Tai Chi, The Art of Change
If you’re learning tai chi you need to be flexible. I don’t mean flexible in the sense of being able to touch your toes, although you might find that helpful. I mean flexible in the sense of being willing to accept change. Tai chi will take you in directions you probably don’t expect.
A good example of this is learning to let go. My master, Master Cui Zhongsan, tells us not to focus on our chi because the act of focusing on it will usually end up block it. We need to simply let it happen. Once we can allow it to happen, we can then learn to control it.
We often enter into things with preconceived notions of how they should be, this despite the fact that we don’t know much about them in the first place. As people we can be funny at times. As a side note we should laugh more at ourselves, we’ll never cease to be amused.
If we can allow ourselves to accept changes we don’t expect we’ll probably be happier. In our tai chi practice we can’t be effective and expect to know what’s coming. We have to let it happen. As we progress there’s a tendency to want to do things our own way. Don’t. Listen to your teacher; they’ve probably already tried that route. Just do what you’re told and wait for what comes next. It will be worth the wait. Change is usually only noticeable to those who experience it. No one will know, or even care, except you.
There is a subtle change in color in the Washington Monument about one-third of the way up, because during the construction process builders changed materials - from Maryland marble to Massachusetts marble. Taken from the book Who Knew? by David Hoffman.
Have you ever visited the Washington Monument? Did you notice the color difference on your own? Neither did I.
Your thoughts?
John
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Oct 15, 2009 - 03:10:01From what i have read, i wish if possible to get a dvd on how to learn taichi .And know the cost , if i can manage.
Gerald.,
It is possible to learn tai chi from video, although it’s easier with a live teacher. Since there are a lot of people who don’t have access to a good teacher I’m working on a format for on-line classes that should be ready within a month or so. There are other places to learn through video but I’m not aware of much for regular classes, which I think make it easier to learn. Videos tend to throw a lot at new students, who the find it difficult to grasp it all at once.
I do have a simple video you can take a look at here: http://www.camptaichi.com/unique-benefits-of-tai-chi-in-a-surprisingly-simple-5-minute-routine/ . It’s a short form done without the legwork so it can be done in a small space while still getting the benefits of tai chi. It’s also a good primer video for learning.
Good luck,
John