Where did Qigong Originate From?
Legend has it that in ancient China, the secret to immortality was discovered by the tiny village of Qigong. This secret has been passed down for thousands of years. To this very day, people practice this art of longevity which began in a cave with a group of villagers and a Master Turtle.
How did the practice of Qigong begin?
Early one morning, the villagers of Qigong began their daily walk down the mountain to reach the river. This particular morning, the path was very slippery as there was a big storm that had passed through the night before. The air was crisp and refreshing, the birds were just beginning to sing their praises to the sun. There was a noble silence amongst the group, who enjoyed the stillness of the morning and watching the first rays of light come up from behind the mountain. A deep rumble that could be heard in the distance broke the silence.
Together, they stopped to listen to this strange sound. The rumble began to get louder and seemed to be coming closer. Small bits of rock and dirt began to fall from the mountaintop. Puzzled, they all looked up the mountain to see where the debris was coming from. Instantly, the leader of the village called the group to the side of the path and ushered them into a small cave.
The distant rumble was now a roaring thunder and the people began to run into the cave as they saw the mountainside coming towards them. Just as the last villager entered the cave, the entire mountainside came sliding over the opening of the cave, leaving them in complete darkness.
They had narrowly escaped death by their quick reactions but now had to face the reality of being stuck in a cave without any way out. The first few days were spent in a desperate search to find a way out. Together they worked day and night shovelling dirt and rocks to try and clear a path through the mountain, but they had no luck.
How did they survive?
To their surprise, they saw a turtle walking ever so slowly to the very front of the cave, where he proceeded to poke his head out of his shell, tilt his head back in slow motion and gracefully stick his tongue out just in time to catch a drop of water that slipped off the wall of the cave. Then he pulled his head back in, retreated into his shell and slept for most of the day. Every day the turtle would come out at the same time and perform that same movements, catch a drop of water in his mouth just big enough to sustain himself and again and again would retreat into his shell and rest. Astonished, the leader of the village became very curious of the turtle and shifted his focus from trying to dig his way out to sustaining his energy like the turtle did.
But… How did the villagers escape?
The whole village became students of the master turtle, mimicking his daily movements. They were able to sustain their energy and live off only a small drop of water. Several months later, a loud thunder sound cracked in the night and shook the cave violently. When the shaking stopped, they noticed a pale glimmer of light that came shimmering into the cave. The violent shaking had knocked off the boulder that had trapped them inside and now they could see the pale moonlight, a light they thought they might never see again.
So the story goes of the village of Qigong, emerging as the first masters of an ancient art that teaches the slow movements of their Master Turtle who showed them the secrets of longevity named after the village of Qigong.