Customs & rituals

Seated Baduanjin — evening closing form

Updated 21 October 2026

Baduanjin is a set of eight slow qigong movements rooted in Chinese martial and medical tradition, often practiced at dusk to settle the body before bed. The seated form is gentle, does not raise the heart rate, and is used by older practitioners as an evening wind-down. In Chinese medicine it is read as a way to anchor the Shen, the awareness, so the mind has somewhere to land.

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Tonight, try this

After dinner, dim the lamps and sit on the front half of a firm chair with your feet flat. Breathe in through the nose for a count of four and out through the mouth for six, for one minute. Turn the head gently to each side six times, raise the arms overhead and press down six times, then rest the hands in your lap and breathe quietly for two minutes before standing. Notice how the next hour feels.

How it is made

Sit on a firm chair or a cushion with the back away from the support, feet flat on the floor, spine upright, hands resting lightly on the knees.
Regulate the breath for one minute: slow inhale through the nose for a count of four, longer exhale through the mouth for a count of six, jaw and shoulders soft.
Knock the upper and lower teeth together lightly thirty-six times, rest the tongue on the palate, and swallow the saliva in three slow mouthfuls.
Turn the head gently to the right and stay for a slow breath, then to the left, six times each side, keeping the shoulders still.
Massage the lower back with the palms in slow figure-eights for about one minute, until the area feels warm.
Raise both arms overhead with palms up, then press down toward the floor on the exhale, six slow repetitions.
Clench the fists lightly at the sides, then release on the exhale, six times, finishing with the palms resting in the lap.
Breathe quietly for two minutes with the hands cupped in the lap, then stand slowly when ready.

When it is made

Baduanjin is documented in Chinese qigong sources from at least the Song dynasty, with the tradition attributing the set to General Yue Fei, and is recorded in Ming and Qing medical texts alongside the yijinjing and the five-animal frolics of Hua Tuo. The seated set belongs to the same lineage and is the version most often taught to older practitioners and to anyone recovering from illness or fatigue. In modern China the standing set is practiced at dawn and dusk in public parks, and the seated set is reserved for evenings when the day needs a quieter closing. The tradition reads the form as a way to gather scattered attention rather than as exercise, and the same hour across a season is what the practice expects.

Disclaimer

The seated Baduanjin is a gentle practice, with a few cautions worth knowing. People with uncontrolled blood pressure, glaucoma, recent abdominal surgery, or acute neck and back injuries are usually guided by a qualified teacher rather than learning the form from a screen, because some of the bends and breath patterns load the lower back and the eye. Pregnant practitioners are usually taught a shortened set by a teacher rather than the full eight forms. The form is traditionally not practiced on a full stomach; half an hour after a light meal is the usual starting window. Within those notes, the breath stays soft and the range of motion stays within what feels comfortable.

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Where this comes from

Traditional practice as recorded in classical texts and public formularies (public domain)
Everyday food culture, described as practice rather than studied therapy
PubMed abstracts only for studies this page actually names