1. Holding the

氣海Qihai a b

a. Stand still, feet shoulder width apart and both hands at the Dantian. Men should have the left palm inside and ladies should have the right palm inside. This means the Laogong points 勞功穴 on both palms line up the Qihai point 氣海穴 on the stomach which is below the naval. b. Bend the knees and relax the body. Make sure all the weight is on the thighs and the back is straight.

60 1. Holding the Dantian

百會Baihui

涌泉Yongquan

c d 會陰Huiyin

c. Straighten the legs and breathe in. d. Bend the knees and breathe out. e. Repeat movements, b to d as many times as you like.

This movement is to create a connection with the Dantian and the , relaxation and the posture. First of all we need to make sure the back is straight. This means the Baihui point 百會穴and Huiyin point 會陰穴 are in a straight line vertically. Looking at the body from the side, when the legs are straight, this vertical line goes down to the heels, but when the knees are slightly bent, the line goes down to the Yongquan points 涌泉穴on the soles of the feet. In all our practice, all the movements should relate with the Dantian. This way the Qi will be strong in this area which is very important. The position of the hands is also important in the movement. Men have the left palm inside (against the Dantian) because when we are babies in our mother’s womb the Qi starts on the left side. So we have the left hand inside as this connects with the Dantian. It is the other way round for ladies as the Qi starts on the right before they are born.

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