7 SECRETS OFQIGONG

NOW... SUNNY DEVON 8:30 P.M.Discover 7 secrets that make the difference between qigong and qigong form.

date location time

Perhaps upwards of 90% of what is taught as Qigong today, is actually more correctly what we’d call Qigong form. Qigong form will offer you the benefits of gentle exercise, but is not powerful enough to offer you the benefits of Qigong. In this report discover the 7 secrets that make the difference between Qigong form and Qigong.

Introduc)on

Seven  secrets  of  high  level  Qigong

Marcus:     Hi  thanks  for  joining  us,  I’m  going  to  share  seven  secrets  that  make  the  difference  between  high  level  Qigong  and  low  level  Qigong  and  I’ll  be  blunt  I’ll  come  clean  right  at  the  start,  I’ve  got  my  notes  here.  If  you’ve  ever  watched  one  the  of  my  other  video’s  it  takes  me  about  2  days  to  record  a  5  minute  one.    As  this  is  going  to  be  about  50-­‐60  minutes  long  it  could  potenFally  take  about  12  days  to  record  it  and  neither  of   us  have  got  that  Fme  so  apologies  for  the  notes,  but  we  are  going  to  be  as  professional  as  we  can.  And  I  just  want  to  say  that  I  am   joined  today  by  my  very  good  friend  and  special  guest   Jordan  Francis,  who  is  also  a  teacher  of   Qigong,  between  the  two  of  us  we  have  got  a  lot  of  material  to  cover  and  before  we  go  any  further  I  just  want  to  kind  of  dangle  a  liJle  hook  in  front  of  you  -­‐  at  the  end  of   the  recording   I’m  going  to  share  with  you  a  simple,  liJle  technique  but  a  very  powerful  technique  called  The  Point  Massage.    You  know  the  one  I  mean  Jordan?  

Jordan:     Oh  yeah  sure.  

Marcus:     Some  people  refer  to  it  as  like  a  face  liS  without  the  knives.  Well  what  I’ll  do  is  at  the  end  of  the  recording  I’ll  share  that  with  you.  So  make  sure  you  stay  with  us  unFl  the  end  and  like  I  said  enjoy  the  video  and  we’ll  get  started  now

Secret  1:  What  is  Qigong?

Jordan:     Okay   then,   let’s  start  with   secret  number  1  the  history   of   Qigong   perhaps  you  could   tell  us   the  history  of  Qigong.

Marcus:     It’s  a  liJle  tricky  because  Qigong  has  a  record  going  back  5000  plus  years.  I  remember  Sifu  telling  me  that  in  a  museum,   I   forget  which  one,   there   is  this  piece  of   jade   that’s  got   11  Chinese   characters  on  it   that   are   an  explanaFon  of  a  high  level  Qigong  technique  known  as  the  small  universe  and  that  jade  has  been  proven  to  be  5000  years  old,  but   I  think  qigong   is  considerably   older  than   that.   Imagine  if   you  drew  a  dot  on   a  piece  of  paper   and   then   start   drawing   two   lines   from   that   dot,   if   you   have   just   1   degree   difference   in   the  angle  between   the   lines   over   a   5000  year   period   you’ll  find   that   there’s  a   big   gap  between   those   two   lines.     Now   add   into   the  mix   different   religious   beliefs  different   social  economic,   and   all   the  different   kind   of   things   that  happen   in  history  and  society.  

It’s  very  easy  to  see  that  suddenly  you’ve  got  a  lot  of  different  styles  of  Qigong  a  lot   of   different   schools   of   Qigong.     You’ve   got   Taoist   Qigong   ,   you’ve   got  Buddhist  Qigong,  you’ve  got  all  kind  of  different  religions  that  have  got  Qigong  related   to   them,   you   have  marFal   arts  Qigong.   There   are   so   many   different  types.  And  what  I  would  like  to  go  over  with  you  a  liJle  bit  is  the  kind  of  Qigong  we  teach.          

And  that’s  Shaolin  Qigong  so  the  legend  is  that  about  1500  years  ago,  the  Very  Venerable  Bodhidharma  who  is  considered  to  be  the  first  patriarch  of  Chinese  Chan   or   Zen   and   the   28th   patriarch   of   Indian   Buddhism   visited   the   Shaolin  monastery.  

Whilst  he  was  there  he  found  the  monks  in  very  poor  health  because  they  would  spend  hours  and  hours  at  a  Fme  leaning  over  copying  scriptures  from  one  book  to  another,  and  obviously  their  posture  was  very  messed  up  and  everything  wasn’t  parFcularly  very  good  and  at  that  Fme,  there  was  a  philosophy   that  the  body  was  just  a  hindrance  like  a  dirty  bag  of  bones  that  got  in  the  way  of  spiritual  culFvaFon.  

Now  Bodhidharma  had  a  very  different  take  on  this,  he  felt  that  spiritual  culFvaFon  is  probably  the  hardest  undertaking  that  a  human  is  going  to  do,  and  to  be  able  to  do  that  much  beJer  your  body  needs  to  be  in  great  shape,  so  Bodhidharma  finding  the  monks  of  the  Shaolin  monastery  in  poor  health  taught  them  a  series  of  3  different  exercises  but  the  one  that  we’ll  focus  on  is  the  Shaolin  18  Lohan  Hands.

Using  these  Qigong  exercises  they  were  able  to  improve  their  health  and  their  vitality  which  obviously  helped  to  improve  their  mental  ability  and  also  their  spiritual  culFvaFon.  And  it  might  be  interesFng  for  you  to  know  that  the  Shaolin  18  Lohan  Hands  was  the  forerunner  of  Lohan  kung  fu.  And  obviously  it  seems  interesFng   if  you  know  anything  about  Qigong  to  think  that  gentle  external  movements  could  actually  go  on  to  become  a  formidable  marFal  art.

Jordan:     Now  as  we  all  know  from  the  Hong  Kong  movies  and  yes,  it  is  quite  a  jump  from  health  to  combat

Marcus:     That’s  right  from  gentle  flowing  movements  to  full  on  craziness.

Jordan:     So  can  we  break  down  the  different  types  of  Qigong  to  make  it  a  liJle  more  understandable  then.

Marcus:     Sure,  but  keep  in  mind  that  I’m  going  to  be  making  broad  generalizaFons  here  because  otherwise  this  whole  DVD  and  another  6  of   them  would  just  be  covering   this  parFcular  aspect  alone  and  obviously  Fmes  pressing.  But   you   have   different   levels   if   you   like   because   with   Qigong   you   are   working   with   health   and   vitality,  longevity,   internal  force,  mental  clarity   and     spiritual  culFvaFon.  So  the  the  lowest   level  Qigong   if   you   like  although  it’s  sFll  very  ‘high’  if   done  properly   is  self  manifested  Qi  flow  and  preJy  much  what  you’re  doing  is  you’re  using  the  actual  external  movements  of   Qigong   to   generate  a  flow  of   energy  and  I’ll  discuss  in  more  detail  later  why   that’s  so   important.  But,  preJy  much   it’s  Qigong   you  would   use  if   you  had  a  clear  medical  problem,  for  example  if  you  suffer   from  asthma  or  diabetes,  or  if   there’s  a  very  clear  health  issue  that’s  the  kind  of  Qigong  you  would  want  to  look  at.  

  If  you  find  that  you’re  in  relaFvely  good  health,  you’re  not  aware  of  any  parFcular  health  issues  happening  for  you.  Then  you  would  be  more  interested   in  doing  dynamic  Qigong.  And  dynamic  Qigong   is  probably,   if   you  know  anything   about  Qigong,   is  what  you  might  think   of   as  being   the  stereotype  of  Qigong,  it’s  a  series  of  movements  going  on.  

Again,   this  parFcular   type  of   Qigong   is  about  generaFng   a  flow   of   energy  and  using   that  energy   to  remove  blockages  again   I’ll   go  over   this  in  more  detail  later,  but  whereas  the  self  manifested  medical  Qigong  combines  two,  three,  or  more  different  qigong  exercises,  with  the  dynamic  you  usually  just  focus  on  one  parFcular  exercise.  

At  a  higher  level  you  have  a  type  of  Qigong  known  as  Zhan  Zhuang  which  is  where  you  use  one  paJern  and  you  hold  it  staFcally,   for  example:  golden  bridge  and  you  just  hold  the  stance  and  then  you  just  breathe  and  relax  and  relax  and  relax.  Now,  Zhan  Zhuang   is  predominately  used  by  marFal  arFsts  to  develop  internal  force   and  internal  force  is  preJy  much  what  keeps  you  going  all  day.  But  you  have  to  be  very  careful  Zhan  Zhuang  is  something  that  you  have  to  treat  with  great   respect.    Especially   if   you’re  crazy   enough  to  learn  it  from  a  book  or  a  video  and  not  learn  it  directly  from  a  master  of  the  art.  

Why  must  you  be  careful?    Because  there  is  only  one  paJern,  if  you  get  the  one  paJern  wrong  you  get  the  whole  pracFce  wrong.  And  because  it’s  very  powerful,  you  can  do  yourself  a  lot  more  harm  than   good.   So   in  my   opinion   Zhan   Zhuang   is  a  much  higher   level  Qigong   best  learned   from  an  instructor.

Jordan:     Sure

Marcus:       Then  you’ve  got  the  highest  level  of  Qigong  which  would  be  techniques  like  the  small  universe.  Or  what  some  people  might  know  as  the  microcosmic  orbit.  The  connecFng  of  the  Ren  and  the  Du  meridians,  and  we’ll  go  into  more  detail  about  meridians  in  a  minute.  

