DC Metro Dahn Yoga Blog

from http://dahnyoga.net/

Jung Choong breathing is an effective way to activate the benefits of ‘Jung Choong, Ki Jang, Shin Myung’, one of the main principles of all Dahn exercise. I found these descriptions on the computer of the Dahn Center where I work and thought they were very useful:

 JUNG CHOONG: Calm your body by circulating & accumulating power in your lower body.

Benefits: healthy kidney & bladder meridian, relaxed chest, relaxed and warm organs, cool head.

KI-JANG: With calmness, circulate emotional energy healthfully and focus on your true self.

Benefits: Immune system improves, peace of mind, passion and productivity for the purpose of life

SHIN MYUNG: From your true self, choose your thinking that suits your purpose, change negative thinking habits.

Benefits: Increased independence of your health, become more effective and creative, deep satisfaction with life.

You can see the principle of Jung Choong, Ki Jang, Shin Myung encompasses body, emotions, and mind. By influencing one aspect you affect the others. So when you feel down or unsatisfied, check weather you have Jung Choong. Do you feel full and have so much energy that it naturally spills out of you? If not, you may need more Jung energy. Exercises like Jung Choong Breahing and HSP walking meditation

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from Dahn Yoga Member’s Blog

Dahn Yoga practitioners around the world speak this phrase “My body is not me, but mine” with great enthusiasm. I am not my body, but the master of my body. When I first heard this phrase, I thought this is very simple and a matter of course.  However, while I kept thinking on it and meditate on it, one day the phrase suddenly came to my mind with a different meaning. How much deeply am I living on the simple principle? Am I really the master of my body? Or, am I doing something because it is comfortable and easy for my body to do it? Am I the true master of the body?

I really want to become the master of my body. That’s why I do practice Dahn Yoga again today.

What do you think about the simple phrase? “My body is not me, but mine?”

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from Ilchee Lee: A Fan Blog

From ‘Peaceology’ book by Ilchi Lee An Earth-Human is someone who realizes that Earth, and peace on Earth, are the central standards, by which we should measure all decisions. How can you know if you are making the right decision for the Earth? Just follow your conscience, for it is part of the soul of the Earth and the Cosmos. If our conscience stands for that divine scale within us, by which to judge the relative weight of options that face us, then the point on the scale that corresponds to zero is Earth. By calibrating our inner scales to the Earth, we are making Earth the standard by which to judge our options. In other words, Earth is the absolute value against which we may judge all other relative values. Many people claim to love the Earth. However, what exactly does that mean? Just as loving home does not refer only to caring for the house, loving the Earth cannot be limited to environmental protection. Loving the Earth must include acknowledging her people as one unified community. We must then protect our home and our entire family. This is what loving the Earth can mean. An Earth-Human has a connection to body, mind, and energy of the Earth. An Earth-Human knows he or she is one with the earth, and one with the whole of humanity. He or she therefore cares for and heals neighbors and family members with the unconditional love of the soul. An Earth-Human is a healer in every sense of the word. When our consciousness makes the leap and becomes Earth consciousness, we gain and group-egotism, and feel love for all of life on Earth. Some people argue that we should not limit awareness to the Earth in this age of space travel and space stations. What they do not realize is that being truly aware of the Earth will allow us to gain awareness of the cosmos as well, for they are intimately interrelated. They are in fact, one. You will experience cosmic arareness when you become truly conscious of the Earth. To do so, you must be free of preconceptions and self-defeating ideas of limitation. Earth provides us with a matrix for the path to conscious evolution and cosmic awareness….

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I have long believed that things happen for a purpose and people come into my life for a reason.  Sometimes the reason is obvious.  Most of the time you need to stop and think about it.  This is especially true when a person has caused you alot of pain.  I started to write down people from my life and list the positive things I have learned from my relationship with them.   I found that every person had an impact and I was able to learn something about myself from them or they guided me to someone or something I needed.  This was not done to dwell on the past, but to realize that I was never a victim. I was just learning a lesson I needed to learn.  Think about the people you have met in your life.  What have you gained from knowing them?

