Play the Pippa
The final move in the first section of the Yang 24 Form is “Play the Pippa,” also called “Strum the Lute” or “Strum the Guitar.” What is a Pippa? Watch a Master, Liu Fang, play.
The Four Virtues: Patience
Naifan (Patient)
Nai: endure, bear; resist; patient
Fan: bother, vex, trouble; troublesome
Patience: I serve others according to their needs
Patience is the ability to wait until the time is right and to act out of a need for correct action not influenced by personal desires. When you fail, learn to rise again like the phoenix and do better the next time you practice. Understand that you are human and that making mistakes is a part of life not an indication of your lack of ability. © 2008 Dr. John P. Painter
At the end of every session of Daoqiquan training, the students “bow out” saluting the four cardinal directions and reciting the Four Virtues. The third Virtue is Patience. Many folks will say that patience is something they do not have. “I’m losing my patience!” “I’m running out of patience!” In the 1970’s there was a popular black light poster with two buzzards sitting on a cactus. One of the buzzards says, “Patience my ass! I’m gonna kill something!”
I believe I began learning patience at the knee of my Grand Shifu, Dr. Painter. This began with meditation. I mean come on, you just sit there. And then you sit there. And then you sit some more. At the beginning of each class we sat on the mats around the walls of the kwoon and we meditated. Or we tried to.
The body immediately began to interfere. I had to swallow, then I had to cough, then I had an itch to scratch. Then someone else would cough and I would have to cough again. This is meditation?
But, gradually, over time, the body’s interference subsided and my mind began to calm and I came closer and closer to meditating. Then one day, it all came together and suddenly one of those light bulbs appeared in the air over my head, and I knew that I was meditating. Except, of course, by knowing I was meditating, I was no longer meditating, but it got easier and easier.
To sit down with anxiety and calm the mind and quell the body and have time cease to exist until sometime later you stop meditating and what seemed like one second was one hour and all the fear and anger and worry had been washed out of your system–that was meditating. There are many higher levels of meditation, but this tale is about patience.
Legend tells us that Bodhidharma, an Indian monk called Da Mo in China, the monk who brought Ch’an Buddhism to China and founded Shaolin Temple, and began the Shaolin martial arts, yeah, that Bodhidharma, anyway legend says he sat in meditation for nine years. Now that is patience. But, sigh, even old Da Mo had his faults.
According to that same legend, he fell asleep in his meditation and when he awoke he was so angry with himself, he ripped off his eyelids and flung them to the ground! That is not patience. The good thing of course, is that from those eyelids grew the first tea plant.
My next step up the patience ladder was when I managed a small computer business. The owner was out all day selling and installing CAD systems while I answered the phone, did paperwork, and built computers from scratch. Or from little bitty pieces, anyway. So, lots of things can go wrong when constructing a computer. And you don’t know that anything is wrong until all the little bits reach a certain level of assembly. Then you hit the power switch and see if anything appears on the screen. Now this was the old days. RAM wasn’t just a SIMM or DIMM or two slapped into a slot, this was the days when each individual chip was inserted onto the motherboard. Lots more things could go wrong, like a bent pin.
So, I very quickly learned that if I hurriedly put the computer together, I would, most likely, have to slowly take it apart again, testing each section as I went, to find out why the darned thing didn’t work. And this led to an increase in patience. Take your time! Go slow, get it right the first time.
The other day at a tea show in Seattle I watched a Korean tea ceremony. It has a lot in common with the Japanese tea ceremony, Chanoyu. This is ritual personified. Every movement is precise and always the same and the movements are slow and there is no hurry. Please the eyes with subtle beauty, please the ears with music, please the nose with aroma, and please the palate with cha–tea. Take your time, there is no time, there is only the sound of the bubbling water and the whisk as it whips the tea powder into a lovely green froth. Patience.
Now, I am not claiming to possess any great reservoir of patience, but merely saying that I have a lot more than I used to. And saying that there are ways to cultivate patience until, when it appears, you greet it like an old friend.
