One of the most profound and transformative dimensions of Qigong is the cultivation of the emotional body.<\/p>\n
Beyond the gentle movements and natural breathing, the true internal alchemist learns to recognize, transform and generate emotional states like someone who works with the seasons: respecting the cycles, but also knowing how to sow at the right time.<\/p>\n
In Qigong, emotions are not just psychological reactions – they are energetic expressions. Each emotion generates a distinct vibration in our energy field and exerts a concrete influence on the internal organs. This idea is deeply rooted in Traditional Chinese Medicine, where each emotion is associated with an organ: <\/p>\n
Rabies affects the liver<\/p>\n<\/li>\n
Joy (in excess) affects the heart<\/p>\n<\/li>\n
Worry affects the spleen<\/p>\n<\/li>\n
Sadness affects the lungs<\/p>\n<\/li>\n
Fear affects the kidneys<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
As the Huangdi Neijing<\/em> says, the oldest medical text in China (2nd century BC):<\/p>\n “Joy disperses the heart, anger makes Qi rise, sadness consumes Qi, fear makes Qi fall.”(Neijing Suwen<\/em>, chapter 39)<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n Recognizing this principle, the practitioner learns that it is not enough to move the body and breathe – it is also necessary to listen to the emotional heart and learn to work with it.<\/p>\n In the West, we are used to thinking of emotions as passive reactions to external events. In Qigong, however, we also cultivate the ability to voluntarily generate certain internal states – not as a form of denial, but as a practice of regulation and rootedness. <\/p>\n For example, imagining yourself sitting in the middle of a hurricane, with everything spinning around you, but feeling calm, is a powerful way of evoking inner peace in times of turbulence. Similarly, evoking a memory or feeling of gratitude – and letting it expand in your chest – is a way of feeding the Heart with gentle energy, strengthening the immune system and balancing the nervous system. <\/p>\n From a scientific point of view, recent studies in neuroscience and somatic psychology support this approach. A study published in the Journal of Positive Psychology<\/em> (Fredrickson et al., 2008) demonstrated that the deliberate practice of positive emotions such as gratitude and compassion has lasting effects on the body and brain, including: <\/p>\n Improved cardiac variability<\/p>\n<\/li>\n Reduction in cortisol levels (stress hormone)<\/p>\n<\/li>\n Increased activation in the prefrontal cortex (region associated with self-regulation)<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n In other words, by practicing the conscious evocation of internal states, we are training the nervous system to live in coherence and stability, even in challenging moments.<\/p>\n Just as important as knowing how to generate emotions is knowing how to recognize them<\/strong>. We often spend the day immersed in emotional states – mild anxiety, sadness, frustration – without even realizing it. The simple act of stopping, breathing and feeling “what is alive in me now?” is already an act of inner alchemy. <\/p>\n In classical Taoism, this silent listening is described as the path of transformation:<\/p>\n “The wise listen with an empty heart. He observes the movements of Qi and remains serene, for he knows that everything is changeable.” – Zhuangzi<\/em>, chapter 6<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n This recognition is the first step in allowing emotion to flow without crystallizing. Qi can only circulate freely in a body that allows it to feel without resistance. <\/p>\n Over time, this approach becomes more than a physical practice – it becomes a lifestyle. Qigong teaches us to live with more presence, more clarity and more compassion. We stop being pushed around by the emotions of the moment, and begin to inhabit them like sailing a boat with a steady rudder. <\/p>\n It’s not about repressing or pretending that we’re always well. It’s about choosing<\/strong> how we want to vibrate, knowing how to internally cultivate the qualities we want to live in the world: serenity, strength, joy, gratitude, compassion. <\/p>\n As the Taoist master Liu Yiming (1734-1821) used to say:<\/p>\n “The mind is the root. The emotions are the branches. If the root is clear, the branches will be harmonious.”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n The practice of emotional Qigong is a subtle but powerful path to inner transformation. Learning to feel, name, evoke and transform emotions is an essential part of the path. Just as we take care of the body with food and movement, we must also take care of the emotional field with awareness, intention and delicacy. <\/p>\n Question for reflection:<\/strong><\/p>\n Today, what emotion inhabits your body most strongly? […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3480,"featured_media":1718,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1771","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sem-categoria"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/qigongessencial.pt\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1771","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/qigongessencial.pt\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/qigongessencial.pt\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/qigongessencial.pt\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3480"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/qigongessencial.pt\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1771"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/qigongessencial.pt\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1771\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/qigongessencial.pt\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1718"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/qigongessencial.pt\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1771"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/qigongessencial.pt\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1771"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/qigongessencial.pt\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1771"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}\n
Generating internal states: a voluntary training<\/h3>\n
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The art of recognizing what we feel<\/h3>\n
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Qigong as a way of being<\/h3>\n
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What emotion would you like to cultivate like planting a seed?<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"