Immortal Fang's Longevity Qigong: Rubbing the Abdomen to Prevent Illness and Prolong Life

As an ebook for kindle, this book is 10$. 

https://www.amazon.com/Immortal-Fangs-Longevity-Qigong-Rubbing-ebook/dp/B07K3TVBVC

You can read a preview of it on amazon to get an idea what it's about.

I've learned a lot of qigong, taiji, yoga, etc., in my lifetime, so usually I don't add any new qigong routines to my daily practice in their entirety, I just pick off something from it if it offers a benefit not in my existing routine.

I've been doing this IFLQ (Immortal Fang's Longevity Qigong)  every day for about 4-5 months now. I was going to wait a few more months before I shared my comments, but I've done it long enough now to be pretty certain of its benefits, and someone asked me a question about  what breathing qigong exercises I recommend so I'm sharing this article early. I'll add more of my detailed comments later.

Short story for now is, I highly recommend it. I do it as part of my sleeping bag yoga routine, lying down in my sleeping bag, shirt pulled up so I can get the heat and qi from my hands directly into the lungs/chest. It takes me anywhere from 15-30 minutes to do.  I do it in the morning, evening, and sometimes midday (so minimum of 30min a day total, up to 1.5 hr). It seems to be helping with spring allergies, among other things.  

There are times when you're body is too tired to meditate, not tired enough to sleep, a little too tired to maintain sitting meditation posture, so lying down doing this qigong replaces time I would have been taking a nap or sleeping. In other words, I can find a hour every day where this doesn't take up time and energy from more spiritually important activities. 

Exercise #9 I found confusing, so I wrote the author to ask for clarification. This was the conversation.

I highlight the important parts if you don't want to read the whole exchange.

Shen Long Publishing wrote: 

the last exercise - you are sitting - you lower the body to the front first- like you are bowing

and then the body makes a circle (not swaying back and forth- but a circular motion with the body)

with these two points clear - 1- bowing to the front first - 2-circling the body

please read the instructions and look at the illustration again 

it should be more clear -- but if you have questions - let me know

...

the versions (actually 2 versions) of this set that I learned are significantly different from what is outlined in the book... (but it is basically the same set)

and they are part of a larger system of practice that originated and was practiced in taoist monasteries...  

so my experience is not really important or comparable

--------------------------------------

 Then move from the front of the left knee and turn to the front of the right knee. Turn 21 times. Then as previously, turn from the right to the left 21 times.

In the previous method of Swaying the Body to the Left, the chest and shoulders sway out to the front of the left knee. Then sway to above the right knee. Then sway over the right knee towards the back and pull the waist back. It is best to sway and turn to the fullest. Do not sway quickly. Do not use strength.

---------------------------------

- you bow straight forward and come up 2x

- then you circle the body - lean forward over the left knee - circle rightward over the right knee - then backward to come back around to the left knee --  that equals 1x

repeat for the number of repetitions

then circle the other way

the next page - has more instructions on the circling

and the picture shows the body inclining and moving in a circular motion

Shen Long Publishing wrote: 

in the book - it translates as sway

but you are swaying in a circular motion

it says:

"In the previous method of Swaying the body Left,

the chest and the shoulders sway out over the front of the left knee.

Then sway to above the right knee,

then sway over the right knee twards the back and pull the waist back..."

making a circle

the head, shoulders, and torso stay mostly aligned..

as the picture shows

the pivot point for the circular swaying is the waist

Frankk wrote:

ok, I think I understand. If the tailbone contacting the ground as the center of the circle, you make 21 circles/revolutions with as big of a radius as you can clockwise from left to right, and then 21 circles counter clockwise. Correct?

Frankk wrote:

about how long should it take to do the full routine (ex. 1-8 repeated 7 times) then #9 sitting?

Shen Long Publishing wrote: 

yes- correct

Shen Long Publishing wrote: 

the time varies on what speed of your movements...   as you practice day to day, the speed you practice will naturally vary a bit, so sometimes it will take longer and sometimes the time will be shorter

but overall - I don't think you should try to make the movements too slow or too fast..

make them natural would be the best strategy

some people report that it does take them a fair bit of time to do the set- and others don't have that experience

Frankk wrote:

One more question about the #9 sitting exercise. Can that be done with full lotus instead? with the feet kind of slipping around on the instructions, i feel like I'm going to tip over on a bunch of spots around the circle, and end up just making smaller circles.

