FireThe Dao
In the sixth century A.D. Ta Mo went to a Shaolin monastery. Seeing that the monks were in poor physical condition due to too much meditation and too little exercise, the ‘Lohan’ exercises were introduced.
Later in the fifteenth century A.D. a monk called Chang San-Feng was honoured with the title of: ‘spiritual man who attained The Dao and is no longer ruled by what he sees, hears or feels’. Chang San-Feng had a dream about a fight between a bird and a snake and realised that soft and yielding could overcome hard and inflexible. Although T’ai Chi can be applied as a martial art, the skill is knowing how to use non-violent methods.
In the T’ai Chi Form, we are influenced by Daoist principles such as - yielding, slowness, softness, centeredness, rootedness and balance. Without Daoism there would not be the concept of ‘chi’, ‘yin/yang’, or the ‘five elements’. One of the most basic Daoist precepts is to study and emulate nature. Daoism is quite simply a way of living in accord with the natural laws of the universe.
‘The elements are a way of describing the patterns in the movement of chi energy, patterns which are forever changing and transforming’. (Worsley).
Our bodies are structured and governed by the ‘five elements’ - fire, earth, metal, water and wood. Whatever happens outside in nature also happens within us. In the daily practice of T’ai Chi, by sinking and relaxing our body weight we can feel the support of earth. The slow, soft turning moves help us to massage internal organs.
It is entirely our own path and our choice as to whether we follow the guidelines of The Dao. When we become T’ai Chi players we study our own nature. We therefore endeavour to respect nature by not taking our universe for granted.