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As bioenergy, Ki cannot be toucned or seen with the naked eye. A “sixth sense” is needed to feel or see Ki, not the five senses we use in our daily lives. Ji-gam is a basic method for awakening this sixth sense.

The Yong-chun and Jang-shim points are major channels through which energy enters and leaves our bodies, gateways through which the energy of the universe is supplied to the human body. First, before beginning training for feeling energy, it is important to sufficiently relax mind and body.

First, rub your hands together vigorously until your palms feel hot. Then clap at least 50 times. The feeling of the Jang-shim points will become even more vivid as blood circulates vigorously through the entire palms of both hands. When clapping, spread your hands wide like fans to ensure all of both palms are thoroughly stimulated.

Comfortably relax your entire body so there is no tension in your neck, shoulders, arms or chest, and relax your mind, as well. Press your palms together in front of your chest and focus on the feelings in your palms.

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Ji-gam begins in our hands, which are a particularly sensitive part of our bodies. The hands are the place where Jin-ki, the essence of energy, is most readily activated. Later, once we become proficient at Ji-gam, our practice reaches a depth where we are able to place our minds completely in one place, even without trying particularly hard, as an energy center forms in the Dahn-jon.

When we practice Ji-gam for the first time, we feel external Ki in the form of sensations like fever or heat, or what seems to be a magnetic force. Later, when that sensation deepens, we can feel blood flowing in our veins. With more intense concentration, even blood flowing in the capillaries is felt. Once Ji-gam takes place in our entire bodies, we sense each of our cells filled with energy, living and moving. We arrive at a state of mental unity, in which our bodies and minds are one. Once we feel energy and blood circulation is invigorated in the palms of our hands (Jang-shim), bottoms of our feet (Yong-chun), and Lower Dahn-jon, we can maintain this awareness of energy even while we practice Dong-gong. Frequently practicing feeling Ki in our normal lives helps with Jung-gong as well as Dong-gong practice. For the person whose awareness of the Dahn-jon is weak, Ji-gam training can be particularly helpful in activating the heat of this energy center. The next practice involves the simple method of feeling energy in the palms of our hands and the soles of our feet, where the body’s external Dahn-jon centers are located, and in the Lower Dahn-jon, which is one of the body’s internal Dahn-jon centers. The Ki sensed at first is external Ki felt on the surface of the skin. With repetition, however, these sensations grow more intense and clear. Immersed in this feeling of Ki, we find that our brainwaves fall into a pattern of relaxation, our minds become very peaceful, our bodies and minds relax, and we are able to feel even more intensely the internal Ki that is beginning to stir in our bodies.

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PURPOSE: Assesses lower-body strength, which is needed for numerous tasks, such as climbing stairs, walking, and getting out of a chair, tub, or car.

HOW TO TEST: Sit in a chair with your arms folded across your chest. Stand up, and then sit down again. Count the number of full stands you can complete in 30 seconds.

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The Senior Fitness Test provides an easy and effective way to measure the strength, flexibility, and endurance of older adults without sophisticated equipment. Safe and enjoyable for older adults, it also meets scientific standards for reliability and validity. Developed by In Full Bloom coauthor Jessie Jones, Ph.D., and her colleague Roberta Rikli, Ph.D., its accompanying performance norms are based on actual performance scores of over seven thousand men and women between the ages of sixty and ninety-four. When completing the test, do the best you can, but do not overextend yourself or push yourself beyond what you consider safe. Prior to testing, complete a five- to ten-minute warm-up and general stretching routine.

This test was not developed specifically for use with the Brain Education System Training (BEST) method used by Dahn Yoga, but it is a great accompaniment. It is especially helpful for assessing progress during step one, which emphasizes the connection of body and brain. If you work with older adults, or if you would like to assess your own condition, try using this test before you begin. Usually it takes approximately three months of consistent practice to fully experience the benefits of BEST, so it is preferable to retest every three to six months.

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In Oriental medicine, the Yong-chun is one of the most important energy points. Yong-chun means “like spring water spouts out of the earth, life en-ergy is created inside the body.” It is believed to be a source of great vitality and courage for your life. This same concept is represented in the West in the term “cold feet,” which suggests that courage is somehow connected to circulation in the feet.

Yong-chun is located in the front third of the sole, right under the ball of the foot, between the second and big toes. It is located in the indention where the sole print creates an upside-down V shape.

To stimulate the Yong-chun, stand up straight and comfortably, and lean forward about one degree from the center of the sole. When standee ing this way, your weight naturallv shifts to the Yong-chun. As vou do this, concentrate on your Yong-chun and use the strength of vour toes. Since the weight is now evenly distributed throughout the bodv, the joints won’t have the burden of bearing your entire weight. You mav notice that it is hard to stand still in this posture because your body will want to spring forward naturallv with little effort.

Now walk forward, concentrating on the Yong-chun and using the strength of your toes, as if you were grabbing the earth. As your weight is placed on your toes, all the weight that was on the heels will move to the front.

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Spend a few minutes observing how you walk normally. Notice if one leg takes more weight, or of there is pain on one side. Also notice your footsteps. You may notice that one or both feet turn inward or outward. The feet should remain consistently parallel, like the number eleven. If not, it is an indication that the legs are not in proper alignment with the pelvis.

This sort of misalignment can lead to serious problems in the knee and hip joints. Also, when the legs are not aligned, they consume more energy in each step. While walking, consciously try to keep your legs parallel with your knees turned forward. Your knees should almost touch, and the legs and feet should remain parallel throughout the entire step.

