In June 2025 teacher Ning introduced the why and how of the program and exercises he will share during the September 2025 workshop/retreat in the Netherlands. This is not only of interest for those who consider joining the workshop. Teacher Ning already teaches a lot on what we should or could address in order to become happier and healthier. The transcript below is adapted in such a way that it is better readable.
Enjoy!

Basic Qigong techniques to improve your energy levels

For the basic Qigong techniques there are three methods.

Technique #1: Massage Navel

Massage Navel is a very basic Qigong technique that a lot of people ignore because it’s so simple. In my experience it is a very effective one. When you practice Zhineng Qigong, you practice external Qi. External Qi from nature for example, is what we use when we are creating a Qi field. We think of the blue sky / the universe and bring that energy into our Qi field. Once we know how to apply external Qi, we should bring it in navel inside. Between navel and the mingmen area (between the kidneys) is the centre for the physical body Qi. We call it the lower dantien. Navel inside is also connected to the small intestine and large intestine Qi as well as to the stomach and pancreas/spleen Qi. The Chinese characters for ‘disease’ actually is more related to the small intestines. This shows that a lot of disease is caused by the small intestine Qi that cannot flow upward well. This is one meaning of Massage Navel.

Improve your energy levels

Another meaning is that in traditional Qigong training in the beginning they don’t teach about body movements with arms and legs moving. They require you to just lay down and do navel massage. From there, only gradually you move the massage to other areas until the membranes of your whole body become one. Then you get very strong. Only then you proceed to do Qi or Body movement. That’s a very traditional way. It’s different from the new Qigong forms that developed in the 80s and 90s of the last century. The new Qigong is more focused on external Qi. Or, to start with body movement without first building a very good inner foundation. This is the difference.

Improve your immune system

Massage navel can improve your energy and also can help with many physical conditions. For instance, when you get a cold, just do massage
navel to help you to release out the cold. With any condition in the body you can do this simple technique. About 10 years after I left the Huaxia Center, I met one friend from the Centre who I hadn’t seen in 10 years. I could see he was very strong. He was a funny guy. He had given up his job when he got very ill and then went to the Huaxia Center. He joined a two-year program and practiced a lot, but didn’t get much improvement. He was a bit disappointed and after two years he went home. He then reflected on it and started to only do Massage navel. He gave up all the other methods and only did navel massage for about another two years. Then he healed himself from almost
10 chronic conditions. This is why when I met him again, I saw he had a healthy weight again, he looked very strong and was very joyful. So I
invited him to give a lecture during a conference to share his story and he inspired a lot of people. That’s why a lot of Qigong practitioners turn to work on Massage navel for 30 minutes or 1 hour. Some of them even do for two hours a day.

For many Qigong masters this would be the one method to choose for daily practice. It is a simple one and improves your inner Qi very well.

2: Standing Meditation – learn to focus & release pressure from the sacral joints

The second basic method is standing meditation. When I came to this island (Hainan) I stopped doing standing meditation because it is quite hot here. Last winter I picked it up again and I experienced the benefits from standing meditation. One is that you release pressure or tension from the sacral joints. When the sacral joints get a little bit more open and your tailbone can go downward, this is very good. Another benefit is when you are doing standing meditation, the Qi goes to your bones. When you don’t do this, the Qi stays in the muscles.

Strengthening the bones

Standing meditation is nourishing the bones. When I picked up this practice of standing meditation, I could feel my bones energy getting stronger. I will teach standing meditation a bit different from the way it is presented in Zhineng Qigong. In the traditional way your feet are parallel. When you turn your feet inward (as in Zhineng Qigong), the three meridians on the inner legs do not stretch, while it actually is good to give them a little bit of a stretch.

I visited the Taiji/Kungfu brother of the founder of Zhineng Qigong in 2008. I went to his home twice to discuss about this. When this Qigong brother teaches Zhineng Qigong around China, he repairs this requirement to the students. When he’s giving a lecture he tells them to keep the feet parallel and not turn inwardly. He really knows about Zhineng Qigong since he has been a bodyguard for dr Pang Ming for many years. He’s the number two person in the circle. So these are some secret stories. So we make use of the traditional way so you will get more benefit. When I see people doing standing meditation with the feet turned inward, I feel a little bit sad about that. I’m not saying it is wrong, it is just a little not so perfect part of Zhineng Qigong.

3: Tiger Steps to improve Liver Qi and Kidney Qi & strengthen the legs

The third method originally is from Emei Qigong. It is another branch of traditional Qigong. It emphasize to improve your Liver Qi and the Kidney Qi and the legs. When we get a little bit older, the Qi flows upward more and does not stay in the legs enough. This is why you see older people walking with less balance, or when you look at their physical body you see their upper body become more fat than the legs, the ankles getting thinner. When you check the young people like teenagers, their Qi stays in their body and in their legs and feet. Tiger Foot Walk helps to rebalance your energy and bring your energy to the legs. This way you improve your legs.

