Sifu Wong (left) looks on while course participants enjoy qi flow during the intensive qigong course in Brisbane (Feb 2003) – the first ever intensive chikung course conducted by Sifu outside of his home country Malaysia .

These days, in the face of increasingly full personal and professional lives, very few of us have the time for the exhaustingly long spiritual practices attempted by various Monks or Hermits of old.

And for many of us - where an inner striving for genuine spiritual progress refuses to be ignored - there is a real need for a spiritual path un-burdened by unnecessary complexities, especially in a world where the sheer volume of information is increasing rapidly and more and more people are beginning to suffer from "information burn-out".

Fortunately, in Shaolin Cosmos Qigong, we have a method for self-development which is simple, direct, and highly effective. In fact, these very qualities find expression in our daily practice, and are dearly treasured by the many Qigong students of the Shaolin Wahnam family in Australia and the world over.

But what does the practice of Shaolin Cosmos Qigong involve, and what do we really mean by simple, direct, and effective?

"Simple" means that the daily practice of qigong (literally, energy cultivation) involves some relatively easy to perform exercises that can be learnt by just about anyone, and about 15 minutes of practice once or twice per day is needed to make good progress. In fact, the physical movements involved in some of the qigong exercises look quite similar to those that might be performed in other physical exercise systems or in our routine daily activities.

One should not be misled by this simplicity. While the exercises themselves may seem simple, the depth of experience and benefit derived is far from routine.

To extract the desired benefit from qigong practice, an appreciation of a basic methodology and some simple principles is needed. This is part of the meaning of “direct”; we have a clear idea of what we wish to achieve and how to go about it. The general approach using by Shaolin Wahnam students is to not think too much about each practice session, but instead to allow the flow and quality of each session to be governed by the intuitive (or "qigong" state of) mind rather than overly technical considerations. Having chosen a particular exercise as the physical vehicle for a given practice session - such as "Lifting the Sky" - the basic methodology/principles can be summarised as:

1. Enter a Qigong State of Mind/Smile from the Heart

2. Enjoy the form/enjoy your breathing/enjoy the benefit, and

3. Don't concern yourself with the benefit/outcome, whether physical, emotional, spiritual, psychic or any other

By taking this basic approach, numerous students who have learnt Shaolin Cosmos Qigong and practice regularly have verified for themselves that consistently rewarding, fulfilling and powerful experiences are achievable. The individual benefits derived, while quite varied, are frequently of direct practical use in daily life. This is what we mean by "effective" - clearly felt, fulfilling and of demonstrable personal benefit.

The benefits of correct consistent daily practice - as well as the enjoyment experienced while practicing - provide a direct means of confirmation of progress, and are also a source of inspiration to continue along the path.

However, the real power derived from Shaolin Cosmos Qigong as an authentic spiritual practice is that it is somehow self-empowering and also evolving in nature, taking the practitioner towards the very highest spiritual notions of "enlightenment", "self-mastery", "divine realisation", "merging with the cosmos" or whatever other label we wish to use. The simple, direct and effective daily practice of Shaolin Cosmos Qigong is not only enjoyable and fulfilling, but also engenders in the student those qualities whereby they can take inner control and make good progress in this lifetime.

Sifu Wong and intensive qigong course participants -
Brisbane (Feb 2003).

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