Shen Long Publishing wrote: 

I don't see any reason why it could not be done in full lotus, if you can sit in full lotus

Frankk wrote:

thanks 🙂

Shen Long Publishing wrote: 

but pay attention to the verses for that exercise..,  its not a stretch to the full range of motion exercise...  its to move the joints and get the qi to enter the spine... and the rest of what the verses say...

Frankk wrote:

got it. focus intention on filling marrows with qi and 3 dan tiens.  🙂

Shen Long Publishing wrote: 

more like swaying the body in a circular path to allow thd qi to enter the joints and spread through the body, rather then an intense focused intent

Frankk wrote:

got it. relaxed intention. One more question occurred to me, I had assumed the shirtless model in the book was just to help locate spatial position of where to put hands, but I'm wondering if that's what is preferred? To have hand to skin contact rather than wearing layers of clothes, especially in winter?

  

Shen Long Publishing wrote: 

hand on the body directy would be better...   winter it might be easier to do the laying down version... massaging under your clothes and blanket

Other FAQ the author of the book addressed

http://spiritdragoninstitute.com/blog/immortal-fang-longevity-qigong-questions

5 finger acupressure points to push with thumbnail, standing qigong tips

@3:45 :  5 finger acupressure points to push with thumbnail, with some pressure, not just touching.

On his standing meditation tips, I think they're ok, but I think too many detailed tips like "almost smiling, but not smiling", is just too complicated and will make people not fully relax. I would say just completely relax the head and face, don't care about what the expression looks like. Think thoughts of kindness and compassion, and if that causes a slight smile to form, so be it, but I never found it helpful to force a smile. 

chinese health balls (rotate two in one hand), barefoot walking on sun warmed pebbles

 

Nice article here on some really good exercises. 

http://www.originalpurity.org/gurulin/b5files/f0/f0182.html

excerpt:

Human hands are sensitively connected to the rest of the whole body. Hence, by massaging different parts of the hands, various parts of the body can be stimulated. Feet and ears are similarly related to the whole body. Chinese medicine teaches healing techniques that involve massage or acupuncture applied to these sensitive parts. However, to promote one's general well-being no professional knowledge is needed; all one needs is to adopt some simple exercises on a daily basis. For example, one may adopt the habit of massaging ears whenever one is waiting for a green traffic signal, or one may walk barefoot on pebble paths for fifteen to thirty minutes daily. This article talks about a traditional Chinese hand exercise called health balls.

...

After using the small health balls for a few days, I could hardly feel their presence in my hands. I then switched to the larger balls and felt comfortable with them. While practicing the health balls, I become more aware of the areas on my hands that are tense or sore and, gradually, also other parts of my body that are not at ease. Doing this exercise does help release tension. Whenever I become tired of reading or writing, I walk around and play the health balls. In this way, my body soon returns to a relaxed and supple condition. Sometimes I walk barefoot on pebbles in my yard while simultaneously playing the health balls. (It is so comfortable to walk barefoot on pebbles warmed by the sun.)

Frankk comments:

I've been doing barefoot walking on gravel (concrete driveway with gravel top layer) for a few years now, and highly recommend it. Unlike the author above though, I probably do it between 1 to 2 hours a day total. I do it with taiji quan and qigong, outside, sun warmed gravel, but only when the ground is warm. So probably 6-8 months of the year. When the ground is cold I wear shoes.

If I do taiji in public park with grass, I'll go barefoot if ground is warm, and not too much animal shit on the ground. 

Just like with meditation, yoga, taiji, qigong, you can feel getting sunshine and walking barefoot on the earth feels good, you don't need to read scientific studies to be convinced.

This book, about 10-15$, talks about health benefits of barefoot walking, it's a lot more than you might think. 

https://grounded.com/earthing-the-most-important-health-discovery-ever/earthing-book

You can also google 'earthing' to find free articles that cover most of the basics.

chinese health balls

I have two pairs at home, the noisy steel type. I haven't done them in many years, but tried it out just now, and because of my extensive taiji and other qigong that I do, I was able to very dextrously perform it. Rotate both hands, two balls in each simultaneously, and can do any permutation of independent rotation direction in each hand. 

That's from my taiji training, which I do a minimum of 1-2 hours everyday, but the article had a great suggestion that I highly recommend. When you do your walking meditation, you can do it barefoot walking (if ground is warm), and work up to two chinese health balls in each hand, it's great for your health.