One of my favorite sayings is “When the time is right for the student to learn, a teacher will appear.” Be patient and that teacher will come.
Sun-Tzu said something to the effect, “He who must take action has lost the battle.” This does not mean action cannot be taken, but choose your time, choose your place and the battle will already be half won. Be patient.
Blaise Pascal said “All the troubles of the world stem from Man’s inability to sit quietly in his room.” Boy was he onto something.
The point here being, take your time, relax, breathe, notice what is around you, learn to un-notice what is around you, slow and steady does win the race. “I serve others according to their needs.”
Martial Wu De
Wu De, pronounced “woo-duh” means Martial Spirit or Martial Virtue
The term “Wude” is a combination of the words Wushu and Daode.
Wushu means martial arts–Wu=martial; Shu=art
Dao=Way or Path; De=Virtue Refer to Daoist (Taoist) Philosophy and the Daodejing (Tao Te Ching)
Martial Virtues of Wude
by Dr. John Painter
©2008 Dr. John Painter
Most traditional schools of Chinese martial arts, internal and external, upheld the seven virtues as the commandments of their school and, while they varied somewhat from school to school, they were in essence all the same.
The Seven Martial Virtues of Wude
1. Uphold and cultivate Wude in all levels of your life. This means that you do not merely give lip service to these principles. You take them into your heart and perform them in your actions in dealing with others on a daily basis. It is easy to do these things when not confronted with problems and easy to set them aside to satisfy your own ego. The true martial artist adheres to the code as an act of discipline that in the end benefits all.
2. Never use one’s skills to intimidate or harm others in anger or vengeance. The true warrior seeks peace above conflict. His anger or his depth of emotional pain does not control him. His skills are used in the cause of right and justice not honor or pride.
3. Refrain from needless quarreling or unjustified combat Arguments are a waste of time. Most people have their minds made up about what they want before the discussion that is why they argue. Unjustified combat means engaging in or causing violence that is not morally correct. The follower of Wude will use his martial skills when there is no other recourse and his or the life of an innocent person is in eminent danger at that moment. Seeking out and punishing those who have done us an injury is vengeance and is not in harmony with the way of Dao.
4. Practice Honesty – Humility – Patience – Sincerity in all things Daoqiquans classic writings say that if we uphold these four virtues in our heart and deeds that we will be free of temptations and the desire to exercise the ego.
5. Endure hardships and control the temper and emotions Attachment to pleasures, money, an exaggerated sense of importance and comfort cause some to become angry when they do not achieve what they believe is rightfully theirs. Such individuals feel the need to get what they want or to make things right through the exercise of their power. This is always a fatal mistake.
6. Do not look down on others or show disrespect to anyone When we talk or harm others with our actions or words either directly or indirectly we also harm ourselves emotionally and spiritually.
7. Bring honor and respect to one’s self, teacher and the art through personal example. A wise man once said, “if we do not stand for something we will fall for anything.” We all need something to honor and to respect. How much better is it if we honor a code that brings peace instead of violence, self respect instead of anxiety and benefits our mind body and spirit is this not the true way of Wude. Do not harm!
Members of the martial arts schools who adhered to the Wude principles took these seven virtues very seriously. Those who refused to follow the code or broke them for their own selfish purposes were dealt with swiftly and sternly by the other members of the society.
Conclusion
Though these rules might seem to some to be “over proper,” the fact is that these rules are just “some” of the Wude “rules of ethics” that Chinese martial societies feel are a major factor of proper attitude towards one another and these arts.
There are many more inner rules that are subtler if one wanted to learn from true inner ones. There are some who tend to pooh‑pooh traditional values of other countries as a waste of time. Our own country is in the midst of a breakdown of morality and respect for the rights of others. When we respect the concepts of Wude as a way of life and true inner meaning of internal arts this can make a difference.
We have to ask ourselves if we are developing true discipline and Wude or just being a thief in the night who takes the precious jewel of knowledge for himself with no though of sharing it with those in need?
