Colegio Santa Teresa de JesĂşs. Oviedo.
At the beach Hi friends Some days ago, we went to a beach near Oviedo. There, we practice some moments of relaxation and meditation. Se sat on the sand, closed our eyes and felt the wind in our faces and the sun in the skin. It was really amazing. For some moments, we were really in pace.The landscape was, certainly, beautifull. Here we are. Enjoy it. This position is “the lotus�. In a Sanskrit language 'Padma' means 'Lotus' and in this yoga posture the position of the legs look like a blooming lotus, hence the name. This yoga position of the crossed legs and the straight back keeps the mind alert and attentive, which is why the Lotus posture has been given a great importance in yoga practice as it is best suited for concentration and meditation. The Lotus yoga pose is a wonderful yoga posture but it is not practical for most people as a meditative posture. It places a lot of stress on the knee and hip joints, 1
Colegio Santa Teresa de Jesús. Oviedo. and should be approached with caution, as we did. The Lotus is a beautiful posture with lots of benefits. However, in some health conditions this yoga posture should not be practiced. You can see that we are not sitting in the “lotus” posture but, it’s similar. It was a pity, but some minutes later, it was raining. But it was indeed a beautiful day.
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Colegio Santa Teresa de Jesús. Oviedo. Later, we had enough time to do some “tai-chi” movements
A teacher told us that Tai-chi learned by doing. It takes about three to four months to learn the set, and the beginner class format is quite simple. The instructor will demonstrate a move several times, then perform it with the class, and finally watch the students as they repeat it. We started “taking a ball” (you can see us just in that moment) Some days later, we did the experience again, in our school… 3
Colegio Santa Teresa de Jesús. Oviedo.
Tai-ji-quan: live is movement. Traditionnally, t'aï-ji-quan is translated by "the last ultimate knock". That's the word to word translation. There is a legend : a Taoist monk was watching a fight between a bird and a snake and, inspired by their movements, he created t'aï-chi-chuan . This is THE legend. No one knows truly which won, the bird or the snake? Some say the bird, some say the snake, but none knows really. My answer is : the dragon win. (I speak here of the Chinese dragon, not the occidental specimen.) In South America, people never talk about dragons; they just talk of snake covered with feathers... Strange sentence, isn't it? ... Neither did it
have any sense to me, until i heard of that mythic fight between the bird and the snake. The bird and the 4
Colegio Santa Teresa de Jesús. Oviedo. snake mixed up in one only being. Should the ultimate victory be when there are no more adversaries, when they fused in a new being, the fusion of verticality and horizontality, beyond the duality, recovering the Unity? Please, please, do not use the term of taï-ji insted of taï-ji-quan. For taï-jiquan, it's Taï-JI, which mean Tao, and Chuan, that we could understand by shape. The Uncreated and the Creation. If you are always talking about taïji, you'll practice only taï-ji, forgetting Quan, and will be no more in the real world, having no roots, no matter. Your taï-ji would be too air, vaporous, inconsistent. And the shape, it's also precision, rightness; not really unuseful things. Nevertheless taï-ji-quan must become YOUR taï-ji-quan, adapted to your body, your problems, your research, your desires or even your daily style. I never do the same sequence. That's the way to find the true values of that practice, without sticking to a particular form (that would be to solidify, therefore to kill), but even sticking to. Le t'aï-chi-chuan is a long life practical : it cures illnesses, it allows you to protect yourself against dangerous people, and by the meditation you'll live eternally, avoiding the 2 nd death... One day, as I was practicing, I thought to climbing. Slowly moving on, on a continuous rhythm, always looking for its own way, till the end of the ascension. That's also the spirit when you practice.. It's quite religious. T'aï-ji-quan is discovering our universe through Yin-Yang, so you don't undergo separation, parcelling out. It's also moving balance, 5
Colegio Santa Teresa de Jesús. Oviedo. coming from Yin to Yang very sweetly. It's just being connected to Earth and Sky. Always be right, in your moves, in your attitude, in your relationships. Practicing t'aï-ji-quan it's discovering the move of Life. If practice also for the liberty : those to participate or not to that mysterious magical thing, but more for my health. Taï-jiquan allows me to no more suffer illnesses, waiting desesperately a magic pill which should blow away my sufferings. I have this power in myself, and i'm not any more condemned to suffer, too many people are suffering. It is an excellent remedy, always here, available, which give peace to your heart, your body and your spirit. Some of the movements we did: 1 st MOVEMENT : The axis of the body: it is the direction in which one looks when one looks in front of oneself. Place yourself facing N, feet parallel, shoulder-width apart, with your arms along your thighs: To obtain the width of your shoulders, place a footvis-a-vis at north and the other perpendicular, inside and not behind the first foot. The two heels are touching. You can then bring back the second foot parallel with the first, the two points 6
Colegio Santa Teresa de JesĂşs. Oviedo. being placedon an East-West imaginary line. The axis of the feet passes by the second toe (beside the big one) and the meridian of the heel. The weight is in the middle of the feet, neither on the heel, nor on the point, distributed along all the foot. It is also in the middle of the body. The legs remain right, do not bend your knees and do not lean behind them.
