Chen style: October 2007 Archives
Master Li focused on the very beginning of the form (Chen Style Old Fome, First Road) tonight. In doing so, he had a couple of interesting lessons for us.
He made us realize that there is no one "correct" form - it so very much depends on the individual, and how he or she manifests the internal/spiritual energy in his or her moves. He said: "I teach you something when you are a beginner, then for the same posture I make it look different when you are an intermediate student, and then I might make you let go of that form completely and do it differently when you're advanced." The form does not matter all that much. In fact, when you are a beginner, the form is taught so that you have something to practice to and hold on to. But each person is unique, and the way they manifest the energy could be different from the others. The form taught in a class is just a sample of what makes sense to an average student. You as a student have to recognize your own way of doing the same move and your own personal style.
What matters is the fundamentals and roots. The connection with the energy, and keeping the balance with the ground. How that is demonstrated is a matter of personal style. He spent some time showing some details [which I had never noticed before] in some of the very basic moves, and how there are spiral moves built into them, usually unnoticed in the overall forms, to connect the movement to the source of Chi (Dantian) and how to make the whole body rooted in the ground, hence keeping the balance (I sometimes feel proud of calling this blog infinite spirals!)
The second interesting teaching of tonight was focusing on the opening/commencing. Instead of keeping the hands loose, he made us stretch the hands and then keep them stretched and at the same distance from the body as we're opening for the form. It was an interesting feeling of energy. The point was to make us understand that one should mentally stretch the hands. Even if your hands are relaxed and "inward" a little bit, mentally the hands are out there, meaning that you're expanded. Your body expands beyond the physical self.
He explained that the best meditation to make the spiritual energy active is the "still" meditation, but it's too hard because it gets boring and tiring. You stand in the "still standing meditation" for ten minutes and your muscles hurt and you get bored. So you do not continue. The next best thing is moving meditation, of which Taiji is an example, where you are moving but your mind focuses on extending the energy beyond your body. Because it's moving, you have more room to avoid being bored and being tired, and therefore you can continue it for a longer time.
He made us realize that there is no one "correct" form - it so very much depends on the individual, and how he or she manifests the internal/spiritual energy in his or her moves. He said: "I teach you something when you are a beginner, then for the same posture I make it look different when you are an intermediate student, and then I might make you let go of that form completely and do it differently when you're advanced." The form does not matter all that much. In fact, when you are a beginner, the form is taught so that you have something to practice to and hold on to. But each person is unique, and the way they manifest the energy could be different from the others. The form taught in a class is just a sample of what makes sense to an average student. You as a student have to recognize your own way of doing the same move and your own personal style.
What matters is the fundamentals and roots. The connection with the energy, and keeping the balance with the ground. How that is demonstrated is a matter of personal style. He spent some time showing some details [which I had never noticed before] in some of the very basic moves, and how there are spiral moves built into them, usually unnoticed in the overall forms, to connect the movement to the source of Chi (Dantian) and how to make the whole body rooted in the ground, hence keeping the balance (I sometimes feel proud of calling this blog infinite spirals!)
The second interesting teaching of tonight was focusing on the opening/commencing. Instead of keeping the hands loose, he made us stretch the hands and then keep them stretched and at the same distance from the body as we're opening for the form. It was an interesting feeling of energy. The point was to make us understand that one should mentally stretch the hands. Even if your hands are relaxed and "inward" a little bit, mentally the hands are out there, meaning that you're expanded. Your body expands beyond the physical self.
He explained that the best meditation to make the spiritual energy active is the "still" meditation, but it's too hard because it gets boring and tiring. You stand in the "still standing meditation" for ten minutes and your muscles hurt and you get bored. So you do not continue. The next best thing is moving meditation, of which Taiji is an example, where you are moving but your mind focuses on extending the energy beyond your body. Because it's moving, you have more room to avoid being bored and being tired, and therefore you can continue it for a longer time.
