SILENT QIGONG · A PILOT CLASS

An hour of qigong without a single word

No instruction, no cueing, no talking. Just meditative music, and you watch and follow. In person, in Santa Barbara.

What happens

When you arrive, meditative music will be playing and I’ll already be in standing meditation. Take a place in the circle and join me. The music plays the whole hour.

After a few minutes, I’ll begin a form and repeat it slowly for 5 to 15 minutes. Follow along when you’re ready. Stop and watch whenever you want, then try again. Each form repeats long enough for you to see it, try it, lose it and find it again.

We’ll move through four basic qigong forms, in a sequence I’ve put together. I’ll be in the center of the circle and will turn as I move, so you see each form from the front, the side and behind.

Nothing needs to be right on the first try. The repetition does the teaching.

Why silence

The first phase of my Rolfing training was called auditing. We weren’t allowed to work on anyone. We watched the teacher, watched the students and watched how bodies changed.

It was some of the most valuable learning I’ve ever had. Watching is one of the oldest ways people learn, and most classes talk over it. This one doesn’t.

Before you come

No talking starts at the door. Arrive a few minutes early and come in quietly. Registration and payment are handled ahead of time, so there’s no check-in conversation.

Move within a comfortable range. If something doesn’t feel right, stop and watch. That still counts as practice.

Breathe softly and naturally, at your own rhythm. No need to pay attention to it; your attention goes to the movements.

You’ll know it’s over when I return to standing meditation and bow. Please leave without talking too.

Questions come afterward. The day after the class, I’ll email you to ask what you noticed and what puzzled you.

The details

60 minutes, in person, at a studio in Santa Barbara. Limited to 20 people, standing in a circle. Around $40; the final price comes with the date. Date to be set: the class runs once at least 10 people are in.

A pilot, not a one-off

This first class is a test. If it works for the people in the room, I’ll turn it into a regular series, and everyone who came to the pilot will hear about it first.

— Isaac