As always, such great content. I've never experienced boredom. I've always been surprised by that. Almost 40 years of practice, five sets a day, and never once have I been bored, but I have absolutely experienced feeling deeply present and connected at times and not at others. Our bodies have rhythms and cycles and sometimes the magic doesn't work. I've become accepting of that.
Great attitude and that's sounds like a great practice. Do you also do standing practice? I also don't experience boredom. Probably boredom was not the most apt phrase. I think impatience may have been more accurate. Some beginners may experience impatience. Without clear guidance from an experienced teacher frustration interest can wane somewhat. But that's a story for another time.
@@CenterLifeBalance I think boredom is possible for some people who have a particular expectation in their initial experience of learning and practicing tai chi. Very often people come to tai chi wanting a certain elevated experience that may take years to manifest. In the meantime they may indeed become bored or restless and lose interest. What kept my interest all these years was the link between philosophical Taoism and tai chi and respect for Cheng Man Ching and his considerable knowledge and wisdom. Tai chi is a big practice, as you know. It is also capable of sensitizing a person to a much, much larger awareness, but I won't describe that awareness because words are inadequate.
@@CenterLifeBalance I used to do standing practice everyday. I loved it and had some very strong energetic experiences. I was fortunate to have had contact with two influential teachers, Fong Ha from Berkeley California, and briefly, a very high level teacher from China who was a student of the founder I Chuan, a master Li. For as much benefit as I received from standing, at one point I started to feel less important for me. I found that tai chi practice was much more satisfying. I think that standing practice is brilliant and extremely potent. I may return to it someday.
If you study correctly and long enough, you will not feel your legs. The Mind will empty them. But yes, they really hurt as you begin. Protect your knees too. Then, the hard parts begins😊
I agree with some of what you are saying, but I feel you are missing a few important points... Yes the first year or so can be a bit of a grind while you learn the basic form, but that’s all you are really doing, learning the basic form, but having new movements to memorise and practice each week should be enough to keep you going through this time. Once you have the basic form, the shift of focus comes to breath and “rounding” out the form by adding small relaxations and more circular movement, from this comes a better understanding of the body mechanics and you lean to feel how each posture is actually achieved through movement of the body as a whole. I don’t think I ever really had a boring moment during my last 10 years training... Yes there are periods of adjustment when you feel like you are getting worse, this is generally because you have developed a slightly deeper level of sensitivity and now you can feel more of what you aren’t doing right, this is a good thing as you can now work to correct it. This should start to happen every few weeks as you progress. The points where you feel “low” and are struggling are generally the points where you are on the brink of the next breakthrough in understanding, this is something you need to understand and just keep practicing until the penny drops. I find this far more frustrating in freestyle pushing hands. Yes you do occasionally have a moment of clarity and a glimpse of how to do something and then it’s gone, this is just your mind making a preliminary leap, use it to help guide your training, it can still take you months to get to a point where you can understand how to apply that to what you are doing. I do agree with standing meditation, but more on a body sensitivity basis, part of the long game in Tai Chi is in developing body sensitivity, the whole point of “attaching” to your opponent and “sticking” to them is so that you can feel when they move, this is far more efficient at “predicting” what they are doing since touch is far more efficient than sight at sensing muscle tension and when someone is about to move. Standing meditation does also help you understand your own posture and balance better, it can also help with understanding how breath is related to posture, if you are stood correctly with your body hanging from your head and hips dropped/rolled slightly you can breath deeper. Yes your legs will feel a lot more strain as you progress, but but you must keep that strain in the muscles and out of the joints else you will have problems.
Thank you for this valuable and well thought out feedback it will be a credit to anyone who comes across it. I guess when I made this video I had a particular audience in mind. Sometimes when I am talking without notes I don't articulate as well as I would have liked and for sure I will leave out something important in probably every video. I agree wholeheartedly with most of what you say, and I may have covered some of your points in another video on this channel. I don't put much emphasis on the breath at all as it takes care of itself when the alignment is correct and relaxation is present. In terms of glimpsing and clarity in my experience it is the body that achieves a new state briefly then the mind tries to jump in and take control or "hold on" to the experience and in doing so the experience vanishes. Im sure people have different subjective experiences of this phenomenon. Thank you for your contribution 🙏
@@CenterLifeBalance On the point of breath, i agree it can take care of itself to some extent, but you first should know at which points are breathing in, which are breathing out and which are the overlapping and relaxation points. In my school I learned the Yang 24 form, and after learning the basic movements we then added the breathing, this coupled with my teacher drastically slowing the form down to take 40 minutes or so for a single run through, leads to a greater connectedness and ballance. The extra focus on breath ensures better alignment, since you can't breath as deeply if you are not aligned correctly. In this way both breath and movement are intrinsically linked.
