Mingmen is dantian??

[D_Glenn]

The Dantian in the cultivation side of the martial arts is the Nei Dantian.

The Dantian in the martial movement side is called the Wai Dantian but is also just referred to as the Yao.

Mingmen point (in between L3 and L4 vertebrae) is actually important for both cultivation and the martial movement of Bolangjin in which the Lumbar spine undergoes flexion and extension, which also opens and closes the Mingmen point, which as the name implies is a 'Gate' or opening from the inside (Nei) to the outside (Wai).

In a Bolangjin movement the Tailbone jolts the Wai and Nei Dantian upward. The Nei Dantian needs to release the internal pressure which goes from the inside out through the now opened Mingmen point (via flexion of the lumbar) to the outside and then up the back.

In Zhan Zhuang and Xing Zhuang (standing and moving cultivation practices) you want the lumbar spine and tailbone to be fixed/held in the 'ending' position of a Bolangjin movement. This connects the Ren and Du meridians at Huiyun point, and opens up Mingmen point to promote the conversion of Jing to Yuan Qi, which is stored in the Nei Dantian. The more Yuan Qi that is stored in the Nei Dantian the stronger that the Wai Dantian can become.

Mingmen is the back gate. Guanyuan(CV4,关元) is the gate to the front of the Nei Dantian.

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[wiesiek]

I may add my personal DT experience:
DT is like bob in the tube,
where walls of the tube forms the trunk.
I can move DT up and down:
no higher than 2nd DT, and no lower than my hips joints, didn`t reach huiyun and 3 rd DT yet .
It easy to do all circles and diagonal moves to,
but
can not cross over those max, and mini, points yet.

[Wuyizidi]

Hello,

About the Ming Men and the cultivation of the dantian.

Is the dantian actually the mingmen?

edited.

Put it very simply: Mingmen is the point on your back that is the exactly opposite side of your navel.

Mingmen mean Life Gate, so it's a really vital point to pay attention to in martial art. In Taijiquan for example, if you push someone's chest, and forced him to bend backwards, so his spine is not centered and neutral as before. We say his waist, specifically his mingmen point, is locked, and he cannot change quickly, easily.

When we do breathing exercise, the traditional cue for breathing in is to just think 'try touch mingmen with shenque (navel)'. Then to breath out, just shift mental focus from shenque to mingmen. That will release tension in the belly and you'll breath out/release naturally.

A lot of skills are taught this way, for example a traditional teacher may say 'to generate this forward force, think mingmen point push downward and forward to the yong quan point of your leading foot"...