“This
path is beautiful and pleasant and joyful and familiar.” Meister
Eckhart |
| What
is the Luohan Gong? The Hands of the 18 Luohan Advanced Luohan Gong Training |
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| What
is the Luohan Gong? pron. low-han The Luohan Gong is a profound, ancient, and rich historical system of health and spiritual cultivation. The system dates to approximately 527 AD, when Bodhidharma, the founder of Zen (Ch'ang) Buddhism, created the foundation form, The Hands of 18 Luohan, as a way of strengthening his disciples (the monks who later became the monks of the Shaolin Temple) for the physical and spiritual rigors of seated meditation. The system evolved over time to include three other layers, the Siu Luohan, (pron. sue low-han) or “small’ Luohan), the Tai Luohan (pron. die low-han, - or “big” Luohan) and the Wuji (pron. woo-jee – “Great Void”). Each of these practices combine knowledge from Indian and Chinese sources, observations of nature and animal behavior, as well as Bodhidharma's intuition and insight, yet have very different characteristics and functions. Whereas they all use the body, breath and mind to move energy (qi), The 18 Luohan focuses on using the body, the Siu Luohan emphasizes the breath as the fundamental mechanism to move energy, and the Tai Luohan utilizes the mind. The Wuji is an advance martial arts form combining all the aforementioned skills with struggling techniques. Each of these practices cultivates the three treasures: Jing (power) Qi (energy) and Shen (spirit) and results in tremendous improvement in overall health and well-being. What is a Luohan? A Luohan is one who has achieved a high level of spiritual cultivation. He/She has tamed emotional and mental activity to gain clear insight. The next level beyond Luohan is to become a Buddha. Hands of 18 Luohan refers to each of the Luohans who were Buddha's main disciples. Our school welcomes our teacher, Sifu Gaspar Garcia, MD, several times a year to deepen and expand our knowledge of the Luohan Gong. return to top The Hands of the 18 Luohan Embrace The Moon is one of the few schools in the country offering instruction in the Hands of the 18 Luohan. (Please read What is the Luohan Gong?). The 18 Luohan is a challenging qigong form offering all the energetic benefits of the softer forms, yet satisfying the need for a good stretch. It is perfect on its own or as an ideal way to cross-train with your already established practices. For example, Yoga practitioners appreciate it as it is the historical bridge form between Yoga and Qigong. Zen Practitioners are pleased as it was created by Bodhidharma, the founder of Zen (Ch’ang) Buddhism, and martial artists are inspired to know it was used by the Shaolin Monks as the “blueprint” for Kung Fu. Study the Hands of 18 Luohan at Embrace The Moon to enjoy a more athletic form of moving meditation, while cleansing and strengthening all your internal systems, increasing your bone density, achieving a deeply quiet heart and mind, as well as enjoying all the usual benefits of a Qigong practice (see What is Qigong).
return to top Advanced Luohan Gong Training This class welcomes students with 2+ years of experience, those in the Luohan teacher training program, recently certified instructors or by permission from Kim Ivy. Advanced Training will include in depth form correction & structural integration, comprehending and increasing energetic fluidity and further development of “yi” (mind intent). We will also cover aspects of the Siu & Tai Luohan and train the 18 Luohan to increase our endurance & stamina. Students in this class are expected to take an active role in their advancement by developing or deepening their dedicated home practice to at least 2 non-class time hours a week.
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