I had a great conversation with a student the other night at class. We discussed various things but I’d like to revisit two of the many topics here in this post.

The Taiji circle is a profound symbol indeed. There are many aspects and interpretations regarding this symbol and it would do one well to keep an open mind when any discussions are undertaken regarding the lessons entwined within it.

During our talk the concept of Yin and Yang was touched on and specifically the ideas of substantial and insubstantial where expressed.

The white part of the Taiji symbol represents the Yang, substantial and poetically expressed as the 10,000 things. It is the gross material and manifest world that we interact with everyday.

The black part of the Taiji symbol represents the Yin or insubstantial. This concept should not be mistaken as less important than the material world and in fact I believe a lot of man’s problems can be traced back to his lack of interest and understanding of the potential and attributes of the un-manifest.

It is in the student’s best interest to gain a true understanding of the true nature of both of these worlds and then apply what they learn into their practice and their life. To truly be skilled in Taijiquan one must have one foot in each world as you walk your path using the attributes of each, dependant upon the situation you find yourself in or wish to create.

The attributes of both worlds will be topics of future posts as there is a lot of information to express about each.

The second interesting topic I’d like to revisit was that of dreams. The writings of the Talmud say, “A dream un-interpreted is like a letter unopened”. I find it extremely interesting that most people have absolutely no interest in exploring the one –third of their lives spent sleeping. Most think that sleep is just a time to rejuvenate their batteries for the next day but I would ask how that happens when no new energy is ingested while you are asleep. The fact is, we all have dreams whether you remember them or not and throughout the ages civilizations from all over the world have studied, interpreted and made use of the information gleaned while asleep.

There is much to examine and ponder about the un-manifest and I’ll attempt to keep an eye out for what pops up into my consciousness in the next few months in order to share it here with all of you.

Peace
Rod