2nd MOVEMENT : ElĂŠvation of the hands. Turn your head to the N, with all your weight on your left leg. Turn your left foot slightly, about 5 degree. Then turn your body. Move your hands towards each other, in front of you, emptying your wrists, the left hand near the right elbow, the two hands opened horizontal, right palm to the left, left palm to the right. Move your right foot near your left foot, then move it half-step in front, on its heel, toes up. Relax your legs, check your back, your head, let your knees go away from each other, still above the toes. The idea is to catch a fist coming from N. You 7
Colegio Santa Teresa de JesĂşs. Oviedo. press the wrist with your left hand and the elbow with your right hand. Your fingers are a little turned to the sky. 3rd MOVEMENT : The body drops slightly, by bending the knees, while being slightly rolled up on the top of the stomach. The left hand almost does not move; just a very small distance towards the left. The right hand rises in front of oneself, horizontal, palm towards the ground, from the interior towards the outside of the body. There is a very large sphere under this hand. The wrist is rounded, the ends of the fingers are directed towards the left. The hand arrives at the solar plexus distant of this one of approximately 35 cm. The right arm forms half a circle.
4 th MOVEMENT : Pull The hands turn while they go farther, then a little to the up, then a little down to be at the same height as at the beginning. You have turned the arm you just have caught, without letting it go. The left hand just turn on its axis, palm to the sky. The right hand (it's quite harder to explain...) : just release your wrist, letting your fingers go down, then turn your forearm until your fingers point the sky. You have your cross again. Round your left arm, specially your left wrist, but don't round your fingers, keep them straight. Your shoulders turn to the left, your head facing the north, your weight on the left leg, your hips turned, following the shoulders, to the left leg. You watch your right hand, 8
Colegio Santa Teresa de JesĂşs. Oviedo. without bending the head. Do not press your right arm on your body, keep a circle there too. Push you right elbow outside, your left knee, too. 5 th MOVEMENT : Press Then the head faces the East. The left hand goes slowly to the North in a little vertical circle, then come back against the right wrist, palm to the East. This move can be just a rotation of the left front-arm going a little back to the North-West, or as described above, a circle to the North. It's your choice. The right hand turns, palm towards the West, fingers to the North. Still a circle with your right arm (horizontal). A second circle with your left arm (vertical). The body turns to the right. The left hand comes to the right hand, wrist to wrist. Your regard is on that cross, then far away. Then you come back on your right leg. Open your fingers, bend your wrists. 6 th MOVEMENT : Push The left hand comes over the right wrist, fingers to the ground. The palm is towards you. The right hands turns too, fingers to the ground, palm towards you. Then the two hands go away from each other. Then the two hands become horizontal. Push up with your the back of your hands while raising the arms until you're at the level of your neck. Then bring your hands back to you, as in the 1 st movement. You move on your back leg (it's the left one). Move your hands to your belly, but not too far down (not to your low-belly).Then you turn your fingers to the sky, the palms facing each other. All your attention is on the external side of your hands. You move on your 9
Colegio Santa Teresa de Jesús. Oviedo. right leg, you look far away. Don't push ! Just move on. Your legs are still bent. We did more movements: And we finished with some relaxation‌
The experience was really good for us.
Some information about the different movements was taken of http://taijiquan.neuronnexion.fr/US/INDEX.HTML
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