Glossary of Terms and Pronunciation 

Arhat – enlightened being with Attainment Status in the Buddha School who is beyond the Triple World but lower than Bodhisattva.

Baihui (buy-hway) point – acupuncture point located at the crown of one’s head.

Bodhisattva – enlightened being with Attainment Status in the Buddha School who is higher than Arhat but lower than Tathagata.

Dafa (dah-fah) – “The Great Way,” or “The Great Law”; short for the practice’s full name, Falun Dafa, “The Great (Cultivation) Way of the Law Wheel.”

dan (dahn) – an energy cluster which forms in the bodies of some cultivators in internal alchemy; in external alchemy, it is referred to as the “Elixir of Immortality.”

dantian (dahn-tyen) – “field of dan,” an energy field located at the lower abdominal area.

Dao (dow) – “the Way” (also spelled “Tao”).

Diekou Xiaofu (dyeh-ko shyow-fu) – Overlap the Hands in Front of the Lower Abdomen.

ding (ding) – a meditative state in which the mind is completely empty, yet aware.

eight Extra Meridians – in Chinese Medicine, these are meridians that exist in addition to the twelve Regular Meridians. Most of the eight Extra intersect with the acupuncture points of the twelve Regular, so they are not considered independent or major meridians.

Fa (fah) – “Way,” “Law,” or “Principles.”

Falun (fah-luhn) – “Law Wheel.”

Falun Dafa (fah-luhn dah-fah) – “The (Cultivation) Way of the Law Wheel.”

Falun Gong (fah-luhn gong) – “Law Wheel Qigong.” Both the names Falun Gong and Falun Dafa are used to describe this practice.

gong (gong) – “cultivation energy.”

Heshi (huh-shr) – short for Shuangshou Heshi.

Jieyin (jyeh-yin) – short for Liangshou Jieyin.

karma – a black substance that results from wrongdoing.

Liangshou Jieyin (lyahng-sho jyeh-yin) – Conjoin the Hands.

Lotus Palm position – The hand position to be maintained throughout the exercises. In this position, the palms are open and the fingers are relaxed, but straight. The middle fingers bend slightly towards the centers of your palms.

Maitreya – In Buddhism, Maitreya is considered to be the name of the Buddha of the future, who will come to Earth to offer salvation after Buddha Sakyamuni.

Master – the Chinese term used here, shifu, is composed of two characters: one meaning “teacher,” the other “father.”

meridians – the network of energy channels in one’s body that are thought to be conduits of qi. In Traditional Chinese Medicine and popular Chinese thought, illness is said to arise when qi is not flowing properly through these meridians, such as when qi is congested, blocked, travelling too fast or slow, moving in the wrong direction, etc.

qi (chee) – in Chinese thought, this substance/energy is said to assume many forms in the body and the environment. Usually translated as “vital energy,” qi is thought to determine a person’s health. “Qi” can also be used in a much broader sense to describe substances that are invisible and amorphous, such as air, odor, anger, etc. 

qigong (chee-gong) – a general name for certain practices that  cultivate the human body. In recent decades, qigong exercises have been very popular in China.

Sakyamuni – Buddha Sakyamuni, or “the Buddha,” Siddhartha Gautama. Popularly known as the founder of Buddhism, he lived in ancient India around the 5^th century B.C.

Shuangshou Heshi (shwang-show huh-shr) – Press the Hands Together in Front of the Chest.

Tathagata (tah tah-gah-tah) – enlightened being with Attainment Status in the Buddha School who is above the levels of Bodhisattva and Arhat.

xinxing (shin-shing) – “mind nature,” or “heart nature”; “moral character.” 

yin (yin) and yang (yahng) – The Dao School believes that everything contains opposite forces of yin and yang which are mutually exclusive, yet interdependent, e.g. female (yin) vs. male (yang), front of the body (yin) vs. back of the body (yang).

Zhen-Shan-Ren (jhun-shahn-ren) – “Truthfulness-Benevolence-Forbearance.”