Do we truly respect the source of our knowledge? Do we honor our teachers and see that they are given respect and courtesy not just in class but also in our public and private dealings with them. If we are doing these things then we are worthy of becoming teachers of the lineage also.
John P. Painter Ph.D.ND
Everyone Wants Peng!
By Dr. John Painter
© 2008 Dr. John Painter
Everyone wants Peng-Jin but few realize that before Peng comes Sung!
The Character for Peng or Beng gives the impression of something rebounding or bouncing. This concept is one that is much discussed in the internal arts. It is part of the whole body concept for generating force in most internal arts. There are many interpretations of what Peng-Jin is and how to create it. Essentially in an attack it boils down to being able to transmit a type of flexible as opposed to rigid force by entrainment from the ground to the body weapon (fist - elbow - shoulder etc.) being used. So before we discuss Peng-Jin we need to understand how to make the body more responsive and sensitive so we can learn how to feel the correct pathway or alignments needed to develop the skill of Peng-Jin. This is why I say before Peng comes Sung!
“The ancient pine stands tall,
branches laden with falling snow in winter's moonlight.
One more flake falls.
A limb bows low, releasing its icy burden to the waiting earth,
then springs back, ready to catch more." Li, Long-dao, 1948
The principles of Baguazhang are not things or specific actions; they are internal feelings and awareness resulting from a very personal process of experiential learning. One of the more difficult but essential principles to grasp in Baguazhang practice, especially for Westerners, is that of the release of tension (Sung); often referred to as relaxation and sinking of the body. Ask most Baguazhang players what the word means and they will say that it means to relax, sink, or get loose when you do the form.
A few misguided individuals believe that in some mysterious way their internal breath (Qi) will begin to move their body independently of muscular or mental action. A well-known Chinese Baguazhang instructor once said to me, "I have achieved a state in my Baguazhang that, when I practice, my muscles no longer move my body. I am so loose and relaxed that my Qi moves me instead!"
Let us understand reality from the beginning, movement of your physical body without mentally and /or neurological activation accompanied by muscular contractions is a physiological impossibility. You simply cannot move without flexing a muscle and every time you flex a muscle to walk, stand, sit, punch, kick, chew food, talk, or raise your arms, then your mind / brain and nervous system are involved.
Understanding the proper role played by balancing muscular contraction (tension) with muscular release (relaxation) in Baguazhang practice is a sadly neglected subject for many devotees of Baguazhang. I am not sure exactly where these ideas of becoming limp as a dishrag or Qi moving the body without the help of the external skeletal muscles began. They certainly do not seem to be in harmony with the Baguazhang classics. The masters who wrote the definitive literature on Baguazhang all say that it is the mind and not the Qi that moves the body.
"For all intents and purposes everything in Baguazhang depends solely on the mind's power and not on external appearances." Li, Long-dao
What is Sung?
Let's examine the concept of Sung from a practical perspective. The word Sung in the Chinese dictionary has numerous definitions the first of which is surprisingly enough: A pine tree. The second definition refers to a state in which a thing becomes relaxed, without excess tension. It is important to remember, at this point, that the Chinese written language is comprised of symbols that do not always indicate precise concrete things as in English. Chinese characters often have layers of meaning that represent feelings and ideas.
At first glance it is not so easy to see what a pine tree has to do with being relaxed, yet this is exactly the image that conveys the concept of what true Sung is all about. The doggerel about the ancient pine and the snow by my teacher, Li, Long-dao, at the opening of this article was the way he explained Sung to me as a young boy.
The pine is an ancient Daoist symbol of longevity and eternal youth, as the tree remains green and flexible no matter what the season. Its roots are deep and strong and the limbs are long and can support great weight. As in the poem, when there is an outside force applied to the limbs, they do not resist or become rigid. The limb bows slightly under the weight of the snow, allowing the weighty mass to slide off. The pine tree is not limp or flaccid. It has just the right balance of firm, flexible resistance without rigidity to sustain
itself through all types of weather. It is in this same way that I believe we should view the concept of Sung in Baguazhang.
