Eight Pieces of Brocade

Representations of the eight postures and movements.

Baduanjin qigong

Continuing on from our light hearted look at ways to remember the sequence of this form of Qigong here, read this short article on Wikipedia.

Here is an excerpt:

Two Hands Hold up the Heavens (Shuang Shou Tuo Tian)

This move is said to stimulate the "Triple Burner" aka "Triple Warmer" or "Triple Heater" meridian (Sanjiao). It consists of an upward movement of the hands, which are loosely joined and travel up the center of the body.

Drawing the Bow to Shoot the Eagle / Hawk / Vulture

While in a lower horse stance, the practitioner imitates the action of drawing a bow to either side. It is said to exercise the waist area, focusing on the kidneys and spleen.

Separate Heaven and Earth

This resembles a version of the first piece with the hands pressing in opposite directions, one up and one down. A smooth motion in which the hands switch positions is the main action, and it is said to especially stimulate the stomach.

Wise Owl Gazes Backwards or Look Back

This is a stretch of the neck to the left and the right in an alternating fashion.

Sway the Head and Shake the Tail

This is said to regulate the function of the heart and lungs. Its primary aim is to remove excess heat (or fire) (xin huo) from the heart. Xin huo is also associated with heart fire in traditional Chinese medicine. In performing this piece, the practitioner squats in a low horse stance, places the hands on thighs with the elbows facing out and twists to glance backwards on each side.

Two Hands Hold the Feet to Strengthen the Kidneys and Waist

This involves a stretch upwards followed by a forward bend and a holding of the toes.

Clench the Fists and Glare Fiercely (or Angrily)

This resembles the second piece, and is largely a punching movement either to the sides or forward while in horse stance. This, which is the most external of the pieces, is aimed at increasing general vitality and muscular strength.

Bouncing on the Toes

This is a push upward from the toes with a small rocking motion on landing. The gentle shaking vibrations of this piece is said to "smooth out" the qi after practice of the preceding seven pieces or, in some systems, this is more specifically to follow Sway the Head and Shake the Tail.

As you can imagine there are many different interpretations available on YouTube. Here are a selection from the modern to the traditional.

⚠️ Note that Wutan instructors may offer variations and alternatives to the examples shown here and some instructors may not cover Eight Pieces of Brocade at all.

Mimi Kuo-Deemer

Simple, strong - with narration.

Dr Faye Yip

Very graceful, no narration.

Dr Jwing-Ming Yang

Very detailed breakdown of the moves and health benefits.

This post was first published at https://wutansurrey.com.

Featured image shows A Qing-dynasty manual of qigong, illustrating the seated form of Separate Heaven and Earth from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baduanjin_qigong (publioc domain).