  And  then  you  have  the  big  universe  and  so  on,  I  don’t  really  want  to  talk  to  you  too  much  about  these  types  of  Qigong,  because  I  would  never  ever  want  to  learn  these  from  a  book.    Small  universe  and  big  universe  are  such  high  level  arts  that  you’ve  got  to  learn  them  from  a  master,  it’s  as  simple  as  that  in  my  opinion.

Jordan:   Yeah,  absolutely

Marcus:   These  levels  don’t  really  exist,  they  are  more  like  of  an  aid  for  people  learning  about  Qigong.    Generally  you  have:

o Medical  Qigong  -­‐  which  is  relaFvely  low  level  and  is  used  for  overcoming  illness.

o Dynamic  Qigong  -­‐   qigong  exercises  for  those  who  are  healthy   and  want  to  stay   that  way  and   increase  their  energy.  

o Qigong  for  the  Scholar  -­‐  that  helps  students  and  those  interested  in  creaFvity  to  expand  and  uFlize  the  power  of  their  mind.  

o Qigong  for  the  warrior  -­‐  a  warrior  has  got  to  be  able  to  make  split  decisions,  making  the  right  decision  or  the  wrong  decision  in  baJle  could  be  the  difference  between  life  and  death.  And  fortunately  we  don’t  find  ourselves  living   in  such  Fmes  anymore.  But  obviously   if  you’re  in  business  you  need  to  be  able  to  make  a  decision  based  on  the  facts  that  you’ve  got  and  you  need  to  be  able  to  make  that  decision  quick.

o Qigong   for   spiritual   cul:va:on   –   the   highest   level   of  qigong.     And   you   know   as   I’ve   said   before,   spiritual  culFvaFon   is  one  of   the  hardest  endeavors  that   a  human  can  undertake.  

Now   if   you’re  lucky,   there  are   certain   types  of   Qigong   you   can  pracFce  that  can  cover  two  or  more  of   these  different  types  of  qigong  I’ve  menFoned.    For  example  let’s  say  if  you  took  a  qigong  exercise  called  li<ing  the  sky  a  form  of  dynamic  Qigong.  This  can  be  used  to  overcome  illness.   It  can  help  the  increase  energy,  it  can  help  the  scholar  to  develop  mental  clarity,  and  If  you  want  to  work  on  spiritual  culFvaFon,  then  you  can  also  use  it  to  culFvate  the  spirit.  

The  key  here,   and   the   important  aspect   to   remember  is  that  it  depends  on  the  level  of   the  pracFFoner  as   to  what  results  you  can  expect  to  gain.    For  example,  if  you  have  a  very  high  level  art  but  a  low  level  pracFFoner,  the  results  are  going  to  be  quite  low.  But  if  you  have  a  high  level  pracFFoner,  they  can  take  something  that  seems  low  level  and  get  a  lot  of  very  high  level  benefits  from  it.

Jordan:     It’s   quite  a  stretch,   especially   for   westerners,  we’re  very  much  fixed   on  what   we   see,   the   visual   and   the  movements.    So  a  person  could  be  doing  what  looks  to  be  a  very  simple  qigong  exercise  like  liSing  the  sky,  but  they  can  be  working  on  any  different  level  according  to  their  skill  that  they’re  applying  to  it,  it’s  fascinaFng.

Marcus:     And   liSing  the  sky   is  one  of   the  first  qigong  exercises  we  cover   in   the  Qigong  Secrets  Home   Study  Course,  I  think  it’s  covered  in  weeks  3  and  4,  so  you  can  get  to  find  out  more  about  that.

Jordan:     It’s  a  fantasFc  exercise.    Marcus,  what  does  Qigong  do,  I  mean  what’s  in  it?

Marcus:   In  a  nutshell,  there  are  two  main  aims  to  Qigong,  one  is  to  remove  the  blockages  to  harmonious  energy  flow,  and  this  will  become  clearer   later  on  I  promise  and  the  second,  once  the  blockages  have  been  removed  the  aim  of  pracFcing  Qigong  is  to  increase  the  energy  flow.

Jordan:     Now  we  have  got  an  idea  of  Qigong  and  it’s  scope  it’s  quite  a  wide  scope

Marcus:     It’s  a  big  umbrella  term

Jordan:     So  how  can  we  fit  this  into  TradiFonal  Chinese  Medicine?

Marcus:     Brilliant

Jordan:   Perhaps  that  would  help

Marcus:     TradiFonal  Chinese  Medicine  theory   is  fundamental  to  the  success  if   you  like  of  Qigong,  Qigong   is  based  on  the  principals  of   tradiFonal  Chinese  medicine  and  without   those   foundaFons  than  Qigong   would   not  be  as  powerful  as  it  is,  which  leads  us  nicely  into  secret  number  2.

Secret  2:  How  Qigong  works

Jordan:   We’re  going  to  look  at  TradiFonal  Chinese  Medicine  and  discover  what  why   it’s  so  important  to  Qigong.    But  first,  perhaps  you  could  give  us  an  overview  of  TradiFonal  Chinese  Medicine.

Marcus:     The  first  thing  to  say  is  that  people  who  study  TradiFonal  Chinese  Medicine  study  it  for  years  and  years.  So,  please  take  everything   that’s  said  here  as  being   a  complete  simplified,  gross  overview,  I’m   just   giving  you  a  Fny  snapshot.  

  There  are  five  main  branches  of  TradiFonal  Chinese  Medicine  you  can  consider.    

1. Acupuncture  –  I’m  sure  every  body  has  heard  of  acupuncture.

2. Tuina  –  Is  not  so  well  known,  but  that’s  changing.    It  is  a  therapeuFc  massage,  it  really  gets  in  there.    It  can  feel  very  uncomfortable  at  the  Fme,  but  can  give  long  term  relief  from  muscular  skeletal  injuries.

3. Herbs  –  mixtures  of  herbs  known  to  have  certain  qualiFes  are  prescribed  to  overcome  illness.

4. Diet  –  TCM  has  a  very  exhausFve  approach  to  diet.    It  has  nothing  to  do  with  the  kind  of  ‘fad’  diets  that  we  may  think  of  in  the  West.    This  branch  of  TCM  looks  specifically  at  how  diet  can  overcome    illness  and  disease.

5. Qigong  –  the  art  of  deliberately  working  on  your  bodies  vital  energy  to  improve  health  and  enhance  life.

All  five  branches  of  TCM  are  seeking  to  achieve  the  same  aim  and  that  is  to  promote  harmonious  energy  flow.  And  we’re  gekng  very  close  I  promise  to  that  point  where  I  will  explain  more  on  what  that  is.

Jordan:     I   think   that  leads  into   the  key  quesFon  now,  what   is  Qi?  Can  you  give  us  an  explanaFon  of   Qi  that  we  can  understand?

Marcus:     There  is  a  book  in  my  bookcase  at  home.    It’s  Ftle  is  Qi  and  it  is  100’s  of  pages  long.    So  it’s  going   to  be  very  difficult  to  explain  what  Qi  is  here  in  such  a  short  space.  But  in  a  nutshell  the  way  we’re  looking  at  Qi  you  can  think  of  it  as  you’re  bodies  vital  energy,  vital  energy  is  the  ‘juice’  that  keeps  you  and  me  alive  that  keeps  all  the  systems  in  the  body  funcFoning.  

  Vital  energy  or  Qi  is  what’s  allowing  me  to  look  in  the  camera  now  and  then  think:  ‘okay  now  I’m  going  to  look  at  Jordan  and  talk  more  about  vital  energy’.  It  keeps  everything  moving  and  in  fact  you  can  think  of   it  as  the  basic  building  block  of  life.  If  we  take  this  table  for  example  and  then  go  down  to  a  deeper  level  and  look  at  it  through  a  microscope  you  might  see  the  threads  on  the  table  cloth,  if  you  went  deeper  and  deeper  you’d  see  atoms  and   electrons   if   you   went   deeper   and   deeper   as   far   as   you   could   possibly   go,   at   the   very   basic  component  is  Qi,  is  energy.  

  So  for  example  if  I  put  my  hands  like  this  then  it  may  look  like  there  is  just  empty  space  between  my  hands  but  preJy  much  there  is  Qi  between  my  hands.  We’re  actually   swimming   through  Qi,  we’re  surrounded  with  Qi  and  we’re  swimming  through  Qi.

Jordan:   I  like  that

Marcus:   Qi  is  the  vital  essence  of  life.

Jordan:     Very  good,  so  what  does  Qi  do  in  the  body?    Where  does  it  flow?    How  does  it  work?  

Marcus:   Excellent,   so,   again   this   really   is   the   ‘in   a  nutshell’   version,   I  go   into   this  in  much  more  detail  in  the  home  study  course.    So  remember  this  is  an  overview,  but  it  will  help  our  understanding.  

  There  are  two  core  principals  of  TradiFonal  Chinese  Medicine:

1. Yin/Yang  Theory  -­‐   it’s  very  important,  I’m  sure  everybody’s  heard  of  yin  yang  you  know  the  round  symbol  with  the  two  fish  chasing  each  other.  Yin/Yang   theory   is  a  concept  you  can’t  go  into  a  shop  and  buy  a  bag  of  yin  you   can’t   get  some   yang   and   nothing   is  absolutely   yin   or   yang.   It’s  a  theory   of   relaFvity   not   like  Einstein’s  e  equals  m  c  squared.  

