Ancient Practices

Tai Chi

Zhang San Feng of the 13th Century created Tai Chi on Wudang Mountain. It is said he witnessed a fight between a snake and a crane, (i.e. attacking/retreating, recoil/expand) and was inspired to create Tai Chi Chuan (tai chi). The words Tai Chi Chuan mean supreme ultimate boxing. This practice utilizes breathing, visualization and movement to engage the entire body.

Zhang San Feng taught this fighting art to a senior student, who, in turn, taught their senior student until ultimately the form was passed down to the Chen Family (Chen style). The Chen Family taught Yang Lu Chan, (the incomparable Yang) who created Yang style. Yang taught Wu Yu Xiang who created Wu style. Today, these three style of Tai Chi are the principal forms practiced around the globe.

The philosophy of Tai Chi is simple yet profound, in short, the idea that everything consists of two opposing forces that harmonize with one another to create a whole.

Qigong

Qigong literally means “life energy work” or a way of working with the body's life energy. Qigong originated in China over five thousand years ago and was practiced by the shaman priests during that primitive era.

Qigong is part of Traditional Chinese Medicine and was first detailed in an ancient Chinese medical text book, the Yi Jing or Yellow Emperor’s Book of Changes. This treatise is regarded even today as one of the fundamental doctrinal sources for Chinese medicine. Subsequent Chinese medical books published after the Yi Jing also reveal detailed theory and the clinical practice of Qigong procedures for treating disease and enhancing health. The art of Qigong can be practiced either as physical movement that incorporates breathing exercises or as stationary meditation.

Meditation

Meditation is a practice in which we use various techniques (e.g. mindfulness or focusing the mind on a particular object, thought, or activity) to train attention and awareness, and achieve a mentally clear and emotionally calm and stable state. Scholars have found meditation difficult to define, as practices vary between different traditions.

Meditation has been practiced since antiquity in numerous religious traditions, often as part of the path towards enlightenment and self realization. Some of the earliest written records of meditation come from the Hindu traditions of Vedantism. Since the 19th century, Asian meditative techniques have spread to other cultures where they have also found application in non-spiritual contexts, such as personal health and wellness.

Meditation may be used with the aim of reducing stress, anxiety, depression, and pain, and increasing peace, perception, self-concept and well-being.