What should I expect

Discussion in 'Internal Martial Arts' started by Jointlock, Sep 21, 2005.

  1. onyomi

    onyomi 差不多先生

    But yin+yin or yang+yang is considered to be "double-weighted," and therefore undesirable in Taiji philosophy. If both you and your opponent are yin then nothing happens and if you are both yang then you both get hurt. The idea is to absorb his yang with his yin, borrowing some of the energy where possible, and maneuver him into a weak position where you can apply your own yang. In the case of stances, it is considered strategically advantageous to be able to have one leg free for movement at any given time. This same idea can be applied to almost every aspect of Taiji.

    Certainly, there are limitless gradations between yin and yang, but the "yiner" your yin, the "yanger" your yang will be and vice-versa. The darkest spot on the Taiji diagram is contained within the white and the whitest spot within the dark. The idea, then is to reduce the interim gradations as much as possible, thereby making Taiji "the boxing of the great extremes."
     
    Last edited: Oct 22, 2005
  2. averan

    averan New Member

    same goes for bagua, empty-full stepping/stances. this is more applicable to the more static points or postures, but the changes, the transitions, certainly move unwaveringly through the gradation of yin to yang and vice versa.

    the idea is that once you committ to change, it is an unstoppable flow that must continue through to its final destination, its opposite form.

    certainly one of the most important lessons or insights for me has been to clearly distuinguish between yin and yang....in all their possible manifestations. this is akin to making your yin more yin and your yang more yang. the more clearly and distinctly you are able to identify and manifest both of them, the better you'll be able to transition between them. i know there's a great quote out there about this.....something like "distuinguish between yin and yang, and keep change to heart". anyone?

    i agree that many teachers focus too much on either yin or yang style training. this might even be appropriate for people who already have an excess of the opposite. it wouldn't be a problem if they were even aware that they were doing that....and were capable of changing when appropriate.

    but i think the reason for the pattern is commonly that most teachers are still human, not daoist sages, and have yet to master their own art fully or to master the art of being a good virtuous person. their own teachings may be incomplete and they repeat this in their classes. some stop learning, maybe thinking they've learned it all and only get part of the picture right, thinking it to be all.

    a lot of people are drawn to taichi because they have too much yang in their life and seek its healing yin attributes. and not enough people are determined enough to expand their worldview or paradigm to make enough room for a complete understanding of their art....instead they take what they want and believe themselves to have "the whole enchilada". you'll find exactly what you seek. and many "teachers" will pop up to sell you whatever you want to buy.

    this isn't necessarily bad in and of itself. it can certainly serve a useful and helpful purpose for many. just be clear about what you want and humble enough to discover what you need.

    oh, and i disagree, i think that qigong will improve your martial arts....by improving your breathing, bringing more O2 to tissues and brain, teaching mind-body connectino/awareness and relaxation which will improve fine motor action and response time as well as keeping centered with a clear head in a fight.

    qigong teaches you to know yourself better, and by knowing yourself better, you can know your opponent.
     
  3. cloudz

    cloudz Valued Member

    Averan I'm real glad you're around to say these things so eloquently, and with ease & goodwill. I can't seem to muster the gumption for some of these.

    hats off buddy
     
    Last edited: Oct 24, 2005
  4. Jointlock

    Jointlock Valued Member

    I have gone to 2 more classes and I have changed my mind about the class. I still feel that the instructor isn't as knowledgeable in ki as I had hoped. However, I can really feel ki through the movements that we have done thus far. Trying to go through 8 cycles of the 7 techniques that we have learned is actually much more difficult than I thought it would be. It is very good for the mind and body.

    I don't like being 20-30 years junior to everyone else in the class, but I am inspired by the other students getting out there and doing something so different for themselves at their age. Plus it seems to make them feel better and everyone leaves class with a positive attitude.

    In conclusion, I think I was a little harsh in my first impression of the class. I think I will take away quite a bit from qigong.

    I also wanted to say thank you to all that have posted. I have learned a lot from this thread also.
     
  5. piratebrido

    piratebrido internet tough guy

    Yeah, I was meaning the second part of your post there, I conceed to you way of phrasing though as on a re read there mine was rubbish!

    You have 360 degrees to a circle, I was trying to say that you don't just have 0/360 and 180, which I thought you were saying, you in effect have 360 degrees.

    Some may use 0-180 more, being more Yin and soft, or some use mostly 180-360, being mostly Yang and hard.

    I want 0-360 in my repertoire!

    But I see what you are saying and that you inderstand this.
     
    Last edited: Nov 3, 2005

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