The exercises known as Wu Qin Xi (五 禽 戏) , were created by the famous Chinese physician Hua Tuo in the 2nd century, during the Eastern Han Dinasty . Of Hua Tuo has been said:

“Hua Tuo was born around 110 CE, in Qiao of Peiguo (today called Haoxian or Bo) county, in what is now Anhui Province, one of the four major herb distribution centers of modern China. He lived for about 100 years, having died around 207 CE.  He was an older contemporary of China’s famous herbalist Zhang Zhongjing, who died around 220 CE.  In the Chronicles of the Later Han Dynasty, it is said that: “Knowing well the way to keep one in good health, Hua Tuo still appeared in the prime of his life when he was almost 100, and so was regarded as immortal.”

More recently Wu Qin Xi  has been tested and standardized by experts from the University of Sports in Beijing (CHQA).

Each exercise of the Wu Qin Xi is inspired by an animal and it is not only a purely physical exercises , but it aims at making the Qi move inside the body’s meridians and organs. Each “animal” stimulates a different organ.

In the Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) the Wu Qin XI is regarded as an important exercise  because, through daily practice, it increases the overall well-being, preventing disease and promoting health. It is currently used , among other things in therapies against the cancer .

Links

• Five Animals Frolics
• Wu Qin Xi (Wikipedia.de)
• China.org.cn (English)