Tai chi and qigong for inner peace.
By Jackie Smith
When I first saw titles like this one, I thought, “Sign me up for some of that”! Now though, I can’t even remember how long I’ve been attempting to wrap my brain cell around the concept and training to embody these simple yet profound words. There are infinite ways to move in a connected, smooth and soft manner, from bend-and-stretch, open-and-close, to circling and spiralling movements. Over the years, I’ve ended up practising something that looked more like the “Auchtermuchty Shuffle” than any internal art!
Whenever I felt myself getting tied up in knots, I returned to my teachers, Bruce Frantzis and Paul Cavel, who, time and again, kindly watched, listened and offered the same advice year after year … until finally it clicked: the arts require practice and softness. (Question: Does a brain cell have ears?!)
My mantra, like most internal arts students, has become “Soften”!
Yes, it’s a great sounding word, soften, but it sure is hard to follow. I mean, how do you maintain the core movements while maintaining your alignments and softening … all at the same time?
Well, finally I discovered that there’s only one way to go about it: you must remove all the bells and whistles, and get down to the basics. When your fundamentals come online, your movements naturally become smoother and softer. Everything becomes simple and, from that place, you can create stability, the stability to add a bell, a whistle or two. It’s always done by constantly returning to the beginning, training what feels simple and softening off the rough edges.
Internal arts training yields real results, but it’s not a business of quick fixes. Practice is an investment … an investment in yourself; your future health, your well-being. Yes, results are usually slower than taking a pill, but genuine healing requires nurturing and cannot be forced.
The Rule of Thirds is your guide. How many times have you heard in class, “Now don’t forget to adhere to your 70 percent”?! Yet any dedicated practitioner of the arts knows they find themselves pushing beyond their comfortable capacity all of the time, thriving to get a gold star, pat on the head, or certificate. But just ticking a box can never be as rewarding as being clear and have some sense of inner peace. Training is about the journey, so have some fun with it!