Imagine  that  I  had  a  dog,  suppose  my  dog  is  sat  here  and  over  there  we  have  an  ant.    I  could  say  that  the  dog  was  yang   in  this  relaFonship  because  it’s  big  and  the  ant  was  yin  because  compared  to  the  dog  it’s  small  

Now,   suppose   we   take   a   different   relaFonship,   we   bring   an   elephant   into   the   room.   In   this   new  relaFonship  the  dog  now  becomes  yin,  because  the  elephant  is  yang  (big).    Bear  in  mind  that  this  theory  of  relaFvity  doesn’t  just  apply  to  maJers  of  size.

Nothing  is  absolutely  yin  and  nothing  is  absolutely   yang.  When  we  apply  Yin/Yang  theory  to  health  we  take  the  aspect  of   yin   to  be  our  bodies  natural  ability   to  be  healthy,  it’s  natural  for  you  to  have  good  health,  okay   that’s  an  important  fact.  And  then  we  take  the  yang   aspects  to   be  anything   that  causes  illness   whether   it’s   bacteria   in   food,   or   adverse   weather   condiFons,   or   stress   and   worry,   that’s  all  labeled  as  yang.  And  as  long  as  we  have  yin  yang  harmony,  then  we’ll  have  good  health.  

2. Meridians   -­‐   think  of   the  meridians  as  the  energy  streams  within  your  body.  There  are  twelve  primary  meridians,  primary  because  they  pass  through  internal  organs.  And  there  are  eight  secondary  meridians.

When  your   vital  energy   or  Qi   is  flowing   harmoniously   through   these  energy   streams  in  the  body  you  have  what  we  call  good  health.  If  the  flow  of  qi  is  blocked  than  you  can  have  sickness,  illness,  disease.    

The  severity  of  the  blockage  will  relate  to  the  severity  of  the  illness.       If  a  blockage  stops  the  flow  of  qi  completely,  death  quickly  follows.    

We  need  to  be  aware  of  these  two  core  principals  of  TCM  because  without  them  qigong  can’t  possibly  work.

Jordan:     Okay   with   that   in   mind  very   briefly   of   course,  w h a t   a c t u a l l y   i s  h a p p e n i n g   w h e n  s omeone   p r a c F c e s  Qigong?

Marcus:     When   you’re   pracFcing  Qigong   what   you’re  doing   is   you’re   seeking  to   influence  the  flow   of  energy   so   you’re   trying  t o   g e n e r a t e   m o r e  energy   more   is   not  parFcularly  a  good   term  for   it,   you’re   trying   to  get   rid   of   the  blockages  to   harmonious   energy  flow.  

  Qi   if   you   like   has   an  intelligence  all  of   Its  own,  so  for  example  let’s  say  this  table  was  on  a  slant  and  I  took  the  water  from  the  vase  and  I   poured   it  out,  the  water  would  just  fall  off   the  table.      The  water  doesn’t  think  about  flowing   off   the  table,  it  just  does.    Water  flows  to  the  lowest  point  naturally.    Qi  always  flows  to  the  areas  of   low  energy  and  the   areas  of   low   energy   in   your  body  are  where  the  blockages  are.  So  you  don’t  need   to  know  where  the  blockages  are  you  use  your  pracFce  of  qigong  to  generate  an  energy/qi  flow,  you  then  let  go  and  you  let  your  qi  do  the  work.

Secret  3:  There  is  only  one  illness

Jordan:   Secret  number  three  there  is  only  one  illness  in  tradiFonal  Chinese  medicine,  can  you  tell  us  more  about  that.

Marcus:     Sure,   if   you   remember   back   to   secret  number   two  I  spoke   about  yin   yang   theory.  And  how   if   you   have  a  harmony  between  yin,  your  body’s  natural  ability  to  take  care  of  its  self   and  to  be  healthy  and  full  of   vitality  and  yang  which  we  said  was  everything  that  causes  ill  health  and  disease,  if  you  have  that  yin  yang  harmony  then  you  will  have  good  health.  Give  me  some  illnesses

Jordan:   Stress

Marcus:   And  another

Jordan:   Heart  disease

Marcus:   And  another

Jordan:   Liver  disease

Marcus:   Stress,   Heart   disease,   headaches,   diabetes,   asthma   and   so   on.   Regardless   of   the   name   you   give   to   the  symptoms  of   the  illness,  from  a  TradiFonal  Chinese  Medicine  viewpoint  the  only  illness  that  there  is,   is  this  

yin-­‐yang  disharmony.  For  example  let’s  say  I’ve  got  sickness  and  diarrhea.  What  might  have  happened?  Well  I  might  have  eaten  an  egg  mayonnaise  sandwich  at  lunch  which  was  2  weeks  past  it’s  sell  by  date  and  riddled  with  salmonella.  

  Even  though  my  yin  (my  bodies  natural  ability  to  look  aSer  itself)  is  quite  high  and  strong,  there  is  suddenly  a  massive  increase  in  the  amount  of  yang  causing  agents  in  my  body  and  as  a  result  I  get  sick.

  Regardless  of  the  symptoms  from  a  TradiFonal  Chinese  Medicine  viewpoint  there  is  only  one  illness  and  that  illness  is  yin-­‐yang  disharmony  and  if  we  can  restore  this  harmony  you  have  good  health  again.

Jordan:   Okay   so   when   this  harmony,  we  get   the   harmony   back,   what’s  actually   occurred   in   the   body   to  get   that  harmony  back.  How  does  Qigong  achieve  that?

Marcus:   The   causes  of   yin-­‐yang   disharmony   are   blockages   to   harmonious   energy   flow   through   the   meridians,   the  energy  streams,  of  the  body.  

  Qigong  seeks  to  remove  these  blockages,  and  to  aid  understanding  we  can  categorize  blockages  into  4  types:

  Physical  –  these  are  usually  caused  by  poor  posture  or  physical  injury  to  the  body,  like  a  cut  or  a  blow  of  some  kind.

  Emo:onal  –  constantly  being  in  a  negaFve  emoFonal  state  i.e.  worried,  stressful,  fearful,  anxious  etc  will  effect  health.  

  Mental  –  the  main  cause  of  mental  blockages  is  obsessive  thinking,  or  thinking  too  much.

  Spiritual  –  depression  is  perhaps  the  most  common  example  of  a  spiritual  blockage.

  Now  obviously  when  something  happens  to  us  it  doesn’t  just  cause  a  physical  blockage  or  a  mental  blockage,  because  we’re  holisFc  beings  something  can  happen  to  us  and  it  usually  has  an  effect  on  all  four  aspects  so  it’s  important  to  keep  that  in  mind.

    When  we’re  pracFcing   Qigong  we’re   seeking   first  of   all   to  get   rid  of   the  physical,  emoFonal,  mental  and  spiritual  blockages  so  that  we  have  harmonious  energy  flow,  which  means  we  have  yin-­‐yang  harmony.    Once  we  have  achieved  this  we  then  seek  to  increase  the  flow  of  energy  so  that  we  have  vitality  and  longevity.

Perhaps   the  most   useful   ‘take   away’   from   this   secret   is   that   from   the  TradiFonal  Chinese  Medicine  viewpoint  there  is  no  such  thing  as  an  incurable  illness.  But  there’s  a  caveat  to  that.    It  doesn’t  mean  that  TradiFonal  Chinese  Medicine  can  cure  every  illness.  If  the  illness  has  been  leS  unchecked  for  too  long  then  it  may  not  be  possible  to  fully  restore  yin-­‐yang  harmony.  

Jordan:   So   perhaps   then   to   finish   up   this   part   we   can   have   an   example   of   how   Qigong  overcomes  stress,  anxiety,  depression.

Marcus:   Sure,   remember   the  meridians  I   spoke  of,   the  energy  streams  of   the  body?  One  of  those  meridians  is  called  the  heart  meridian.  And  it’s  important  to  realize  that  when  we  talk  about  the  heart  from  a  TradiFonal  Chinese  Medicine  viewpoint  we’re  not  talking   just  about  the  four  chambered  muscle  in  your  chest  that  pumps  deoxygenated  and  oxygenated  blood  around  the  body.  

  From  a  TradiFonal   Chinese  Medicine   viewpoint   the   organs   tend   to  be  more   symbolic  and   they   also   have  funcFons.  So  the  heart  does  a  lot  of  things  and  it  is  known  as  the  Emperor  because  it  is  the  supreme  ruler.    The  

heart  houses  your  Shen,  or  Spirit  and  from  the  TCM  viewpoint  if  someone’s  depressed  then  there  is  some  kind  of  blockage  to  do  with  the  heart  meridian.  

  So  you  would  pracFce  qigong  exercises  that  have  been  documented  to  bring  relief  and  to  clear  blockages  from  the  heart  meridian.  One  of  those  may  be    ‘Emperor  Walks  Heart  Opens’  or  it  may  be  Green  Dragon  SeparaFng  Water.  And  perhaps  one  of   the  best  paJerns,   I  mean   I’ve  certainly   used   it   to   help   people  overcome   their  depression,  is  buJerfly  dancing  in  front  of  flowers  and  it’s  the  first  qigong  exercise  we  cover  in  the  home  study  course.      It’s  the  first  exercise  we  cover  because  it’s  simple  and  it’s  powerful.  

Jordan:   Wonderful,  so  the  folks  are  probably  wondering  how  is  this  a  viable  alternaFve  or  is  it  a  viable  alternaFve  to  western  medicine?