How to avoid breaking your bones when getting older

This is very important for older people, also when they are afraid to fall. When they fall they easily break their bones and that’s a very big trouble. So we have to improve ourself to escape or to avoid that. It is best when you prepare in the early age and understand this, so that when you get older you are okay. Even when you go for a hospital check and your body is in a good condition, there’s a potential risk. If your legs are not strong enough there’s a potential risk for the future life.

So these three basic Qigong techniques are the most fundamental. If you don’t want to go deeper and search no more, this is probably enough for everybody. For example, when you only do Massage Navel for 30 minutes every day, standing meditation 30 minutes and Tiger Steps for another 15 minutes a day, that is a very good combination. I don’t know how many of you practice Qigong every day for one hour or two hours. so if you don’t have too much time, these three are probably enough for you.

Practice to restore the root Qi in the body

On Friday, I will be teaching methods to support the spleen and stomach, they are key organs in Chinese medicine. It’s important to understand that in this tradition, the “spleen” actually refers to the pancreas, and the spleen is associated with the left liver. So, what we’ll be focusing on is how to improve the Qi of your pancreas and stomach. These are known as “root Qi” or “postnatal Qi,” which is the foundation for the Qi of the other internal organs. These two Qi flows dominate and regulate the energy of all other organs.

The central role of stomach and pancreas in the body’s energy system according to TCM

In Chinese medicine, every organ’s Qi needs to flow in a specific direction. For example, the lungs’ Qi should descend, and if it ascends, that creates an imbalance. The stomach and pancreas Qi serve as gatekeepers for these ascending and descending flows in the body. This is why we will be practicing techniques like chanting and body movements to help these Qi flows. However, sometimes when someone has stomach or pancreas issues, these typical methods might not seem effective. If you don’t feel much improvement, it’s likely because the issue is deeper. For instance, if the liver Qi is weak, it can affect the pancreas and stomach Qi. In that case, we need to address the liver Qi first to help the pancreas and stomach work properly. This process involves two steps:

1. Step One: Start with methods aimed directly at the stomach and pancreas.
2. Step Two: If the methods don’t provide relief, we work on improving liver Qi to help restore balance.

This layered approach is crucial for tackling issues at their root. We’ll explore this more during the workshop.

The Role of Emotions and Energy in Healing

A key concept we’ll discuss is how emotional patterns, such as blame and resentment, affect our physical health. Many people, especially in family dynamics, hold on to negative emotions like blaming others—whether it’s a partner or child. This emotional buildup can lead to a stagnation of Qi, particularly in the stomach and pancreas, which are linked to the Earth element in Chinese medicine. When we carry resentment or blame, it creates toxic energy that harms our bodies, even if we don’t express it outwardly. This internalized negativity poisons the system. The process of transformation involves shifting this energy, which we call “transforming the Yin Earth nature into Yang Earth nature.” This transformation helps you break free from negative emotional cycles and restores balance in your body. Mastering this process is challenging, but it is essential for healing. A powerful example comes from a Buddhist practitioner who once shared how, when he was arrested and beaten, he didn’t feel any anger or resentment, because he had already come to terms with past actions. He realized that his own past behaviour had created the conditions for his present experience—what we call karma. When we accept and understand this, we stop the cycle of resentment and begin to heal.

Heart and Kidney Connection

On Saturday, we’ll focus on the connection between the heart and kidneys. In Chinese medicine, the heart and kidneys are supposed to work in harmony. If they are disconnected, the energy flow between them becomes imbalanced. This imbalance can lead to various issues, especially as people age, like during menopause or andropause when hormonal energy starts to decline. We will practice methods to reconnect the heart and kidneys and harmonize their Qi. By doing so, we can prevent heart issues and support kidney health. This is particularly important for anyone experiencing these issues, whether physical or emotional.

Lungs and Liver Method

On Sunday, we’ll address the relationship between the lungs and liver. These organs have a unique dynamic because the lung Qi and liver Qi
actually control each other—meaning they regulate and restrict one another. If one becomes too strong or too weak, it can lead to disease. For
example, if liver Qi stagnates, the lungs might struggle, and if lung Qi becomes excessive, the liver may be overwhelmed. We’ll explore methods to harmonize the lung and liver Qi and release these restrictions. This is essential for addressing conditions like skin problems, respiratory issues, and hormonal imbalances. For women, liver imbalances are often linked to reproductive issues like menstrual problems, breast health, and ovarian health. For men, prostate health can be impacted by liver Qi stagnation.

