remarkable capacity to grow habituated or inured to most life changes. A hot topic today in the fields of psychology and economics, hedonic adaptation explains why both the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat abate with time. What is particularly fascinating about this phenomenon, however, is that it is most pronounced with positive experiences.

Indeed, it turns out that we are prone to take for granted pretty much everything positive that happens to us. When we move into a beautiful new loft with a grand view, when we partake of plastic surgery, when we purchase a fancy new automobile or nth-generation smartphone, when we earn the corner office and a raise at work, when we become immersed in a new hobby, and even when we wed, we obtain an immediate boost of happiness from the improved situation; but the thrill only lasts for a short time. Over the coming days, weeks, and months, we find our expectations ramping upward and we begin taking our new improved circumstances for granted. We are left with ‘felicific stagnation.’”

We want to be happy for no reason.

To see that things outside of us will never completely satisfy us once and for all as we embrace the deeper spiritual truths of life. Qigong is one powerful way to cultivate this awareness.

Let’s look a little more closely at what’s going on.

The Four Golden Wheels.

Helping us optimize these primary centers of Life Force is what the book is all about. Here’s a super quick look at the basic idea:

We have three dantians (pronounced dan-tee-en)—which means “elixir field” in Chinese. Essentially, these dantians exist in your head, your heart, and your solar plexus: Behind your midbrow, under your sternum and three finger widths below your belly button.

These dantians correspond to different virtues. The Midbrow dantian corresponds to Wisdom Qi. The Midchest dantian to Love Qi and the Midriff dantian to Vitality Qi. Therefore, the essence of these first three “Golden Wheels” is Wisdom + Love + Vitality—the foundation of a healthy, happy, wise, loving human.

The fourth Wheel is called our “Central Meridian.” It runs from the crown of our head down to our tail bone and is connected to “Heaven” and “Earth.”

As Robert says: “The Essential Practices presented in this section will considerably increase and refine your energy reserves. Each practice exercises all Four Golden Wheels by repeatedly pumping in fresh Qi and pumping out stagnant Qi. And just as physical exercises like aerobics and weightlifting will improve your circulation and strength, the Essential Practices will improve your Qi circulation and boost your Qi power.

Over the course of the day you constantly draw on your Qi reserves, especially when you interact with other people. These energetic flows take place invisibly, and at this stage of your Qigong development, you are going to start to notice them more and more. For example, while exploring a visionary idea with a colleague at the office, you might notice that you are both exchanging Wisdom Qi; while hugging a loved one during a tender moment, you might notice that you are exchanging Love Qi; while watching a basketball game with a group of friends, you might notice that you are all exchanging Vitality Qi; in the midst of contemplating your future, you might notice that you are channeling Heaven Qi; and while exploring practical ways to increase efficiency at a budgeting meeting, you might notice that you are whipping up Earth Qi. …

After working with the Essential Practices for some time, you will begin to realize that you are projecting more wisdom, love, vitality, excellence, inspiration, practicality, and peacefulness each time you express yourself.”

Check out the book and videos (samples here and full program here) for all the practices for activating these Four Golden Wheels!

(And, again, if you want a little jumpstart to your Qigong practice, check out the mini-lesson from Michael Gelb.)

Two quick questions:

1. How do YOU see the world? 2. What does that make you?

Rollo May tells us: “The acorn becomes an oak by means of automatic growth; no commitment is necessary. The kitten similarly becomes a cat on the basis of instinct. Nature and being are identical in creatures like them. But a man or woman becomes fully human only by his or her choices and his or her commitment to them. People attain worth and dignity by the multitude of decisions they make from day by day. These decisions require courage.”

These courageous decisions are aided by spiritual practices. Two more questions: What decisions do you need to make and what are YOUR spiritual practices?