Once again in an effort to help anyone wandering through the forums looking for eastern type magick, I wish to share two books and a method that will help a great deal anyone who wants to work with the bagua energies.

As some might remember I have been trying to find information on the Bagua energies. They have many fun mystic uses but also practical magick ones. Projecting an energy is used to change a situation, or fight ghosts/strike someone, while still others allow you to see other places. Traditionally the practitioner studying the bagua will either study the energies in nature or be introduced to them by a master. The first will take months if not years to understand the nature of each change (for the bagua are energies that arise with changes as well being energy that gives rise to those changes) and the second way requires a master of Taoist chi gong familiar with the energies in question. I have had no master, and relating a philosophical concept to a energy proved more challenging than I thought.

To that end I took to the library, the Inter library Loan system is a wonderful thing. I found two books of use. First was "Chinese Shamanic Cosmic Orbit Qigong" by Zhongxian Wu and "Seeking the Spirit of the Book of Change: 8 Days to Mastering a Shamanic Yijing (I Ching) Prediction System" by the same author.

Despite the title, Seeking the Book is directly related to the study of bagua energies. The system of prediction he teaches relies on "feeling the energy" of the change. To that end he gives eight qigong meditations that familiarize the student with each trigram. It is a very fast read and It can be a bit hokey even for a book on "feeling energy" but well worth the effort. The other book is very very useful providing you read the first book first. Otherwise you simply cannot use any of the meditations within, because they are energies are quite subtle and you end up feeling like "some things happening" and not much else. The book also contains copies of "fu" that are used to "empower" each trigram, allowing the user to rapidly find and assimilate the energy of each trigram. The fu would overcome the vagueness of his qigong. However, there is no real way to make the talismans properly without a imminent knowledge of Purple Star Astrology, which is used to determine the proper date and time for making the talismans. Because each fu is a portal from you to the bagua energy it represents the talisman has to be made at a time that is both full of that energy and auspicious for you. Therefor the time for each talisman changes depending on who is making it and for what bagua. I recommend taking his class on the topic.

The method I will suggest is to buy both books and read Seeking the Book. After doing the chi gong for a while, use the method found in J.A. Johnson's book "Daoist Magical Incantations, Hand Seals, and Star Stepping". The book lacks the mantras for effective practice used in the sect that he represents but he admits that they are not necessary, only a very helpful addition to the madras for each trigram. In contrast to Zhongxian Wu's full body postures, the bagua mudras only use the hands. Each of the center three fingers is associated with a line in the trigram, the thumb and pinky of each hand are the wuji. By joining the thumbs and pinkies of each hand to form a circle and focusing your shin/yi in the center you gather the power of the wuji. After a "good while" touch the three center fingers together to form the desired bagua. The wuji power will change to the energy associated with that power. After having familiarized oneself with each power on the phisical, emotional, mental, and spiritual levels, you can try the qigong from the Chinese Shamanic Qigong book.

My very early studies have proved useful - or more so than anything else - and I find it is easier to differentiate between each bagua when I have felt them transform from the wuji.

Naturally all this is moot if you can catch either teacher and pay their fees, but I thought I would share anyway.