"Before there is Yang-jin the Yin-jin must manifest itself" Baguazhang Classics
Yin-jin is that quality of energy that is relaxed before it can become Yang-jin or firm in nature. So before there is hard power there must first be relaxed or soft power. What this really means is that if we want to deliver great power in striking we must first learn to relax the muscles of the torso and limbs.
“Beginning any strike with tensed muscles will only inhibit the action because
the antagonistic muscles will be flexed thereby reducing the speed and power
generated by the agonistic (flexors) during the strike." On The Long Road to Nowhere
The late Jou, Tsung Hwa, a highly regarded author and teacher of the Yijing and Taijiquan, told me, "Many people practice their Taijiquan and Baguazhang forms for years and years and never achieve true success. If you continue to depend only on your teacher, or merely try to reproduce, copy, and preserve a particular teacher's approach, you will not reach your highest potential."
The belief that constant form repetition will produce Sung skill or Qi is a path many follow. Mindlessly repeating a form over and over again is really a long road to nowhere. Some years ago at a martial arts tournament, a top competitor, who has won a number of medals, pulled me aside and said, "Dr. Painter, can you tell me how to feel the Qi in the forms? I copied my teacher, but I don't feel anything. How do I feel internal energy?"
Like so many others he had been doing internal arts externally. I told him what my teacher had shared with me, "The form or style is not important. What is important is what the mind does during the movement and that the body alignments are correct for the specific movements intended purpose."
I feel in the case of Sung, feeling Qi arises as the by-product of correct mental and physical activity. To feel the Qi in your Baguazhang, what you must do is carefully examine in slow motion each action you make; feeling the muscles flexing, stretching, and relaxing harmoniously. When you consciously work to slowly and deliberately control the actions of your body in sequence, you learn to relax the muscles not needed in a specific action. As this happens, your autonomic nervous system will dilate blood vessels activated though your mental desire to "feel". The nerves will become more sensitive and you will experience these sensations as Qi flows. This feeling of Qi is the end result of a proper release of musculoskeletal tension. The goal is to learn to feel all of this happening and to gain control over your body in action.
That Certain Feeling
Sung training has two major parts. Mind/body coordination and rooting skills. In the beginning, to train Sung, we embark upon a process of consciously finding and relieving unintentional tension in the body in order to facilitate more freedom of movement and articulation of the joint structures. In short, becoming aware of the unnecessary and excessive tonus in our flexors and extensors and letting go of any tension that is unnecessary. Once we can do this we can let the body "settle" in with gravity and develop a dynamic stability called rooting energy.
We must not collapse to learn Sung. We strive for a harmonic but dynamic balance of flexion in the protagonist muscles, coupled with an equal release and extension in the opposing antagonistic muscle structures. When correct kinetic equilibrium is achieved, the antagonistic muscles will be releasing tension in a balanced, dynamic action with the flexors of the protagonist muscles. There will be achieved a true Baguazhang flow state in the action. The relaxing muscles will act like yin flowing smoothly in harmony with the flexing muscles, yang; just as in the Chinese philosophical principle of the taiji symbolism.
The first part of Sung is mental and physical. You learn to feel these changes at all levels of muscular activity during your movements. This is no small feat, because Baguazhang is a dynamic and moving exercise and the muscles are constantly changing, relaxing, stretching, and flexing. This is one of the reasons for doing the form slowly. You have the time to use your mind to scan the body for areas where you are holding muscles (not used in the present action) that contain non-essential tension and to release it.
To attain Sung the mind must be disciplined. It is necessary to be fully present in the now moment. To be aware of each and every action you are making as you do the form. There must be, especially for the beginner, no distracting thoughts that bring on anxiety or tension.
Rooting and Sung
Yang, Cheng-Fu, in his twelve important points says, "To sink (zhen) is really the second step of Sung. Originally, the two were merged in one concept. To sink means to become stable by emptying strength from the upper torso into your legs. If you remain stiff in the upper body, your body will float and you can be easily toppled." This statement again bears out the Chinese calligraphic concept of Sung being a pine. The pine is tall and straight. Most of its weight is in the lower trunk and the enormous root sunk deeply into the earth.
