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"David and Gavin sparring at the Saturday Niajia class"

Des Lawton has been a practising martial artist for over three decades and is, since its inception in 1989, the Principal Instructor of the San Bao School . He has developed a network of classes and diploma courses in and around the Glasgow area and is also in demand for his work, teaching Taiji and self-defence, both for Community Education projects and within resource groups for people with learning difficulties. In addition to this he also carries out consultancy work (of complimentary medicine and stress management). In 1996, after three and a half years of study with the Glasgow School of Shiatsu, Des qualified as a Registered Shiatsu Practitioner (M.R.S.S.) and now runs a successful practice in East Kilbride. He is also one of the four original researchers, known collectively as The Blue Group, who among their other channels of research, initially developed Waveform Energetics.

Des is clearly at the cutting edge of Energy work today, and his sensitivity, humour, and instructional abilities integrate beautifully. This has enabled him to teach at all levels, bringing oriental thoughts/concepts to occidental minds, making these concepts tangible, and demystifying them.

Gary Conner M.R.S.S. Wvf (T).

The San Bao - or Three Treasures are three qualities or forms of energy - Qi, Jing and Shen. This may be translated as Body, Mind & Spirit.

When Qi is used to describe the energy flowing through the meridians it is defined as "life force", "life energy", the driving force which makes us "alive". When that particular quality if Qi has gone our physical body is deemed to be dead. Qi is the Chinese word used to describe the energy known world-wide as Prana (India), Pneuma (ancient Greece), Psychic energy, etc. Qi also refers to energy in the largest sense, it is the stuff of creation, it is both matter and energy and that which holds both together. Qi transcends and is not bounded by time or space it; it is time and space it is the WHOLE.

Jing, in the sense of the San Bao, is the most refined form of Qi; it is life essence, sexual essence. Even though Jing is recognised as being Yin in relation to the other forms of Qi, like all else it has both Yin and Yang aspects - the Yin being the reproductive fluids and the Yang being the saliva. Jing has the qualities of growth and development that gradually increase during childhood, reaching its height between the ages of 20 and 25. The gradual loss of Jing is associated with the ageing process, particularly with osteoporosis, reduced immune system, grey hair, loss of libido, and memory loss.

Although the level of Jing cannot be raised above its original level, practising Qigong and living a balanced and healthy lifestyle can augment it, slowing down its decrease.

In Chinese Medicine it is said that the Jing creates the marrow, this includes the grey matter of the brain "the sea of marrow"

There are three external sources of Jing: It is inherited from our parents (genetic strength or weakness); it is extracted from the refined qualities of food (Grain Qi); and it can be absorbed from one's sexual partner when practising Taoist sexual yoga.

The Jing is stored in the kidneys, the Lower Dan Tien, and the Exceptional Vessels.

N.B. Jing is also used to described "directed Qi" - this is when the Yi (Cognitive Mind) is used to focus or project the Qi as in an Internal Martial Arts strike.

Shen is the least tangible, yet most spiritual of the Three Treasures, the subtlest of these energies. It is Yang in nature, flowing upward with a fire-like quality - governed by the Heart Meridian and housed in the Heart Governor Meridian. As with the other facets of the San Bao, Shen can be cultivated, this time through meditation and the spiritual forms of Qigong. It is associated with the Liver and the Heart, and when the Qi from these two sources combine harmoniously they produce Shen. When these organs are out of balance the Shen becomes unsettled, leading to restlessness, insomnia, etc. In Traditional Chinese Medicine, all mental health illnesses are seen as diseases or imbalances of the Shen.

"Shen is the sparkle in the eye of the wise, the substance of sentience, intuition and wisdom."