Ease
Wealth consists not in having great possessions, but in having few wants.
(Epictetus)
Struggle
Tai chi students are always encouraged to perform their movements in a
soft, relaxed manner.
This applies to every exercise in the curriculum.
When a person lifts a glass of water, the action is smooth, comfortable,
natural and easy.
When a person lifts a heavy bar-bell, they tense their muscles and struggle with
the weight of it.
The former method is the
tai chi way. The latter is not.
Tai chi is not weight-lifting.
No exertion should take place. No straining. No forcing.
If you are using
force, you are doing something wrong.
Natural
Why move in a natural,
gentle, soft way when exercising?
Natural movement is by definition easy.
It enables the muscles to move smoothly and the joints to open and close without
impediment.
No restrictions exist.
Nobody struggles to pick up a glass of water.
Beyond class
Tai chi cultivates whole-body movement and good
body use.
Grace, balance, natural range, comfort...
The qigong exercises, form and partner work all train positive body habits.
Perform your tai chi in a comfortable, natural way.
The aim is to continue this way of moving in your
everyday life.
Tai chi for health
It is important to consider your motive for practicing tai chi.
Students with health problems need to train in a manner that avoids putting the
body under
duress.
The stances need to be compact and comfortable, upright and easy.
There is no point in
squatting low or adopting extended stances if your
shoulders have arthritis or your knees are weak.
Listen to your body. Are you experiencing any form of discomfort?
The syllabus
People who desire to learn tai chi as a martial art have to take this into
account when training.
Self defence needs to be direct, simple, practical and
realistic. It needs to
cost you nothing and cost the attacker everything.
There is no time for
flamboyant, stylised movements.
Your training needs to be honed-down, stripped of all superfluity.
Mobility and ease are paramount. Your body must respond
immediately.
Long stances and large movements will lock your joints open, and this in turn
will impede movement.
Remain fluid, smooth and comfortable at all times.
Learn to limit your commitment - striking like a whip and recoiling without
hesitation.
Familiarity
Partner work gives you an opportunity to retain your
composure and
cultivate a
calm mind when working with another person.
If you cannot remain relaxed, soft and loose in class, your skills will never
work on the street.
The controlled, artificial environment of the training hall enables you to
become comfortable with assault.
Instead of being nervous and tense, you treat the attack
playfully.
Force
If you practice tai chi in a forceful way, you adopt an attitude of
preparation.
Instead of spontaneously flowing with what is happening, you 'steel yourself'
and then act.
Tai chi requires the body to instantly follow the dictates of the mind.
This will not occur if your body is
tense.
If your actions are unsuccessful, do not tense-up. Instead - adapt, change and
improvise.
Self defence
Self defence training methods are unpredictable. They involve punches,
kicks, grapples,
knife attacks and multiple opponents.
The aim is to assault you in an unpredictable manner.
There is no real opportunity to prepare a response.
Being soft, smooth, natural and easy is fairly straightforward when performing
material solo.
Many beginners find it very
difficult to maintain this relaxed condition when
faced with unknown variables.
Self defence work challenges your complacency.
Inexperience
The inexperienced tai chi student resorts to
force when put under
pressure.
A more skilled exponent will physically, mentally and emotionally take a step
back and allow themselves the room to move.
This follows verse 69 of the
Tao Te Ching.
There is nothing worse than training years of tai chi and then applying it like
an
external art.
If the student feels flustered and confused, they need to calm down.
Re-gain your equilibrium by addressing awareness, distance, timing, balance and
coordination.
Be detached, calm and open.
Practice
Ease at all times only becomes possible through continual, ongoing
practice.
You become seasoned and conditioned to combat.
When you no longer flinch or become perturbed, your body responds more
comfortably.
Look for opportunities in everyday life where you can deal with situations
skilfully.
Driving the car, walking down the street, talking with people...
Are you calm and at ease?
Is your body grounded, deep in the feet, or are you surging forward, pushing?
Difficulty
Tai chi does involve considerable difficulty.
Standing qigong is hard for most new starters. It may take many years for body
and mind to let-go.
The exercise is physically tough if your body is tense.
The rest of the
syllabus is not as challenging physically, but the coordination,
subtlety and depth do tax the concentration.
Students find themselves compelled to expand their perceptions.
Awareness must be cultivated.
The more advanced you become, the less your body will do.
Tai chi is an 'internal' martial art. The outward show should be minimal. Most
of the work is in the mind.
Yang Cheng Fu said, "Use mind not force".
Page created 18 August 2002