Lifting The Sky
Hey, sorry it’s sooo Yellow! When I filmed this qigong exercises I hadn’t yet learned how to use my video recorder =)
Lifting the Sky is the first of the qigong exercises that make up the famous Shaolin 18 Lohan Hands. Also known as Both Hands Lift Sky – 雙 手 托 天 and SHUANG SHOU TUO TIAN.
As with all qigong exercises it is known to give several benefits, but only if practiced as qigong and not qigong form. It is important to remember that the form is not the art of qigong.
Lifting the Sky is excellent for generating energy flow. It overcomes posture problems and is good for those with a bad back. It benefits people who find it hard to relax, who think too much and find it hard to focus. Those who have post birth incontinence can find relief with this pattern.
This is also one of the qigong exercises I have used with great success on students who have suffered from Haemorrhoids (hey, stop giggling there at the back!). The key additional instruction if you wish to use Both Hands Lift Sky to overcome this problem is to gently imagine everything below being pushed back into its correct position as you “lift the sky”.
As always let me go on record as saying that if you want to get the best from the practice of any qigong exercises you need to learn and practice it under the guidance of a Qigong master, or at lease a competent instructor.
Yes, you can learn qigong exercises from a book or video, but you must put in more effort and you get less benefits.
As one student put it when saying why this was their favourite pattern from the 18 qigong exercises of the Lohan Hands:
“This is my favourite pattern because it’s the Swiss army knife of all qigong exercises. By practicing this one pattern I can enjoy all the benefits from radiant health to spiritual joy. I couldn’t ask for more.”
And you know what, he is absolutely right. This pattern can be used by a beginner to overcome health and vitality issues, or the very same pattern can be practiced by a master to literally ‘merge with the Cosmos’. There is a very good reason why out of all of the qigong exercises out there this is one of the most well known and one of the most practiced.
The next of the qigong exercises that make up the 18 Lohan Hands is Shoot Arrows Left Right. See you next post.
Marcus James Santer
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{ 8 comments… read them below or add one }
Hi Marcus, I’m glad to be part of your Qigong online course. I look forward to doing the steps of Qigong to significantly help me live and more healthier balanced life.
Hi Youpele,
And I’m glad to welcome you aboard our online Qigong community. If you have any questions, make sure you ask them!
Bye for now
Marcus
hi marcus
just want to say i diabetes type 2/anxiety and severe back pain just standing causes crippling pain clicking alot doin the 8 pieces of brocade qigong dont know if thats helping or making worse need help thank you
Hi,
Thanks for posting your comment, my answer applies to anyone who finds themselves in a situation similar to yours. Seek instruction from a qigong teacher. If qigong were so powerful that it could overcome pain and illness, just be learning it from a book, blog or video, then western medicine would be defunct. So my advice is to learn from the best qigong teacher you can find and practice what they teach you.
Hope that helps, if not feel free to reply.
Kindest regards
Marcus
After learning the 18 Lohan exercises from a “Master” with beard and all
, I started to get lower back pain because these exercises do nothing to protect the spine. No “qigong state of mind” will help, it´s all about strengthening the abdominal and back muscles.Said and done, I started doing situps and leglifts etc and the pain subsided after 2 weeks. Ohh no, I forgot that you could harm yourself by doing real exercises. Conclusion: I find the 18 Lohan incomplete and when I showed them to a famous Indian yogi he laughed and called them stupid.
I disagree with your comment.
But I can understand why you would feel that way, especially if you were not supervised correctly, even if your ‘master’ had a beard =) 10 years ago I would have probably felt the same way. But here’s something to consider:
If you over do the qigong exercises in the 18 Lohan Hands that involve the back, then yes it is easy to get lower back pain. I always advise students to work within their bodies comfort zone and gradually increase from there. Though the only qigong exercise that comes to mind that involves ‘having’ to bend the back fully is Nourishing Kidneys, and that’s bending forwards, which is great for relieving lower back pain.
And yes, if you are over doing it then the discomfort you feel will make it very difficult for you to maintain a QSoM, remember pain, discomfort etc is a sign that you are doing something wrong. Practice another qigong exercise instead. There are plenty that don’t involve bending the spine.
For anyone else experiencing lower back pain, you may find that tilting your pelvis forward, lengthening the lower spine helps to over come this.
The way many people train ‘real’ exercises they are likely to cause injury, and I do believe that it is easy to place excess stress on internal organs.
As for you showing the 18 Lohan Hands to a famous Indian Yogi – I’m a skeptical guy and just because you say someone is a famous Indian Yogi who calls Qigong stupid, well, forgive me for not believing you. Share their name with us and you’ll gain credibility.
Listen, at the end of the day no one Art is for everyone. If something doesn’t work for you, find something that does.
Bye for now
Marcus
Sorry about the yogi comment, you were right, I don´t really know if he was a real master, I suspect he wanted to promote his “power yoga” style. I have decided to return to the 18 Lohan exercises and following your advice and listening to my body.
Best regards
House
“I dont`t drink or smoke but I do chew gum because Fu Manchu”
Good luck with your 18 Lohan Hands practice, I don’t know if it’s the same Lohan Hands that I teach, but feel free to e-mail any questions you have and I’ll do my best to answer them for you: marcus@qigong15.com
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