Martial Grand Circulation

by Jchym Jerie, March 21, 2011

We always hear stories about Kung Fu () or Taijiquan () masters who hae
!eelo"e! incre!ible s#ills$ %ne o& the reasons why they became so goo! is because they
"ractice! Martial 'ran! (irculation$ )ome martial arts "ractitioners beliee that through Martial
'ran! (irculation, one can energi*e the muscles to a higher state o& e&&iciency$ This will gie the
"ractitioner the ability to lea! the energy to the areas that require it$ +ence, the training can be
much more e&&icient an! the "ractitioner can "rogress at a &aster "ace$ ,n a!!ition, it increases the
sensitiity o& the "ractitioner so that once he touches his o""onent, he can sense his eery
moement$ This is es"ecially use&ul in Taijiquan -ushing +an!s an! the )outhern White (rane
style$ ,n the &iel! o& .igong () there are many gran! circulations that one can re&er to$
+oweer, this article will &ocus on Martial 'ran! (irculation$
The Theory Behind It
To un!erstan! the "ractice o& Martial 'ran! (irculation, one has to &irst un!erstan! the theory$
Without the theory, the "ractitioner will hae a much har!er time recogni*ing an! correcting his
errors$ ,t is li#e being in a &oreign city$ Without a ma" one will easily get lost$
Basic Energy System
The human bo!y has two "olarities, one resi!es in the brain, the other is in the ab!omen region$
The latter one is calle! the real lower /antian (), while the &ormer is #nown as the u""er
/antian$ 0si!e &rom those, we hae another /antian "ositione! at the solar "le1us area, but we
shall not !iscuss that one here$ The lower /antian is the battery &or the whole bo!y$ ,t resi!es in
the ab!omen region (see &igure below)$
The structure o& the ab!omen allows energy, or .i (), to be store! at a high leel, an! &rom
there it can su""ly the whole bo!y$ )ome years ago, scientists !iscoere! that humans hae a
secon! brain which resi!es in the ab!omen$ These conce"ts o& the secon! brain an! lower
/antian may be relate!$ The u""er /antian is in the limbic system, locate! between the ears, in
the center o& the brain$ )ome .igong "ractitioners beliee that this is the resi!ence o& the s"irit
an! your true sel&$
The lower an! u""er /antian communicate through the s"inal cor! (see !iagram aboe)$ The
communication occurs here because the s"inal cor! is com"ose! o& material highly con!uctie to
.i$ This enables the two brains to act as one$ -hysically, they are two, in action, they are one$ ,&
you want to #now how you can &in! those centers, "lease re&er to my article Why Me!itation is
im"ortant in Martial 0rts or to the boo#, .igong Me!itation23mbryonic 4reathing, by /r$ 5ang,
6wing2Ming$
Vessels
0ccor!ing to .igong theory, the human being has eight essels$ 7essels store energy an! release
it to the meri!ians as nee!e!$ For Martial 'ran! (irculation, two essels are ery im"ortant$ The
(once"tional essel !own the &ront o& the bo!y an! the 'oerning essel u" the bac#$ Together,
they &orm one unit as 5in () an! 5ang (), res"ect&ully$ Throughout the !ay, 28 hours "er
cycle, energy circulates through those two essels$ 0ccor!ing to /r$ 5ang, we hae seen
matching gates in our bo!y (see !iagram below)$
They are calle! matching gates because we hae one gate or caity in the &ront an! a
corres"on!ing one in the bac#$ 0 ery im"ortant matching gate has one caity on the lower bac#,
Mingmen (), which resi!es between 92 an! 9: o& the s"ine$ The other caity is on the &ront,
5injiao (), which resi!es about one an! a hal& inch below the nael$ /ue to the "ositioning
o& the ertebrae, the Mingmen is usually close! when we stan! u"right$ That is why it is calle!
the close! !oor$ 4y moing the s"ine in a s"eci&ic way, we are able to o"en the !oor an! !raw
energy into the 'oerning essel$ The 5injiao is where we will start the 'ran! (irculation,
lea!ing the energy !own the (once"tional essel$ The /a*hui () an! )hen*hu () are the
"oints where one will lea! the energy out to the arms$ The "ath o& the 'ran! (irculation will be
!escribe! below$
Mind-Qi
,n (hinese .igong theory, human beings hae two #in!s o& min!s$ The &irst is the emotional
min!, calle! ;in ()$ The secon! is the wis!om min!, calle! 5i ()$ The ;in is ery unstea!y
an! behaes li#e a mon#ey$ The 5i can be calm an! stea!y, li#e a horse or a tree$ ,n or!er to lea!
