Tai Chi's Spiritual Connection
One of the many wonderful aspects of practicing tai chi is the potential for it to awaken spiritual awareness.
A primary focus for all tai chi play is learning how to release tension.
My own classes emphasize specific training techniques for attaining a more relaxed state of body and mind. This naturally has a very positive affect on our health and well-being.
As an active man with a prickly intellect and devoutly secular views on life it came as a huge surprise to discover a spiritual reality emerge whilst practicing tai chi.
I once claimed that tai chi was a wonderful form of sport. Human physics. The most effective and efficient way for a person to function on a mechanical level. Maximum power with minimum effort. Of course this is true but Tai Chi can be much more than that.
For me, letting go of physical tension began a journey of release that has culminated in a spiritual awakening.
When we start to understand the real nature of release we can transfer this skill to every aspect of our being.
Our muscles hold us emotionally. We store pain, anger, disappointment, feelings of inadequacy throughout the Bodymind. It can potentially cripple us. Worry, fear, uncertainty are nearly always present and wrap around the body like layers of clothing. We can become diseased both physically and mentally.
Much of this ‘diseased’ state occurs because we buy into a reality created by over indulging our senses.
Pandering to our ego like a drug addiction. We look for an answer to problems and conclude that we need more drugs. We mentally construct a world full of ‘things’, scientifically proven conditions and the duality of good and bad. It’s like we are living in a mist that hangs heavy and clouds our chance to see reality as it really is.
As Sheikh Kabir Helminski says, all the best human qualities are invisible. Love, honesty, integrity, imagination, determination. These are part of a qualitative reality and yet we steadfastly trust in the quantative reality of science. Of course science has an important role. If you’re dealing with a life threatening illness you wouldn’t go to the Church or Mosque. But when science addresses an emotion like happiness it looks for chemical changes in the brain. If that’s as deep as our understanding of experience can go, then no wonder the world is under stress.
The way to begin overcoming this reduced state of being is by practicing what the Buddhists call ‘Mindfulness’, the Sufis call ‘Presence’ or ‘Remembrance’ and the Christians call ‘Living in Grace’. it really doesn’t matter what path you take to the Divine, as long as it works.
Your spiritual development is a very personal thing. Beware of people who attempt to coerce or convert. As Sufi Master Lewellyn Vaughan-Lee says, the worst thing a Spiritual Teacher can do is get in the way of a Student’s development. It is the role of the Teacher to watch and mentor, not to preach or define any distinct path. Spiritual awareness does not come from will but from insight. It is deeply personal.
Genuine spiritual awakening requires no effort. It’s not dependant on a set of beliefs. It’s not about accepting some New Age trend or 20 minutes on a Yoga mat.
To genuinely experience the Divine for even a fleeting moment will create a longing and depth of understanding more beautiful than anything we can attain through a lifetime of satisfying our ego with all its terrible and tense side affects.
We all know that living in the ‘present’ is the only true reality but how do we make that more than just a clever thought? The past is gone, the future doesn’t exist yet, there is only now. We understand this truth but our attachments and concept of what is real makes it almost impossible to experience the present on any meaningful level.
Tai chi offers both ‘release’ and the opportunity to ‘experience’ the present. While the process of awakening spiritual insight is unique to each individual, for tai chi to act as a credible catalyst there must be knowledgeable instruction.
This teaching must be fluid enough to respect the stage of development that each student is going through and never force spiritual concepts on to anyone. Tai chi can still make a world of difference to someone’s life without ever crossing over into the metaphysical realm.