Sinking or rooting does not mean that you press the body downward into the earth. Sinking is more a psychophysical concept. It is correct posture. Standing straight like the pine tree and a letting go of tension in the upper body so that the weight is carried directly over the center of gravity line located in the pelvis. When you do this the body naturally sinks.
It is important not to equate sinking with compressing. Your spine should be lifting upward when sinking, with the vertebrae and other joints opening, not pressing together. If you compress the spine, then you can damage the shock absorbing disks between each vertebra. If you stretch the spine as you "sink", you will increase their elasticity and strength, resulting in a suppler waist and flexible back.
The result of true Sung skill training is not limp or slack. Real Sung skill imparts the flexibility found in a good piece of spring steel or the sinuous body of a large serpent. It is not the wimpy image of a loose, flaccid silken rope that so many practitioners seem to try to emulate.
My Five Enemies of Sung
1. Tension in the antagonistic muscles.
Muscles not directly used in the action must be as relaxed as possible, so as not to pull against those muscles creating the motion. For example, the biceps (protagonist) must flex when lifting the palm, while the triceps(antagonist) must relax and stretch. All skeletal muscles are paired in this way and they must act in this manner to function smoothly.
2. Tension in the protagonist muscles.
Muscles used in the actions must not be unduly tensed until the moment of use. To have full energy, a muscle must relax and stretch slightly and then contract. Excess tension in the protagonist muscle will inhibit sensory awareness.
3. Out of sequence entrainment.
To have any part move out of sequence interrupts the flow or proper sequence of concentration. This will reduce or negate the mental sensitivity in proportion to the power of the out-of-phase action.
4. Lack of proper stability.
If there is no solid foundation (stance) from which to launch the motion, the sensitivity will be unstable. Instability distracts the mind from its goal of feeling the actions.
5. Emotional tension, competing, or thinking of an opponent.
Mental anxiety, the desire to win or succeed, can lead to excessive muscular tension in the beginning stages. For the beginner, a student who has learned the form and is now trying to do the internal sensing work of releasing excessive tension, thinking of an opponent or practicing applications of push hands will only retard his progress and lead to the use of excessive muscular force. This is because thinking of anything exciting or dangerous naturally produces a state of excitation in the nervous system, which is reflected in the musculature.
Bottom Line
To develop Sung is to use your mind to learn to feel and adjust the way you use your body machinery. This awareness teaches us to clearly differentiate between the necessary and unnecessary use of your muscles as you move. In this way you eliminate the excessive tension of antagonistic muscle groups in any particular action. You learn to balance the body with the force of gravity. You learn conservation of motion and develop a high level of stability. The release of conflicting muscle traction between protagonist and antagonistic muscle groups will result in greater blood circulation, joint flexibility, and fluidity of motion. You will also improve your kinetic alignments and potential for generating speed and power in martial applications. But, no matter how masterful you may externally appear to be in performing the forms, you will only get lost in the form if you believe that someday your Qi will begin to move your body!
Qi Power, A Lesson from Shifu
By Dr. John Painter
©2008 Dr. John Painter
The Real Power of Qi
There is no one thing that is Qi. Remember that the character for Qi can be translated as breath, air, vapor, steam or a host of other words. What you can see or rather cannot see in this definition is that each of these words describes something invisible. Something that is felt but not seen is my own personal definition of Qi. We can feel an unusual sensation moving across our skin, within our muscles and tissues. When we have no scientific description for the cause of these sensations we are perplexed. The ancient Chinese, rather than being perplexed simply called such feelings Qi. Feeling Qi energy in our body is subjective thing for each of us. Our mind becomes aware of sensations as they arise inside and outside of our bodies. These sensations are then translated or interpreted into concepts to which we may or may not be able to relate.