the .i e&&iciently, one has to be able to control the emotional min! with the wis!om min!$ The
min! is li#e a she"her! o& the .i$ Where he goes, the shee" will &ollow$ ,& the ;in is the
she"her!, the "ath traele! will not be !irect because the emotional min! is easily !istracte!$ We
e1"erience this when our min!s wan!ering o&& &rom concentration$ 9ogically, the .i will &ollow
the ;in o&& the "ath, or s"rea! on its own &rom where it was aban!one!$ 0s you can see, a
&ocuse! min! is highly im"ortant in Martial 'ran! (irculation$ 0 more &ocuse! min! will allow
the .i to &ollow more quic#ly an! e&&iciently$ +ence, more muscle can be energi*e! an! the
mani&estation o& "ower will be greater$
o! to "ractice Grand Circulation
4reathing, is naturally relate! to our energy system$ When we slee" or rela1 !ee"ly, our e1hale
ta#es longer than the inhale$ 0t that time, the bo!y<s energy con!enses into the center line, the
s"ine an! the two main energy centers$ /uring the !ay, normally our energy mani&ests outwar!s
into the limbs &or our !aily actiities$ +ence, one has to learn to breathe correctly be&ore being
able to "ractice 'ran! (irculation$ Without !ee" rela1e! e1halations, the lea!ing o& the .i will
be shallow$ %nce the "ractitioner is use! to the right breathing technique, which occurs when he
no longer has to "ay attention to it, he is rea!y to &ocus the whole min! on the lea!ing o& the .i,
an! the sense o& enemy$ %& course, one nee! not wait that long be&ore beginning 'ran!
(irculation training$ %nce the breathing is com&ortable, shi&t your &ocus to 'ran! (irculation$ 0s
time goes by, the breathing will become natural an! no attention will be necessary to control it$
#e$erse %bdominal Breathing
=eerse ab!ominal breathing occurs naturally quite o&ten, such as when laughing or crying$
=eerse ab!ominal breathing also hel"s to energi*e muscles to a higher leel, so it is also a""lie!
without thought when "ower or strength is nee!e!$ %ne e1am"le is "ushing heay objects$ 0s the
name in!icates, it is the reersal o& normal ab!ominal breathing$ 0s you inhale, !raw the +uiyin
() an! ab!omen in$ 0s you e1hale, "ush the +uiyin an! ab!omen out$
&our Gates Breathing
More closely relate! to Martial 'ran! (irculation is the "racticing o& the Four 'ates 4reathing$
,t is the "ractice o& lea!ing o& .i with each breath an! it is a tra!itional martial arts technique$ ,n
Four 'ates 4reathing, &irst inhale !ee"ly, then e1hale while imagining that you are "ushing a
heay object with your han!s an! "ressing your heels through the &loor$ ,t is im"ortant to stay
"hysically rela1e!$ This causes .i to &low through your arms an! legs, but it won<t consume the
energy the way tense! muscles !o$ (ontinue! "ractice will buil! u" your neres< sensitiity, an!
eentually this technique shoul! create an electric, tingling sensation through your limbs$ ,t is
"ossible to accom"lish this without breathing, but using breathing to lea! .i ma#es this "rocess
much easier$
Basic S'ine E(ercises to "ractice Martial %rts Grand Circulation
,n or!er to "ractice Martial 'ran! (irculation, you hae to #now how to moe the s"ine$ Without
"ro"er s"ine moement, you will not be able to o"en u" the Mingmen, which is one o& the
crucial #eys to succee! in this training$ To locate the Mingmen, ma#e a &ist an! "lace it on your
bac# with the "in#y on the "elis bone$ The Mingmen is where the thumb touches the s"ine$ ,&
you are &amiliar with human anatomy, you will &in! the Mingmen between 92 an! 9:$ 9eae the
han! there, stay u"right, an! "lace both legs shoul!er wi!th a"art$ Moe your lower bac#
bac#war!s so that the ) &orm o& the s"ine starts to !isa""ear$ The moement is the same as one
sighs$ This will o"en u" the Mingmen an! allow you to lea! the .i out$ (ontinue the moement
in a wae li#e &orm$ -lease re&er to the /7/s &rom /r$ 5ang> )im"le .igong 31ercises &or 4ac#
-ain =elie&, )haolin White (rane, +ar! an! )o&t .igong, The 3ssence o& Taiji .igong$ These
/7/s will gie you the o""ortunity to see the s"ine wae$ This basic moement is ery
im"ortant an! is seen in any internal style which is "racticing Martial 'ran! (irculation$
% Ma' )or the "ractitioner
,t is clear now, that the min! is ery im"ortant in lea!ing the .i$ ,t is also clear that the .i use!
