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Once you begin to experience these deeper levels, the changes occurring in your body/mind are so profound that you will never want to stop doing it.
The awareness of Chi energy develops so that it can be increased, utilised and moved to where it is needed.
It is from this deep stillness that profound insights emerge.
The benefits
- Blood flow is increased to the joints and the internal organs.
The brain and all the cells are nourished and oxygenated. - The Lymphatic system is activated so that waste is removed.
- The deep breathing and soft, twisting movements massage the internal organs so helping to strengthen them and cleansing the interstitial fluid.
- The calm, gentle movements induce a state of tranquility and peace.
- Focusing the mind only on the quality of movement, in a detached and soft manner, allows you to enter into a space of harmony of mind and emotion.
- The legs become stronger and you develop poise and balance in your everyday life. The way you move will be more graceful as your proprioception (awareness of where you are in space) develops. This you will take into your everyday movements as you go through your life.
- You directly experience the connection between posture, breathing and emotional state. You feel your bodily alignments.
- It has been shown that the heart stroke volume can increase, and that the arteries can become more elastic, hence helping with controlling blood pressure. and diseases associated with stress.
To the present day.
There are many styles of Tai-chi, from ones with very small movements - Chen Man Ching, to the longer, bigger movements of the Yang style which is probably the most widely practiced of all the Tai-chi styles in the West.
Essentially there are three distinct pathways you can take in Tai-chi.
They overlap to a degree but are still distinct.
- Competition Tai-chi where specific competition forms are performed, as in a gymnastic or dance routine. These are judged according to certain criteria and there are winners and losers.
- Martial Tai-chi where the focus is on the combat aspects. Self defence and the development of Chi for combat purposes. The application of the moves are practiced, with Push Hands being the competition ‘fight’.
- Meditative Tai-chi where the aim is to develop internal Chi, becoming soft and gentle in your movements and very aware of how Chi moves in your body. The mind becomes still and you learn to feel how just very small changes of posture can have a big effect on your energy flow.
We focus on the Meditative aspect of Tai-chi, but to grasp the deeper meaning of the moves the combat applications have to be understood otherwise it is too easy to descend into meaningless arm waving!
A brief history.
Some say that when the monk Bodhidharma became the Abbot of the Shaolin Monastery in the Wutang mountains of China, he saw that the monks were spending so much time in sitting meditation that their bodies were weak, open to infection and disease and that they were unable to fight off the bandits who plagued the surrounding countryside.
One day, when he was sitting in the open, contemplating the problem, he saw a battle between a crane and a cobra. He watched how they moved in relation to each other, flowing in unison, as one attacked the other neutralised the attack, and he had an insight!
He began to explore how to develop a similar movement system.
This was the origin of Qigong, which shares the same basic precepts as Tai-chi - the movement of Chi (Life Force or Bio-energy) through specific body movements coupled with breathing and mental focus.
Integrating Mind, Body, Spirit.
Families lived in large clans (family groups) and many of them developed fighting systems to defend themselves, which were unique to that clan because, at that time only the Samurai and their soldiers were allowed to carry arms.
This meant that many combat styles evolved because each clan jealously guarded their own secret strategies and techniques.
Because they were not allowed to openly carry arms, many of the styles were weaponless, or Empty Hand. They became known as the Internal or Soft style because they focused much more on developing Chi energy, which could be used to strengthen the body and be used in combat.
Karate, originating from the Japanese island of Okinawa, on the other hand is concerned more with external force and so is known as a Hard or External style.
There are weapons forms in Tai-chi but we focus on empty hand.
With the knowledge of Acupuncture, Meridian Energy pathways, TCM (Traditional Chinese Medicine), and the healing power of Qigong being incorporated into the training strategies it was soon apparent that there were tremendous healing and health giving properties to these systems.
The development of Tai-chi and Qigong has been organic and ongoing with continuous research, scientific studies, new developments and tweaking of older styles and the introduction of new forms.
What is evident, and born out by research, is that there are many physical, mental and emotional benefits to be had from practicing Tai-chi and Qigong.