Standing with Pung & Moving with Pung

My lesson this week focused on “Pung.” Pung is a Chinese word that can be translated as fullness. I use the term fullness as a feeling that is the opposite of flaccidity.

When in standing meditation posture or wuji (chin tucked, head extended upward, spine elongated but with the natural curve, ears aligned with shoulders, shoulders over hips, hips over feet with weight balanced over the arches) one must have a sense of balance and pung. The major muscle groups can relax while the smaller muscles maintain the posture. We are relaxed, and yet there is as sense of fullness. Our bones are stacked to resist the force of gravity giving us a sense of supple balance.

Many people have aches and pains due to improper posture. Many people struggle with postural issues when standing or sitting, and many also struggle with posture issues when moving. The key is to learn the optimal alignment and flow of the body for any given activity, and then train oneself to be aware of times when one is out of that flow. Then one can begin to correct the poor posture that leads to discomfort or even disability.

In order to learn that optimal alignment, it is necessary to train the body and unconscious mind to find it without having to think about it. That is accomplished by performing 15 to 20 minutes of meditation in the correct posture a day for at least three weeks. It may take a while to build up to 20 minutes depending on ones fitness, and how out of alignment one may be. But the struggle to achieve this correct posture is well worth the effort.

Once a person masters standing with pung, it becomes possible to move with pung. That skill is hugely important to martial artists, and can also be important to anyone struggling with chronic pain.

This exercise is perhaps one of the most valuable tools available for attaining freedom from musculo-skeletal pain. It sure beats the heck out of opiates…