&or circulation will come &rom the lower /antian, as this is the battery o& the whole bo!y$ 4ut
what is the "ath you lea! the energy through? ,t is the same as !riing the car$ Without #nowing
the !estination, you will circle aroun! an! waste gasoline$ ,n Martial 'ran! (irculation, the
!estination is where you nee! the energy to mani&est "ower$ For e1am"le, when you are stri#ing,
you nee! to bring the .i to your arms an! han!s$ 4ut how !o we get there &rom the lower
/antian? -lace your min! into your center, an! lea! the .i out o& the real /antian, "ast the
5injiao caity, !own to the +uyin caity, then u" to the Mingmen$ 0t the same time, o"en u" the
Mingmen an! lea! more .i out &rom the real /antian$ 4oth energy streams will combine an!
you lea! them u" to the )hen*hu an! /a*hui$ From there, you lea! it out to the "alms an! @
inches &urther, beyon! the "hysical bo!y$ This ensures that the .i will be lea! through the whole
arm an! it will gie your stri#e more "enetrating "ower$ This is the "ath &or the u""er hal& o& the
bo!y$ For the lower hal& lea! the .i out o& the real lower /antian an! "ush it !ownwar!s through
the 5ongquan () caity into the groun!$ ,& the .i is not nee!e! to energi*e the leg muscles
&or stri#es, it will gie the "ractitioner a stronger root which is essential to get more "ower$ To
coor!inate this with the breathing, ta#e a loo# at the !iagram$
5ou might encounter warmth or chills !uring "ractice$ +oweer, you shoul! ignore those
&eelings an! loo# &or the tingling &eeling$ The more sensitie you are to &eeling the .i, the more
e&&iciently you can lea! it$
Solo "ractice
To get a !ee"er &eeling o& the .i, it is recommen!e! to &irst "ractice 'ran! (irculation while
seate!, with your "alms "lace! on the &alse /antian$ The han!s are on to" o& each other so that
the to" "alm is coering the other han!$ ,n this "osition, &ocus only on o"ening the Mingmen an!
lea!ing it u" to the /a*hui on the inahle$ 9ea! it out to the "alms, on the e1hale an! ta#e it in to
the /antian as you start a new inhale$ ,n the same inhale lea! it out o& the Mingmen again$
4ecause the energy is not waste! through e1ten!ing the energy beyon! the bo!y, the .i will
accumulate! an! gie you a stronger &eeling &or it$
Martial Grand Circulation *ther %''lications
Martial 'ran! (irculation can be a""lie! in many areas$ %ne area is the mani&estation o& a lot o&
"ower$ The !i&&iculty in training is that you shoul! stay as rela1e! as "ossible$ The more you
tense u" your bo!y, the more .i will be consume! be&ore it arries at its !estination$ %ne can
a""ly Martial 'ran! (irculation in wrist con!itioning (i$e$ swinging sta&&s an! tossing bric#s &or
gri" strength$) 0nother im"ortant area where Martial 'ran! (irculation is ery use&ul is
massage$ 4y lea!ing the .i out o& the "alm, the "ractitioner can use the .i to o"en u" .i
bloc#ages in the "atient$ ,t &urther allows the "ractitioner to "enetrate !ee"er !uring the massage,
hence it is ery use&ul$ The theory behin! Martial 'ran! (irculation is easy, howeer it is
e1tremely !i&&icult to achiee a "ro&oun! leel in this "ractice$ Without !aily e1ercise it is ery
har! to achiee$
Jchym Jerie is a !isci"le o& /r$ 5ang, 6wing2Ming at the 5M00 (0 =etreat (enter, which is
locate! in +umbol!t (ounty, (0$ 6Achym grew u" in )wit*erlan! an! has been training Kung Fu
since he was 1B$ -lease isit the =etreat (enter website$
T!o +eys )or #egulating ,our Breathing and
Circulating Qi
by -r. ,ang/ J!ing-Ming, February 21, 200C
'oerning an! (once"tional 7essels
The #eys to regulating the breathing an! trans"orting .i (energy) are in two "laces> the +uiyin
caity locate! between the genitals an! anus, an! the "alate o& the mouth$ The +uiyin caity is
the connecting "oint o& the &our 5in .i essels an! is the controlling an! releasing gate &or the
&our 5in .i reseroirs$ When the +uiyin is "ushe! out, the .i in the 5in essels is release! an!
