As a long-term, certified instructor with the IIQTC, I’ve studied and taught the Nine Phase Qigong form for many years. It is both a personal and a class favorite. Students find it to be a practical and accessible form. I find it to be a profound tool in my practice of Tao Cultivation.
Nine Phases Qigong is based on the “10 Phases of Cultivating and Mastering Qi” from Roger Jahnke’s book, “The Healing Promise of Qi.” Following is the sequence of Nine Phase Qigong as practiced in my group class.
1. The Earth Domain (Jing)
Focus: Awakening the Body’s Qi & Cultivating the Ground of Being.
The Earth Domain is the foundation of vitality, embodiment, and self-healing. Focused on the physical body, these practices strengthen the Jing (the material basis of the body) to nourish, fuel, and cool the form. You are successful in this domain when you possess the health and energy to enjoy life and share your joy with others.
- Phase 1: Discover Qi – Forming the Ball of Qi.
- Phase 2: Gather Qi – Gathering Qi from Heaven and Earth.
- Phase 3: Circulate Qi – Inner Rivers Flowing.
By synchronizing movement and breath with mental intent, qigong offers a tried and true method of regaining or preserving health and vitality.
2. The HeartMind Domain (Qi)
Focus: Balancing Emotions & Harmonizing the Inner Landscape.
The HeartMind Domain is the meeting place of emotion, intention, and awareness. It focuses on the mind, emotions, and thoughts. Through these practices, you cultivate the HeartMind Elixir to release stagnant emotional energy and maintain equanimity and cheerfulness regardless of life’s stresses.
- Phase 4: Purify Qi – Clearing the Small Universe.
- Phase 5: Direct Qi – Tracing the Yin-Yang Channels.
- Phase 6: Conserve Qi – Watching Clouds Pass.
In my years of teaching this elegant form, I’ve found that progress comes less from intensity and more from consistent, intentful practice. That is the “gong” in “qigong”. “Qi,” meaning life energy, and “gong,” meaning skill or work, referring a consistent practice of cultivating and balancing this vital energy.
3. The Spirit Domain (Shen)
Focus: Awakening Shen & integrating with the cosmic field of consciousness.
The Spirit Domain invites you into the subtle and expansive dimension where energy refines into Shen—the light of spirit and higher consciousness. Focused on expressing your highest self, this domain helps you cultivate a direct relationship with universal consciousness and spiritual light. Success in this domain is marked by the expression of unconditional love and acceptance.
- Phase 7: Store Qi – Bathing the Marrow.
- Phase 8: Transform Qi – Immortal Dragon Cultivating Golden Elixir.
- Phase 9: Dissolve in Qi – Dissolving into Light.
Suggested reading: The Healing Promise of Qi: Creating Extraordinary Wellness Through Qigong and Tai Chi, By Roger Jahnke. (Look for used copies)
For those who prefer step by step guided instruction, or want to go deeper into the teaching and philosophical basis of 9 Phases, this material is also available as a streaming video course.
Why We Practice: By moving through these phases, we learn to “make the medicine within,” for free. Transforming our internal state from the physical foundation up to the highest levels of conscious awareness.