The breath will fully take care of itself. If you observe a small child you will notice that they belly breathe naturally. It is only later on that we become chronic chest breathers which is not natural. In taiji the breath should be natural. I teach Chen style taiji, and there are explosive movements, fast movement, slower movements, the breath has no effect on alignment, rather incorrect alignment affects the breath because of the tension and resistance of misaligned posture. When you do several fa Jin movements one after another the breath can do multiple cycles of inhale and exhale in a single posture, and may even do a full cycle during a single transition. This does not affect the posture, and does not interfere with movement, or the ability to generate power. Taiji is a martial art, and when moving at its fastest, the breath cannot possible match the speed of the body. There are other reasons why the breath should not be a focus during practice, and perhaps I will cover in a future video. The principles are the only thing that matters. Relaxation, center leads, whole body moves as one, balance, and alignment. If these principles are followed and focused on diligently and persistently in every moment of the form and in every movement, you will forget the breath completely. Trust me, the breath will look after itself 100%. It's true what you say, it's great to drastically slow down movements from time to increase awareness, sensitivity, and many other aspects of mind body integration.
Fatefullyyou thanks for the question. I always do standing before taiji. I recommend that it is best to do both if you want to develop rooting, relaxation, and alignment. As soon as you begin movement there will be so much going on that it is hard to become relaxed “song”. The standing practice allows you to give the mind time to settle down and feel what’s going on inside the body. Think of the body as a glass of water with glitter in it. If you stir the water the glitter mixes in with the water and it looks like a snow globe. A storm in a glass. This is what our chi is like without tai chi (or some form of meditation) It is like the water is forever being stirred. Standing meditation allows everything to drop down to the bottom of the glass. Once we move it’s like we stir the water again. With practice we learn to move without disturbing the water.
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As always, such great content.
I've never experienced boredom. I've always been surprised by that. Almost 40 years of practice, five sets a day, and never once have I been bored, but I have absolutely experienced feeling deeply present and connected at times and not at others. Our bodies have rhythms and cycles and sometimes the magic doesn't work. I've become accepting of that.
Great attitude and that's sounds like a great practice. Do you also do standing practice? I also don't experience boredom. Probably boredom was not the most apt phrase. I think impatience may have been more accurate. Some beginners may experience impatience. Without clear guidance from an experienced teacher frustration interest can wane somewhat. But that's a story for another time.
@@CenterLifeBalance I think boredom is possible for some people who have a particular expectation in their initial experience of learning and practicing tai chi. Very often people come to tai chi wanting a certain elevated experience that may take years to manifest. In the meantime they may indeed become bored or restless and lose interest. What kept my interest all these years was the link between philosophical Taoism and tai chi and respect for Cheng Man Ching and his considerable knowledge and wisdom.
Tai chi is a big practice, as you know. It is also capable of sensitizing a person to a much, much larger awareness, but I won't describe that awareness because words are inadequate.
@@CenterLifeBalance I used to do standing practice everyday. I loved it and had some very strong energetic experiences. I was fortunate to have had contact with two influential teachers, Fong Ha from Berkeley California, and briefly, a very high level teacher from China who was a student of the founder I Chuan, a master Li.
For as much benefit as I received from standing, at one point I started to feel less important for me. I found that tai chi practice was much more satisfying.
I think that standing practice is brilliant and extremely potent. I may return to it someday.
I wasn't expecting my legs to burn so much.
If you study correctly and long enough, you will not feel your legs. The Mind will empty them. But yes, they really hurt as you begin. Protect your knees too. Then, the hard parts begins😊
I agree with some of what you are saying, but I feel you are missing a few important points...
Yes the first year or so can be a bit of a grind while you learn the basic form, but that’s all you are really doing, learning the basic form, but having new movements to memorise and practice each week should be enough to keep you going through this time. Once you have the basic form, the shift of focus comes to breath and “rounding” out the form by adding small relaxations and more circular movement, from this comes a better understanding of the body mechanics and you lean to feel how each posture is actually achieved through movement of the body as a whole. I don’t think I ever really had a boring moment during my last 10 years training...
