Qigong for Writing
Chi Kung for Writing
Ch’i Kung for Writing

An Exercise for Writers
 

This  exercise will clear the mind of idle thoughts (static) and move it into a paranormal state where words and scenes appear by themselves.
 
But two warnings:  If you often suffer from headaches, if you have hypertension (high blood pressure), or you often feel heat in your head do not do the this exercise until you have corrected (or at least controlled) these conditions.
 
If you suffer from clinical mental emotional symptoms, or such problems, do not do this or any other Art-Energy exercise, without the direct supervision of a mental health practioner.
....
 
For this exercise, the chi-energy will be realized in the lower abdomen (what is called in qigong the lower dan-tien), then moved to the heart chakra  (middle dan-tien), then into the third eye upper dan-tien). Spontaneous writing takes place. After that, the energy is returned to the lower dan-tien where it is safely stored.
 
The upward path is located in the area of the spine----approximately a half-inch to six inches underneath the surface of the skin. Its thickness may vary from the width of a thread to that of your closed fist.
 
The downward path is located in the front-center half of your head and torso--approximately from one to six inches underneath the surface of the skin. Its width is from that of a string up to approximately two inches. the energy descends down from the head to the tip of the tongue as it rests just behind the top of the upper teeth, then it flows down through the mouth, throat, chest, stomach, until it comes to rest in the lower belly.
 
The exact location of the Third Eye (upper dan-tien) differs in various traditions, but for our purposes imagine a line going horizontally back from the bridge of the nose; located at its mid-point is the upper dan-tien. It is an energy vortex located in the vicinity of the hypothalamus, optic chiasm, and pituitary gland.
 

                               
Until you have a full realization of it--when it will appear as extra-dimensional and outside of commonplace reality--you may image it as being the size of a grape.
 
We are now ready for the exercise.
 
Sit with both feet flat on floor, and back straight. Chin slightly tucked in. Tip of tongue touching the hard palate just behind the teeth. Breathe deeply calmly into the lower abdomen. Simile comfortably--deep in your mouth--(like the Mona Lisa).
 
 
 
Exhale through nostrils.
 
Do not go into a drowsy sleepy meditation. Keep your eyes slightly opened and not looking at any specific thing. This--(similar to Zen meditation)--heightens consciousness into a diamond cutting clarity where the mind is wordless and alert. All this is not about stress reduction, but about consciousness enhancement.
 
Bring your attention to the lower abdomen, a few inches below the belly button and half way between it and the small of the back. Breathe into this spot--the lower dantien--and fill it with energy.  Do this for approximately five minutes.
 
Keeping the lower dan-tien full and radiant, move your attention to the heart area (similar to what is called the “heart chakra.” We call it the middle dan-tien). Breathe into it, filling it with chi-energy.
 
Keeping the middle dan-tien full and radiant, return your concentration/awareness to the lower dan-tien. Breathe into it, building energy--“stoking the fire,” as it were.
 
Now with a directed silent attention and by using your breath as the carrier bring the energy up from the two dan-tiens into the upper dan-tien, the Third Eye. Do not force; stay relaxed. It should feel like a cool radiance. If you feel it as heat stop doing the exercise.
 
Do this energy moving exercise for approximately five minutes.
....
 
Now shift your focus from the illumined third eye to the keyboard, or blank paper and write. The words, characters, outline, plot, (whatever is needed) will automatically come to you. Do not edit or analyze, just capture the word stream coming to you from outside yourself.
 
Do this until the creative stream runs dry.
 
....
 
Go back to an casual awareness of all three dan-tiens. Breathe into all three for a few minutes insuring they are open like three lotus flowers.
 
Center attention on the third eye.  On the out breath guide the energy down to the middle dan-tien, then the lower dan-tien.
 
The path is as follows: from the center of the head to the tip of the tongue touching the hard palate.
 
Then down to the lower jaw, throat, chest, stomach--similar in feeling to the physical path of swallowing chewed food.
 
Finally send the chi-energy to the (lower) dan-tien, slightly below and behind the navel.
 
Stop after you have cleared the upper and middle dan-tiens, and the (lower) dan-tien is full of the comforting radiant chi-energy.
 
 (When the term “dan-tien” is used without modifiers it refers to the energy center in the lower abdomen. That is the proper place to keep and store the chi-energy.)
 
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If anything unpleasant happens in practicing this exercise then immediately stop doing it. You will have to work in person with someone who knows and teaches qigong or a similar energy practice.
 
Do not go further with this until you can do what has just been given. The key is being able to return the energy with your willful-intention back down. There is a slight possibility to pack too much energy in the head without having a proper drainage of it, which can cause brain-scalding. This is similar to kundalini excessive head fire. In Qigong you are taught to return the energy-power back to where it may be safely stored: the (lower) dan-tien.
 
That’s it—but for one more caveat. You could be chi-intoxicated. It’s a great high, but you have to bring yourself back to this world of nasty drivers, and tasks like using buzz saws, and going up and down ladders.
 
So I suggest take a shower, a walk around the block, watch some brain numbing television. You get the idea. The Sufi’s have a pertinent saying, “Keep your mind on Allah, but make sure your camel is tied.”
 
Coda - I have found these practical suggestions also work:
 
Write in the morning. Stop when you still have something to say. Begin at that place the next day.
 
Write every day to keep the energy flowing. It’s ok to rest on the seventh day.
 
During the day, read your older work and edited it.
 
At night read your rough notes—the amassed researched raw material.
 
Before going to bed, send the question of what you need answered to your subconscious.
 
Don’t talk about what you are writing—it diffuses the energy.
 
If you are totally dried up, simply copy word for word the work of someone that you deeply admire.

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