Marcus:     Good  point.     You  see  the  thing  to  bear   in  mind  is  that  TCM  has  kept  one  of   the  largest  populaFons  on  the  planet   healthy   and   well   and   that   populaFon   also   has   had   one   of   the   longest   conFnuous   records   of  documented  history  on  the  planet.  

  We  haven’t  got  Fme  to  cover  it  here,  but  in  the  home  study  course  I  share  many  areas  where  TCM  has  been  someFmes  hundreds  of  years  in  front  of  western  medicinal  breakthroughs  in  technology.  

  But   there   is  one   thing   I   really   want   to  make  clear,  absolutely  clear.    I  want  to  go  on  record  and   make   this   point:   I’m   not   saying   TCM   is  beJer  than  western  medicine.    Asking  which  is  best   is  not   a  good  quesFon.    A   much  beJer  quesFon   is  which   is  more  appropriate   for  the  situaFon?

  Imagine  I  have  a  bad  car  accident  then  I  want  a  paramedic   there  as   quickly   as   possible   and   I  want   to   be   taken   to   Accident   &   Emergency  and  I  want  all  the  benefits  that  we  have  of  the  wonderful  western  medical  tradiFon.  

  But   if   I  was   suffering   from   say   depression  or  stress  or   something   that   you   couldn’t   clearly  point  at  and  say  “Ah,  yes  Mr  Santer,  I  see  your  head   is   falling   off   we   need   to   take   care   of  that”.  Then   I  would  definitely  want  more  of   a  Qigong  approach  to  actually  overcome  that.  

  I  hope  I  have  made  it  perfectly  clear   I  am  not  saying  that  TCM   is  beJer  than  western  medicine  it  is  a  case  of  what  is  the  most  appropriate  for  the  actual  situaFon  presented.  I  think  we’re  straight  on  that

Jordan:   Very  good  thank  you.  So  that’s  secret  3

Marcus:     And  now  we’ll  get  onto  secret  4

Secret  4:  How  to  take  back  the  power  for  your  health  happiness  and  well  being.

Jordan:     Secret  number  4:  why  15  minutes   just  a  quarter  of  an  hour  a  day  can  really  help  us  overcome  our  illness  and  maintain  life.

Marcus:     One  key  point  to  make  about  that  though  is  that  you  have  to  be  pracFcing  high   level  Qigong.  And   the  next  secret  and  the  secret  aSer  that  will  give  you  a  very  good  understanding  of   the  key  differences  the  differences  between  high  level  and  low  level  Qigong.  

  The  key  thing  to  remember  is  that  if   you’re  pracFcing  high  level  Qigong,  then  you  shouldn’t  have  to  spend  an  hour  every  day  doing  it.  

  So  the  first  key  clue  if   you’re  going  to  check  out  a  qigong  school  because  you  want  to  find  out  if   it’s  teaching  high   level  Qigong  –   if   they  say  you  need  to  pracFce  what  they  teach  you   for  an  hour  at  a  Fme,  then  you’re  probably  going  to  have  to  conFnue  your  search.

Anything  that  is  high  level  should  give  you  great  results  in  a  shorter  Fme,  that’s  how  you  disFnguish  what  is  high   level   in  my   book.   Remember   that  Shaolin  Qigong   has  its   origins  at   the  Shaolin   Temple.     The  Shaolin  Temple,  was  an  imperial  temple  which  meant  that  not  any  old  Tom,  Dick  or  Harry  could  go  along  to,  despite  what  it  says  in  the  film.  

 I   love  those  Kung  Fu  movies  where  the  hero’s  say:  “Let’s  go  to  Shaolin  and  learn  kung  fu,  we  can  overcome  our  oppressors  and  get  our  revenge!”  

No.  Shaolin  was  an  imperial   temple  it’s  where  reFred   generals  and  high  ranking  government  ministers  and  officials  went  to  culFvate  when  they  finished  giving  everything  to  their  families  and  to  society.  

Remember,   harmonious   energy   flow   through   the  meridians  of   the   body   equals   health.     When   you   have  vigorous  flow,  like  a  rushing  stream  through  the  meridians  of  the  body  then  you  have  vitality.  And  when  you  have   an   abundance   of   fast   flowing   Qi   with   no   blockages   then   you   have   longevity,   but   you’ve   got   to   be  pracFcing  high  level  Qigong.

Jordan:     Qigong   is   such  a  big   subject,   I   think  we  could  be  here  a  long   Fme,  but   could  you   tell  us  what   the  5  main  reasons  are  for  pracFcing  qigong?

Marcus:     Well  if   I  was  more  professional  I  would  have  memorized  them.  But  as  I  said  it  took  me  two  days  to  make  a  five  minute  film.

Jordan:     Stop  boasFng.

Marcus:   The  five  main  benefits  the  reasons  why  you  would  want  to  pracFce  Qigong.  

1. Health  &  Vitality   –   The  base  building   block.    There’s  no  point   learning   how  to  become  one  with   the  Cosmos  if  you’re  riddled  with  some  sickness  or  illness.    You  want  to  take  care  of  that  first  and  health  and  vitality  benefits  are  perhaps  the  main  reasons  why  many  people  pracFce  qigong.

2. Longevity   –   once   the  energy   streams,   meridians,   of   the   body   are   blockage  free   and   we   have   good  health,  we  then  want  to   increase  that  flow  of  energy  unFl  we  have  an  abundance    of   it,   that  is  what  gives  a  person  longevity  and  is  the  second  main  benefit  of  pracFcing  qigong.

3. Internal  Force  -­‐  many  years  ago  as  a  marFal  arFst,  I  used  to  think  that  internal  force  was  all  about  being  able  to  hit  people  so  that  they  couldn’t  get  back  up  again.  Because  it  wasn’t  just   the  physical  damage  you  caused  you  transferred  your  energy  and  their  heart  exploded  just  with  a  touch.    I’m  older,  wiser  and  more  mature  now,  internal  force  supposedly  can  do  those  things,  but  there  are  more  useful  benefits  to  be  had  from  internal  force.

Think  of   internal  force  as  ‘energy  plus’.       It  gives  you  the  energy  to  work,  rest  and  play  and  make  you  beJer  at  everything  you  do.

4. Mental  Cul?va?on  –  many  scholars,  arFsts  and  students  pracFce  qigong  to  benefit  from  developing  the  mind.    Let’s  take  the  sun  as  an  example.    If  the  sun  shines  on  a  piece  of  paper,  the  paper  gets  warm.    But  if  we  take  a  magnifying  glass  and  focus  the  suns  rays,  the  heat  is  now  hot  enough  to  set  the  paper  alight.    Think  of  qigong  as  the  magnifying  glass  that  allows  you  to  focus  the  power  of  your  mind.    But  without  sekng  your  books  on  fire.

5. Spiritual  Cul?va?on   -­‐   like  I’ve  said  it’s  the  hardest  endeavor  a  human  can  undertake  and  many  people  just  aren’t  ready  for  it,  so  if  you  aren’t  interested  in  spiritual  culFvaFon  don’t  worry  about  it.    But  if  you  are  Qigong  is  a  powerful  tool.

Jordan:   That’s  good,  you  don’t  have  to  sign  up  for  everything  when  you  do  Qigong.  It’s  a  very  personal  thing.  So  why  would  someone  pracFce  Qigong  instead  of  doing  some  other  alternaFve  art,  what’re  the  core  benefits?

Marcus:   One  of  the  main  things  that  I’ve  always  loved  about  pracFcing  Qigong  is  that  wherever  you  go  you  can  pracFce  it,  it’s  not  like  you  need  to  get  access  to  a  staFonary  bike  or  you  need  to  be  able  access  a  bench  press  machine.  If  I’ve  got  to  go  away  on  business  I  never  have  to  worry  about  staying  at  a  hotel  with  a  gym.  

  So  wherever  you  go,  because  there  is  no  equipment,  you  are  the  equipment,  you  are  the  gym,  you  can  do  your  Qigong.  Obviously  there  are  some  places  where  you  don’t  want  to  pracFce  qigong  and  I’ll  cover  that  in  more  detail  in  the  course.  But  preJy  much  wherever  you  are  you  can  do  Qigong.  

  There  are  no  expensive  gym  memberships  as  well.  I  mean  there  is  a  frightening  staFsFc  that  most  people  that  take   a   gym   membership   won’t   go   for   longer   than   3   months   but   will   pay   their   gym   membership   for  considerably  more  months  aSer  that.  The  gyms  know  that  which  is  why  they  make  you  sign  up  for  at  least  3  to  6   months   beforehand.   Another   great   benefit   of   pracFcing  Qigong  is  that  there  is  no  expensive  equipment  to  buy.    You  don’t  need  to  go  out  and  buy  a  $100  pair  of  trainers.  God  I’m  thinking  in  dollars.

Jordan:   I  do  that  too

Marcus:     There’s  no  need  to  go  out  and  buy  expensive  clothing  or  go  out   and   get   your   own   bicycle,   or   a   fancy   mat.   There’s  no  need   to   buy   anything   all,   you   need   is   some   comfortable  clothes  some  flat  soled  shoes  and  you’re  good  to  go.  

