| Interview
Tai Chi Becomes a Way of Life
– interviewed by Instructor Lis
James’s continuing interest in Tai Chi stems from a
fascination with the philosophy behind the exercise. After commencing
lessons in 1982 (in Brett’s very first class), he became intrigued by
the idea of a wholistic approach towards training the body, that is, one
incorporating physical strengthening, mental relaxation and exercising
the internal organs – all without putting strain on the heart, thus able
to be practised long into old age.
As a fit man, James was not interested in the exercise
component so much as the depth of meaning behind the movements. During
those early years, he was impressed by the level of Brett’s commitment
and enjoyed the stories he told in class to illustrate the philosophical
aspects of the practice – accepting the notion of change, the need for
balance in one’s life, calm in the face of adversity. James remembers
in particular the story of the “Maybe” man.
“A farmer (in China) worked hard every day in his fields
to support his family. His only and very necessary possession was a
horse which he used to pull the plough and to bring in the crops and
take them to market. One morning the farmer rose to find the yard fence
had collapsed and the horse had gone.
The villagers all
cried, ‘Oh, what a disaster. Now you won’t be able to work and your
family will starve.’
‘Maybe,’ said the farmer.
Several
days later, he woke to find the horse had returned, bringing with it a
herd of wild horses. The farmer quickly fenced them in.
‘How wonderful, now
you’ll be rich and your life will be better than ever,’ cried the
villagers.
‘Maybe,’ said the
farmer.
The farmer’s son was
keen to have one of the horses for himself. He fell off and broke his
leg.
‘What a disaster,’
cried the villagers. ‘Now he can’t help you in the fields and you won’t
get the crops in. You’ll starve.'
‘Maybe,’ said the
farmer.
The
next day the Emperor’s soldiers came recruiting young men to fight in
the army. The son was rejected because he wasn’t fit.
And so the story went on."
James enjoyed the way this tale showed the benefits of
remaining not unemotional but calm, not overreacting to events as they
unfold, not prejudging consequences.
Several years ago, James’s mother died and he credits Tai
Chi with getting him through that difficult time. He found that the
concentration necessary to do Tai Chi calmed his mind and helped him
deal with his grief. He has now discovered that his practice releases
him from the emotional grip of most problems. He finds Tai Chi a great
benefit.
Another appealing aspect of Tai Chi is the slow
development of the learning process. He is skeptical of “quick fix”,
fast absorption techniques. Worthwhile information and knowledge
necessarily take time to fully comprehend. He is more than happy to put
time and effort into learning Tai Chi because he knows the results can
never be taken away from him. They are his for life.
James said, “There’s an observation about Tai Chi I want
to make. It comes from the question I am often asked that goes
something like ‘How often do you do Tai Chi?’ I find this question
difficult to answer. It sounds like the question ‘how often do you play
golf?’, or ‘how often do you go to the movies?’ To me, Tai Chi is much
more than ‘the set’ of physical movements. The set I ‘do’ for a finite
amount of minutes in a physical way in a specific place, but the
principles on which these movements are performed I take with me
wherever I am and apply all the time. For example, as I sit at my
computer, I am sending out my consciousness to my legs and relaxing
them, I am also correcting my posture and lowering my weight into my Dan
Tian. When I drive my car, I notice that I am gripping the wheel too
hard and relax my grip to the minimum needed to do the job without
wasting energy. When the traffic lights keep turning red, I ‘go with
the flow’ as taught and remain calm. When this happens, Tai Chi has
become part of who I am. It’s not something I ‘do’. I know a lot of
people get really blissed out doing the form and I also enjoy doing it.
But to me the form is only a means to an end; it’s not the end itself.”
As he grows older, James can feel the physical benefits
more clearly. He has decided his body, after a full day’s work sitting
in front of a computer screen, requires more than twenty minutes of Tai
Chi to counteract the damaging effects on his neck and back. Available
practice time is tight but he is beginning to realise more practice is
now necessary — more often and for longer.
On those occasions when he has been unable to practise
for an extended period, he notices his legs aren’t as strong — he uses
the handrail climbing up stairs instead of bounding up as usual.
Although he began in 1982, James’s Tai Chi experience
hasn’t been continuous. The initial period lasted three or four years,
then came a gap of several years during which time he practised yoga,
went abseiling and windsurfing. He tried other forms of Tai Chi
elsewhere for about four years but by 1997, he had become
disillusioned. Around the year 2000, he decided to return to the
Academy to further his Tai Chi training.
The constant factors in James’s ultimate persistence with
Tai Chi are faith in the long term benefits and an interest in the
wisdom and philosophy which give depth and meaning and make the exercise
an art.
(This is an actual
interview, but the name
has
been changed for reasons of
privacy.)
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