As many of us our learning, or have already learned, the health of the body is essential to its proper utilization and functioning. In order to use and feel the entire chakra system, the body must first be cleansed to allow full rhythmic flow of all the fluids carrying various energetic frequencies and vibrations that are entwined with the forces of creation. To activate [to one's full potential], an understanding and innerstanding must be attained with one's own body system, but who can fully embrace and know the truth of their body's language unless their body is free of pollution?

The various sections of the physical body which must be kept toned and free include the systems which use fluids to transfer or transmute energies into physical utilization (such as, the cardiovascular and digestive systems), all muscles (perpetuated to action through or by fluids), and, of course, the organs (also 'fed' by the life transferring fluids). Each of these sections of the body corresponds to various chakra points. Nurturing these systems into unity with one another, thus uniting mind, body, and soul, is the first major step to achieving activation. Of course, before cleansing can begin, one's mind or consciousness must be open to truth and love - loving oneself enough to search for the truth in physical health, in soul; willing for the truth, attaining the truth of YOUR existence... it all begins with your will.

Below is a conglomeration of physical things that can be done to heal the body's Qi and physical ailments, as described in the book written by May Loo, East-West healing: Integrating Chinese and Western Medicines for Optimal Health. Please, keep in mind that all these practices are meant for even those who find it hard to make time for meditation and/or exercise. Also, diet plays a VERY large role in physical ailments, which are manifestations of spiritual or etheric ailments. Don't forget, you are what you eat.

Proper posture is critically important to healthy breathing. Be sure to check your posture from time to time while you've engaged in any endeavor- sitting, standing, walking, or meditating- as well as whenever you're about to do a special breathing activity. Poor posture can affect not only our muscles and bones but also our Qi, or energy balance, which, in turn, influences our emotions and our ability to manage stress....

To maintain good posture whenever you are walking, hold the knees slightly flexed, not locked, and land with the balls of the feet on the ground instead of either the toes or the heels. While sitting, avoid sliding or slumping down into the chair. Keep a ninety-degree angle between the thighs and spine, and keep an 'L' shape between your back and thighs. This should minimize the chance of any back strain or pain.

 

The Silver Thread Technique for proper posture:

1. Hold your head in line with your trunk so that from a side view the ears are over the shoulders, which are pulled back instead of slouched toward the front.
2. Imagine a silver thread lifting you upward from the tailbone through the spine and through the DU 20* point at the top of your head.
   *Fold the ears and find the apex or the top point. Put your thumbs on the two apices and bring your third fingers touching at the middle of the head. DU 20 is located at the intersection between a line drawn in the middle of the face from the tip of the nose with the line drawn from the top of the ears. This is the location of the crown of the head and a very important and powerful point. It is known as BaiHui, the Hundred Meeting Place, and is the intersection of all the Yang energies, as well as the point for bringing in Qi from heaven during Qigong exercises. 
3. Feel the stretch of the spine caused by the pull of the thread, while keeping the shoulders back and down (you can grasp your hands behind your back and stretch to pull your shoulders into the right position). Let everything else hang loosely around the silver thread so you are in a relaxed, upright posture. Keep your body still and calm.
4. Visualize another silver thread pulling you forward from the Dantian, or 'Seat of Life' point, located two inches below the navel and one to two inches inward. As the thread pulls, it should tilt your pelvis slightly, so your upper torso fits directly over the pelvis. 

Easy Breathing Activities:

    Diaphragm breathing ~ Qi intake benefits from your maintaining a good breathing posture. Major Qi channels pass through the neck and shoulder regions and have various points near the inner angle of the eye, throughout the head, across the back (connecting to all the internal organs), and down the legs, These channels can be constricted by tensing the shoulders. The result of such a Qi disturbance can be anything from a tension headache to an upset stomach. When we breathe with the diaphragm, it is much more difficult to pull on our shoulders at the same time, so we naturally tend to relax and our whole body stays healthier. At first you will need to tune into your breathing every now and then to make sure you're breathing from the abdomen. After some practice it becomes second nature; begin noticing any positive changes in your energy level or physical well-being.