  And   the   third   thing   I   like   about   it   is   there’s   no   expensive  supplements  to  take,  lets  be  honest  most  vitamins  or  minerals  that  people  take  just  end  up  as  being  expensive  urine,  if  you’ll  pardon  the  gratuity  of  that.  So,  Qigong  a  complete  art,  you  can  take  it  anywhere,  you  don’t  need  any  extra  material  and  you  don’t  need  to  take  anything  extra  when  you  do  it,  it  really  is  a  high  level  art.

Jordan:   Talk  about  convenience,  it’s  amazing.

Secret  5:  The  three  core  skills  of  high  level  Qigong

Jordan:     Secret  5  I  like  this  one  parFcularly,  I  teach  Qigong  to  my  students.  I’ve  read  your  book,  this  book’s  been  helpful  to  me,  it  gives  a  great  map  on  how  I  can  approach  teaching  Qigong  more  systemaFcally.  And  when  I  talk  about  high  level  Qigong  I  talk  about  the  three  core  skills  of  high  level  Qigong.    Please  tell  us  a  bit  more.

Marcus:   The  three  core  skills  this  is  very  much  the  most  important  stuff  on  this  video  if   you  like.    Qigong  is  a  marriage  of  form,  energy  and  mind,  if  one  of  those  aspects  is  missing  parFcularly  the  energy  and  the  mind  aspects,  then  I  would  quesFon  whether  you  are  pracFcing  Qigong  at  all.  One  of  the  most  important  aspects  of  Qigong  is  the  mind  aspect.    The  first  of  the  three  core  skills  is  entering  the  Qigong  state  of  mind.  It  is  a  heightened  state  of  

awareness  or  an  immense  sensaFon  of  relaxaFon  if  you  like.  It  is  important  that  when  you  do  Qigong  you  are  in  this  Qigong  state  of  mind.  

  The   second   core   skill   is  Qi   flow,   or   more   poeFcally   known   as  flowing   breeze   swaying   willows   and   if   you  remember  we  talked  about  how  we  generate  energy  flow,  we  let  go  and  energy  flows  through  the  meridians  of  the  body  and  gets  rid  of  the  blockages.  Well  it’s  during  flowing  breeze  swaying  willows  where  a  lot  of  those  blockages  can   be  got   rid   of   and   where   the  Qi   is  busily   working   on   removing   blockages,   whether   physical,  emoFonal,  mental,  or   spiritual,   doesn’t  maJer.     Flowing   breeze   swaying   willows  can   literally  be  just  that   -­‐  somebody  gently   flowing,   to   something   which   is  quite  extreme  –   I  mean,   Jordan,  I’m   sure  you’ve  had   the  pleasure  of  seeing  70  or  80  students  in  the  class  in  Qi  flow.

Jordan:       I   certainly   have,   yes,   it’s  quite   a  scene.     There   are   a   lot   of  people  going   through  some  cleansing,  but  it’s  just  the  energy  clearing  through  the  blockages.

Marcus:       It’s  a  good  point,  because  there  may  be     one  person  crying,  somebody   next   to   them   may   be   rolling   on   the   floor,   but  they’re  not  doing   anything,  they’re  just  lekng  go  and   lekng  the  work  be  done  for  them.     It’s  Wu  Wei,  do  nothing,  and  let  everything   be  done  for  you,  they’re  not  consciously  thinking,  “Oh,  I’m  going  to  laugh  now,”  or  “I’m  going  to  roll  on  the  floor  now.”    But  if  you  have  Qigong  without  flowing  breeze  swaying  willows,   then   I   really   would   quesFon   the   benefits   you’re  actually  going   to  get  from  it.    So,  it’s  very  important   if  you’re  doing   qigong   to   have   flowing   breeze   swaying   willows,   but  from  the  experience  I’ve  had  of  other  qigong  schools  it’s  very  rare,  I  haven’t  come  across  it.

Jordan:       Seldom  talked  about.

Marcus:       Yeah,  it  really   is,  and  the  third   core  skill  is  standing  meditaFon.     If   you   think   of   the  flowing   breeze  swaying  willows  as  being  movement,  yang,  then  standing  meditaFon  you  can  think  of   as  the  yin,  the  sFllness,  and  it’s  preJy  much  just   like  if   you’ve  got  a  thousand  pounds  on  the  table  and  you  want  to  keep   it   safe,  so  you’re  going   to   put   it   away.     And   the   standing   meditaFon,   is   like   the   consolidaFon   of   your   pracFce,   bringing  everything   together,  and   like  I  said  at   the  start  of   this,  you  know,  qigong   is  a  marriage  of   form,  energy,  and  mind,  and  if  you  bring  the  three  components  together,  then  you’ll  have  high  level  qigong.    

  So,  when  you’re  out  there  looking  for  a  school  to  learn  qigong  from,  try  to  make  sure  that  what  it  teaches  is  a  marriage  of  form,  energy  and  mind.    All  schools  have  qigong  forms.    The  form  is  very  obvious,  and  you’ll  have  some  schools  where  all  they  do  is  form,  and  they  tell  you  to  go  away  and  pracFce  this  form  a  hundred  Fmes  a  day,  or   for  an  hour,  or  however   long.    It’s   the  energy  and  the  mind  aspects  that   you  need  to   look   for,  the  entering  a  qigong  state  of  mind,  flowing  breeze  swaying  willows  and  standing  meditaFon,  so  make  sure  you  look  out  for  those  three.

Jordan:       So   really,   we’re   gekng   down   to   the   difference   here   between   the   techniques   and   the   skills,   because,  everybody’s  going  to  have  qigong  form,  going  to  do  some  sort  of  movement,  those  are  techniques.    But  it’s  the  energy  and  the  mind  aspects,  those  two  parts  that  are  important  skills.

Marcus:       Yeah,  that’s  right,  it’s  a  good  point  because  the  form’s  the  external  part,  so  you  can  see  the  form,  but  qigong  form  is  not  qigong,  you  know,  you’re  not  going  to  get  great  benefits.    Now,  if  you  have  these  three  core  skills,  then  you  can  take  a  technique  and  get  the  benefits  from  that  qigong  form.  

  For  example,  let’s  say  I  took  the  qigong  exercise  –  Looking  back  to  carrying  the  moon,  or  carrying  the  moon  as  it’s  someFmes  known.     I   could   look  at   the  technique  in  a  book,   but   because   I  have   the   skills,   I  could  very  quickly  get  the  benefits  from  that  technique.    There’s  a  big  difference  between  skills  and  techniques,  it  took  me  years  to  learn  this,  and  when  I  did    my  pracFce  went  through  the  roof,  because  there’s  a  saying  in  marFal  arts  circles  that  you  don’t   fear  the  marFal  arFst  who  knows  a  hundred  kicks  but  has  only  had  the  Fme  to  pracFce  each  one  a  hundred  Fmes,  you  fear   the  marFal  arFst  who  knows  one  kick,  but  has  pracFced  it  ten  thousand  Fmes.

Jordan:       That’s  so  true.

Marcus:       You  must  be  careful  because  there’s  this  noFon  that,  repeFFon  is  the  mother  of  skill,  that’s  not  quite  true.    It’s  correct  repeFFon  that’s  the  mother  of   skill,  okay,  because  if  you  do  something  wrongly   ten  thousand  Fmes,  you’re  going  to  be  very  skillful  at  doing  it  wrongly.

Jordan:     Yeah.    No  one  will  be  able  to  match  it  (laughing)  you’ll  be  ahead  of  the  curve,  but—

Marcus:       The  second  point  I’d  like  to  make  on  this  is  that  skills  are  virtually  impossible  to  learn  from  a  book,  or  from  a  video,  they’re  best  learned  from,  from  a  master  or  a  teacher.    And  an  example    I  like  to  give  of  this  concept  is  this.    Years  ago  I  was  very  much  into  skateboarding,  and  I  wanted  to  learn  how  to  do  a  trick  called  an  “Ollie”,  it’s  a  bit  like  a  bunny  hop  on  a  BMX,  it  looks  really  cool.

Jordan:     I  didn’t  know  this!

Marcus:       And  I  used  to,  at  that  point,  I  used  to  believe,  I  was  a  bit  of  a  late  starter,  but  you  know,  probably  too  old  to  be  on  a  skateboard,  but—

Jordan:       That  was  last  week,  folks!

Marcus:       That’s  right.    But   I  used  to  be  a  big   believer  in  you  could   learn  anything  from  a  book,  so   I  went  down  to  the  library,  I  got  a  book  on  skateboarding…  and  read  how  to  do  an  Ollie.     It  sounds  really  simple.    I  re-­‐read  a  few  Fmes  and  then  I’m  off  to  pracFce.

Jordan:       (laughing)

Marcus:       I  fell  off  many,  many,  many  Fmes,  and  eventually  all  I  did  was  I  just  went  to  see  somebody,  you  know,  one  of  the  kids  that  was  doing  one,  and  I  said,  “Hey,  can  you  teach  me  how  to  do  that?”  and  we  spent  an  aSernoon  doing  it,  and  I  could  do  it.    Skateboarding  is  a  high  level  art,  but  qigong’s  an  even  higher  level  art,  so—

Jordan:       So   you’re   not   bringing   out   a     skateboarding  course?

Marcus:       No,  no,  no,  the  skateboarding  course  is   going   to   have   to   wait.     But,  basically  the  point  I’m  trying  to  make  is  that  the  skills  of  qigong,  in  fact  any  skills  are  best  learned  from  a  master,  or  at  least  a,  a  competent  instructor.

Jordan:       At   least   someone  at   least   a   level  or     two  above  you.

