Where the Mind Goes, Chi Follows:

Rediscovering the Creative Power of our Minds through Qigong

Interview with Master Mingtong Gu

by Shelly Benford

SB Last November, Oprah's doctor, Dr. Mehmet Oz, recommended qigong (pronounced
chi kung) for anyone who wants to be healthy and live to be 100 years old. His
experience with patients who do qigong is that they lose weight, have improved energy,
and are able to reduce their medications and look and feel younger. I guess the first
question, Master Gu, is, 'how is this possible?'

MG Qigong practice affects the human energy system in several ways, including
improving the quality, balance and availability of energy to the body. It keeps energy
flowing through the body's energy channels, nourishes the body's organs, tissues and cells
with steady supplies of energy, and allows the body to perform all of its vital functions.
As millions of people in China have discovered, qigong essentially reverses the aging
process, while reducing stress, preventing illness, curing disease, and enhancing the
overall quality of life.

SB Can you say more about the nature of qi and how it can affect our health?

MG Qi (pronounced "chi") is quite simply the Chinese word for "life energy." It
expresses itself in many forms, including electromagnetic energy, bio-energy, auras,
light, sound and other tangible forms , as well as in intangible forms, like thoughts. All
phenomena are expressions of pure energy and this subtle essence actually forms our
physical, emotional, mental and spiritual bodies. In addition, the strength and quality of
this energy affect our state of health on all levels.

SB So, our body is actually just qi.

MG Yes, exactly. Our body is one form of qi, and so are our pets, our plants, and, for
that matter, our thoughts. As scientists have discovered, matter is simply energy
manifesting as form. This energy can also be returned to formlessness. Ancient Chinese
philosophers maintained that the universe originated from this continually transforming
"primordial" qi. When qigong healers dissipate tumors with healing energy, it is simply
one manifestation of this primordial energy moving from "form" to "formlessness." From
tumor to no tumor. When they heal broken bones, energy is simply moving in the
opposite direction. From "formlessness" to "form." From a break to a whole. Of course, it
is easy to understand, but one must cultivate one's mind to accomplish such feats.

SB Which brings us to the role of the mind. It sounds like there is more to qigong than
learning a simple form.
MG Qigong, which literally means "cultivating life energy and achieving its creative
power" is a profound system of knowledge. Part of that system of knowledge includes an
understanding of the role of the mind, or consciousness in healing. By learning how to
control the flow and distribution of qi, practitioners are able to cure and prevent disease.

SB How does one control the flow and distribution of qi?

MG Any disturbance in the flow of qi creates illness. When qi is flowing freely, body
processes normalize and illness naturally disappears. The most effective qigong exercises
are designed to collect and exchange qi with nature in order to open the energy meridian
system for the free flow of qi throughout the body. Wisdom Healing Qigong amplifies
this natural exchange process. By first opening our body to the universe and directing our
thoughts to infinity and then bringing our consciousness back to our body, we are
dissolving blockages so that qi can flow vigorously, bringing life energy to every cell.
Without blockages, we become healthy, happy, and full of energy and vitality, not just
free of illnesses.

SB How does Wisdom Healing Qigong differ from other forms of qigong?

MG In Wisdom Healing Qigong, we cultivate our own qi through accessing universal qi.
The practice involves movement, visualization, sound, and conscious integration of our
energy body with external energy. We are one drop of water, and we are literally placing
ourselves into the ocean, into the flow of energy. In this flow, our minds take conscious
control of energy, directing healing energy to injured or blocked parts of the body. At the
same time, we practice a type of moving meditation, which promotes the natural
processes in the body, creating greater flow, opening and balance.

SB I know from my own experience that the effects of qigong are magnified when many
people practice together. Can you explain why this would be true?

MG What you are sensing is what we call the "qi field." When we connect and organize
ourselves in a unified way for a common purpose, for example, healing, the power of the
energy is magnified through this healing "qi field". One of the qualities of pure energy is
its power of connecting us all with each other and with nature. When we cultivate qi in
our body and life around us, we are connecting with the nature of energy. Qigong allows
you to feel this energy in every cell of your body, and what you are feeling is the power
of the source, the power of qi and the power of mind.

SB Have there been studies that support the healing benefits of qigong?

MG Clinical research on the medical applications of qigong, both in China and the US,
has shown that many chronic conditions, including cancer, heart disease, high blood
pressure, asthma, allergies, and neuromuscular problems have been improved with
qigong practice. The main conclusion from many of these studies is that qigong practice
helps the body to heal itself. As a result, qigong is becoming increasingly accepted
among the Western medical establishment as a preventive treatment and for treating
chronic conditions.

SB Qigong sounds a little magical. Is it hard for people to believe it can be so helpful?

MG It can be difficult for people to accept the powerful and miraculous benefits that
come from practicing qigong. Initially, most people concentrate on curing illness in their
physical bodies. As their health improves, they begin to understand that qigong has
benefits on the mental, emotional and spiritual levels as well. The intelligent energy they
are cultivating with qigong is activating well being on all levels, affecting the entire body.
This intelligence can impact a person's DNA just as it can activate a person's immune
system. In short, the regenerating power of cells lies in the intelligence of the body.

SB How does qigong activate that intelligence?

MG With the mind's intention. Energy responds to your mind. We say, "Where the mind
goes, qi follows." You see, healing really comes down to will power. The will has to go
beyond the body's experience. So when you are projecting energy you also need a strong
will to stabilize the energy for healing. Over time, the mind becomes more powerful by
serving the body in this way.

SB So how does this energetic transformation take place, say, for healing?

MG Manifesting anything is a function of working with energy, and when we are dealing
with energy, we are really in a different reality. We go beyond the usual perception of
time and space. We are no longer in the world of linear cause and effect. In the energetic
world, the mind has the ability to access the energy patterns of the past, present and
future simultaneously. Because the future is a potential in physical linear reality, but
already exists energetically, the creative power of the mind can access change for the
better (by thinking and harmonizing positively) or change for the worse (by thinking
about and resonating with negative outcomes).

SB It sounds a little bit like "The Secret."

MG In a way it is. The Secret is about manifesting what you want in life. But there is
more to it than "What you think will attract what you want." The ancient secret of qigong
teaches that what you think is only a part of your energy field. More important is what
you FEEL, and even more important, is what you ARE, which includes your conscious
and unconscious structure. So the "Qigong Secret" can be summarized as "What you are
inside will attract the same outside." The key is to harmonize what is within you with
what you want. Doing so often requires an energetic transformation, and the knowledge
and practice of qigong is the "technology" required for such a transformation.

SB What is "qi field" which you speak of often?

MG When we cultivate qi in our body and life around us, we are connecting the nature
of energy. One of the qualities of pure energy is its power of connecting us all with each
other and with nature. One of Qigong students described, through her experience, as
"God without cloth". Some may call it Tao or other names. It doesn't matter what name
you use. But Qigong allows you to know it and feel it, in every cell of your body. When
we connect and organize ourselves with it in an unified purpose, that is healing in this
case, the power of healing is magnified through this healing "qi field". After all, we are
most likely in perfection in the experience of Oneness. This is the power of the source,
power of qi and power of mind.

Master Mingtong Gu is the Founder of the Chi Healing Center and the Wisdom Healing
Foundation. He received the highest training in the Master Training Institute at the
Zhineng Qigong Center of China and has been teaching Wisdom Healing Qigong and
leading retreats both in China and the US for many years. For more information, visit
www.chicenter.com.
Shelly Benford, Ph.D., interviewed Master Gu in Boulder, Colorado in the winter of
2007. She is a business consultant and teaches qigong in Boulder, Colorado.