Principles of Working with Energy & The Two Pillars of Qigong

Principles of Working with Energy

In Qigong, we engage directly with Qi — the vital force that animates all life. Qi is abundant in the world around us. We absorb it through breath, food, water, and through our skin. It is also shaped and influenced by our thoughts, emotions, and the quality of our social and environmental interactions.

Qi is not a vague concept — it is the underlying force behind the body’s cellular intelligence. It governs creation, growth, and repair at the atomic level. When Qi flows freely, health, clarity, and vitality arise. When it stagnates, weakness, fatigue, and illness can follow.

By consciously engaging with Qi, we can increase, refine, and guide this force — improving both the quantity and quality of energy within the body. Through practice, we learn not only to cultivate this energy but to circulate and store it with precision and purpose.

Here are a few core principles that underpin this work:

• Attention is an amplifier of Qi.  When we place our attention/awareness on it, it grows.  

• Qi follows the commands of focused thought (intention). Once we can feel Qi, we can move, direct and guide it using the mind. Focused, calm intention becomes a steering wheel for energy movement.

• Qi seeks consciousness.  The Qi in nature is impersonalised (raw), but it seeks to grow by uniting with human attention and thought. Once united, it is then ‘personalised’ – available for use by us.

The Two Pillars of Qigong: Cleansing and Strengthening

In the practice of Qigong, there are two fundamental aspects to energy cultivation: cleansing and strengthening. These work together to transform the internal landscape of the body, mind, and spirit.

• Cleansing: the removal of internal blockages and stagnant energy.

• Strengthening: the cultivation of fresh, refined, and potent life-force.

These are the yin and yang of energy cultivation — one clears space, the other fills it.

1. Cleansing: Releasing the Past to Restore Flow

Cleansing refers to clearing the energetic debris accumulated from past experiences. This may include physical tension, unresolved emotions, and limiting mental patterns. Left unaddressed, these blockages restrict Qi flow and reduce vitality.

Through gentle but focused practice, we can:

• Stretch and open the meridians, releasing tension and flushing out stagnation — like clearing a blocked river or unclogging a gutter.

• Dislodge stored emotional imprints in the organs and tissues — such as grief in the lungs or fear in the kidneys.

• Recognise and dissolve limiting beliefs that keep our energy bound to outdated patterns of thought and behaviour.

Cleansing is how we reclaim the energy that is trapped in the past and return it to circulation.

2. Strengthening: Cultivating Vitality for the Present and Future

Strengthening involves bringing new fresh energy into the body – bringing more of it in from all available sources, both internal and external, cultivating and refining Qi so that it is strong.

This includes:

• Absorbing energy from the breath, food, environment, and cosmos.

• Circulating and refining Qi through techniques such as breathwork and internal visualisation.

• Storing energy in key centres (like the lower tan tien) so that it becomes a stable reservoir for vitality, longevity, and spiritual insight.

A strong Qi field supports healing, emotional resilience, longevity, and spiritual development. With time, this internal energy becomes radiant, concentrated, and deeply rooted — like a tree that draws strength from the Earth and channels it upward.

Together, cleansing and strengthening form the foundation of Qigong: we let go of what holds us back, and build the energy needed to move forward with clarity, power, and balance.

The Emphasis of This Course

While both cleansing and strengthening are essential in the broader path of Qigong, this Course places emphasis on strengthening — cultivating a full, radiant, and stabilised energy body.

You’ll learn methods for:

• Absorbing Qi from nature and the cosmos.

• Circulating energy through meridians and internal organs.

• Increasing Qi pressure and density in the body.

• Storing refined energy in the tan tien for long-term vitality and inner power.

These practices create the internal capacity needed for deep healing and energetic refinement.

Why Begin with Strengthening?

You might wonder why we begin with strengthening rather than cleansing. The answer is simple:

Vital energy creates the capacity for healing.

When your internal energy supply is strong, your nervous system becomes more resilient, your mind more stable, and your emotions more spacious. In this state, the body naturally begins to release what it no longer needs — often spontaneously and without force.

Like a river that rises and carries away sediment, abundant Qi helps:

• Process old emotional residues without overwhelm.

• Soften and dissolve old tensions and blockages.

• Offer clarity and perspective on past conditioning.

In short, strengthening is a gateway to cleansing — and the more we build our energy system, the more easily cleansing unfolds.

In Summary

This Course provides a foundation of energetic vitality from which deeper work becomes possible. You’ll learn to gather energy, store it, refine it, and ultimately become a stable vessel for life-force to express itself through you — with clarity, power, and presence.

By the end, you will have built the inner resources to not only live with more energy but to meet the past with grace, the present with power, and the future with confidence.