29/07/2007

Does urban pollution affect Chikung practice?

For many practicing taoists all around the world, the different forms of pollutants that exist in the environment in and around big cities may appear to be a great obstacle for chikung practice.

One of the fundamental practices of taoist chikung is to attune oneself
(in one way or another) with the principles of Heaven and Earth (Tien and Di): the dynamic, infinite currents of chi that flow through the Earth's chi field.

The thing is that if one practices this principle in a contaminated space where the flow of environmental chi is not 'clean', it is safe to assume that this unbalanced chi will enter one's system, thus creating the exact opposite effect from that desired: an unbalanced, weak and contaminated chi that will not only not heal the organism, but rather make it ill.

However, this does not seem to be the case. I have practiced chikung in Mexico City for the most part of eleven years. Each year the city becomes more and more polluted. However, my practice and my health do not become progressively worse.

On the contrary. The more I practice and cultivate my chikung, the healthier and stronger my chi becomes.

I attribute this to the sheer vastness of the Earth's chi field rather than to anything else. Why? To me, the Earth's energy is still predominantly clean and healthy. So it is like putting a drop of ink into a flow of clear water. The ink will simply dissolve into the water. In the same way, when I practice, I imagine that all the energy surrounding me is essentially being cleaned and purified by Tien and Di.

So far, so good.


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