You can make your breathing even more powerful by doing the following: when you breathe in, touch the tip of your tongue on the point where the upper palate (roof of the mouth) meets the upper front teeth. This forms a connection between the Governing Vessel+ (the major Yang channel, located in the middle of the back) and the Conception Vessel++ (the major Yin channel, located in the middle of the body's front). As you breathe in, you bring in fresh Qi to balance the Yin and Yang of the whole body. When you breathe out, open your mouth slightly, gently dropping the tip of your tongue. Let the air out slowly in a stream so fine that it wouldn't disturb a down feather at close range. Continue taking deep breaths, bringing air in as deeply as possible and letting it out as slowly as possible without forcing anything.

Deep breathing ~ 1:10:4 Breath: Take a deep breath into your abdomen, silently counting '1'. Hold this in your abdomen as long as possible, then count up to '10'- guard against speeding up the count. Then slowly breath out through your mouth to a count of '4'. Do not force these efforts, for you may not initially be able to hold the breath up to ten, or prolong the breathing out up to four, but the ability will develop with time. Whenever possible during the first days or weeks of doing this exercise, sit comfortably with good posture in a quiet area so you can concentrate on increasing the amount of time you hold Qi in the abdomen. If you ever feel light-headed or dizzy, you know you are forcing yourself, so go back to a lower ratio (e.g., 1:4:2 instead of 1:6:3) and progress upward more slowly and naturally.

Microcosmic Breathing: balancing the Yin and Yang energies

1. Sit in a lotus position on the floor (cross-legged, with each foot resting on the opposite thigh). If you can't assume this position, sit in a chair on-third of the distance back from the edge, maintaining good posture with the spine straight and the feet planted firmly on the floor. Place your hands on your knees with your palms up and your fingers slightly curled.
2. As you breathe in, imagine that the Qi circulates down the Conception Vessel++, into the Dantian point, around the genitals to the back, and up the Governing Vessel+ to the head.
3. As you breathe out, imagine that the Qi moves in the same circuit, so there is no interruption in the microcosmic orbit.
4. Repeat the cycle at least several times per exercise, up to (ideally) five minutes. When you're finished, notice how much more peaceful and energized you feel.

Cleansing and Strengthening Qi

Master Zhu's Method (Dr. H. Zhu) ~ "If you do these movements nine times in the morning and nine times at night, no evil can stay for very long." The 'evil' to which is referred can be anything that can have adverse effects on our health- for example, stress, pollutants or infectious agents from the environment, or an excess of emotions such as anger or frustration.

1. It's best to do this exercise first thing in the morning. It can also be very effective doing it just before you retire for the night. Ideally yuo should do this in front of an open window, even if the window is only slightly open; this exporsure to fresh air not only 'lets out' the evil and helps prevent you from taking it back in, but also restores your Qi connection with the outside world. If it's cold, put on something warm and loose enough to allow for comfortable movement.
2. To cleanse yourself:

• Stand with your legs shoulder length apart.
• Bend down and place your palms about one to two inches away from the inside of your lower legs (your hands should not touch your legs). Move your palms upward along the inside of the legs.
• Continue moving your palms upward along the sides of the abdomen, the chest, up to the sides of your face, then up around your head, to your neck above the top of the shoulders.
• As you move your hands down your neck, start turning them outward so the palms face the front. Using a quick brush stroke motion, quickly 'shoosh' evil away to the space in front of you out the window. Make some 'shooshing' sound as you do (Master Zhu recommends the Chinese sound 'tshuu,' meaning 'away'). Do this 9 times. (Nine is considered a heavenly number with magical qualities)

     3.  Stop for a minute or so to make sure the evils get out.
     4.  To bring in good, or heavenly, Qi:

• As you breathe in deeply, raise your arms (palm side up) from each side without bending them until you reach shoulder level. At the same time, slowly raise your heels so that you stand on the balls of your feet. (This massages the KI 1* point.)

*Located in the 'dent' below the toes when you curl up your foot; approximately a third of the distance between the toes and the heel; first point of the Kidney channel, the lowest point on the body. A powerful point for calming the mind and spirit and reviving consciousness.

