The Relationship between Meditative Concentration, Seeing the Path, and Qi Channels (2025-04-22)

Ru Chun: This morning while sitting in meditation, I first contemplated the breath, then switched to recollection of the Buddha (buddhānusmṛti). While exhaling, I silently recited Amitābha Buddha, letting the syllable "mi" linger a while longer in the chest, contemplating how the sound vibrated the chest, and then letting the breath rise up and out. After a good while, suddenly a large mass of qi surged up from the chest, with a booming sound in my head, and my whole body felt as if a current of electricity had passed through it—tingling and trembling—and it seemed as if a space had been popped open in my head. I wondered what this was about, but didn't think much of it and continued meditating. Light kept appearing before my eyes; there were no longer any storylines in my head, only some images and light. An image of a dragon appeared—a small blue dragon that had just emerged from its shell, bright in color, curled up.

Comment: This is a phenomenon of the qi channels surging. The qi channel rising from the root chakra passed through the chest; the chest was opened up, and this is the phenomenon that appeared when the qi channel rushed straight toward the head. It is uncertain whether the heart chakra was partially or fully opened, but this stream of qi did indeed rush to the head, causing the booming sound in the brain. When the qi reaches the head, the mind naturally settles into purity and thoughts diminish. With the obstruction of the supreme faculty (indriya) at the back of the head reduced, light appeared before the eyes, and the head was also filled with light. The image of the small dragon that appeared portends that you are not far from seeing the Path and becoming a small dragon—a small dragon will truly appear.

Judging from these phenomena, cultivating the Path cannot be separated from the circulation of the qi channels of the physical body, and cannot be separated from a healthy body. Only by cultivating the body can one cultivate the mind; when body and mind have been transformed to a considerable degree, one can see the Path. Therefore, cultivating the Path should be done early and while young; one should not wait until retirement to practice earnestly, for by then the body's functions grow weaker and weaker, practicing meditative concentration (samādhi) becomes rather difficult, and seeing the Path will not be easy.