Important Articles for Beginners

• Showing Respect
• The Heart to Heart Transmission
• Qualities of a Good Master
• The Ten Shaolin Laws
• Tracking Your Progress
• The Progress Chart
• The Art of Energy
• Good Health is your Birthright
• Depression & Cosmos Chi Kung
• Remarkable Recoveries

Other Links

• The 12 Sinew Metamorphosis *new*
• The 18 Lohan Hands
• Warrior Chi Kung *new*
• The Flowing Zen Practice Chart *new*x

Lifting The Sky

1. Make it enjoyable. Remember, it's more important to be comfortable than correct.
2. Lift up at the top like a child standing tall at a ride at Dinsey World.
3. Breathe in gently through the nose; pause, breathe out gently through the mouth; pause. Keep the arms fairly straight but comfortable.
   
   

Cloud Hands

1. Sweep to one side, then switch.
2. The top hand sweeps across like a tennis backhand.
3. Switch both arms like scissors.
4. Shift the weight from foot to foot.
5. Let the whole body flow.
6. Breathe spontaneously.

The Fifteen Minute Session

Grandmaster Wong's "golden prescription" has worked wonders for thousands of students on six continents:

• Phase 1: Opening Sequence
  • Stand upright and relax.
  • Find your Center
  • Head-to-Toe relaxation
  • Relax twice as much.
  • Smile From The Heart!
• Phase 2: Dynamic Patterns
  • Lifting The Sky (or other dynamic chi kung patterns)
• Phase 3: Energy Flow
  • Flowing Breeze Swaying Willow
    
• Phase 4: Standing Meditation
  • Flowing Stillness
    
• Phase 5: Closing
  • Think gently of your belly button (or dantian).
  • Warm the palms and the eyes.
    
  • Enjoy the darkness.
  • Gently pat the eyes open.
  • Wash the face with both hands.
  • Comb the hair with ten fingers.
  • Facial Massage
  • Heavenly Drum 24 times.
  • Walk briskly for 36 steps.

The timing of the 15-minute session should be dynamic. In other words, the time spent on each phase may change slightly from session to session. As a rough guide, spend 5 minutes on dynamic patterns (phase 2), and 5 minutes on energy flow (phase 3). The rest is up to you, as long as you keep shooting for 15 minutes total.

The Two Minute Drill

Daily practice is the key to success with Cosmos Chi Kung. But it's not easy to keep your practice regular. No matter how disciplined you are, you'll still run into obstacles. The "Two Minute Drill" is a great way to overcome these obstacles.

Let's say you've just had a stressful day in the middle of a stressful week. Even though you KNOW that practicing Cosmos Chi Kung will help, you still avoid it. Your internal dialogue may go something like this:

"I should practice but I just don't have time but it's only ten minutes but I have to send that email right now and besides I'm too tired..."

This internal dialogue is just mental tension, and it is not serving you. To overcome it, use the Two Minute Drill:

1. Tell yourself that you're only going to practice for 2 minutes, and mean it.
2. Stand upright and relax as best as you can.
3. Smile from the heart as best as you can.
4. Perform "Lifting The Sky" 10-15 times, focusing on enjoying your movements and your breath.
5. Stand "Flowingly Still" for about 10 seconds.
6. Center yourself by thinking gently of dantian.
7. Warm the eyes and walk around.

The goal of the Two Minute Drill is to change your state. You should feel refreshed and more relaxed. The Two Minute Drill is not as powerful as the Fifteen Minute Session, but it is still a valuable tool because it keeps your practice going.

Here is a habit that I recommend you adopt: If you miss a day of practice, it's okay. But no matter what happens, don't let the next day pass without doing the Two Minute Drill. After all, who doesn't have two minutes?

Guidelines for Practice

These guidelines meant to enhance your practice, not enslave it. They should be gradually added to your practice routine. If you can't follow all of the guidelines, don't worry. That's why they're called guidelines, not commandments.

Don’t:

1. Don’t worry.
   You are expected to make mistakes, especially with the postures. Don't worry about the mistakes.
   
   
2. Don’t breathe forcefully.
   Breathe in gently through the nose, and out gently through the mouth (as if fogging up a mirror).
   
   
3. Don’t over-practice.
   Quality, not quantity.
   
   
4. Don’t practice during a thunderstorm.
   The energy is too charged, and it may keep you up at night.
   
   
5. Don’t practice near noontime.
   The energy is too "yang" and strong. It's okay to practice at noon now and then, but don't make it a regular thing. Also, try to avoid practicing in direct sunlight (also too "yang"). Partial shade is fine.
   
   
6. Don't practice somewhere unsafe.
   Don’t practice near a balcony, near sharp objects, or in an unsafe environment. This is self explanatory for those who've learned Flowing Breeze Swaying Willows or Induced Chi Flow.
   
   
7. Don’t practice barefoot outdoors.
   Indoors is fine barefoot, but outdoors, we run the risk of absorbing "damp" ground energy. Practicing barefoot on the beach once in a while is fine.

Do:

1. Enjoy your practice!
   This is the most important guideline. Make your practice more and more enjoyable.
   
   
2. Practice in 10-15 minute sessions.
   Follow Grandmaster Wong's 15-minute session. It works.
   
   
3. Practice 1-3 times daily.
   If you are healthy, once daily is enough (15 minutes total). If you are in pain, practice twice daily. If you are very sick, then practice three times daily.
   
   
4. Keep your mouth gently open.
   This relaxes the entire body, and allows for negative energy to gently flow out.
   
   
5. Practice somewhere with good air circulation.
   Indoors is fine, but the room shouldn't be stuffy. Outdoors is better.
   
   
6. Try to practice before 10AM or after 4PM.
   The best time to to practice is at dawn, and midnight is 2nd best. Ideally, get as close to one as you can.

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