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Jan.-April. 2015 Schedule
Date: Wednesday, Jan. 21st
Location: Silver Spring
- Beginner 1 (Postures 1-12) 6:30 - 7:30 pm
- Beginner 2 (Postures 13-24) 7:30 - 8:30 pm
- Corrections (all 37 Postures) 8:30 - 9:30 pm
Date: Thursday, Jan. 22nd
Location: Washington DC
- Beginner 1 (Postures 1-12) 6:30 - 7:30 pm
- Beginner 2 (Postures 13-24) 7:30 - 8:30 pm
- Corrections (all 37 Postures) 8:30 - 9:30 pm
Date: Sunday, Jan. 25th
Location: CityDance at Strathmore
- Corrections (all 37 postures) 9:00 - 10:00 am
- Sensing Hands (Corrections students only) 10:00 - 11:00 am
- Beginner 2 (Postures 13-24) 11:00 -12:00
- Beginner 1 (Postures 1-12) 12:00 pm - 1:00 pm
- Cont. Beginner Sword (Permission required) 6:30 pm - 7:30 pm
- Correction Sword (Permission required) 7:00 pm - 8:30 pm
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follow Cloud Hands Tai Chi
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Movement along the razor's edge between Yin and Yang as Nature's energy re-balances.
In Chinese numerology the number, Three, is associated with "chi" and the ever-changing movement of Yang to Yin and Yin to Yang. Three, also represents the role of human beings as the path for movement between Heaven (Yang) and Earth (Yin).
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Upright in our Tai Chi; "Teh" in our lives
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Freedom of movement within the vertical plane of the world is seemingly limited to creatures inhabiting sea and sky. Fish and fowl float free from fauna’s fondness for flat. (as well as their need for alliteration). They swoop and soar beyond the bounds of the horizontal plane in seemingly effortless fashion.
Human beings can momentarily step beyond the bounds of Gravity. By launching upward from a diving board, then plunging beneath the water’s surface, in one fell swoop we can experience weightlessness in both sea and sky…but, only momentarily. Mother Earth has bound us to her breast with an unbreakable, invisible tether. Ultimately, her attraction is a siren’s call that we simply cannot refuse. Even standing upright has a cost. We render tribute to Gravitatem Caesar Augutus, (one of the most primary forces in the Universe), with the effort required for each and every step we take on the earth’s surface.,
What many people do not realize is that our earth mother has issued her own version of the EZ-Pass, providing an express lane that allows us to traverse the same ground using much less energy. The name we have given to this EZ Pass is Balance. The only payment required is awareness.
"Body Upright"
Having the “Body Upright” is one of the Five Basic Principles of Tai Chi. The Balance created by being “Upright” and aligned with gravity is what allows the movements of the Tai Chi form to flow with a relaxed, graceful ease. The challenge we face in Tai Chi is how to maintain our balance while following “The Watercourse Way” through its choreography. Discerning exactly what is “the Way” through the Tai Chi form requires a mind that is quiet, calm and free from distractions. We need to “listen”, intently, in each present moment, for the path to reveal itself. As we identify the path, we must, in that same present moment, “follow” the path, allowing our relationship with gravity (balance) to become our guide and "lead" us through the movements of the Tai Chi form. Self-importance and ego must be put aside. “I” do not determine the path, or the timing of my movements in the Tai Chi form. I must quiet the mind, let go of my ego, and banish all distractions. Within that quiet, calm space, I simply listen, and follow.
Quieting the mind and listening for when, where and how to remain connected to Balance and ease of movement creates the flow in Tai Chi. Maggie Newman, one of Professor Cheng Man-ch'ing’s senior students, has repeatedly cautioned, however, that relaxed movement, following the "Watercourse Way" through the Tai Chi form, is a risky proposition. True balance, (not counter-balancing opposing forces), can only be found if we are willing to gamble and risk the possibility of losing our balance. In seeking a soft, relaxed movement, we must be willing to take the chance that we will miss the mark. We must be willing to move, trusting completely in the “razor’s edge” of freedom that exists between alignment with gravity and succumbing to it.
My teacher, Robert Smith, would often pose a question related to being upright and balanced, but with a slightly different twist. He said that he had repeatedly asked his teacher, Professor Cheng Man-ch’ing, this same question. The question was whether, or not, doing Tai Chi could change a person’s character/behavior. In other words, would the uprightness and balance of a person’s body in Tai Chi practice manifest as an uprightness and balance in the person’s life and conduct? In my Tai Chi form I align my body with the force of gravity. What is the equivalent of gravity when I am trying to align my life? The Taoist sage, Lao Tzu, has written that the Tao that can be named is not the eternal Tao. How can I determine the upright path to follow, the watercourse way for my life, if the path is really a non-path beyond all attempts to even describe it?
