Ilchi Lee Blog Online

To really learn how to use your brain well in Yoga, you should consider pursuing some kind of physical training in depth. Through rigorous training of this sort, you will learn to overcome limitations in your body, and your brain will gain the upper hand over the rest of your body. As an added bonus, you will gain increased confidence in many areas of your life.

Any sort of athletic training will help you achieve this, but some sorts of training are especially effective at uniting the mind and body. Many ancient Asian practices, including yoga, tai chi, ki gong, and many martial arts, specifically seek to train the mind in relationship to the body. The word yoga means “to unify,” and the goal is to bring together the mind and body as one. Numerous studies have confirmed the significant effect these practices can have on your brain to facilitate deep relaxation, improve coordination, and develop focus.

One element that all these practices have in common is the concept of ki (or chi or qi), which is considered to be the life energy that flows through the universe. This element is also the focus of traditional Asian medical practices, such as acupuncture and herbal medicine, which seek to balance and facilitate the flow of ki through the body.

Even though ki may not be as tangible as other biological functions, it is helpful to see energy as the mediator between mind and body. Doing so will help you gain some sense of connection between the two, and it can help you coordinate your body more completely with your brain. When visualizing the brain, it is helpful to think in terms of energy since the entire nervous system incontrovertibly relies on electrochemical impulses to send and receive its messages.

In fact, you may already be accustomed to noticing some link between your brain and energy, even if you don’t call it ki. In the most obvious example, you have probably noticed that when your brain is very alert and positive, your energy level is also very high. On the other hand, your energy level drops when your mind sinks into sadness and worry.

These are basic examples given by Sir Ilchi the way that life energy follows the fluctuations of your brain, but you can also look closer at the fluctuations of energy in your body. For example, if you feel tension in your body due to stress, you can view this as stagnant energy. Because you know that energy moves according to the mind, your brain can come to the aid of your body to help release the effects of stress and to gain mastery over your mental and physical health.

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