The Pendulum to Empty the Mind and Feel the Qi

Begin by standing as above with your tongue on the roof of your mouth and your arms by your sides. Turn your hands so that the palms face in toward the body and breathe slowly and deeply. Now think about how a pendulum swings – it moves through an arc, swinging effortlessly. Your arms are the pendulums; begin to let them swing back and forward, keeping elbows straight but not locked tight. Allow your arms to swing forward and back an equal distance feeling the rhythm and momentum of the swing take on its own life without you really having to make your arms move.

Having achieved this, keep the momentum going and just think about your hands. The Chinese say “put your mind in your hands”. This is important as it helps free up your mind and your shoulders, because where your mind goes your Qi flows. So putting your mind in your hands draws any stuck or blocked energy around your shoulders, neck and head down your arms and into your hands. You can even imagine that this energy is flowing out of your fingers if you wish.

Continue this for five minutes. Then imagining how a pendulum slows down to stop simply allow the movement of your arms to slow down, all the while still keeping your mind in your hands. Notice how your hands are feeling – they may be pulsing, feel big or tingle, whatever you feel, this is your Qi. When the movement seems to have completely stopped bring your hands to the lower abdomen as before and feel the Qi from your hands merge with your lower abdomen. This area is the key Qi storage centre in the body, so allow yourself some time to stand and let the Qi settle.

This Qi Gong exercise helps free the neck and shoulder area from stress and tension. It stills the mind and is good to do before going to bed if you are having difficulty sleeping. It activates the Qi of the lungs, heart, liver and spleen, generally helping to improve the function of these organs.

Together these Qi Gong exercises, when done regularly, will help your body and mind to come back to or maintain a state of balance.