• Continue  moving your arms to circle above your head. Pat the space above the crown of your head three times. Do not actually touch your head; just use a gentle patting motion, as if you are pushing Qi into it from heaven.
• As you slowly breathe out, gently bring your arms back down to your side, reversing the motion they made before. At the same time, slowly lower your heels to the floor.
• Do this 9 times. 

Water Cleansing Qi ~

1. Put your hands together just below the navel, palms up and curved, as if they were forming a cup to hold water.
2. Moving your hands and elbows so your two forearms maintain a reasonably straight line, come up the mid-line of your body, along the Conception Vessel line, until the 'cup' reaches the mouth.
3. Opening your mouth, imagine you are drinking Qi (or water) from your hands for three to five seconds.
4. As you slowly breathe out through your mouth, slowly turn your palms downward and reverse the movement you made in motion 2.
   As you do this imagine that the Qi (or water) you drank is cleansing your body and washing away everything you don't need down your legs and through the balls of your feet into the Earth. Repeat the exercise three to nine times.

Meditation

Simple meditation - Sit in a lotus or half-lotus position, or sit comfortably in a chair, keeping your spine straight. Put your hands on your knees, palms up. Close your eyes. Use a breathing method/exercise of your choice, exaggerate it, and just concentrate on this breathing. For example, in microcosmic breathing, make the cycle bigger than your actual body size. Forget your exact physical form for the time being. Be patient. Don't be discouraged if you cannot do it right away. After you do it several times, you will notice that the cycle takes longer to complete because you have grown so much taller. See if you can fill up the room or fill up the house. The sky's the limit! Soon you will be in a state where noises or distractions do not bother you. You don't notice them because you are too big for them. This image will be translated metaphorically in your life, when you are too big to be stressed by the small stuff that bogs others down. Give yourself a big smile as you come out of this meditation.

Five-Element ~ Dr. Chow - 3 Stages \\ These stages may be completed together, or one at a time.

Stage One:

1. On the floor, using a cushion under the buttocks if desired, sit in a lotus position or a half-lotus position (iindian style, or with one foot resting on one thigh, and the other foot resting on the floor). If you cannot manage that, you should sit in any cross-legged position, or in a chair.
   
2. Keep your head facing straight forward. Visualize being pulled upward by a silver thread coming up from the center of the Earth, passing through your tailbone, up your spine, through the DU 20* point atop your head, and on uup into the sky.
   Now visualize a second silver thread coming from your Dantian (or sacral) point and pulling you forward, slightly tilting your pelvis so the torso of your body sits on it properly. Finally, drop a silver thread from the shoulders downward in back of you to keep your shoulders comfortably back and down.
   
3. Now breathe deeply and easily with your diaphragm, concentrating on the in-and-out movement and on comfortably maximizing your lung capacity.
   During inspiration, breathe in through the nose while lightly touching the tip of your tongue to the roof of your mouth where it meets the upper front teeth. During expiration, open your mouth slightly, drop your tongue, and breathe out through your mouth, relaxing your jaw muscles and allowing your whole body to hang loosely from that first, main silver thread.
   As you breathe, feel the Qi circulating continuously down your Governing Vessel+ in front, through your Dantian, around your genitals, and up your Conception vessel++ in back, and so on, in a never-ending cycle. Then feel the vibrant Qi coursing through every muscle, tendon, bone, and cell in your body.
   
4. As you continue breathing, acknowledge each thought that flows through your mind and let it go. Also acknowledge any noise and let it fall into the background.
   Let yourself experience whatever you are feeling, whether it's physical, emotional, or spiritual, pleasant or unpleasant. Don't avoid it, deny it, or crowd it out. Feel what it truly is, then let it go. Eventually you will feel warmth flowing through your body, relaxing tense muscles.
   If you experience movement, let yourself flow with it while remaining in the same basic posture. You are responding to the swaying of the atmospheric Qi around you. If you experience sound, don't hinder experssing it, as long as the expression is natural and doesn't break the meditative state.
   

