5 types of Qigong

Looking at the various energy arts practiced over the millennia, we can see 5 distinct types or categories:

1. Medical Qigong (also called Health Qigong)
2. Longevity Qigong (also called Vitality Qigong)
3. Intellectual Qigong (also called Scholarly Qigong)
4. Martial Qigong (also called Warrior Qigong)
5. Spiritual Qigong

When we include all 5 categories, there’s a HUGE spectrum of possible benefits with that single word qigong.

The benefits you get depend on what direction you choose to go with your energy cultivation. But the sky is the limit.

(Actually, the sky is not the limit; your mind is the limit. But that’s a subject for another blog post.)

Okay, let’s define each of the 5 categories so that you’ve got a better idea what we’re talking about.

Medical Qigong (also called Health Qigong)

One of the best Medical Qigong exercises I know, called “Lifting The Sky”

These techniques are specifically designed to help heal all kinds of pain and illness. They are a branch of Traditional Chinese Medicine, and thus a cousin of acupuncture.

If you have low-back pain, depression, or a digestive disorder, then Medical Qigong is for you.

Lifting The Sky and Flowing Breeze Swaying Willow are two examples of Medical Qigong.

Note that I’m specifically referring to self-healing techniques. More recently, the term Medical Qigong is being used for what I would call Qigong Healing Therapy, where a qigong master transmits energy to a patient. But the terms are constantly shifting, so I might need to switch my own terminology to something like Health Qigong instead.

Vitality Qigong (also called Longevity Qigong)

A Vitality Qigong technique called “Three Levels to Earth”

These techniques cultivate strength, flexibility, suppleness, and fitness, all of which contribute to overall vitality and thus longevity.

If you want to be able to touch your toes, or you want to build muscular strength, or you just want to live longer (and better), then Vitality Qigong is a good choice.

Techniques like Three Levels to Earth, Old Monk Takes Off Shoe, and Dancing Fairies are good examples.

Intellectual Qigong

This category covers a lot of ground — from boosting intelligence and memory, to helping with decision-making, to improving your luck (yes, you read that right).

The word “intellectual” isn’t perfect. Sometimes it’s called Scholarly Qigong because it was treasured by the Confucian scholars.

This category incorporates subtle techniques, like Focusing on One, or Positive Visualization. But we can also include dynamic techniques when they are used towards scholarly goals.

For example, if we use Nourishing Kidneys to boost the Kidney Qi and thus improve our memory, then that would be Intellectual Qigong.

Warrior Qigong (also called Martial Qigong)

A Warrior Qigong technique called “Luohan Carrying Water”

Martial artists need speed, agility, and stamina. Courage, mental clarity, and grace under pressure were also of prime importance.

And of course, martial artists need to hit hard. This was especially true in the old days of life-or-death combat.

Examples of Warrior Qigong are all of the zhan zhuang postures like The Three Circle Stance, Luohan Carrying Water, or the Wuji Stance. We would also include arts like One Finger Shooting Zen, Cosmos Palm, or even Iron Palm

Spiritual Qigong

These techniques are great for — wait for it — spiritual cultivation!

In order to cultivate the spirit, you need to cultivate The Three Treasures (san bao, 三寶):

1. Jing (精)
2. Qi (氣)
3. Shen (神)

At least one of those treasures should look familiar to you (i.e. qi). The other two are hard to describe, but let’s translate jing as “refined essence”, and shen as “spirit”.

The ancient Chinese concept is a bit like our modern concept of cultivating mind, body, and spirit.

It’s important to understand that “spiritual” does not mean “religious”. So these techniques can be used by anyone, regardless of their religious background (or lack thereof).

Examples of Spiritual Qigong are Flowing Stillness, Zuo Chan, and the Small Universe.