Marcus:       Yeah,   in   fact,   it’s   a  bit   off   topic   here,  but   I   would   just   like   to   menFon   as  it   seems  appropriate,   the   three  requirements  for  success  in  any  endeavor,  I  know  that’s  a  bit  of  a  bold  claim—

Jordan:     It  is,  quite.    Just  three?

Marcus:     Just  three,  only  three,   I’ll  see  if   I   can  pull  it  off.    So,  the  first  requirement  is  the  master,  okay?    You  need  to  make  sure  you’re  learning  from  someone  who  is  a  master  of  whatever  technique  you  want  to  learn.    So  let’s  say  you’ve  been  not  doing  great  ollies  on  a  skateboard.    I  need  to  find  a  master,  or  somebody  who  is  a  master  of  doing  ollies  on  a  skateboard.    

  The  second  requirement  is  the  method,  you  know,  they  have  to  be  using  a  method  that’s  tried  and  tested  for  making   you  good  at  being  able  to  do  ollies  on  a  skateboard.   It  can’t  be  haphazard,  it  has  to  be  systemized,  structured,  so  that  if  you  follow  the  method,  you’ll  consistently  get  the  result.    Which  in  this  example  is  you  can  do  great  ollies.    

  The  third  and  the  most  important  requirement  for  success  in  any  endeavor  is  the  student.    You  see,  you  can  have  the  greatest  master  teaching  the  ulFmate  method  in  the  universe,  but  if   you  don’t  do  the  work,  if  they  say,  right,  you  need  to  do  ten  minutes  of  this  every  day,  if  you  don’t  do  that,  and  you  don’t  get  the  results,  it’s  not  the  master’s  fault,  it’s  not  the  method’s  fault,  it’s  your  fault.  And  that’s  perhaps  why  they  say  that  great  masters  are  rare,  and  it’s  true,  and  great  methods  are  rare,  but  perhaps  even  rarer  is  great  students.  Sorry  to  go  off  on  a  side  there.

Jordan:       Marcus,  why  is  qigong  form  so  prevalent  today?

Marcus:       Great  quesFon.    If  you  remember,  Qigong,  high  level  qigong   is  a  marriage  of  form,  energy,  and  mind.    Now,  the  form  aspect  is  the  visual  aspect,  you  can  see  it,  if  someone’s  doing  this  you  can  copy  that,  if  someone’s  doing  this  you  can  copy  that,  but  it’s  the  energy  and  the  mind  aspects,  you  can’t  see  those  parFcular   aspects,   so   therefore   it’s   very   hard   to   copy   them  unless  you’ve  been  taught  them  directly.    

  Now,  one  of  the  downsides  of  high  level  qigong  is  that  is  has  been  a  jealously  guarded,  closely  kept  secret  of  an  elite  few  for  a  very  long  period  of  Fme.    

  Whether   it’s  high   ranking  marFal  arFsts,  scholars,  warrior  monks,   it’s  oSen  been   the   case  that  many   students  will   leave   their   learning   from   a  master  before   they’re   actually   been   given   the   key   to   the   door,   if   you   like,   the  invisible  aspects  of  the  art,  so  a  lot  of  teachers  have  gone  on  and  taught  just  the  form  aspect.    

  They  may’ve   got   benefits   themselves,   and   they’ve   then   gone   on   to   teach  qigong   form,   it  has  benefits,  and  those  benefits  are  on  par  with  what  you’d  get  from  gentle  physical  exercise.    But   it’s  not  powerful  enough   to  give  the  kind   of   health,   vitality,  mental   clarity,   spiritual   culFvaFon  benefits  that  we  want.    

  Another  reason  qigong  form  is  so  common  today  is  that,  well,  it’s  hard  for  me  to  believe  this,  but  a  lot  of   people  will  start  teaching  aSer  watching  a  video,  or  pracFcing   from  a  book  for  a  period  of  Fme.    They  will  then  take  it  upon  themselves  and  start  thinking  that  somehow  they’re  ready  to  start  teaching.     And   it’s  interesFng,   we’ve  never   lived   in   a  more   interesFng  Fme  if   you   ask   me,   the  amount  of  interesFng  arcane  knowledge  that  we  have  access  to.

  Today  you  can  get  access  to  top  secret  texts  that  you  were  never  able  to  get  hold  of.    In  the  past  people  would  sacrifice  their  giant  fortunes  and  give  up  their,  kingships  or  Ftles  to  be  able  to  learn  this  parFcular  informaFon,  or  to  get  access  to  this  knowledge.    People  would  fight  for   this  knowledge.     And  yet  now  you   can  go   onto  Google,  Amazon,  visit  your  local  bookstore  and  you  can  get  the  Tao  Te  Ching,  you  can  get  the  small  universe…  

It’s  crazy,  because  a  lot  of  these  texts,  especially,  from  the  Taoist  side  of   things,  were  deliberately  wriJen  in  secreFve,  arcane,  esoteric  language  that  was  virtually  impossible  to  decipher  unless  you’d  been  iniFated  into  the  art  itself,  so  unless  you  were  a  high  ranking  Taoist  pracFFoner  of   the  art,  the  notes  you’d  have  in  front  of  you  would  make  no  sense  whatsoever.

Jordan:       Nonsense.

Marcus:       Nonsense!    So,  this  is  why  a  lot  of  the  internal  aspects  of  the  energy  arts,  the  energy  and  the  mind  aspects  are  missing,   or   someFmes  even  worse  they’re  misinterpreted   because   someone  will   take  some  text  and  think,  “Yeah,  right,  okay,  so  I’ve  got  to  walk  around  with  a  donkey  bladder  on  my  head,  and  that’s  going  to  help  me  aJain  some  parFcular  skill,”  but  that’s  probably  a  reference  to  something  else.    If  you  were  iniFated  into  that  school,  you  would  know  that  that’s  actually  a  code,  or  actually  a  reference  to  something  else.

Jordan:       Secret  language  code,  there.

Marcus:       Yeah.    And  remember  that  a  lot  of  the  original  texts  for  qigong,  were  wriJen  in  Chinese,  and  have  therefore  been  translated,  and  a  lot  gets  lost  in  translaFon.    A  lot  of  people  may  have  incomplete  studies  from  people,  the  masters  they’ve  been  learning  from,  and  also  the  Cultural  RevoluFon  and  the  effect  that  that’s  had  on  a  lot  of  the  internal  energy  arts.    That’s  the  reason  why  there’s  a  lot  of  qigong  form  out  there,  and  let  me  just  say,  it’s  not  evil,   it’s  not  a  bad  thing,  but  if   you  want   the  benefits  of   great  health,  wonderful  vitality,   longevity,  mental  clarity,  and  spiritual  culFvaFon,  you’ve  got  to  learn  high  level  qigong.

Secret  6:    A  PERFECT  Approach  to  Learning  Qigong  

Jordan:       Secret   number   six.     So,   referring   to   the  book   again,  I’ve   noted   that   for   the   book   you   actually   devised   a  system  to  help  your   students  remember  the  process.    You   came  up  with  the  PERFECT   system.     So  perhaps  you  could  tell  us  what  PERFECT  stands  for.

Marcus:       I  noFced  that  when   I’d  be  teaching,   I’d  start  teaching  something   and   I’d   stand   here,   then   I’d  move  onto  a  different   aspect   and   I’d   be   here,   I   noFced   I   was  moving.     So   I  started   thinking   about  it  and  I   realized  that   between   starFng   your   pracFce   and   fiSeen  minutes   later   ending   your   pracFce,   I   felt   that   there  were  seven  clearly   defined  steps,  and  when  I   started  learning   qigong   myself   I’d   find   someFmes   I’d   forget  what  came  next.     I  don’t  know   about  you,  but   I’d  be  going   through   and   I’d   get   stuck   trying   to   remember  what  I  was  meant  to  be  doing  now.

Marcus:       Yeah.    It  took  me  quite  a  few  months  just  to  get  happy  with  what  I  was  doing  in  that  fiSeen  minutes  because  I’d  have  to   remember  what   came  next,  and  obviously   high  level  qigong   is  a  marriage  of   form,  energy,  and  mind.    If  your  mind’s  like,  “What  is  it  that  happens  next?”  that’s  really  not  good  for  maintaining  a  qigong  state  of  mind  that  we  menFoned.      

  So  I  found  that  “PERFECT”  was  a  great  liJle  tool,  and  it’s  just  a  tool,  that  can  help  people  to  know  what  comes  next,  in  a  short  period  of  Fme.    Then  they  don’t  have  to  break  their  wonderful  qigong  state  of  mind  and  can  focus  on  gekng  the  benefits  of  Qigong  instead.    

  So  briefly,  and  I  cover  PERFECT  in  great  detail  in  the  home  study  course,  but  I  haven’t  got  Fme  to  go  into  much  detail  here,  but  I’ll   just,  an  overview.    So,   the  P  stands  for  prepara:on.    If   you’re  going   to  do  anything,  you  

need  to  be  prepared   to  do   it.     And   that’s  all   I’ve  got  to  say   about  that  one   (laughing)   it  really  would  take  forever,  I’m  resisFng  the  urge  to  go  on  and  on.    So  then  you  have  the  E,  which  is  entering  a  qigong  state   of  mind,  which  we  menFoned  earlier  on,  and  that’s  one  of   the  three  core  skills.    You  then  have  the  R,  which  is  really  smiling  from  the  heart.    This  is  something  that  is  simple  when  you  know  how  to  do  it,  but  confusing  as  hell  if  you  don’t.

