Hobby No.12 – Tai Chi
When I was asked to write a few words on my practice of Tai Chi my first reaction was “Where do I start?” So we will start at the very beginning. A number of factors combined – HBP caused by stress, an ankle injury affecting balance, future daughter-in-law’s dad practising Tai Chi (he was taught by his mother in Hong Kong) and into the frame came Sid Revill, a teacher from Rising Dragon Tai Chi School, starting Beginners Classes in the Ex-Service men’s Hall in Bloxham. I signed up.
So I took myself down to the Ex-Servicemen’s Hall. Oh Boy! Many people think Tai Chi is about standing there and waving arms around. Well it’s not
First lesson is how to stand properly. Stand straight and then unlock the knees. Then there is a feeling of a thread gently pulling the crown of the head. This means the “Noble Spine” is straight, the thighs take the body’s weight and there is a feeling of a kangaroo’s tail resting on the floor.
Next is to understand about the Tan Tien – the body’s centre – about two inches below the belly button. Then the opening and closing of the hips, and moving the weight across. It reminds me of when I learnt how to drive. All hands and feet etc. causing confusion. The centre is the wheel, the hips the chassis, which moves the shoulders and thence the arms.
We also practised Tai Chi walking where one puts the foot down then moves the weight across. This is to teach one of the Three Principles – Rooting. The bottom half of the body is likened to a tree trunk with the upper half the branches. All this even before learning the Short Form.
These are Practices which help teach Tai Chi such as Heavenly Circles, Ying Yang stretch, and the Micro Form which incorporates so much of the Tai Chi moves – as seen on the TV!
Some of the hardest things to learn are to respect one’s soft limit and to Soften. Not the hard, hard Western approach.
It takes time, and yes, practising the moves to get the Short Form into the body so the mind stops getting in the way. Its not six weeks and you know it all.
Over the years I have learnt Short and Long Form (158 moves does help one to stay focused) the Kabashi- 8 Strands of Brocade, the Shabashi – means eighteen – The Five Elements, The Vancouver Exercises – very good for hips and balance plus a number of other movements. Tai Chi is like an onion, you peel one layer only to find another. I have taken a great deal from playing Tai Chi. We PLAY the forms. It is after all Meditation in Movement. Sylvia Chester