Το Nei Kung διδάσκεται μόνο στους μαθητές της σχολής με μορφή μηνιαίων σεμιναρίων-μαθημάτων.
Nei kung, refers to any of a set of Chinese breathing, meditation and spiritual practice disciplines associated with Daoism and especially the Chinese martial arts. Neigong practice is normally associated with the so-called “soft style”, “internal” or neijia 內家 Chinese martial arts, as opposed to the category known as waigong 外功 or “external skill” which is historically associated with shaolinquan or the so-called “hard style”, “external” or wàijiā 外家 Chinese martial arts. Both have many different schools, disciplines and practices and historically there has been mutual influence between the two and distinguishing precisely between them differs from school to school.
Neigong and the internal martial arts
The martial art school of neigong emphasises training the coordination of the individual’s body with the breath, known as the harmonisation of the inner and outer energy, creating a basis for a particular school’s method of utilising power and technique.
Neigong exercises that are part of the neijia tradition involve cultivating physical stillness and or conscious (deliberate) movement, designed to produce relaxation or releasing of muscular tension combined with special breathing techniques such as the “tortoise” or “reverse” methods. The fundamental purpose of this process is to develop a high level of coordination, concentration and technical skill that is known in the martial arts world as neijin. The ultimate purpose of this practice is for the individual to become at one with heaven or the Dao. As Zhuangzi stated, “Heaven, earth and I are born of one, and I am at one with all that exists”.
Martial Nei Gung is about developing internal power. One way to possibly achieve this is to train particular exercises regularly where the breath is matched with movements of blood or to effect the movement of blood throughout the body. Through these exercises it can be possible to move the blood to a particular area during a particular movement to have a particular result. One of the benefits of martial nei gung exercises is the relaxation of blood vessels, nerves, muscles and sinews to help the body move more freely. With the body moving freely and an excess of blood moving to a particular area with little or no effort, the practitioner can possibly develop many benefits.
These benefits may include:
- faster recovery from injury to the hands
- an ability to hit with more force
- an ability to move faster (speed is crucial in martial arts)
- the health benefits of being relaxed
- in increase in connection to your legs, spine, arms and head
- increased stamina
- increased athletic ability and health
- regulating blood pressure
- actually experiencing the channels of the body as they truly are, which can possibly be different from the books
- developing an authentic dan tien that is consciously nourished and deliberately formed which is not defined in the books
- greater sensitivity for sparring and fighting
It is important to understand that anyone looking to learn Nei Gung sincerely, is more likely to learn it from a good teacher of internal martial arts like Hsing-Yi (one of the easiest and most powerful forms of martial cultivation). It is rare to learn authentic Daoist practices from a true master of the subject as quite a lot of the Nei Gung skills are an essential part of a complete system of martial arts. There are people who claim that Nei Gung is a philosophy, this is incorrect. There are intellectual guidelines to the practice of Nei Gung, but it is ‘Inner Work’ which means effort has to be put in to develop real, substantial and testable skills. This is not something that can be imagined or talked about, only from direct experience and hard effort can an understanding of Nei Gung develop. A true practitioner and teacher will take you on a journey growing your inner-world and showing you how to demonstrate the skills you are developing.