Stage Two:

         Having centered and maximized your Qi, call upon the universal Qi by getting in touch with each of the Five Elements: Water, Wood, Earth, Metal, and Fire. Think about each of these elements, in order, for one minute, letting yourself sense all the images associated with it that easily come to mind before moving on to the next element. As you think about each element, call upon its power to reinforce your own Qi to heal yourself. When you have finished, let yourself feel how good it feels to connect with the universal Qi, and let yourself feel the power of all the elements you've visualized.

Stage Three:

1. To help cleanse yourself of any internal problem-physical, mental, emotional, or spiritual-first visualize it as something concrete and unpleasant (e.g., an angry dog, a gray cloud, or a pile of garbage) existing in any particular place inside your body except your Dantian (sacral/root).
2. As you breathe and hold this image in your mind, move healthy, vibrant Qi from your Dantian to that place. Once the Qi is there, imagine it shoving the unpleasant image directly out of your body, by the shortest route possible.
3. Now visualize a concrete image of the health coming into your body (e.g., glowing lights or beautiful flowers). As you breathe, spread the image throughout your body, mind, and spirit until you become that image.
   If you want, repeat the process with another problem that's bothering you. Don't worry if you have unpleasant feelings during this stage of the meditation, or if you temporarily get distracted or fall asleep. Whatever you experience is what you need at the time.
   
   When you are ready to come out of this mediatation, any stage of it, or other meditations, first concentrate on taking a few deeper diaphragmatic breaths and enjoy the sense of harmony within yourself. Then encricle the universal Qi in one complete breathe by bringing your arms out to each side, encircling them up and forward, and bringing them down, right hand on top of the left for men and left hand on top of the right for women, toward the Dantian. Do this three times, then relax with your palms turned upward in your lap. Slowly open your eyes, and enjoy the harmony of being in tune with yourself and the universe.

White/Gold(Yellow) Light meditation - Imagine a [white] light (positiive Qi) entering your body through the Crown (DU 20). The light slowly starts filling you with warmth, permeating different parts of your body. As it does, it pushes all darkness (negative Qi) out. In time, your whole body is filled with the light, and nothing negative can enter it. Stay with this feeling for as long as you want.

• White Ray Light  - Manifestation of the Father principle of the universe, or Yang. Metals associated: Silver/Platinum, appropriate glass or lenses for color treatment contain Quartz. Compared to electricity flowing into a coloured (aura) 'bulb', which gains increasing luminosity as higher foltages pass through it, affording greater powers of human perception, making objects in the environment clearer. Represents the Divine Radiance of the Father or Logos. The light of Christ-Consciousness, supreme purity, power, perfection and healing power.
• Yellow Ray Light - Material counterpart is the metal gold. Metals radiating yellow light frequency: barium, gold, calcium, chromium, nickel, zinc, copper, strontium, cadmium, cobalt, manganese, aluminum, titanium. Associated with carbon, sodium, phosphorus, and other alkalines. Appropriate glass for color treatment should contain iron in the presence of manganese, red lead oxides and sulphur. Yellow rays carry positive magnetic currents and are non-stringent, having an alkalizing effect which strengthens the nerves. These rays are awakening, inspiring, and vitally stimulating to the higher mentality, or reasoning faculties, uponn which they have a very powerful and remarkable effect. Through englightenment, Yellow thus aids self-control. Yellow helps to purify the system through its eliminative action on the liver and intestines, it cleanses the bodily pores which expel and impel, improves the texture of the skin and also has an enriching effect upon the intellectual departments of the brain. Associated with wisdom and the acquisitive and circulatory functions. 

Magnetic Cord meditation - Imagine a silver thread extending from the center of the Earth, coming up through your tailbone and spine, through the crown, and on into the sky. Imagine it is a magnetic cord that can absorb everything toxic inside you: whatever you do not want, such a physical or emotional pain; whatever you are ready to release, such as grief, and whatever no longer serves you, such as anger. Let the cord absorb all these things and then ground them into the center of the Earth, never to return, while simultaneously pulling down golden sunlight from [the heavens] to fill up your body.