“I Tried Mindfulness: It Was Okay”
Have you tried meditation before? Maybe you were asked to relax and focus on the breath. To just be present. Maybe you took that one class and then decided not to follow up, because the experience felt okay, but nothing special. What happened?
Why do some people rave about the life-changing effects of meditation (aka mindfulness), while others can take it or leave it?
If you’ve thought about trying Chi Kung but hesitated because mindfulness hasn’t done much for you so far, then keep reading.
Mind Games
To explain why some people get mindfulness and others don’t, let’s do a thought experiment.
First, imagine that you’re asked to wait in a parking lot for an unspecified length of time. It’s a hot summer day, and there’s no shelter available. The pavement’s sizzling, you’re starting to sweat, and there’s a whiff of oil in the air.
Now trade the parking lot for a woodland meadow. There’s cooling grass under your feet, shade from the trees around you, a bubbling brook nearby, some flowers, maybe even a butterfly or two.
Does one setting seem more appealing than the other?
If you have a preference (and I’d bet money that you do), then it’s because you already know that your external environment has an effect on your emotions, state of mind, and level of relaxation.
If your external environment can affect how you feel, then what about your internal environment?
If you’ve tried mindfulness before, if you’ve tried sitting calmly with yourself, and you just didn’t enjoy it, then it may be because your internal environment wasn’t as pleasant as it could be. And that’s exactly where Chi Kung can help.
Chi Kung: Your Internal Landscaper
In Chi Kung we work on modifying our internal environment. By altering the conditions inside of us over time, we can radically change how it feels to live in our bodies and be present in our lives.
People sometimes fail to get much benefit from mindfulness because they’re only addressing a piece of the puzzle. They’re only, say, breathing a certain way or sitting still. Their minds aren’t engaged, and they aren’t working with energy.
Chi Kung involves body, mind, and chi, or energy. It’s the combination of these three elements, which we call triple cultivation, that produces extraordinary changes—that not only helps you be calm and present in your life but also clears away aches and pains and even the residue of past traumas. In our classes, you’ll learn to do this work with your body, energy, and mind. You might be amazed at the results.
