Peace
First Principle: Emptiness: Reducing Physical Tension
The classic image Taiji teachers use to explain how to start Taiji is the empty cup or mind motif. But it's hard to empty the mind when we often feel anxious or angry, which can be reflected in our bodies. When we become tense in our shoulders, necks, jaw, or entire body, this tension can build up to the point where we can get headaches, backaches, stomach problems, and a whole range of physical issues.
We may also find it difficult to empty the mind and control the arousal and tension that our bodies experience in difficult circumstances or situations in which we feel uncomfortable. The first step in Sifu Chen's class was to reduce physical tension by identifying where the students felt stress and held it in their bodies.
His process for doing so was mainly nonverbal. His "secret" for emptying the student's mind was simple: Come to class and practice, and notice any patterns in the areas of tension. Do they tense in the stomach, lower back, arms, and legs, or around the neck and shoulders?
He was looking for progressive mental relaxation. Telling students to relax can be complicated if they try to relax a tense mind. Most people find this very difficult. Sifu would say, "Let yourself feel like there is butter melting from the top of your head all down your body."
The objective was to mentally relax by recognizing the tension in the major muscle groups. The students unconsciously learned to move their attention to their tense shoulders, neck, head, chest, legs, thighs, calves, and feet by curling their toes to hold onto the floor. This formed the basis for creating their "armor," Peng's energy.
