Deep Practice
31/05/2012 15:11
Tai Chi is a living art form performed by millions of people world-wide everyday. The reasons why one learns and practices Tai Chi are as varied as the number of people who participate. Today I’d like to share with you one particular reason or “why” one might undertake such a journey.
Today’s science has raised many more questions than it has answered. In fact the laws of science are dwarfed by the number of theories that abound. All of this theoretical practice or “mental gymnastics” necessarily drive one away from experiential reality. Your thoughts are not reality. Your reality is based on your experience.
Tai Chi is meditation in motion. Tai Chi is finding stillness in motion. This apparent paradox is central to Taiji philosophy. I will attempt to explain.
The world is seemingly made up millions of things and these things are made up of a gazillions more particles, yet today’s science succinctly states that 99.999999999% of all matter is empty space. Related to the concept of matter is the concept of space and time. All time seems to be is the rate of change of matter within the confines of space.
Still with me? So what does any of this have to do with Tai Chi?
Taiji philosophy explains all of the above and in fact it does so quite concisely. Thus the truly committed tai chi player strives to find the truth of his existence through the manifestation of the tai chi art form.
To accomplish this grasping of universal truth one MUST drop the reality of the world and dive deeply into the Self. One way to accomplish this is to perform the “ritual” of the tai chi form without the activation or use of the thinking mind. When this can be accomplished, one has a vastly different experience that is not based on physical reality but is experiential none the less.
This type of deep practice is rare within today’s YMCA type teachings but it is within the grasp of anyone who actually wishes to seek the true benefits gained through the living art of tai chi practice.
Peace
Rod
—————