Workshop Schedule and Benefits

The workshop is a four-day journey into understanding and harmonizing your Qi. It’s designed for both beginners and experienced practitioners. Whether you’re dealing with physical conditions or emotional blockages, this workshop will help you understand the root causes and offer practical techniques for healing. If you’re interested, you can join just one day, or sign up for the full four-day retreat. Each day focuses on different aspects of healing, from the stomach and pancreas, to the heart and kidneys, to the lungs and liver. Whether you’re looking to improve your own health or help others, this retreat will provide valuable tools and insights.

Closing Thoughts

This retreat is about transforming your energy and understanding the deeper connections between body, mind, and spirit. Through this process, you can resolve imbalances and move toward greater health and harmony. I hope to see you in September, and I look forward to sharing this journey

Yes, tell me more about this workshop

When you come home to your heart, you will:

feel calm and relaxed;
be comfortable with yourself and feel free to be and show yourself;
experience self-love and accept what lives within you, without it having to be different;
you can feel the feeling of you

And when you then turn your attention even further inward:

you enter a calm openness from which you see, feel, and experience what is happening within and around you;
this calm openness is unconditional. It’s like the blue sky. All sensory perceptions, feelings and emotions, thoughts, and experiencing your body are like friendly clouds appearing in the blue sky. Then you calmly observe what ‘is’. You don’t have to judge
what is good or bad or what should or shouldn’t be.
You are in contact with your Higher Self, which leads you to wisdom through intuition and inner knowing. Your heart indicates what is good for you, what makes you happy, and what is best to do in situations. You better sense situations and people, and you ‘know’ what you want to connect with or what you should stay away from. Your creativity and luminous ideas unfold!

… In your heart resides Love and your consciousness.

The age of Aquarius: the age of the Heart

Astrologically, we have completed an Earth Age (200 years) and have now arrived in the Age of Aquarius. This is also called the era of the Heart. It is an era where technological developments follow each other at a rapid pace. Spiritually, it gives us an opportunity to develop a broader consciousness. From a Qigong perspective, we say that we may transform the Yang-nature of our Heart into the Yin-nature of our heart.

Yin-nature of our heart leads to quarrels and disagreements

When the Yin aspects of our heart flare up, it manifests, among other things, in conflicts in the world, between countries and peoples, and in our own lives. You tend to reject others for their opinions or want to convince them of your viewpoint. If the Yin-nature of our heart takes the lead, there is continuous judgment and thinking in terms of good and bad, right and wrong. We are less tolerant and cannot accept others as they are or think. We often do this even without knowing the other person’s story at all. In this period, it is extra important to transform the Yin qualities of the heart within ourselves.

The qualities of a ‘Yang’ heart: softness and acceptance

When you develop the Yang qualities of your heart, you look without judgment. In softness, you perceive what is and accept what is. From that acceptance, you can discover ways and find solutions in which everyone feels involved recognized. Then it gains broader support and naturally gains strength. Moreover, when you live from your ‘Yang’ heart, you know that you are guided by the universe. You can see the universe as the Source from which you and everything originate. At the same time, the universe is also the people and the world around you. That makes it very practical and concrete. You can trust that you will receive help and support from the universe by asking for it. Then be open to good ideas and the people who cross your path, because the solution may just be offered there.

How Qigong can help to live from your heart

Qigong helps you transform the Yin-nature of the heart into the Yang-qualities of the heart. You could say that all emotions together are like
background music to your well-being. When we are emotionally out of balance or when you experience situations that throw you out of balance (for a longer period), this can lead to reduced energy, ailments, or illness. In Teacher Ning’s Self-Healing Qigong, we pay a lot of
attention to developing emotional stability. This creates more harmonious background music that naturally improves your well-being.

The connection of Heart and Kidneys according to TCM

Teacher Ning’s Self-Healing Qigong has its foundations in Traditional Chinese Medicine. In this philosophy, the heart is considered ‘the emperor’. In ancient times, the emperor was the sovereign who, by his presence, ensured peace in the land. While all executive tasks were handled by other officials, the emperor was seen as the one who radiated profound wisdom and inner peace as a foundation for the entire society. Although all organs play an important role in this empire, TCM sees a special connection between the Kidneys and the Heart. “A harmonious connection between Kidneys and Heart is crucial for our health and well-being”.

Do you want to learn more?

In September 2025 teacher Ning will teach about harmonizing the Heart and Kidneys connection during the workshop he will give in The Hague. You are most welcome to join the full program, or just for the weekend.

Teacher Ning in The Hague (Netherlands) >>

How to approach the root causes of illness