Jordan:       It’s  a  skill.

Marcus:       You’re  right,  It  is  a  skill.    It  is  not  a  technique,  it’s  a  skill.    Then  you  have   F,   which   is   the   form.     That’s   the   bit   that   you   can   see,   so  everyone,  the  form  is  the  easy  part,  if  you  like.    Then  you  have  the  E,  which  is  energy  flow,  or  flowing  breeze  swaying  willows,  which  is  the   second   of   the  core   skills,   and   that’s  where   the  healing   takes  place,  gekng  rid  of   the  blockages,  or  increasing  the  flow  of  energy  through  the  meridians  if  you’ve  got  rid  of  the  blockages.    It’s  always  important   to  clear  blockages  and  then  build,  if   you  do   it  the  other  way  around  you  get  trouble.    

  Think  of  a  hose  pipe  with  a  lot  of  bends  and  it’s  been  outside  for  the  last  six  years  and  hasn’t  been  used,  if  you  suddenly,  turn  on  the  tap  and  put  a  lot  of   pressure  in,  you’re  going  to  get  trouble.     It’s  not  a  great  analogy  because  meridians  don’t  have  defined  boundaries  like  that,  but  it  gives  you  an  idea.    

  So,  flowing  breeze  swaying  willows,  the  energy  flow.    Then  you  have  the   C   which   is  cosmic  balance,  or   standing  meditaFon   and   finally  you   have   the   T,   the   :me   to   end,   because   it’s   very,   very,   very  important   when   you  finish   your  qigong  pracFce   that   you  finish   off  properly.    

Again,  I’ll  give  you  an  example  of  this.    I  was  up  in  Nokngham  years  ago  and  I  went  to  get  a  massage,  and  it  was  a  beauty  treatment  if  you  like,  it  wasn’t  a  Tuina  -­‐  therapeuFc  massage  where  they  make  you  feel  like  “EEEWWGH!”  (laughing),  it  was  a  massage  where  you’re  just  like  “Ahhhhhh”  so  I  poured  myself  off  the  bench  at  the  end  of  it  and  I  opened  the  door  to  go  home,  and  I  went  straight  into  Nokngham  rush  hour  traffic,  it  was  such  an  assault  on  my  senses  –  such  a  jolt,  a  shock  –  that  whatever  benefits  I  got  from  having  the  relaxing  massage  were  completely  lost,  and  I  probably  created  a  hundred  more  blockages  than  I  had  before  I  went  in.

  So   it’s   important  when   you   finish   your   pracFce,   that  you   finish   properly   because  when   you’re  doing   your  pracFce  you’re  in  a  heightened  state  of  awareness.    You’ve  got  to  be  careful  going  from  that  place  to  going  out  and   doing   your   work,   or   playing   with   your   friends,   or   doing   whatever   it   is  that   you   do,   so   finishing   your  pracFce  correctly  is  very  important.    And,  PERFECT   is  a  nice  liJle  acronym,  you  have  to  stretch  a  few  of   the  words  to  make  it  fit,  but  overall,  PERFECT   is  just  a  tool  that  helps  people  get  the  benefits  of   qigong   quicker  because  they’re  not  thinking  “What  comes  next?”  all  the  Fme.

Jordan:     FantasFc.

Secret  7:    Don’t  Believe  the  Hype

Jordan:       Secret  number  seven.    This  qigong  is  starFng  to  sound  a  bit  too  good,  and  I’m  sure  people  want  to  know,  are  there  any  flaws,  is  there  anybody  it’s  not  for,  is  it  for  absolutely  everybody,  is  there  anything  wrong  with  it?

Marcus:       That’s  a  good  quesFon.     I  mean,  the,  whilst  everyone  can  benefit  from  the  Shaolin  arts,   the  Shaolin  arts  are  not  for  everybody.     I  remember  when  I  first  started  learning,  10  years  ago  now,  I  quickly   realized  there  were  

three  major  flaws  with  Shaolin  qigong.    The  first  one  is  that  it  really  is  best  learned  directly  from  a  master,  and  at  that  Fme,  my  master  lived  seven  thousand  miles  away  from  me  and  spent  nine  months  of  the  year  traveling  around  the  world.    So  I  had  lots  of  Fme  where  I  had  quesFons  and  it  took  a  while  to  get  an  answer,  which  isn't’  a  brilliant  way  to  learn,

  The  second  flaw,   if   you  like,   is  that  you  have  got  to  do  the  work,  nobody  can  do   it  for  you.     Remember,  we  talked  about  the  master,  the  method,  and  the  student?    The  master  shows  you  the  way,  but  you  must  make  the  effort.    Qigong   is  no  thirty  day  miracle  cure,   you  have  to  do  the  work,   and  that’s  fiSeen  minutes  every  single  day.     If   you’re  hardcore,  if   you  want  the  fast  track   to   results  and  benefits,   you’ll  do  thirty  minutes  –  you’ll  do  a  fiSeen  minute  session  in  the  morning  and  a  fiSeen  minute  session  in  the  evening.    But,  nobody  can  do  that  for  you,  and  if  your  pracFce  is  haphazard  your  results  will  be  haphazard.    It  took  me  probably  one  or  two  years  to  actually  establish  a  proper  daily  pracFce.

Jordan:       Sure.    But  amazingly,  that’s  a  very  short  period  of  Fme.    FiSeen  minutes  can  easily  be  squeezed  into  a  morning  or  an  evening.

Marcus:     That’s   right,   but   that   leads   onto   the   third   flaw,   because   pracFcing   Qigong   does   require   discipline   and  commitment.    It  requires  discipline,  and  I’ve  found,  and  please  take  this  to  heart,  I’ve  found  I  had  to  actually  schedule,  to  start  with  I  had  to  schedule  that  fiSeen  minutes  in  the  morning   and  that  fiSeen  minutes  in  the  evening.    Because  otherwise,  life  just  seems  to  happen.    

  If  you’re  not  good  at  taking  care  of  things,  things  just  seem  to  happen,  and  before  I’d  know  it  it’d  be  Fme  to  go  out  to  work,  or  Fme  to  sit  and  spend  some  Fme  with  my  wife,  and  the  Fme  had  gone.    So  you  really  have  got  to  commit,  it’s  not  something  you  can   just  do  for  a  week  and  then  expect  to  be  the  healthiest,  most  vibrant  person,  and  spiritually   culFvated  person  on   the  planet,  it’s  not  going   to  happen.     Like   I   said,   its  not  some  thirty-­‐day  miracle  cure,  you’ve  got  to  be  commiJed  to  it.    

  And,  I  guess  there  are  certain  people  for  who  Shaolin  qigong  really   isn’t  for.    If  you’re  somebody  who  likes  to  have  everything   done  for   you,  you   know,   if   you   like   to   go   to   a  health   spa  and   just   lounge  around  and  do  nothing  and  just  let  everybody  do  everything  for  you,  then  Qigong  really  isn’t  for  you.    

  If  you  also  like  to  believe  that  there’s  a  pill  for  every   single  ill,  you  know   like  “Oh,  I’ve  got  something  wrong  with  me,  right,  I’ll  go  to  my  doctor’s,  they’ll  give  me  something  for  it,  they’ll  tell  me  what  to  do,”  then  Shaolin  qigong  probably  isn’t   for  you,  so  don’t  waste  your  precious  Fme  –   the  most  precious  thing  we  have  in  life  I  think   is  Fme,  because  once   it’s  gone   it’s  gone,   so   don’t   waste   your   precious  finite   valuable  Fme   learning  Qigong   if   you   like   to   have  everything   done   for   you   and   if   you   think  there’s  a  pill  for  every  ill.    

  But,  if  you’re  prepared  to  commit,  prepared  to  follow  instrucFons,  and  most   importantly,   if   you   want   to   take   back   the   power   and   the  responsibility   for   your   health,   your   vitality,   your   well-­‐being,   your  happiness,  if  you  want  to  be  in  control  of  that  and  you  want  to  be  able  to  manage  that  effecFvely,  then  I  certainly  believe  that  Shaolin  Qigong  is  probably  the  best  tool  that  you  can  use.

Jordan:    Great.    Well,  the  control  element  is  a  big  one  for  me,  because  I  didn’t  like  pukng   the   responsibility   of   my   health   in   other   people’s   hands,   you  know,   I   like  to,   as  much  as  possible,   keep  that  control,  you  know,  be  responsible  for  my  own  health.

Marcus:     That   right.     Another   ‘off   topic’  discussion,   the   reason   this  book   got  wriJen  was  I  remember  reading  an  arFcle   in  The   Telegraph  years  ago  that  really  boldly  said  Britain  is  becoming  a  naFon  that  believes  in  a  pill  

for  every  ill,  and  there  was  some  study  that  they’d  done,  that  preJy  much  we  were  just  thinking  like  “Oh,  I’ve  got  a  cold,  I’ll  go  to  the  doctor’s  and  get  me  a  pill…  I’ve  got  guts  ache  I’ll  go  to  the  cupboard  and  take  a  pill”  that  scared  me,  that  really  scared  me,  I’d  been  pracFcing  four  or  five  years  then  and  I’d  witnessed  the  effects  and  benefits  of   Qigong   in  my   own  life  and  in  so  many  other  people  lives  and  I  thought   if   only  people   knew  about  this  Qigong!    So,  I’ve  got  that  to  thank  for  wriFng  the  book.

