Alice in Qigongland

Alice in Qigongland 

Ema Murta

We can find Qigong in every corner of this Universe, just look for it. Even in a tale as old and simple as “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland” by Lewis Carroll. In this enchanting story, Alice embarks on a fantasy world where she discovers herself – either through the challenges she encounters or through messages that convey the very bizarre and special creatures of the tale.

Once upon a time, a girl named Alice started a journey of no return – because at the end, she wouldn’t be the same girl anymore. Entering Wonderland is nothing more than a dip in the vast universe of energy – Qi.

During this great journey, I will associate our character’s adventures with the sequence of the 5 elements/seasons of the year.

Earth / End of Summer

Alice is bored and melancholic at her garden when a white rabbit with a pocket watch around his neck appears at full speed. “I’m late, I’m late!”.

This character represents the Earth element when unbalanced: on the one hand, the obsession and worry with time and, on the other, the lack of grounding and focus on the present moment, which led to the impossibility of being punctual. Alice was extremely curious about this bizarre talking animal. The curiosity and perhaps the lack of comfort that Alice felt in her home (also an indication of the unbalance of this element), led her to chase the rabbit. In doing so, Alice finds herself falling into a seemingly endless pit. This is nothing more than a descent into your own inner self – into your deepest Self. This search helps us to ground ourselves feeling here and now, a sense of belonging; “Know thyself” – Socrates.

Metal / Autumn

Finally, Alice returns to playing with her feet on the ground; but this time she didn’t step on the same ground. She found herself in an unknown but fascinating world. Alice remained determined to continue her search for the white rabbit, but this became increasingly difficult as more and more places and bizarre characters appeared. One of these creatures was the Caterpillar; what represents the straightness of the Metal element. As soon as he sees Alice he asks with arrogance and authority “Who are you?”.

The Caterpillar represents a dualism, as does Metal: it wants to reach perfection and suffers for not being able to, because until now it has not managed to transform itself into a butterfly. However, given the potential for metamorphosis it presents, I believe that, in a way, the transformation that Alice undergoes along her journey. Furthermore, through its uprightness, the Caterpillar conveys some clarity and vision to young Alice.

Water / Winter

Continuing her walk, now lost and unsure of the rabbit’s whereabouts, she ends up encountering a large pair of glowing eyes and a wide, enigmatic smile, both painted in the dark of the night. Only later did she decide to reveal this very mysterious creature – it was a naughty cat, perched in a tree. The cat is a character that dematerializes when needed, disappears from the scene after causing a chaotic situation, it represents fear; this emotion must be worked on to reinforce the Water element. However, for Alice (who is now lost), simultaneously represents courage:

Alice: “Could you please tell me where I should go from now on?”
Cat: “That depends a lot on where you want to go.”
Alice: “I really don’t care where.”
Cat: “Then it doesn’t matter where you go either.”
Water is being and allowing the stillness of being. Like water, the cat simply is and be, always being honest, even though mysterious.

Wood / Spring

After meeting the smiling cat, Alice encounters a colourful tea party, in which the Mad Hatter (more relevant in the context of Qigong) and the March Hare participate. The Hatter immediately captivates Alice’s attention, for his irreverence, imagination, and curious appearance. It is strongly related to the Wood element, as in addition to being creative and “crazy”, it is impatient. Furthermore, anger and frustration are latent emotions in the Hatter’s mind, and the Hatter channels them into the form of insanity.

The Hatter represents the dualism madness versus sanity. There is a very fine line between these two concepts, what might seem crazy to some, can mean sanity and clarity to others. Taking Qigong as an example, when someone asks to “Smile for the liver or Breath through the kidneys”, it might seem crazy but then we realize that is possible and makes sense. When someone who has just entered this world of Qigong may perceive some concept and ideas as madness or impossible to achieve, but the deeper you immerse yourself, the more meaning is found in the “madness” and slowly becomes sanity. Alice now finds herself surrounded by spring, increasingly fuelled by dynamism, change and growth.

Fire / Summer

Finally, Alice finds the rabbit, now in its final destination: the garden of the bitter Queen of Hearts, which represents the negative part of the Fire element. “Cut his head off” – a quick and dramatic decision to end the problem without thinking too much about it. This was the fate the Queen of Hearts gave to those who disobeyed her, and honestly, to those who pleased her. It symbolizes the exact opposite of what Summer represents: compassion and imagination.

Upon reaching the garden, Alice is welcomed by the Queen, falling into her scheme. However, after realizing the atrocities committed by the tyrant, Alice decides to follow her own heart, questioning the authority of the Queen. That’s when she has her head cut off… and then Alice wakes up from her dream, right at the place where she had started this journey – in her garden. However, Alice is not the same, and will ever be.

Thus, we see that all this path greatly strengthened the soul of little Alice, who rose like a warrior, before the Queen.
Dream or reality, what does it matter? Alice’s journey was purely inner, and our Self is the greatest universe that can be explored.
Qigongland is the ideal place to release our inhibitions and preconceived ideas and thus acquire true wisdom.

References:

• Carroll, Lewis- Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, Editora Relógio d ’Água, Lisbon, May 2000
• Theoretical support for classes, Qigong Instructors Course, 1st year (2019-2020) and 2nd year (2020-2021), in ESMTC
• https://www.culturagenial.com/
• https://webpages.ciencias.ulisboa.pt/
• https://psicanaliseclinica.com/alice-no-pais-das-maravilhas/
• https://www.telavita.com.br/blog/alice-e-funcção-do-cerebro
• https://psico-grafias.blogspot.com
• https://encenasaudemental.com/cinema-tv-e-literatura/