Zhong Yuan is a plain in central China. In the distant past, the whole area constituted one large administrative unit, which was subsequently divided into three provinces. One of them is the Henan province, where the famous Shaolin monastery is located (picture III, XII-XV).
Thousands of years ago, the proto-Chinese settled along the banks of the Yellow river, whose yellow waters flow through the Zhong Yuan plain. Therefore, this area is regarded as the cradle of the Chinese civilization and culture. The plain also contains high mountains with numerous caves. Since the dawn of history, people have inhabited these mountains and erected monuments, temples, and monasteries in secluded places. ZY qigong appeared in those mountains more than 7,000 years ago, much earlier than other world religions and qigong schools. Back then, the system did not have a name because there were no other systems from which it had to be distinguished. In modern times, ZY qigong took on the name of the region from which it originated.
The ZY qigong system is truly holistic. No other known system encompasses so completely all aspects of human existence – education, development, self-regulation, and healing. Further, it provides a philosophical perspective on the role of humanity in the structure and evolution of the Universe. Because of its depth and non-linear training methodology, much of the system remains elusive or “esoteric”. However, what has been uncovered so far allows practitioners to expand their minds and to gain new perspectives on themselves and the world. ZY qigong practice helps students come to the realization that not only are they human beings operating in a global or planetary context, but cosmic beings and key participants in the perpetual evolution of the Universe. This insight furthers the practitioner’s understanding of their place in the world and the reasons for their existence.
The ZY qigong system consists of three components – self-development, image therapy, and knowledge transfer. Each of these components constitutes an independent, autonomous system.
The Self Development System has gained much international attention in the past decade. It has five levels, which are taught in a conventional Western mode by teachers in class and seminar settings. The first three levels introduce students to the system’s basic elements and practice methodology allowing trainees to work on improving their health and on awakening dormant abilities. In Level Four, students learn how to communicate with all beings on Earth (including animals and plants), and they begin to understand the principle of interdependence among life forms. The first four levels are accessible to everybody. In order to proceed to Level Five, students must undergo a selection process. Here, they focus on cause-effect relationships that shape individuals, society, certain events, and other worlds (including other planets).
Image Therapy is an unusually effective branch of medical qigong that was secret until 1997. Image Therapy (IT) practitioners learn about the multi-dimensional structure of the Universe and about traveling from our physical, three-dimensional world to other realities. This component of the ZYQ system focuses on recovering one’s health and healing many diseases, and it includes the use of symbols and mantras.
Knowledge Transfer is a unique way of receiving knowledge by absorbing it directly from the environment. If practitioners master this sub-system, they can receive answers to any question. Knowledge transplantation still remains “esoteric knowledge,” and only a minuscule part of it is used in ZY qigong classes. In the last few years, some Chinese universities and specialized schools have adopted it in order to accelerate and to improve students’ learning of large quantities of information. Hopefully this system will open to the world in the 21st century.
The terms “Zhong” and “Yuan” have multiple meanings. The basic translation for “Zhong” is “center” or “core.” In the context of qigong, it means “middle path,” “to adhere to the center.” In mathematics, the middle of a segment is the point situated at equal distances from the segment’s ends. Building on this, we can identify another meaning for Zhong – “equilibrium,” “balance” – which itself has many applications. In terms of health, for example, people get sick when yin and yang are out of balance. Philosophically, the human being can be conceptualized as an integral part of the Universe. Earth, Human, and Heaven form a system in which the Human occupies a central place; therefore, the developmental paths of the Universe and each person are interdependent. From this perspective, each one of us is at the center of the Universe. Perfecting, developing, and learning about the self allows us to understand the Universe – the Earth, the Cosmos, our place in relation to them, and the reason we are here.
The human being is a microcosm of the universe that contains a “middle path”: the front-middle energy channel (Ren-Mai), the back-middle channel (Du-Mai), and the main, central channel (Zhong-Mai). The Zhong-Mai channel serves as an axis for the body. It passes through the Baihui point on the crown of the head and the Hueiyin point on the perineum (picture 9 and Appendix. 1, picture 14). The center of the human body represents a Tao – a path. One needs to discover and open this path for the soul, so that it may have a way to leave and return. The main goal of ZY qigong practice is to open the Zhong-Mai channel and to build the path for the soul’s travel.
In the context of daily life, the term “Zhong” stands for “the golden medium.” For example, we should avoid emotional extremes, such as surges of anger, joy, euphoria, or hurt – everything needs to be in moderation. When we walk, our bodies should not bounce all over the place; and our mind and gaze shouldn’t wander aimlessly, or our energy will scatter into the environment. We need to focus internally and to block out the surrounding world.
Another meaning of “Zhong” has to do with human cognition. Our thought processes should not be chaotic and overly intense. Instead, we should focus our thoughts on the issue at hand, which ensures its successful resolution without interruptions.
Yuan means “initial,” “original,” “cause,” or “natural resource.” The concept is common to all qigong schools, but they work with it in different ways. In the ZY qigong system, Yuan implies that when we practice, we need to know how (with what) to begin. Yuan is the most important thing, the foundation of our body
The human body is pretty amazing, so how do we know which is the most important part? It contains three separate structures connecting the body and the soul: Yuan-Jing, Yuan-Qi, and Yuan-Chen (picture 9). These represent different kinds, structures, and levels of qi.
[PICTURE 9 COMES HERE – SEE PAGE 52]
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