Chances are, you’ve been a human for quite some time now. And, although you may not be aware of it, that whole time, you were interacting with your Qi directly and often. Qi [pronounced “CHEE”] is an ancient word from China that is originally a picture symbolizing steam rising from a pot of cooking rice - a clear image of cold water and hot fire merging under just the right conditions to yield something new and other in the form of steam - a combination of the two extremes. That is what we are made of: the continuous unfolding result of the incessant combination and recombination of this universe’s extreme opposites. Pictures describe it best, this dance of opposites, and the Daoist yin and yang symbol, the TaiJi or “Great Ultimate”, clearly depicts the intertransformation and interdependency of the these extreme ends of Life’s spectrum.
Nothing about you is outside of your Qi. It includes everything physical about you, as well as your thoughts and emotions. All are movements and expressions of your Qi. Even the involuntary movements of your organs are aspects of your Qi dynamic. You experience your Qi in numerous ways and in varying degrees based on your practiced ability at paying close attention to the subtle movements picked up by your your central and peripheral nervous system. Often referred to in scientific texts as proprioception or ‘knowing where you are in space’, this ability to discern these subtle sensations with a keen awareness opens doors to influence and information to and from the body that fosters a much deeper understanding of the intricacies of Life unfolding within. A true bewilderment and wide-eyed wonderment await those who dare to feel the subtle sensations of their Qi, for they access All of Life’s magic in That present moment.
Feeling your Qi is like a super power! The potential to feel all of the dynamic underpinnings that make us Alive and Animate, and honing our ability to discern these sensations in real time, gives those subtle sensations meaning. Like a detailed description, only in sensation. This effectively creates a sensation vocabulary that can be utilized to communicate directly with your body and it’s dynamic functions.
Your Qi follows your Focus - Where Your Mind Goes, Your Qi Flows. Combine your Focus with your newly minted sensation dictionary and discover that you can change how you feel in an instant! As you Focus and Feel, you recognize your beautiful body’s innate ability to balance and regulate itself. As you communicate more deeply with your body through sensations and awareness, it becomes abundantly clear that you need only get the mind out of the way and allow the body it’s flow in order to witness that body manifest health and happiness.
So, the next time you sneeze or digest or cry, the next time you blink or dance or blow a bubble … basically the next time you do anything remotely human, you can thank your Qi for making you Alive and Awesome!