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Joanne Steller
Marketing Consultant

When I began my Dahn training at age 56, I could not have foreseen the incredible change for the better it has helped me create in all aspects of my life.  Even the basic yoga exercises were difficult for me at first.  I had little stamina and had even less discipline to stay active physically.  I came to realize that the stiffness and lack of flexibility I routinely experienced physically was an apt reflection of my state of mind as well.  The Dahn method of experiential learning helped me overcome the barriers I had been putting in my own path when trying new things I have never done before.  My thoughts like  “not at my age” or  “I’ll never be able to that,” have become “I can do it,” and “I’m going to keep doing it as long as I live.” Through regular class participation and by attending increasingly more advance workshops over the past three years, I have felt and seen many benefits.  I am stronger and in better physical condition today than I was in my 30s.  I have asthma but the bouts of respiratory difficulty, discomfort and illness have abated, even at the height of allergy season and without the daily medication that often felt worse than the disease.  One of the best health benefits of this training has been learning about the physical manifestations of stress.  In Dahn, we learn to relieve and release stress; one can literally feel stress melting away to calm relaxation through the yoga exercises, meditation, and healing activities that are part of the program’s Brain Education System Training (BEST).  The basic sensibility and profound impact of this learning on my own circumstances has inspired me to teach, and I am leading classes at the Dahn Center and in my community with increasing frequency.  My life vision too has a new, improved lens that has helped me see ways to create stronger, better relationships with my husband of 34 years, my two adult daughters, my extended family, friends, and colleagues.   Dahn training also has provided me with excellent tools for my professional life.  As I travel throughout North America as a marketing consultant in the performing arts, I find myself practicing and benefiting from Dahn principles in everything from the counsel and coaching I provide clients to the process of using America’s stress-filled air transportation system.  Of all the many self-help programs I have tried over the years, this is the only training that has inspired and taught me to keep going. I have, and that has made a huge difference in me and has awakened me to the difference I can make in the lives of others.   

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Suzi Katz  

In 1989 I fell while I had a 60 lb backpack on.  The accident ruptured one and herniated two discs in the lower lumbar region of my back.  It was excruciating pain, but I was determined to not undergo surgery, contrary to what the specialists wanted.  After many months, my acute pain became more chronic in nature-but I was very limited physically…Do you know what it is like to wake up in the morning with your lower back aching, extreme stiffness in your feet, and experiencing  dull pain radiating down my right leg?  That is how I felt everyday-I was able to walk but it seemed I was slowly deteriorating inside.  I learned to live with this pain, going through many sessions of physical therapy, MRI’s, Cat Scans, EMG’s and chiropractic spine manipulations. 

Prior to this, I led a very active life- I loved being outdoors-gardening, hiking, playing tennis & golf, played softball, took bike and  white water rafting trips, went fishing.  I also took aerobics, jazzercise, tap danced and was an avid jogger…..Under doctors orders, I had to stop all of these activities for fear I would be at risk in rupturing another disc. Walking at a slow pace was all I could really enjoy now. 

A few years ago, when I turned 50, I suddenly experienced a “new” type of pain in my lower back.  This pain prevented me from lying on my back.  If I did sleep flat, I would wake up with such sharp pains that I could hardly get out of bed.  My body literally felt like it was 100 years old….. After much testing it was determined that I now had degenerative disc disease.  

In my work I travel quite a bit. Since my professional life is very demanding and stressful, at every chance I could get, I would indulge myself and schedule a message (usually deep tissue or shiatsu) at the hotel spa.  But even that was not pleasurable anymore-lying on the message table put a tremendous strain on my back. 

In addition, I have a young son (5.5 yrs) who needs me very much.  He is the joy of my life-but I couldn’t lift him, or play with him as much as I wanted without having my back go out.   

I NEEDED TO FIND A WAY TO FEEL BETTER-I COULD NOT LET MY BODY CONTROL MY LIFE ANYMORE.  I NEEDED TO RELAX, LEARN TO STAY CALM ,STRETCH MY MUSCLES.  I WANTED TO HAVE A STATE OF WELL BEING AND HEALTH AGAIN…. 

POST DAHN YOGA 

It was meant to be-One day I was visiting a girlfriend, and I saw a Dahn Yoga flyer wedged in her screen door. They were offering an open house demonstration.  This intrigued me….I went with a friend, and joined that evening, with the thought that I would give it a try for 3 months.  I must admit I was a bit of a skeptic at first.  My back problems were not just a little muscle spasm; there was physical/ structural damage.  I figured yoga could increase my energy, and improve my flexibility to stretch my back muscles-but get me out of chronic pain?  No way- 

After 3 months I saw a gradual transformation.  I could for the first time in years lay flat on my back without much discomfort.  After 6 months, it felt normal.  I couldn’t believe how I was improving !!!!  I have been a member now for over 2.5 years.  Every week I see the positive effects…. Improving energy flow-ridding toxins, relieving stress, removing stagnant energy  and opening meridians. I am feeling better and better releasing more endorphins and stimulating my body’s healing process.  

