Qigong Routines · SequenceLast reviewed Oct 23, 2026

Mawangdui Daoyin

马王堆导引术

· 14 movements · 12 min · Free

Naming · The English names are descriptive translations in common use. The official compilation publishes no English movement names.

Opening — Raise the Palms

起势

Lifting the palms to chest height with the arms locked completely straight.
Relax the arms, soften the elbows and open the shoulders slightly, rotating the arms outward; raise both palms forward to navel height, shoulder-width apart, and lift the heels very slightly at the same time.

Drawing the Bow

挽弓

Bringing the palms together in front of the chest at shoulder height.
Relax the shoulders. As the palms gather in front of the chest, let the elbows drop naturally to the sides, palms level with the Shanzhong point (dànzhōng, mid-chest), about 10 cm apart.

Drawing the Back

引背

Rising onto the heels and rounding the back but only closing the shoulders forward, leaving the back unarched — or shrugging the shoulders up toward the ears as they close.
While rising onto the heels and rotating the arms to press the palms forward and down, look at your fingertips. As the shoulders close and the chest draws in, sink the shoulders and drop the elbows. Round the upper back upward at the same time, so the back and the hands draw away from each other in length.

Duck Bathing

凫浴

Opening sideways but landing the feet crooked, so that after closing the feet the toes point off to one side.
Step out sideways toe-first, then let the heels settle outward so the toes finish pointing straight ahead.

Dragon Ascending

龙登

Turning the toes out too little and squatting too shallow — or lifting the heels off the floor when the palms are cupped like a lotus.
Turn out from the outer back edge of the heels so the toes open past 90° into a figure-eight stance. Squat with the knees opening in line with the toes. Reach both arms forward between the knees, then bend the elbows and cup the palms like a lotus.

Bird Stretching

鸟伸

Ending up with the feet less than shoulder-width apart after turning the heels out.
First, the toes turn out fully during Dragon Ascending. Second, turn out from the toes rather than the sole, and take the heels out fully so the feet stay parallel — never an exaggerated outward V.

Drawing the Abdomen

引腹

Turning the head left and right while driving the hip and lifting the arms sideways, so the two arms end up at different heights.
Keep the head suspended and square, facing forward. As the hip drives and the arms rotate, let the spine form three curves. Lift the arms sideways with the elbows softly bent, then rotate straight-armed to turn the palms, keeping both arms level.

Owl’s Gaze

鸱视

Keeping the supporting leg straight as the foot kicks out, then bending it as the toe hooks back.
Bend the supporting knee as the foot kicks forward and let the weight settle down into it. Hold that bend while hooking the toe, so the weight neither rises nor falls.

Drawing the Waist

引腰

Tilting the head back to look up while pushing the waist forward with both hands.
Draw the shoulders back and close the elbows as you push, hollowing the back slightly, tuck the chin and look level ahead.

Wild Goose Flying

雁飞

Standing with the feet together and the arms out to the sides, the arms settle at different heights — a habitual tilt most people do not notice.
Practise in front of a mirror: with the eyes closed, raise the arms sideways, then open the eyes and find the direction you habitually tilt. Correct against the mirror until the arms return to level.

Crane Dance

鹤舞

Turning the head to the side as the arms extend forward and back.
With the body rotated, keep the head still and look straight ahead as the arms swing up; then turn the head 90° to the side while keeping the pressing palms in peripheral vision.

Exhaling to the Sky

仰呼

Straightening and leaning back as the arms fall to the sides, without lifting the chest or hollowing the lower back, so the spine arches the wrong way.
As the arms fall to the sides, tip the upper body very slightly forward and the head back, lifting the chest and hollowing the lower back so the body forms a gentle arch.

Folding Yin

折阴

Stepping and raising the arms without extending the body fully.
Relax completely and raise the arms fully — fingertips up, palms forward; the lower arms swing slightly behind the body with fingertips down and palms back; lift the chest and open the body as the upper and lower arms stretch in opposite directions.

Close — Three Embraces

收势

Doing all three closing embraces at exactly the same height.
Close at three different heights: first in front of the chest at the Shanzhong point (dànzhōng); second in front of the upper abdomen at the Zhongwan point (zhōngwǎn); third in front of the lower abdomen at the Shenque point (shénquè).

Tai Chi Wuji · https://www.taichiwuji.com/qigong-routines/daoyin-classics/