Some sensations like warmth or cold or pain are easily identified while less familiar sensations or combinations of sensations may feel puzzling to us. We are puzzled about a sensation when we do not have a definition for it in our personal memory banks and often mistakenly believe it is some strange or even magical energy. It would be good to remember that just because we feel something we do not understand
does not indicate it is not a normal phenomenon of nature or that it is the result of some force outside the known natural forces we can feel or sense.Sensations arise from a variety of sources.
1 External sensation
Things acting on the body ranging from pressure sensations as in touching objects or them touching us, to feeling heat, cold, wind, sound.
2. Internal sensations
Sensations from muscle contractions, blood pumping, digestion and nerve transmission.
3. Combinations of inner and outer sources
Combined results are a synthesis of external and internal interacting as in sound that comes from outside but is pleasing and so relaxes the mind or heat that causes the body to sweat and blood vessels to dilate. Another example could be external pressure that produces pain or pleasure in the internal neurological system.
4. The mind
Our bodies are very susceptible to what our mind thinks or interprets. In hypnosis for example a person can be made to produce a blister on his or her arm merely by being touched with a piece of ice
which the hypnotist suggests is a lit cigarette. This blister can then disappear in a few moments with the suggestions that the body has healed the injury.
We are also becoming more aware of psychosomatic illness and psychosomatic cures for many illnesses that may or may not be psychosomatic in origin. It is easy to know and say, yes the mind can heal, cure and kill it is a very different thing to explore our own minds and psyche to find out how to manipulate this power as needed. In my opinion after years of research, direct transmission by two masters, one Chinese the other Tibetan that all of Qigong begins in the mind that has been trained to understand how to manipulate the body.
I have come to understand that Qi follows the ancient maxim which says, “The mind (Yi) commands, the body moves and the Qi follows.” Mindless repetition of forms and exercises will not produce internal
power. By using conscious thought and awareness of subtle feelings we can activate the imagination’s power which is part of our emotion system also know in Chinese as the heart fire or (Xin).
Without proper training in the use of Yi or intention and Xin or attitude supported by correct bio-mechanical structure one can waste years with meaningless forms and exercises and achieve only minor
results if any at all. Understanding how the mind functions in these waters is no easy task. We must learn to undertake a new way of feeling and sensing on a more subtle level and learn to “allow” things to occur instead of forcing them by will.
Be very clear that will power is not the same as Yi or intent. Will power can be that process by which we discipline ourselves to sit or stand every single day but if it is used to force the mind into concentration or some focused exercise in which we strain to create a specific effect we are on the wrong track entirely.
Ancient Daoist master Wei, Boyang author of the “Can Tong Qi” often translated as the “Secret of Everlasting Life”, a Daoist manual for developing internal power written around AD 142 sums up the practice of Qigong in his first chapter with the following statement.
” In the end whatever you call it; it is no more than the mind (Xin) and the breath (Qi) becoming as one. It is simply the Yin and the Yang influenced internally with their spirit energy entwined.”
His book is one of internal alchemical transformation brought about through meditation. There is no mention of special physical forms or gymnastic movements that often pass for Qigong in modern times.
Master Wei tells us internal energy develops in the mind, is transmitted to the body where it manifests itself as health and vitality.
Master Wei Boyang and other Daoist sages tell us that when we learn to take control of the fire mind that is our emotions and desires (Xin) with our intellect through specific intentions (Yi) sometimes called the water mind enhanced through the power of meditation we will experience the growth of an indomitable spirit (Shen). This is why the Li clan placed so much emphasis on their concept of the four virtues (Si-de) for it was believed that by living these principles of Honesty, Humility, Patience and Sincerity one could achieve emotional balance and thereby increase and preserve the bodies natural Qi energy.
JIULONG HEALTH QIGONG METHODS OUTLINED
It is known that the Li family trained two specific types of Qigong. One was for health, longevity and spiritual development and the other was used solely for martial development. Both methods of training are
accompanied by strong activation of the mind intent (Yi) to lead and affect changes in the human body and control of the (Xin) or emotional attitudes.
