Remember when withdrawing before push, it is the body that turns which moves the arm. Our habit is so strong to move the arm first. Use the feet to transmit the movement to the torso. The front foot pushes the left hip back and the back foot pushes the right hip forward. In this way the t'ai chi force is not blocked.
Showing posts with label Beginner Class. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Beginner Class. Show all posts
Wednesday, 10 February 2010
Thursday, 4 February 2010
The Fist
The punch in t'ai chi is performed with a soft fist. It is worth spending time to understand the correct way to form the fist.
When the hand is open and stretched out the ch'i is able to extend out beyond the finger tips. When the hand is curled this flow is then fed back into the arm. The arm itself then forms a block of chi. In this way heat is also prevented from leaving the body on a cold day. From a tai chi point of view the arm is sealed and the fist itself is able to function as an abrupt ending to the arm. The hand is soft and the accumulation of substantial force makes the hand similar to a peice of clay.
It is important that the thumb is not inside the fingers against the palm. The thumb is on the outside of the fingers. The softest method is with the thumb on top of the hand, resting on the index finger. There is more tension in the hand when the thumb bends accross the first and second fingers.
When the thumb is touching the base of the ring finger and the fingers closed over, it prevents loss of ch'i but it is never used in the martial context. You will see a very young child naturally use this fist when they defecate. It is advised by some chi kung masters to avoid loss of ch'i even as an adult!
Finally remember that the t'ai chi force must leave the fist and therefore when using the mind intent it is not directed into the fist but beyond it.
When the hand is open and stretched out the ch'i is able to extend out beyond the finger tips. When the hand is curled this flow is then fed back into the arm. The arm itself then forms a block of chi. In this way heat is also prevented from leaving the body on a cold day. From a tai chi point of view the arm is sealed and the fist itself is able to function as an abrupt ending to the arm. The hand is soft and the accumulation of substantial force makes the hand similar to a peice of clay.
It is important that the thumb is not inside the fingers against the palm. The thumb is on the outside of the fingers. The softest method is with the thumb on top of the hand, resting on the index finger. There is more tension in the hand when the thumb bends accross the first and second fingers.
When the thumb is touching the base of the ring finger and the fingers closed over, it prevents loss of ch'i but it is never used in the martial context. You will see a very young child naturally use this fist when they defecate. It is advised by some chi kung masters to avoid loss of ch'i even as an adult!
Finally remember that the t'ai chi force must leave the fist and therefore when using the mind intent it is not directed into the fist but beyond it.
Monday, 19 October 2009
Thinking and Feeling.
When we study t'ai chi it is unfortunate that we have to spend some of the time thinking! Why is this considered to be 'unfortunate?'
Thinking takes us away from the actual experience. Yes, we have thoughts about experience, but the thoughts are not the experience. So it is best to keep thoughts to a minimum. They can be like sign posts which direct our attention to a particular feeling or they can help us discover new areas of experience .. or in other words, creative thoughts about our practice. Learning t'ai chi is a process of discovery. Ultimately the mind is directing the feeling and there is little thinking going on at all.
What do we feel? All the tactile sensations are acknowledged as part of the practice. In order to move in t'ai chi, for example, you will need to feel that the foot is pushing the body to create the weight shift and that the other leg is empty of body weight before taking a step, and so on.
The qualities of t'ai chi, such as softness and openness are experienced on a feeling level but we can use our thoughts to direct the experience. Once we have created a feeling then it will become more powerful if you let go into the feeling experience and let go of thoughts completely.
Thinking takes us away from the actual experience. Yes, we have thoughts about experience, but the thoughts are not the experience. So it is best to keep thoughts to a minimum. They can be like sign posts which direct our attention to a particular feeling or they can help us discover new areas of experience .. or in other words, creative thoughts about our practice. Learning t'ai chi is a process of discovery. Ultimately the mind is directing the feeling and there is little thinking going on at all.
