Day 56-57 Add oil!

I have been getting up early to do my practices since the beginning of the year, and this week has been no exception, even though I am back at work. I have noticed, though, that after three days of work, it is harder to motivate myself in the evening to finish a few of the exercises I missed this morning! The Chinese have a saying jiāyóu, which is an expression of encouragement to keep you going when the going gets tough. One translation would be 'Add oil!'

In qi gong, adding oil is also talked about, in the sense that a lamp cannot be lit without a sufficient supply of energy - in this case coming from oil. Our human energy is finite, too, unless we learn how to multiply and store our life force energy. It really is possible, and that is what fuels me to get up early in the morning to do the practices, and that knowing is what will fuel me to get off the computer now to go and finish my exercises! 

jiāyóu!

Day 54-55 - Tantra

This video interview, given by Dr Thomas Daffern, is well worth watching for an exploration of the origins, philosophies and practices of Tantra across different cultures.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n8a7xY_flT4&feature=em-share_video_user

Day 50-53 - The Universe does not revolve around you! :-)

This is one of my biggest lessons, and an ongoing one. I remind myself of this on a daily basis, particularly when I can feel myself beginning to get het up about something. It helps me to gain perspective, and to become the observer again. There is great harmonic potential in acknowledging one's place in the universe!

Days 45-49 Who is in charge?

As I awoke this morning, these words were forming in my mind: "I have no authority, but I am sovereign of the vessel"

Essential to cultivating the Tao is knowing who or what is in charge. Do we really think we have any authority, spinning around in space on a little ball of earth, subject to a myriad of happenstances, subject to the material world and its corresponding laws of nature? In cultivating deference to the laws of nature, the universal prerogative, a little more freedom of being is attained, freedom of the soul; indeed, even though we have no authority, we do have free will, and the ability to choose how to respond to life's rich pageant.

In his work "Man's Search for Meaning", Viktor Frankl said that “Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms—to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.” 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xe2R_R0kVaY

As Lao Tzu puts it, "Life is a series of natural and spontaneous changes. Don't resist them - that only creates sorrow. Let reality be reality. Let things flow naturally forward in whatever way they like"

Day 44 - "That's how the light gets in"

"There is a crack in everything;

That's how the light gets in." 

Leonard Cohen - Anthem

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ma5tF6TJpA

Our vulnerabilities, our weaknesses, our suffering, do not need to be fruitless. They are, in fact, potential catalysts for positive change and forward momentum if we can but embrace them to ourselves, and own them. Ownership is the first step towards transmuting & transcendence. Once we recognise that we alone are responsible for changing our relationship to the way we experience the world and those around us, the light begins to sneak through the cracks, and the healing process begins.   

Day 43. The Unbearable Lightness of Being

“Anyone whose goal is 'something higher' must expect someday to suffer vertigo. What is vertigo? Fear of falling? No, Vertigo is something other than fear of falling. It is the voice of the emptiness below us which tempts and lures us, it is the desire to fall, against which, terrified, we defend ourselves.” Milan Kundera, The Unbearable Lightness of Being

Fortunately, we humans can choose to move beyond this vertigo, by cultivating our courage and righteousness. Never underestimate your own potential for such strength. We are such stuff as stars are made of!!

Day 42. "Sit but not sit; fall but not fall; jump but not jump."

This is Master Chia's mantra for perfecting the basic qi gong stance used in so many of the techniques. Finding the middle path - it's like reaching the point where opposites meet and cancel one another out, the point where you are experiencing pressure from neither one side nor the other, the point of immersion, balance and harmony. Don't think for a minute that he is only telling us this to learn a physical posture. This mantra goes deep down into the very heart of us all and once heeded to will lengthen & strengthen our roots, grounding us in ways we had not realised were possible. This journey is so amazing and humbling! 

grin emoticon

Day 41. Nourishment

Real nourishment does not just come from the food & drink that passes our lips, but from cultivating our connection to the source, caring for our immortal soul & spirit.

Day 40. Connection

We humans need connection, for support & growth, and to experience the human condition in fullness. Become an internal alchemist, and be responsible for creating lasting & powerful change from within, and you will discover these connections growing & deepening. There is no limit to the strength & breadth of the hearts of men. It starts with believing! 

heart emoticon

Day 39.Endings & beginnings

"The only constant I am sure of is this accelerating rate of change." Peter Gabriel, Downside-up.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WZ2hY6Fetw0

Day 38. New beginnings!

Today we concluded our four-week Universal Healing Tao Instructor Training course, and I graduated in basic qi gong - inner smile, six healing sounds and microcosmic orbit! Yay! What a happy day smile emoticon

 — with Autumn Compton.

Day 37. Growing the immortal seed

Every day we have the opportunity to cultivate ourselves, to become more conscious of our immortal souls, become harmonious with the natural order of things, be present, kind, loving & compassionate. The door is always there, and can be opened any time when your heart is sincere. 

smile emoticon

Day 36. Balancing yin and yang

Today we witnessed a Taoist wedding at the Tao Garden, presided over by Master Chia and The Professor ( Master of Nothingness).

 Three couples were married. We joined in a group blessing, and Master Chia performed a sword ceremony. 

When yin ( the feminine essence) and yang (the masculine essence) are in balance, true grounding takes place.

 It is the same for a human relationship as it is for the heavens.

 It is the same for our internal landscapes as it is for our outward expression. 

The art of tai chi perfectly embodies the flow and union of these polarities, too.

Day 33. Learning from elephants:-)

Had a well-earned day off on Sunday. Spent time with some friends visiting these magnificent beasts at a sanctuary for elephants rescued from loggers, street hustlers etc. We had a whole day to observe them and respectfully interact with them. The most striking thing for me about these creatures is how they utilise their qi. Most of the time they are slow and ponderous in their movements, yet so strong and certain. Occasionally, when required, they completely shift their modus operandi. We witnessed this first hand when a baby elephant became distressed. He was standing away from the herd in a field when it happened. The elephants we were feeding turned and ran, trumpeting and growling. They formed a protective circle around the little one, while slapping their trunks against the ground to ward off the danger. Their life force was incredible and palpable. A little while later, calmness and slowness prevailed again. Use your qi wisely, folks!

 emoticon

Day 30. "Sit but not sit; fall but not fall"!

This is one of Mantak Chia's mantras, as he prepares us for posture practice time and time again. Getting the perfect footing is a fine art, and requires attention to detail, and some physical tension, but it also requires a degree of relaxation. Polarities meeting in the middle and merging into one. This does not just apply to qi gong stance training! It seems to be the ongoing mantra for all of the situations we meet in life. Only in this way can we flow.

Day 28. Turning failures into successes

I need to resit my ironshirt qi gong test. I was thinking of not trying again this time round, but several lovely people helped me, and encouraged me, so I will try again later. How nice that I got to experience their kindness and assistance! The picture is actually from Dao Yin practice this evening.

Day 25

Practices are intensifying at the Tao Garden, and free time is very limited, so I am behind on my blog. Suffice it to say that deep healing and transformation is occurring on many levels

 smile emoticon