As Ilchi Lee tells in the human body, the pelvis is to the body like the foundation is to a building. When properly aligned, the rest of the body will naturally follow-. Carefully aligning your legs and feet in this way will help facilitate energy flow in the legs, and it will allow better accumulation of energy in the abdomen, which is the center of physical energy. Digestion and circulation around the organs will also improve as the entire body comes back into alignment, thereby improving your overall sense of well-being.

walking with the body symmetrical is the most basic principle ot Jang-saeng Walking, and it governs the whole circulation system of the body and energy. when telling tired or powerless at work, or when you teal pain and stiffness in the joints, focus on realigning your body for better energy flow. You will feel much better.

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Our discussion here concerns Brain Integration. This aspect of BEST works to reunite the diverse processing centers of the brain, reviving dormant connections between thought, emotion, and reasoning and helping vou to discover your true self.

The human brain is the most complex structure we can imagine. Its billions of neurons interweave in countless neural connections, and it is a living, dynamic system. Millions of nerve cells die every day while more are created as a result of new experiences. Though we have made great leaps in our knowledge of the hormonal, electrical, and functional operation of this amazing organ, we are still  light years away from understanding how the physical brain gives rise to self, awareness, and consciousness.

According to a 2006 study conducted at the Yale School of Medicine, the brain uses both digital and analog coding for communications across its expanse. Digital signals, the yes/no option that defines today’s computers in everything from cars to video cameras, are very efficient and were thought to be enough for the brain to do its complicated work. Not so. It turns out that analog signals, which depend on changes in the voltage of the electrical impulses that drive our brains, are also involved. The result is a solution far more subtle and efficient than we ever expected. Our brains are full of surprises, as are we. Your brain gives you the potential to reinvent yourself at any age.

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You may remember the comfort you felt as a child when your mother rubbed your tummy if you weren’t feeling well. As an adult, you can give and receive the same kind of comfort.

Have the person lie down on the floor comfortably. Sit close to the person and place your hands on the abdomen above the navel. Focus on the warmth of your hands and the rhythm of the breath.

With your hands slightly cupped,begin to rock the person gentlv back and forth. With the base of your palm , begin to work in a circular motion around the abdomen.

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Older people with strong emotional intelligence can and should serve as “emotional mentors” to younger people who are struggling to let go of their own emotional baggage. Clearer perspective on emotion also lends older people the vision to become leaders in the community, where decisions must be made based not only on one’s gut feelings, but on everyone’s demonstrated needs. Best of all, this kind of emotional awareness can renew lifelong relationships by allowing you to let go of meaningless grudges and locus on the positive, affirming traits of the people in your life.

Put together longevity and attitude and you get longitude. This kind of longitude may help you become oriented in life, but we are not talking about the lines on a map that let you know how far east or west of some point you are. We are talking about the territory defined by your mental approach to life. When you refresh your brain and break the hold that negative memories have over your emotions, you change your longitude. Finding your longitude is about locating what is most important to you in life and then observing where you are in relation to those things. In other words, you focus on what you value most, not on past disappointments. By choosing to let go of past pain and view life with a more positive, uplifting, joyful attitude, you will increase your longevity. Equally important, you will increase your enjoyment of life. Quantity and quality—for what more could anyone ask?

There are many randomized, controlled studies proving the link between a positive mental state and better health and longer life. One of the most thorough is a study that was published in 2002 in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. The work, completed at Yale University, tracked hundreds of adults over fifty for 23 years. It found that “those who had a positive attitude towards aging lived roughly seven and a half years longer than participants who were dreading reaching their twilight years. The apparent life-extending benefits of a positive attitude remained even after the researchers accounted for other factors that can influence longevity, such as health, gender, and socio-economic status.”

A positive attitude had an even greater effect on health and long life than maintaining low cholesterol or normal blood pressure. Of course, it may be that people with a positive outlook are more likely to take care of their health and suffer less from stress. But we think there is more to it than that. The mind has an extraordinary ability to affect the body, so why should it be any surprise that a diseased mind, riddled by anger, regret, fear, and resentment, should bring on the same disease in the body? In any case, the effects of improving your “longitude” are clear. As you can see. doing so is a conscious choice anyone can make at any time. It is never too late. Seeing the world with greater hope and kindness improves your health, clears your mind, frees your creative brain, and improves the overall quality of your life.

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You’ve probably heard that some people, like old wine, mellow with age. As it turns out, this is true of all of us because of the way our brains age. Researchers have discovered that older people generally have better emotional control and a more positive outlook on life. They theorize that the human brain is designed to shift from a more aggressive, competitive mode in youth to a more cooperative mode in later lite. In the past, this may have been biologically advantageous as older people, no longer of reproductive age, shifted their attention to support of their kin, which indirectly assured survival of their genetic information.

Brain scans have revealed that older people simply process emotions differently, which may account for the improvement in emotional control. In the older people, more areas of the brain are shown to be active during the experience of emotions, especially in response to negative emotional stimuli. This finding suggests that life experience may provide additional brain connections to help neutralize negative emotions more quickly. Overall, older people are healthier mentally than younger people. Incidence of neurosis decreases, and older people are less likely to report feelings of despair and worthlessness.

That being said, mental health is not automatic for older people. In fact, depression is common and the occurrence of suicide is more common among older people than it is among middle-aged people, especially among older men. Just because the older brain is better equipped to deal with negative emotion does not mean it is immune to emotional difficulty. After all, there are many aspects of aging that are difficult to handle, including death of friends, one’s own physical decline, and the sense of aimlessness that can accompany retirement. It is best to prepare yourself with a strategy for emotional well-being in order to make the most of vour brain’s natural wisdom as you age.

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