Defined broadly as “energy practice,” Qigong includes Tai-ji-quan. The exploration of energy work in China is thousands of years old, and forms the early basis for Chinese medicine as well as Chinese martial arts. As the ancient philosophers considered the factors that affect human health and longevity, they understood that humans are part of nature and participate in the energy patterns of the universe. In studying the workings of the universe, they came to understand the repetitive patterns of the universe, and related those patterns to the workings of the human body. They developed methods of keeping the body and mind strong and available to receive revitalizing energy from the world.
Tai-ji-quan is a part of this energy work tradition. The difference between Tai-ji-quan and medical Qigong methods is that while Tai-ji-quan springs from the martial arts elements, medical Qigong is rooted in Chinese medicine elements of this tradition.