Qigong Modeled After Animals

Some of these movements are similar to the way in which certain animals move. It is clear that in order for an animal to survive in the wild, it must have an instinct for how to protect its body. Part of this instinct is concerned with how to build up its qi, and how to keep its qi from being lost. We humans have lost many of these instincts over the years that we have been separating ourselves from nature. Click to learn how Chinese medicine treats Bradycardia.

Many doctors developed qigong exercises which were modeled after animal movements to maintain health and cure sickness.  A typical, well-known set of such exercises is Five Animal Sports (Wu Qin Xi,), created by Dr. Jun Qing and later modified and publicized by the well-known medical qigong doctor, Hua Tuo) during the Chinese Three Kingdoms Period (A.D. 221-265). Another famous set, based on similar principles, is called the Eight Pieces of Brocade (Ba Duan Jin ), and was created by Marshal Yue Fei during the Chinese Southern Song Dynasty (A.D. 1127-1280). Interestingly enough, Yue Fei was a soldier rather than a doctor.