Water Method Blog
Taoist Philosophy, Neigong and Meditation, Medical Qigong, Tai Chi and Bagua
Thanks to everybody who joined the livestream last week. If you didn't get a chance to join us on this talk on twisting neigong and neigong weaves, you can check out the video recording here.
Wishing you all good practice,
Paul
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After finishing a qigong, tai chi or bagua practice, you want to spend a few minutes banking the qi you have generated. You can use this qi at a later time, when you need it.
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Follow along to this qigong exercise to tune in to the Water Element. Release stress and anxiety, and become grounded.
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How to Grow Your State of Health and Well-being
By Paul Cavel
Internal arts are practised the world over because, above all else, they have a proven track record of health and healing results. If you ask the average practitioner about the mechanisms that drive these beneficial outcomes, anecdote...

By Paul Cavel
The many threads and layers of neigong that can be activated and integrated in the Marriage of Heaven and Earth Qigong give practitioners a taste of what is possible from ongoing study of Taoist arts — without the complex choreography associated with other qigong sets, tai chi or ba...
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By Paul Cavel
Simply put, no, breathing is not one of the three leaders, but rather the first of the 16 neigong.*
The fundamental difference is that a “leader” initiates movement, whereas neigong activates various layers of body during that movement.
The three leaders are:Â
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The kwa — is c
...

By Paul Cavel
Dragon and Tiger, as a form of medical qigong, was originally designed to contact and develop the etheric field and the wei qi of the body. For this reason, it links very well with the meridian-line system used in acupuncture. The information covered in the last fou...

By Paul Cavel
With the first two phases of softness and precision embodied, at least to some degree, Dragon and Tiger Medical Qigong becomes an excellent vehicle for delving into the subtle layers of qi development. Before this, you can gain a general sense of the qi that powers ...
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La version en français est disponible ici.
Most people find it rather difficult to feel their energy, especially in the early years of practice. In this case, Dragon and Tiger Medical Qigong offers a straightforward and exceptionally easy methodology for learning how to feel your qi, and develo...
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By Paul Cavel
Dragon and Tiger Medical Qigong includes many layers and levels of energetic development, which can take a practitioner deep into the realms of qi. But in order to get the most out of your practice, there are three distinct phases that must be followed to allow you ...
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By Paul Cavel
The two most popular questions I get asked by new students in a qigong class, hands down, are:
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What do I do with my breathing?
What do I do with my qi? Or how do I get access to my qi?
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I’d really like to answer these questions. After all, this is the s...
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What's Holding You Back?
In this follow-on talk with TTCS Instructor Javi Martinez, we discuss healing with Taoist neigong. Topics include:
- The benefits of training, such as better sleep, increased flexibility and growing a younger body
- Healing physical, energetic, emotional, mental and...
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By Mir Ali, LicAc, MBAcC
I love qigong … so much so that I don’t think I could be a practising acupuncturist without it. Qigong helps me keep healthy, informs my diagnosis, helps my patients keep healthy, helps me treat patients!
When I started learning Shaolin Kung-fu in 1991, I began practi...
If you really want to be healthy, to feel freer, to become a better human being, you must first create balance. Taoist energy arts have been practised for millennia for these reasons, and many more.
Most popular is qigong (and younger tai chi), but in the Water Method, the focus is on neigong an...

 By Paul Cavel
In previous posts, I covered exercises for creating space in body, mind and qi to increase relaxation and release deeply bound tension. Now we’ll explore foundational breathing techniques to lull the nerves into a state of letting go and gently massage the internal organs to increa...
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By Paul Cavel
You are being bombarded by noise – unrelenting distractions in the form of notifications, news and marketing – that diminish peace of mind. It’s no wonder why stress is the number one cause of disease with 90 percent of illnesses and diseases being linked to chronic stress (accor...
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 By Paul Cavel
Many events in life close people down in some way or another, especially because repetitive, micro-tasks on devices have become standard practice. They can leave your body and mind feeling condensed, hard and tense, especially at the end of the day.
Learning how to make space in y...
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By Paul Cavel
I don’t have to tell you that stress and tension have a way of building up during the day. In this age of Big Data, a lot of that tension gets stuck in our eyes and nervous system.
If your eyes are perpetually tensed or overloaded, if your subconscious mind is clogged with visuali...
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By Paul Cavel
Stress can lodge in various parts of the body, causing tensions that can eventually shape your daily routine and overall health. In this day-and-age, eye stress has become prominent due to the increase of screen time albeit for work or pleasure. This week we focus on ea...
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