What do we feel? All the tactile sensations are acknowledged as part of the practice. In order to move in t'ai chi, for example, you will need to feel that the foot is pushing the body to create the weight shift and that the other leg is empty of body weight before taking a step, and so on.
The qualities of t'ai chi, such as softness and openness are experienced on a feeling level but we can use our thoughts to direct the experience. Once we have created a feeling then it will become more powerful if you let go into the feeling experience and let go of thoughts completely.
Advice at the Beginning : Surrender to relaxation
To get the most benefit from practice we should apply relaxation. But, how do we relax? If we try to relax the very act of trying will get in the way! A good way to get around this problem is to imagine that we are relaxed already. This is an ancient method. The 'result' becomes the 'method.' When we imagine we are relaxed we stop trying... the feeling of relaxation comes and then we let that feeling take over. At this stage there is no sense of a detached self we feel totally overcome by the feeling of relaxation. Then just let it be.
We become more relaxed when we feel that we can let go of control. 'Trust' is an important part of that process of letting go. If we don't want things to be a certain way, we can let in a feeling of freedom and acceptance. This does not have to be passive state, it is also the starting place for movement and change.
Relaxation and connecting deeply with the experience of being alive is at the heart of the t'ai chi journey.
We become more relaxed when we feel that we can let go of control. 'Trust' is an important part of that process of letting go. If we don't want things to be a certain way, we can let in a feeling of freedom and acceptance. This does not have to be passive state, it is also the starting place for movement and change.
Relaxation and connecting deeply with the experience of being alive is at the heart of the t'ai chi journey.
Thursday, 18 June 2009
To 'get' the ch'i you must separate the bones and flesh.
There are two aspects of the body which we need to separate : the bones, and the muscles, or flesh.
The bones are the support structure of the body and, the spaces between the bones, or joints, are drawn out away from each other. This is achieved with an expansion out in every direction using the mind intent. It is important not to use the muscles directly with some kind of physical effort but to open into the feeling of expansion. It is a mistake to allow the body to collapse into itself closing the spaces between the bones.
The bones are aligned from the feet and create a connection through the body so that you can feel a mechanical connection to the hand or wherever you wish to exert force.
The muscles are relaxed and loose as far as possible. The ch'i passes between the muscle layers and unifies the feeling of the body as a whole. With a coordinated and unified feeling in the body it is possible to generate various different forces. The simplest and easiest force to generate is like a wave ripple that begins at the foot and passes through the body to the hand. It is created with the mind intent. In the early stages of development and refinement there can be some movement of the bone structure but without losing the alignment and coordinated function.
The separation of bone and flesh is important for health because the pathways of ch'i are opened and activated more strongly when applying this principle.
The muscles structure gradually changes and the body looks increasingly like that of a child as the muscles appear to puff outwards with a rounded contour. The muscles are relaxed and fill out with ch'i.
Bristol 18.06.09
The bones are the support structure of the body and, the spaces between the bones, or joints, are drawn out away from each other. This is achieved with an expansion out in every direction using the mind intent. It is important not to use the muscles directly with some kind of physical effort but to open into the feeling of expansion. It is a mistake to allow the body to collapse into itself closing the spaces between the bones.
The bones are aligned from the feet and create a connection through the body so that you can feel a mechanical connection to the hand or wherever you wish to exert force.
The muscles are relaxed and loose as far as possible. The ch'i passes between the muscle layers and unifies the feeling of the body as a whole. With a coordinated and unified feeling in the body it is possible to generate various different forces. The simplest and easiest force to generate is like a wave ripple that begins at the foot and passes through the body to the hand. It is created with the mind intent. In the early stages of development and refinement there can be some movement of the bone structure but without losing the alignment and coordinated function.
The separation of bone and flesh is important for health because the pathways of ch'i are opened and activated more strongly when applying this principle.
The muscles structure gradually changes and the body looks increasingly like that of a child as the muscles appear to puff outwards with a rounded contour. The muscles are relaxed and fill out with ch'i.
Bristol 18.06.09
Wednesday, 25 February 2009
Thursday, 12 February 2009
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