Yes there are periods of adjustment when you feel like you are getting worse, this is generally because you have developed a slightly deeper level of sensitivity and now you can feel more of what you aren’t doing right, this is a good thing as you can now work to correct it. This should start to happen every few weeks as you progress.
The points where you feel “low” and are struggling are generally the points where you are on the brink of the next breakthrough in understanding, this is something you need to understand and just keep practicing until the penny drops. I find this far more frustrating in freestyle pushing hands.
Yes you do occasionally have a moment of clarity and a glimpse of how to do something and then it’s gone, this is just your mind making a preliminary leap, use it to help guide your training, it can still take you months to get to a point where you can understand how to apply that to what you are doing.
I do agree with standing meditation, but more on a body sensitivity basis, part of the long game in Tai Chi is in developing body sensitivity, the whole point of “attaching” to your opponent and “sticking” to them is so that you can feel when they move, this is far more efficient at “predicting” what they are doing since touch is far more efficient than sight at sensing muscle tension and when someone is about to move. Standing meditation does also help you understand your own posture and balance better, it can also help with understanding how breath is related to posture, if you are stood correctly with your body hanging from your head and hips dropped/rolled slightly you can breath deeper.
Yes your legs will feel a lot more strain as you progress, but but you must keep that strain in the muscles and out of the joints else you will have problems.
Thank you for this valuable and well thought out feedback it will be a credit to anyone who comes across it. I guess when I made this video I had a particular audience in mind. Sometimes when I am talking without notes I don't articulate as well as I would have liked and for sure I will leave out something important in probably every video. I agree wholeheartedly with most of what you say, and I may have covered some of your points in another video on this channel. I don't put much emphasis on the breath at all as it takes care of itself when the alignment is correct and relaxation is present.
In terms of glimpsing and clarity in my experience it is the body that achieves a new state briefly then the mind tries to jump in and take control or "hold on" to the experience and in doing so the experience vanishes. Im sure people have different subjective experiences of this phenomenon. Thank you for your contribution 🙏
@@CenterLifeBalance On the point of breath, i agree it can take care of itself to some extent, but you first should know at which points are breathing in, which are breathing out and which are the overlapping and relaxation points.
In my school I learned the Yang 24 form, and after learning the basic movements we then added the breathing, this coupled with my teacher drastically slowing the form down to take 40 minutes or so for a single run through, leads to a greater connectedness and ballance. The extra focus on breath ensures better alignment, since you can't breath as deeply if you are not aligned correctly. In this way both breath and movement are intrinsically linked.
The breath will fully take care of itself. If you observe a small child you will notice that they belly breathe naturally. It is only later on that we become chronic chest breathers which is not natural. In taiji the breath should be natural. I teach Chen style taiji, and there are explosive movements, fast movement, slower movements, the breath has no effect on alignment, rather incorrect alignment affects the breath because of the tension and resistance of misaligned posture. When you do several fa Jin movements one after another the breath can do multiple cycles of inhale and exhale in a single posture, and may even do a full cycle during a single transition. This does not affect the posture, and does not interfere with movement, or the ability to generate power. Taiji is a martial art, and when moving at its fastest, the breath cannot possible match the speed of the body. There are other reasons why the breath should not be a focus during practice, and perhaps I will cover in a future video. The principles are the only thing that matters. Relaxation, center leads, whole body moves as one, balance, and alignment. If these principles are followed and focused on diligently and persistently in every moment of the form and in every movement, you will forget the breath completely. Trust me, the breath will look after itself 100%. It's true what you say, it's great to drastically slow down movements from time to increase awareness, sensitivity, and many other aspects of mind body integration.
Great explanation !
could you speak to when we know if we need some standing meditation or when we need some movement? or is it best to just always do both?
Fatefullyyou thanks for the question. I always do standing before taiji. I recommend that it is best to do both if you want to develop rooting, relaxation, and alignment. As soon as you begin movement there will be so much going on that it is hard to become relaxed “song”. The standing practice allows you to give the mind time to settle down and feel what’s going on inside the body. Think of the body as a glass of water with glitter in it. If you stir the water the glitter mixes in with the water and it looks like a snow globe. A storm in a glass.
This is what our chi is like without tai chi (or some form of meditation) It is like the water is forever being stirred.
Standing meditation allows everything to drop down to the bottom of the glass. Once we move it’s like we stir the water again. With practice we learn to move without disturbing the water.
🤔 🦶"Grind" 🚫 work! 🤨