L0038891 Qigong exercise for pain in the back, shoulders and arms Credit: Wellcome Library, London. Wellcome Images images@wellcome.ac.uk http://wellcomeimages.org Xiuzhen miyao, a gymnastic (daoyin/qigong) text of unknown origin, was rediscovered and published with a preface by Wang Zai in 1513 (8th year of the Zhengde reign period of the Ming dynasty). It records 49 exercises. This illustration depicts Xianren jiao lulu (The Immortal turns the pulley), a technique used to treat pain in the back, shoulders and upper arms. It is practised as follows: One sits, keeping the body tall and upright, with the left leg flexed and the right leg extended. Raising the left arm, one massages the abdomen with the right hand. Using one's gong power, one circulates Qi for 12 breaths. Then, with the right leg flexed and the left leg extended, raising the right arm and massaging the abdomen with the left hand, one again uses gong power and circulates Qi for 12 breaths. Woodcut Library of Zhongguo zhongyi yanjiu yuan (China Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine) Shouyang congshu: Xiuzhen miyao (Longevity and Cultivation Series: Arcane Essentials of Cultivating Perfection) UnknownTransmitted by Wang Zai (Ming period, 1368-1644) Published: 1593 Copyrighted work available under Creative Commons Attribution only licence CC BY 4.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

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