Gravity, the wind, and "Teh" (the virtue of the Tao)
Gravity is not something we can see. We feel it. In our Tai Chi practice the body recognizes balance, uprightness, by the feeling of relaxation and ease it manifests in the movements. Similarly, we cannot see the wind, but we can see its effect in the world. We see trees and grasses sway, the surface of a pond bending into the ripples, oceans swells whipped to rolling breakers. We see leaves stampeding down an empty street like wildebeests on the Serengeti.
Like the wind, the Tao remains invisible. Yet, also like the wind, its effects in the world can be seen. "Teh" is what the Taoists call the virtue of the Tao as it manifests in the world. When we are able to quiet the mind and listen to the heart, we are practicing Teh. Whenever we use the principles honed in our Tai Chi practice outside the choreography of its 37 postures, we are practicing Teh. The uprightness and balance we cultivate in our Tai Chi can be useful and beneficial across multiple planes in our lives. Incorporating Tai Chi principles into our daily lives provides the opportunity to further develop our Tai Chi through the practice of Teh while performing our normal daily activities.
"Teh", Three, and TCES*
In Chinese numerology the number, Three, has a special relationship to uprightness, balance and the practice of Teh. The number, One, represents the Tao, the empty canvas upon which the Universe appears. (Since the venerable Lao Tzu says the Tao that can be described is not the eternal Tao, please take this description with a grain of salt). Two, is Yin and Yang, or complimentary parts of a whole; the back and front of the hand, the sunny and the shady sides of the mountain, for example. Three, is the chi, the energy of the movement, of the change, as Yang becomes Yin and Yin becomes Yang. In addition to chi, the number, Three, also represents human beings and our role as the connecting link for the movement between heaven (Yang) and earth (Yin).
Our willingness to surrender the freedom to move however we want, and instead, to move solely within the confines of a harmonious relationship to the force of gravity, paradoxically is what, in turn, grants that very freedom to our movements within the Tai Chi form. Quieting the mind and listening for “the path” through the choreography of the Tai Chi form is the method we use. How different is that from discerning “the path” through our daily lives? How different is listening for true balance to reveal itself in our Tai Chi, from listening for the truth of the heart to reveal itself in our lives? Mr. Smith shared many words of wisdom in his classes. One of my favorites was “Relax is who you are. Tense is who you think you are.” When we relax, we are able to drop our personal armor, and open our selves to relationship, to exchange, to change, to movement, to being. "Relax is who you are", allows us to be comfortable and confident. It gives us permission to stand upright in what the Taoists describe as our cosmological role...
being the "Gap in the spark plug" connecting heaven and earth.
(The gap adjustment can be crucial to proper engine operation. A spark that intermittently fails to ignite the fuel-air mixture may not be noticeable directly, but will show up as a reduction in the engine's power and fuel efficiency. - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spark_plug)
Each moment of each day presents us with the opportunity to adjust the gap in our spark plug, to get the fuel-air mixture burning efficiently (TCES)*, and to engage the world while still remaining connected to the quiet, calm we cultivate in our Tai Chi practice. The skill is there. We hone it day after day in our Tai Chi practice. When, where, if, and how we choose to use that skill to develop and grow elsewhere in our lives, is for each of us to decide.
*TCES: Taoist Chi Efficiency Standards have not been established by State, Federal, International, or Intergalactic agencies, but I am told they are currently under review in the Great State of Indiana.
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Saturday morning practice in Silver Spring
When the loud speaker blaring of the Nutcracker's Russian Dance is overwhelmed by high school drum-lines occupying six levels of a parking garage, only to be absolutely shredded by a mere half dozen bag-pipers, who in turn are buried by the roaring engine of the Zamboni as it clears the ice skating rink, you know the Saturday morning Tai Chi practice site has surrendered to its annual auditory embalming courtesy of the Montgomery County Thanksgiving Parade staging area. It is my absolute favorite practice of the year!
We meet Saturday mornings from 8:30 – 9:30 am. No experience is necessary. It is a great way to be introduced to Tai Chi, brush up after a break, or just get out and enjoy doing some Tai Chi with a nice group of friendly people.
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