Published in Eastwest Bookshop Catalogue, September - October, 2000

An Interview with Qigong Master Qinyin

Master Qinyin is widely recognized as a foremost Qigong practitioner and innovator. Her new Qigong program, called Qinway Qigong (Qin Way to Health and Rejuvenation), is taught at The Qinway Qigong Center in Fremont, where Master Qinyin works closely with a growing following of students.

RG: Master Qinyin, how did you become interested in Qigong?

MQ: When I was born, I was very weak. So at three years old, I started to learn meditation from my grandmother. Then in high school, near my hometown of Hangzhou on the South Sea Putuo Mountain, one of the four most famous Buddhist mountains in China, I met the Abbess Huikong, who became my Qigong teacher and mentor. Later, after I graduated from university, I founded the Purple Bamboo Qigong College. There our teaching was dedicated to the ancient methods of natural healing. I also had the opportunity to study and learn from different Qigong grand masters, including Buddhist and Taoist masters. Many of them lived in the mountains. They have really very, very advanced techniques.

RG: What is Qigong, and how is Qinway Qigong different from traditional Qigong?

MQ: Qigong is a time honored healing method, considered the cornerstone of Chinese medicine. It is a mind/body practice through which the body can increase its vital energy (Qi) and use it to remove blockages in the body to heal diseases and promote health. Qinway Qigong is unique because it has reformed the tradition of Qigong in many ways. For example, it gives a procedure or technique that everyone can follow, so it applies to almost everyone. And it connects with universal energy directly and instantly to open up the energy channels between human being and the universe. The movement is very, very simple and you can achieve many steps very fast. In traditional Qigong, this takes a long time to achieve. Qinway Qigong students can get a high training level in a short time. And in America, Qinway Qigong also has found great and fast healing effects among Americans. One fundamental mechanism of Qinway Qigong is energy infusion and human detoxification to remove toxins out of the body at the same time.

RG: So, Qinway Qigong has been tailored for our modern fast-paced lifestyle?

MQ: Yes, because traditional Qigong usually takes a long time to learn. One characteristic of Qinway Qigong is for it to be effective very quickly. Students can receive energy just like recharging. In traditional Qigong, the name of an exercise is usually a poetic analogy which does not describe the function of the exercise. Qinway Qigong points out the function of each exercise directly. For example, one of the exercises is called "energy Reception", but the traditional name is "wave the willow for three times". I have reorganized traditional Qigong exercises in such a way that the exercises are simple to learn as an integrated system and are very effective.

RG: What are the benefits of Qinway Qigong?

MQ: The major benefit is the fundamental healing. It's very effective for many different diseases, such as hypertension, obesity and even cancer. Some people will experience relief from pain; others weight loss. In many other versions of Qigong they emphasize energy infusion, but they don't emphasize the removal of toxins. In Qinway Qigong these two aspects come together. It's very simple. You just need to follow the exercises and do the simple movements. The process of detoxification and energy infusion has already been designed and imbedded into each movement.

RG: What can people expect from your Qigong workshop?

MQ: They will learn Qigong exercises that they can take home and practice. They will learn basic principles of Qigong including human detoxification and energy infusion. I will also teach the technical procedures of Qinway Qigong and explain the mechanisms behind these exercises. The participants can receive Qi, feel the reception of Qi, and the circulation of Qi in their bodies. Also some participants will experience a release of pain during the workshop.

Last update 08/19/07.