Most of my learning about the “knot between the pearls” came from hours of learning and focus with Maggie Newman (a senior student of Professor Cheng man-Ching). In the mid to late 70’s she meticulously, arduously, and for me at times painstakingly drilled us who attended her summer 8 week intensives at Naropa Institute, on […]
Tag Archives: short form
Reeling of Silk
Reeling of Silk – Chi Kung Exercise – Video This is a great exercise for the Lungs and Large Muscle Groups. (Caution: Start gently, do not practice for a long period of time as to become lightheaded. To start, 3 upward and 3 downward motions is sufficient.) Breathe in as the arms go up and […]
The Knot Between the Pearls 2 – Tai Chi
The Knot Between the Pearls 2: The strand of that runs through the Tai Chi form from its beginning to end is an energy flow. The “knot” creates the ebb and flow that generates movement between postures. When I studied meditation with Trungpa Rinpoche in Boulder, CO he expressed the motivation force as “the gap […]
Principles of Meditation
Meditation is a change in the “state of mind”. IMHO in meditation, sitting, standing or moving, when one experiences “non thinking” it is simply that the mind is not focused on internal dialogue. There are dimensions to what might be considered dialogue… In tai chi, the dialogue could be too much focus on what you […]
8 Methods – Professor Cheng Man-Ching
Believed to have been lost, the 8 Methods is a set of images and movements created by Professor Cheng Man-Ching. It was developed to add imagery to and simplify the tai chi basic principles for people who may have memory challenges, those who had suffered injury and are in rehab, and as an simple introduction […]
Advanced Principle of Tai Chi
One advanced principle of tai chi that states – Mind arrives, eyes arrives, hands arrive (manifested posture) – this refers to the aspect of the mind that not only coordinate, but propels the form. Be aware of this current of motivation and continuity, but if you get too distant in visioning what comes next you loses the mindfulness […]
Value of Near Win: A student’s story
I just listened to the podcast for this TED talk a few days ago and it reminded me of a form progression session a couple of weeks ago. We were working on the four corners, and every time I made some mistake; a foot misplaced or an arm mis-timed. I finally did one, just one […]
Hip Tip
Here’s a “hip” tip. In 80% of the Yang-Style Short Form, at the end of a posture, the hips are square to the direction you are facing. In transition the hips should remain level. In motion, the waist/hips guide the direction of the limbs. The hips are synonymous with the waist. The waist/hips is the […]
Push Hands
PUSH HANDS – As with tai chi, there are a number of different styles of push hands. No matter if you are doing single hand, two hand, or even some using sticky hands as push hands the principles should remain intact throughout the myriad of changes. Listen, adhere, yield and neutralize. I was taught – […]