Serendipity is one of my favorite kinds of energy. This morning, I read a description of Zhan Zhuang (standing meditation) by my colleague John Platt. He referenced Master Lam Kam Chuen, “…who describes Qigong exercises and breathing practices as the preparation for making tea. Zhan Zhuang or standing poses are the steeping of the tea.” Coincidentally, I had experienced this exact sensation myself, for the first time, just 3 days earlier. I now know what Master Lam means.
If you are a tea drinker, you know to steep the tea for 5 minutes in order to extract deliciousness from the leaves. Practicing standing meditation regularly, building up to holding the positions for 5, 10, or more minutes, extracts Qigong’s delicious essence, too. It’s a powerful way to cultivate energy. Do I do this? Nah…not usually. Then, last Friday, I decided to stand during a (coincidentally) 5-minute-long group meditation.
I stood in Wu Chi, just as we do at the beginning of Qigong class, with my arms relaxed down by my sides, my feet rooted to the earth and the crown of my head up toward the sky. I thought to myself “Empty. Receptive.” Immediately, my breathing grew slower, deeper and more even. I knew if I had the patience to continue standing, I’d begin to notice where my body was holding unnecessary tension, and be able to gently ask that tension to release. (This process of noticing gives the mind a place to land, rather than jumping around like the proverbial monkey.)
First, I noticed and let go of tension between my eyebrows, then my jaw. A few more breaths and I was able to observe deeper, more subtly held clenching in my back, my legs. Gradually, I began to identify tension I had never noticed before, deep in my core, and as I continued to breathe and relax, it too began to dissolve. At that point a delicious sense of warmth, well-being, and calm yet enlivened energy filled me like a radiating, healing light: It was even better than a perfectly steeped cup of my favorite Assam!
Now, I am a long-time (40+ years) meditator. I usually sit or lie down, but standing while meditating was a whole new experience, much different and…dare I say exciting? Well, I’m excited to share it with you this week, and can’t wait to hear how you like it. BTW, if you think this sounds like torture, know that I myself have the patience of a chipmunk, yet I found that doing Zhang Zhuang with a group really helped me access deep wells of patience I didn’t know I had.
