MUTUAL EFFECTS OF CLEANSING, BUILDING AND NOURISHING
Self-Manifested Chi Movement
Question
How do the different stages affect each other, especially in the reverse direction to our normal development? For example, does a lot of built up force enhance cleansing? Does a strong spirit enhance the development of internal force? How does a cleansed body improve the nourishment of the spirit?
Sifu Leonard
Answer
Yes, cleansing, building and nourishing affect one another mutually.
All the three processes of cleansing, building and nourishing occur at the same time, but at any one time one process may be more prominent than the others.
Hence, when a practitioner focuses on cleansing by practicing a suitable exercise like self-manifested chi movement, he also builds and nourishes. Alternatively, when he practices Three-Circle Stance to build, he also cleanse and nourishes, and when he practices Cosmic Shower to nourish, he also cleanses and builds.
When a practitioner has a larger energy flow, he cleanses better than when his energy flow is smaller. However, if his blockage is thick, and his energy flow cannot clear it, a larger flow will cause more pain than a smaller one.
If he clears his blockage faster than his body can dispose off its toxic waste, a larger flow having cleared more toxic waste will result in more over-cleansing than a smaller flow.
Cleansing is better in a person with a strong spirit than in a person with a weaker spirit. The spirit is the real being, the energy and the body are possessions of the spirit, and they are constantly changing in quality and quantity though the change is usually too small to be noticed by the naked eye.
A stronger spirit will have better and more energy than a weaker spirit, and this will have better cleansing. If over-cleansing occurs, a stronger spirit will handle it more efficiently than a weaker one.
A person with meridians that are well cleansed will build more internal force than one whose meridians are blocked. This operates in two dimensions. His cleansed meridians hold more energy, and the energy flow is also smoother. As internal force is a function of amount of energy and its smoothness of flow, the increase of internal force is multiple.
Blocked meridians hold less energy as well as hinder energy flow. Not only his internal force is less powerful, a practitioner with blocked meridians is also more prone to over-training and over-cleansing.
A person in high spirit builds more internal force than a person in low spirit. He is also able to apply his internal force more effectively.
The energy in a person with blocked meridians will be focused on clearing the meridians first. Only when the energy is flowing smoothly, does it focus on building and nourishing. Hence, it is easier to nourish the spirit of a person with cleansed meridians than one with blocked meridians.
When a person has much blockage, his energy is weak. When the energy is weak, his spirit will be weak too. Chi kung training will clear his blockage and strengthen his energy, and then strengthen his spirit. Thus, a cleansed body improve the nourishment of the spirit. A person with stronger energy will nourish his spirit more effectively than one with less energy.
Over-cleansing is a result of over-training. Other results include feeling tired, feeling compressed, and in serious cases vomiting blood.
A practitioner can tell that he has over-trained from direct experience. In principle it is the same as a person knowing from direct experience that he has over-eaten. Initially he may not be very sure whether he has over-trained, or over-eaten, but with increased experience he will know.
He can also confirm his over-training with results. Usually there is pain. Initially the pain feels good as energy flow clears his blockage. But as he over-trains the pain turns bad as the excess energy tries to push through the blockage but has not succeed yet.
Understanding that over-cleansing is a result of over-training enables him to differentiate between the two. When he slows down or temporarily stop his training, the over-cleansing will slow down too and eventually cease, though this may take some time.
Zhan zhuang is a powerful building process
Over-cleansing may also be caused by other activities besides over-training. Initially his breathing was weak, but as a result of his training he improves his breathing. Improved breathing leads to better energy flow. But if his blockage is huge, increased energy flow results in forcing on the blockage causing over-cleansing.
Good food which produces good energy flow may also cause over-cleansing or aggravate over-cleansing when it has started due to over-training. Even when a practitioner may not be consciously eating better food, his training has improved his digestive system and thus produces more energy even when his food intact remains the same.
The effects of these three causes, namely better breathing, better food and better digestion, are not crucial for us, though it is useful to take note of them. But they may cause much discomfort and even harm to others, especially those who are old and weak.
What should a practitioner do about over-cleansing?
He should slow down his practice on force training. We have become so effective that we can attain remarkable internal force in a few days when others, even masters, take months. It is a fact, though other people may think we are boasting – that, of course, is their business.
Our students now can develop the amount of internal force in just a few days when I myself would take a few months in the past. This is a great advantage to our instructors and students in our school, but they must remember to go slow.
Many of our students and some of our instructors must make this paradigm shift -- a shift from the age-old tradition that kungfu and chi kung training takes years of hard work to our almost ridiculous privilege that our kungfu and chi kung training is fun and needs only a little time.
Secondly, a practitioner who has over-trained, and therefore experienced over-cleansing, should focus on performing his exercises on a more physical level, instead of on an energy or mind level. In other words, he should perform at a lower level instead of a higher level.
If he (or she) practices kungfu, he should focus on combat sequences and solo form practice. If he practices only "chi kung", he should focus on dynamic patterns at a physical level. This will use up his excess energy and loosen his muscles and joints, facilitating better energy flow.
Interestingly, although he uses up his excess energy, which attempted to push through his blockage but not successful yet and thus caused over-cleansing, he will still end his exercise with more energy than before the exercise because he was relaxed during the exercise, resulting in energy flow instead of energy drain. This energy flow (in other parts of his body) will ease his over-cleansing (unlike the other energy due to force training which accumulated at the blockage).
Thirdly, instead of staying indoors and moan over the over-cleansing, he should go out and have fun. This has the same effects of practicing combat sequences, solo form performance and dynamic exercises at a physical level, i.e. using up excess energy and loosening joints and muscles to ease over-cleansing. Aren't our arts wonderful?
Practicing combat sequences is an effective way to remedy over-building
The questions and answers are reproduced from the thread Stages of Cleansing, Building and Nourishing: 10 Questions to the Grandmaster in the Shaolin Wahnam Discussion Forum.
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