Both practices begin with Quiet Sitting (Jingzuo) a method of meditation and proceeds to standing forms, (Zhan Zhuang) and later moving forms. Before these practices of standing and moving can be fully realized it is first necessary to use Jingzuo to quieting our minds. The true warrior as well as the sage has a mind as tranquil as a pond perfectly reflecting the moon at midnight. This is why all training for the self-defense or spiritual attainment begins with Quiet Sitting as the base.
John P. Painter
Tibetan Blue Heron Boxing
This is Dr. John Painter with a short Tibetan Blue Heron demonstration. I studied Blue Heron with Painter Shifu for several years. Many of the techniques involve strikes at acupuncture points. In style it is related to taijiquan.
The Good Health Way
Nai Neng Endure
As a teacher of tai chi, I have been trained to notice posture and gait in others. Compared to long-time athletes, whether martial or otherwise, the average person has no balance. In fact, most folks are completely oblivious when it comes to body awareness.
There is a story in Zen Flesh, Zen Bones by Paul Reps wherein a newly “enlightened” student of Zen goes to visit his teacher. It is a rainy day and the teacher asks his student whether he left his umbrella to right or to the left of his shoes when he set them inside the front door. The student could not recall and realized he was not so enlightened after all.
Relate this then to awareness. There is self-awareness, mental, I mean, but that is an entirely different essay. Let us talk about physical awareness. Most people, when they walk, come down more heavily on one foot than on the other. Which is your “emphasis” foot?
For the past ten years, while teaching at a tai chi school in Seattle’s Chinatown, I worked to recognize the students by their gait before I ever saw them. Now, the front door of the school led straight up two flights of ancient wooden stairs, so I had plenty of time to listen, but I was more aware of my student’s bodies than they were.
Take some time and sit outside or in a mall where people walk. Watch them. There are myriad ways of walking. In my seminal days studying Chinese Internal Martial Arts at the Gompa, in Arlington, Texas, we were taught how to move from our centers. The Chinese call it the dandian. It is a point about two fingers below your navel and is the physical center of your body, pretty much equidistant to all other points. It is also the general location of the diaphragm, but that too needs its own discussion.
So we learned where the dandian was. We learned to begin breathing from the center, and moving from the center and putting our minds at the dandian. This was not just physical balance we were learning, but BALANCE with a capital “B.” The class was called Centering. And the teacher talked about other kinds of centering. Some folks walked as if most of their weight was in their head—we called that “Cerebral Centering.” And they are so-o-o-o-o unbalanced.
Then there were folks whose minds were in their chests, big pecs, big boobs, throw out that chest, suck in that stomach…this was called “Pectoral Centering.” And we did exercises and we meditated and we moved and walked and jumped and learned to keep our minds at the dandian. And we had balance. Not just physical balance, but internal balance.
There is a certain good friend of mine who bounces up and down when he walks. When we are side-by-side I feel like he is on a Merry-Go-Round. Up and down and up and down…His center changes with each step.
So, go watch people walk. Try to identify the bouncers, and the pectoral centered, and the cerebral centered, and especially notice those who move from their true physical center. They are the least common.
And think about how unaware most people are of their bodies. Strong, healthy bodies are a great gift, but, I guess we might as well take it for granted. We tend to ignore everything that works right. It’s only when it goes wrong that we notice. That’s why Western medicine, allopathic medicine, is geared toward fixing what’s broken.
Now imagine not having that physical health, having pain when you walk or sit or stand or sleep. And give thanks for what you do have. Go for a walk or a swim or a bicycle ride. Sign up for yoga or tai chi or dancing and rejoice in the way your body works.
Pierce Watters
Welcome to Yang Style Taijiquan
This site is devoted to the discussion of Internal Chinese Arts, mostly Taijiquan, mostly Yang Style, beginning with the Yang 24 Form, for Seattle Silver Dragon students. It will occasionally stray into other areas, mostly Wu Shu related.
Seattle Silver Dragon Tai Chi 