What’s the difference between T’ai Chi and Qigong?
Qigong literally means “Qi work,” or energy exercises. Qigong focuses on mastering the flow of qi (vital life energy) in your own body. There are four aspects to this discipline: taking in fresh qi from your food and environment; circulating your qi freely and completely throughout your body; breaking up old, stuck qi; and getting rid of that old qi to make room for new. The movements of Qigong are generally soft, relaxed and gentle – much like the movements of T’ai Chi Ch’uan. The casual, untrained observer may not be able to tell the difference between the two. In fact, T’ai Chi Ch’uan is actually a form of Qigong – one of the many forms and styles of energy exercises. The main difference between T’ai Chi and Qigong is that T’ai Chi Ch’uan is a martial art, while most Qigong is not (or not necessarily). So like kleenex and tissue, all T’ai Chi is a form of Qigong but not all Qigong is T’ai Chi.