Jordan:       It’s  a  flip  though,  because  a  lot  of  people  look  at  health  as  a  sort  of  curaFve  thing,  like  you  get  a  problem,  then  you  go  and  get  a  fix.    And  that’s  great,  you  know,  when  you’ve  got  a  problem  you’ve  got  to  get  a  fix,  sure,  but  this  is  also  prevenFve,  you  can  just  stop  all  that  aggravaFon  ahead  of  Fme.

Marcus:       It’s  a   really   good  point  Jordan,   because  when  you’re  young,  it’s  very  easy   to   take  your  health  for   granted.    Generally,  and  I’ve  certainly  have  been  guilty  of  this,  we  don’t  actually  start  doing  anything  for  our  health  and  vitality   unFl   it’s   too   late,   unFl   the   yin   yang   harmony   is  way   out   of   balance.     So,   Qigong   is  brilliant   for  maintaining  health,  for  developing  health,  and  the  great  thing  is,  and  Jordan  you  know,  obviously  as  someone  who’s   tried   it   yourself,   that   you   don’t   have   to   wait   ages   to   start   gekng   the   benefits,   even   though   it’s  something  you  have  to  do  on  a  daily  basis  for  preferably  the  rest  of  your  life,  you  do  get  benefits  quite  quickly.

Jordan:       But  frankly,  it’s  not  an  instant  cure,  it’s  not  a  thirty  day  wonder   thing,  but  you  do  one  session,  and  you  feel  beJer  aSer  than  before  you  started.    In  that  sense,  you’re  already  gekng  some  benefits.

Marcus:       That’s  right,  you  feel  calm  –  the  amount  of  Fmes  I  finished  my  pracFce  and  I’m  just  kind  of  like  “Wow”  it’s  very  common,  so  whilst  15  minutes  once  or  twice  a  day  may  sound  like  a  chore,  unFl  you  start  trying  it  for  yourself,  you’re  not  going  to  find  out.

Jordan:       Now  at  the  start,  I  think  you  did  menFon  some  sort  of  promise  that  you  were  going  to  give  the  people,  didn’t  you?

Marcus:       Have  we  covered  all  seven  secrets?

Jordan:       Yeah,  this  is  it,  we’re  here,  we  need  that  hook.

Marcus:       Okay,  so  that  leads  us  nicely  into  that  bonus  I  promised  you  at  the  start  of  the  video.

Bonus:    Who  Else  Wants  a  Beau)ful,  Youthful  Complexion

Marcus:       At  the  start  of  the  video,  I  did  promise  to  share  something  with  you,  and  if  we  go  back  to  PERFECT,  just  quickly,  remember  T  was  :me  to  end,  and  how  it’s  important  to  finish  your  Qigong  pracFce  off  correctly.    Well,  as  part  of  that,  and  there’s  quite  a  few  parts  in  that  parFcular  leJer  if  you  like,  and  one  of  them  is  the  facial  massage,  one  of  them  is  point  massage,  and  one  of  them  is  banging  the  heavenly  drum,  and  I  thought  it  would  be  fun  to  show  you  those.

  Because  you  can  also  benefit  from  them  without  doing  Qigong,  remember  I  spoke  about  the  energy  channels  of  the  body  called  meridians?    Well,  on  those  energy  channels,  let’s  take  acupuncture  for  example,  they  put  needles  into  specific  points  on  the  meridians  where  they   know  that   if   they  sFmulate  those  points,  it  gives  a  tried  and  tested  effect.    

  There  are  a  lot  of   these  points  on   the  face.    So,   that’s  why  when  we  do  the  point  massage   it  can  be  quite  beneficial,  and  help  to  give  a  youthful  glow,  and  if  you  have  problems  with  the  skin  or  your  complexion,  this  is  a  wonderful  liJle  tool,  it’ll  take  you  five  minutes  if  that,  so  I’ll  quickly  go  through  the  facial  massage.    

  PreJy  much,  you  just  rub  your  hands  together,  make  sure  your  palms  are  nice  and  warm,  and  when  they’re  nice  and  warm  just  gently,  dab  the  palms  of  your  hands  against  the  eyes,  just  gently  nourishing  the  eyes.    Dab,  dab,  dab,  dab,  dab.    

  And  then  with  the  fingerFps,  just  make  small  circles  around  the  eye  sockets,  gradually  making  the  circles  larger  and  larger,  unFl  you’re  massaging  your  face,  your  head,  and  your  neck.     In  circles,   it’s  a  circular  movement,  and  be  gentle,  don’t  be  too  rough.    

  So  that’s  the  facial  massage,  then  the  point  massage.    So,  you  can  either  use  your  index  finger  or  your  middle  finger,  and  preJy  much  it’s  just  applying  firm  pressure  and  then  making  liJle  circles.    

  So  we  start  right   in   the  corner  of   the  eyes,  just  gentle  press  and   liJle  circles,  and   then  come  to  where  the  eyebrows  would  meet,  and  now  sweep  along  the  eyebrows.    Now  midway  on  the  eyebrow  –  you  can  always  tell  when  you’ve  got  the  right  places  because  you  feel,  like,  these  liJle  depressions  on  your  skull—

Jordan:       It  just  seems  to  fit.

Marcus:       Yeah,  the  fingerFps  just  fit  in.    Then  come  to  the  end  of  the  eyebrow,  then  come  to  the  outside  corners  of  your  eyes,  then  come  to  the  lower  half  of  the  eye,  back  to  the  center,  and  then  make  long  sweeps  down  the  side  of  the  nose,  and  then  where  the  nostrils  kind  of  curve  in  just  sort  of  sink  the  fingers  in  there  and  jiggle  it  around  a  liJle  bit.    Then  with  the  big  fleshy  part  of   the  base  of   your  thumb,  just  gently  place  it  on  the  temples  and  in  small  circles  in  the  same  direcFon,  so  this  kind  of  direcFon,  as  when  you  were  doing  the  facial  massage,  just  gently  massage  the  temples.    And  this  is  a  good  test  to  see  if  you  can  follow  instrucFons  because  the  keyword  here  is  gently,  okay?    Then,  back  to  the  fingers,  and  what  you  do  is  preJy  much  where  the  jaw  goes  up  into  the  back  of  the  ear  you’re  just  going   to  stuff  your  fingers  in  there,  don’t  press  too  hard  otherwise  you’ll  start  coughing,  

Marcus:   Just  press  and  then  just  in  small  circles,  and  that’s  the  point  massage,  these  points  all  have  names  which  I  can’t  repeat,  but  they’re  in  the  book.  So,  That’s  the  point  massage.  

  NOTE:  Please  view  the  next  two  pages  for  diagrams  that  will  help  you  make  sense  of  the  text  above.

  The  final  part  is  banging  the  heavenly  drum  and  it’s  24  Fmes  another  test  to  see  if  you  can  follow  instrucFons.  It’s  not  22  it’s  not  26  Fmes,  it’s  24  Fmes.  So  preJy  much  what’s  happening  is  you’re  sealing  your  ears  off  and  then  you’re  either  flicking  by  pukng  the  index  finger  against  the  middle  finger  and  flicking.  Or  you  can  just  use  the  fingers  and  pat  the  back  of  the  head,  it’ll  make  sense  in  a  second.  But  preJy  much  what’s  happening  is  it  gives  the  spine  spinal  cord  a  wakeup  call.    The  heavenly  drum  is  kind  of  shaking  the  rust  off  the  spinal  column.  

   

  So  you  are  going  to  close  the  ears  and  flick  or  tap  24  Fmes.  And  you’ll  know  if  you  got  it  right  because  you  will  hear  a  boom  boom  if  you  here  a  kind  of  bap  bap  bap  you  need  to  get  a  beJer  seal  over  the  ears.  So  we’ll  do  this  24  Fmes.  And  that’s  it  we’ve  finished.  It  doesn’t  have  to  be  quick,  it  doesn’t  have  to  be  fast,  at  your  pace,  but  it  does  have  to  be  24  Fmes.  Which  brings  us  very  nicely  to  the  end,  So  what  I  would  like  to  do  is  thank  you  for  watching  the  video  and  I  would  like  to  thank  Jordan  for  traveling  down  to  pay  me  a  visit.

Jordan:     My  pleasure  thanks  for  lekng  me  come  down  here,  and  share  the  moment.

Marcus:   If  there  is  only  one  lesson  people  take  from  our  talk,  it  is  this:  Qigong  is  best  learned  directly  from  a  master  or  at   least   a  suitably  qualified  master.  But  and  it’s  one  of   the  reasons  I  made  the  Qigong  Secrets  home  study  course   is   that  I   know   that   for   whatever   reason   there  are  lots  of   people  who  are  unable   to   find  a  suitably  qualified   instructor   or   master   but   who   are   genuinely   dedicated   and   commiJed   and   want   to   take   back  responsibility  for  their  health  and  vitality.

  They  want   to   learn  high   level  Qigong.   But  for  whatever   reason,   traveling   thousands  of   miles  to  learn  from  somebody  isn’t  always  pracFcal,  although  if  you’re  very  serious  you  will  I  mean  we  both  did.  

  So  I  wanted   to  make  something  for  those  people  who  are  genuine,  commiJed,  and  want  to  learn  high  level  Qigong  –  that’s  why  I  created  the  Qigong  Secrets  online  course.    If  anyone  wants  to  find  out  more,  please  visit:  hJp://enjoyqigong.com  

Ending:     Thank  you  for  watching  be  sure  to  visit  my  blog  for  more  Qigong  goodness  hJp://qigong15.com/blog