I attribute all of this to the masters who take very good care of me-my healing sessions are vital to keep my energy level up and my dah-jah healthy. They provide gentle yet supportive encouragement.  Attending regular Yoga classes combined with healing sessions has been key.  The Masters are  great healers.  They have been a source of strength to me.  They have taught me to learn to accept my pain. They truly care about their members, being empathetic, and nurturing.  I am committed to Dahn Yoga.  It will continue to be an integral part of my life. THE BEST 5 PROGRAM HELPS ME LIVE A HEALTHY, AND HAPPY LIFE.    I admit it is hard to balance my work/personal family time to practice home exercises.  I need to improve on that…My job is very demanding.   But when I walk into the Dahn Yoga in Bethesda, it really is a happy (smile), healthy and peaceful place.  I look forward to   learning more about my inner self; improving my mind; achieving a healthy body and creating spiritual enlightenment.   

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Sara Arnold 

I started yoga classes at the Dahn Center in Gaithersburg in August, 2006.  I’ve practiced other yoga styles in other places and noticed the physical benefits, so I figured this would be the same.  I didn’t realize at the time that Dahn yoga not only benefits me physically, but mentally and spiritually as well.  Dahn hak is not just physical training, it involves all aspects of body, mind and spirit. 

The integration of these aspects of Dahn are most evident with Shim Sung training.  Shim Sung training is about who we really are, what we really want, and what our purpose I life really is.  So much of our time in our daily life is spent seeking the answers to these questions in the context of our preconceptions and the perceptions of others are not who we truly are, which is why we don’t find the answers to life’s most basic questions outside of ourselves.  We can only answer these questions when we find our true selves within ourselves.  That is what Shim Sung is all about. 

During the training, I discovered many preconceptions I had about myself and others.  I am a physician in the Navy and spent several months deployed in support of Operation Iraqi freedom and Operation Enduring freedom.  For several years I have been carrying around very painful memories from those deployments and other events in my life which would manifest as anger, frustration and depression.  I had to take medications to control my moods and go to anger and stress management sessions for a year.  This therapy only worked at the surface and did not treat the underlying problems, so I gave them up.  I wasn’t until I could go to Dahn Yoga healing, meditation, and Shim Sung training that I could learn to deal with my problems and become a happier, healthier person.

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When you encounter difficulty, it does not mean you can’t make it or it “just wasn’t meant to be” — you make the choice about what you want and then find a way to get there. The most important thing is to keep going. I saw this poem the other day and I really liked it:

 In Darkness
Bless my time in darkness
that it may simply be
a waiting within
a chrysalis

And I will emerge anew

 –Barbara Davis-Pyles

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Sometimes during training you can get frustrated — and even though you are going forward it feels like a set-back. Like feeling sad or sick. Sometimes we feel if we are “getting better” we shouldn’t feel sad, or angry, or anxious, or sick. But we have SO many layers of these feelings in our body — in continuing our training it is like opening a door — and walking forward, and then opening another door — and another — before we open a door and not only feel, but know, love and trust our true self. Acknowledge your feelings and just go through them to the next. No need to hang out in the room with them — we don’t have to relive our past — we just go to the door and open it.

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Posted on September 16th, 2007 by Michela
(from Dahn Yoga Blog)

I liked this sharing from the Mountain View Dahn Yoga Blog. I had a similar experience actually. The energy of my body was difficult to feel in the beginning but I became more sensitive to it over time. Being able to feel my body’s energy helps me to feel more present and connected to myself.

I think a lot of people wonder about ‘healing’. Like, what’s the difference between massage and ‘healing’? Or is healing something real or just something that you have to ‘believe’ in order to get benefits?

When I started taking Dahn Yoga classes and one of the instructors put her hands on my feet, I really didn’t know what she was doing. It helped me feel my feet, and her hands were surprisingly warm, but actually I was too anxious to pay attention to class while she was there.

Later I received healing and actually began to practice healing. At first I went back and forth between ‘feeling something’ and just going through the motions. Little by little my confidence, awareness, and appreciation for energy healing have grown as I have learned to trust my instincts and give my 100% sincere effort to help through healing.

I went to Sedona to study at the Dahn Healer School. What I learned there was mostly just to pay attention to myself. My body knows how to heal, I just have to relax and let it do its thing.

Anyone else want to share about energy healing?

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