when the +uiyin is li&te! u"war!, the .i in the 5in essels is containe! an! con!ense!$ For
e1am"le, when you laugh out lou!, your e1halation is longer than your inhalation, an! when you
e1hale, the +uiyin is "ushe! out naturally, the entire bo!yDs 5ang is mani&este! an! the 'uar!ian
.i is strengthene!E consequently, the bo!y gets warmer an! begins to sweat$ (onersely, when
you are sa! an! !e"resse!, the inhalation is longer than the e1halation an! when you inhale, the
+uiyin is li&te! u"war! naturally, the Marrow .i is increase! an! the 'uar!ian .i is con!ense!
inwar!, hence the bo!y &eels cooler$ From these you can see that when you "ractice .igong,
coor!inating the breathing with the +uiyinDs li&ting an! "ushing is one "& the #ey #nac#s to
goerning the entire bo!yDs .i status$
,n the "ast, it was common that a master woul! #ee" these two secret #eys o& regulating to
himsel&$ These secrets woul! not be reeale! to the stu!ent until heFshe "roe! trustworthy$ They
were not "asse! !own to those !isci"les who were not loyal an! moral$
%ne o& the secret #eys is learning how to control the +uiyin ("erineum)$ This "lace is the
controlling gate o& the bo!yDs 5in an! 5ang$ +uiyin means Gmeet 5inH in (hinese an! is the
meeting "lace o& the &our 5in essels> (once"tion (=en Mai), Thrusting ((hong Mai), 5in +eel
(5inqiao Mai), an! 5in 9in#ing 7essels (5inwei Mai)$ When this gate is "ushe! out, the .i in
these &our 5in essels is release!, an! when this gate is hel! u", the .i in the &our 5in essels is
#e"t in an! "resere!$ 4ecause o& this, this gate can control the bo!yDs 5in25ang status$ ,n my
"ersonal e1"erience, this "lace acts as a "um" or a "iston to a .i chamber that controls the
storage an! release o& .i$
The other #ey is the "alate o& the mouth$ /aoists beliee that the "alate is the connecting "lace o&
the (once"tion an! 'oerning 7essels$ Iormally, the "alate is not connecte! to the ti" o& the
tongue an! there&ore the .i is stagnant at the throat area &or uttering soun!$ There&ore, !ue to the
stagnation o& the .i, the mouth is !ry$ The (once"tion an! 'oerning 7essels are not well
connecte! in the mouth area$ +oweer, i& you "ractice your martial art or .igong without the
necessity o& ma#ing a soun!, then you shoul! touch your tongue u"war! to the "alate at all times
so as to connect the (once"tion an! 'oerning 7essels$ When this ha""ens, the root o& the
tongue will generate salia to moisturi*e the throat an! to calm !own the 5ang &ire, an! allow the
.i to be trans"orte! between these two main .i 7essels without stagnation$ This is what is calle!
Greleasing the heaenly water$H This tongue connection is also calle! Gbuil!ing the mag"ie
bri!geH (/a .ue .iao)$ 0ccor!ing to a (hinese story, long ago a (owher! (Iiu 9ang) an! a
Weaing Mai! (Jhi Iu) woul! meet once a year on the seenth !ay o& the seenth moon on a
bri!ge across the Mil#y Way$ The bri!ge was &orme! by sym"athetic mag"ies$ This story has
become a symbol o& 5in an! 5angDs interacting or connecting in .igong "ractice$ When 5in an!
5ang meet, then the bo!y can be harmoni*e!$
When the salia is generate! to a com&ortable amount, you shoul! swallow it an! use the min! to
lea! it !own to the =eal /an Tian$ This will hel" you lea! the &ire .i !ownwar! to cool !own the
bo!y$
,& those who are learning Taiji can a""ly the aboe two #eys into their regular natural breathing,
then the accom"lishment o& Taiji .igong can be achiee! within !ays$ 0t the beginning, it is
har! to control your +uiyinDs moement smoothly an! naturally$ ,n a!!ition, !ue to the
"ositioning o& the tongue, an uncom&ortable an! tense &eeling may be e1"erience! at the root o&
the tongue$ +oweer, a&ter you "ractice &or some time, you will see it will become easier an!
more com&ortable, an! your internal "ractice will be more e&&icient an! bene&icial$
This subject is &urther e1"lore! in the boo# KThe =oot o& (hinese .igongK$
/r$ 5ang, 6wing2Ming, is a renowne! author an! teacher o& (hinese martial arts an! .igong$
4orn in Taiwan, he has traine! an! taught Taijiquan, .igong an! (hinese martial arts &or oer
&orty2&ie years$ +e is the author o& oer thirty boo#s, an! was electe! by ,nsi!e Kung Fu
maga*ine as one o& the 10 "eo"le who has Kma!e the greatest im"act on martial arts in the "ast
100 years$K /r$ 5ang lies in Iorthern (ali&ornia$