Peasant Talk

ABASICDAOYINEXERCISEFORTHEWHOLEBODY

Daoyin — 導引 — literally translates as to “guide and pull” and consists of a series of cognitive exercises designed to develop unity for mind, body and spirit. It is considered the precursor to qigong as well as being a primary ingredient of the so-called ‘soft’ or ‘internal’ styles of Chinese martial arts such as Taijiquan, Baguazhang and Xingyiquan. On the subject, Erle Montaigue tells us:

‘An exercise akin to Qigong called daoyin was popular at this time. An inscription on a relic found in the Warring States period read, ‘Take a deep breath and sink it to tantien (a point about 3’ below the navel). Hold it there for a while and then exhale it as sprouting grass until it reaches the top of your head. This causes the Yang energy to rise and the Yin energy to drop. Those whose Yang and Yin energy goes its own way will live, otherwise you will die’. This saying was part of the daoyin exercise and holds true for all Qigong nowadays including T'ai chi, pa-kua, Taoist yoga* and all of the internal arts.

Found at the No. 3 Tomb excavations at Mawangdui in Changsha, the capital of Hunan Province, were many medical treatises and books on daoyin dating to the Western Han dynasty (206 BC — AD 24). Among these relics were pieces of silk onto which had been painted figures of men and women, young and old performing daoyin exercises. 44 pieces of silk were found. Some figures imitated the movements of the bear, ape, tiger, deer and bird which are now called ‘Wuquinxi’ or the five animal forms. All of these physical movements were combined with breathing techniques. Next to one of the figures were the words, ‘Look skyward and exhale’.

Daoyin exercises are divided into two main categories:

1. Yin 2. Yang

The yin exercises are subdivided into lying and sitting, whilst the yang exercises are subdivided into standing and moving.

*In the West, daoyin is often erroneously equated with "daoist yoga" or "yin yoga" as "dao" — 導 — and "yin" — 引 — are mistakenly read as 'Dao' — 道 — as in “Daoism," and 'Yin' — 阴 — as in “Yin/Yang". 133

These exercises involve the movements of the limbs and the body in conjunction with controlled inhalation and exhalation in order to create harmony between the external and internal environments which relax, replenish and rejuvenate the body whilst revitalising the spirit. Breathing, therefore, plays a critical role in Daoyin and the main techniques associated with it are:

1. Natural breath 2. Reverse breath 3. Harmonising breath 4. Pre-natal or Foetal breath 5. Tortoise breath 6. Cleansing breath 7. Tonic breath 8. Alternate breath

These breathing techniques are identical in qigong and Taijiquan. Again, Erle Montaigue tells us:

The earliest and most famous book on medicine comes from the Warring States period and is called Huang Di Neijing (The Yellow Emperor’s Manual of Internal Medicine). From this book we read, ‘One must breathe the essence of life, regulate one’s respiration to preserve one’s spirit and keep the muscles relaxed.’ This sums up the art of T'ai chi ch’uan in a nutshell. In another part of the book we are told how to perform this exercise. ‘Stand facing the South in the early morning and inhale seven times without thinking about anything’. This also depicts our Qigong perfectly.

Outlined below is a very simple yin Daoyin exercise which involves using a Cleansing breath where we breathe in through the nose and out through the mouth. This type of breathing is said to cleanse the body of impurities and relax inner tension and lower fever. Sighing is a spontaneous manifestation of this breathing.

The exercise is usually performed lying down at night just before sleeping [it can be done early in the morning as well, however, night time is recommended because you are not rushing to start your day, and therefore more likely to be relaxed] and its purpose is to tone the whole body causing the body to be totally balanced for the next day. It is repeated only 3 times.

As with any exercise — it is advisable that practitioners seek medical advice before starting for their own safety and well-being.

Figure 1. Lie flat on the floor with your body totally relaxed and your head and shoulders connected to the floor and your palms relaxed by your sides. It is critical that the head and shoulders remain connected to the ground at all times. The inhalations and exhalations must be performed with your natural rhythm and not forced or held throughout the exercise.

Figure 2. As you inhale through your nose, place the tip of the tongue upon the upper palate just behind your front two teeth while you bend your knees and pull your feet up as close to your buttocks as possible. The movement and the breath must harmonise completely!

Figure 3. As you exhale through your mouth, drop your tongue onto the lower palate whilst pushing your hips up as far as you can, keeping the feet, shoulders, head and palms connected to the ground.

Figure 4. As you inhale through your nose, place the tip of the tongue back upon the upper palate, lower your hips and pull your knees as far towards your chest as possible whilst interlinking your fingers.

Figure 5. As you exhale through your mouth, drop your tongue back onto the lower palate whilst extending your legs and holding them at an approximately 45º angle, whilst placing the palms and arms back onto the ground.

Figure 6. As you inhale through your nose, return the tip of the tongue back upon the upper palate lower your legs until the heels touch the ground and…

Figure 7. Continue drawing up the knees using the same inhalation from Figure 6 to start the next cycle.

Title Image: Reconstructed Daoyin tu Drawings of Guiding and Pulling in the Mawangdui Silk Texts. Photo number: L0036007 https://wellcomeimages.org/indexplus/obf_images00/06/0caf990608df5e2ec39a2ca1a6e7.jpg https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

1. Kohn, Livia — Chinese Healing Exercises: The Tradition of Daoyin 2. Montaigue, Erle — Chinese Self-healing Methods for Health and Longevity