Meditation, movement and states of mind

Every movement we do and body position we hold evokes a different state of mind.  This is due partly to social images developed through years of social education and development.  It is also partly due to the physiology of the body. Each posture we hold in the body evokes subtle changes in our mind. The mind both affects the body and is affected by the body.  A clear illustration to all of us is how our arm feels when we hold it above our heads for several hours. It is not the purpose of this document to go into the physiology of the body, but suffice it to say that body posture and body movement affects the state of mind.  A soft form such as Tai Chi in its most simple sense is a recording of a state of mind. When we want to learn a golf swing from a professional, we may well by a video and study the technique. Then we will try to imitate it.  When we have mastered the movement and begin to integrate it into our game, it will be the feel of the swing more than anything else that we will recall when we want to apply it.

Learning soft forms are just this way. A soft form evokes a certain state of mind. Actually, once the feeling behind the form is clearly known to the student, he/she will not even have to do the form to put them into the state of mind. To reach this level, however, may take students a long time. If we look at the history of the soft form, we see that they were for the most part created by monks for both physical and mental health. I often begin by teaching my beginning students soft forms rather than stationary meditation, because most are not used to sitting very still for long.  They will often get frustrated at the inactivity that they are not used to and will not know what to do with the emotional and mental energy that is at first generated as people begin to meditate.

Aside from being good body therapy, soft forms can be moving meditation.  States of mind like emotions are internal. There are no objects of symbols in the outside world that we can use to directly describe them. For example, try to describe the feeling of anger for a moment. By this, I mean not the results of anger or images that evoke it, but rather the actual feeling.  You may well find it quite difficult. Most people will resort to descriptions along this line; it is like a fire, it is uncontrolled, it makes my body hurt, it is mindless. These give us images that may contain components of the feeling, but they most certainly do not directly describe the feeling. If we were trying to describe anger to a person who had never felt it, they may well have a very different image of what anger is that we do. If a master or a monk has a state of mind that he wants to relate to other people, one good way to do this is by developing a soft form.  Like a musician develops a song to evoke certain feelings, he will put movements together in a rhythmic pattern that will evoke certain images feeling and thoughts. Many of these thoughts and feeling tend to be quite abstract. If you study movement at a deep enough level of consciousness, you will begin to discover that certain movements and series of movements will evoke specific feelings and states of mind.

Lotus

When you understand and have a sensitivity to movement at this level you will begin to see distinct transitions and regions in the forms of Tai Chi.  You will begin to see that different movements may evoke the same or similar states of mind, just like you may use very different words to describe the same event. I teach many of my novice students an 80 movement form called Lotus.  It is quite easy to learn and can be broken down into 4 quarters.  I have discovered that many people fail to keep up with Tai Chi because it takes too long for them to learn. Lotus is made up of 4 quarters of around 20 movements each.  Each quarter is distinct and can be done individually. The order of each quarter can be changed so that the advanced user can flow in and out of each quarter in any order he/she likes. It usually takes a person 1 to 2 20 minutes sessions to learn a quarter. The best way to learn it is to learn on quarter and practice it over and over until you no longer have to think about the movement. The pattern repeats into its self. Once you feel very comfortable with the first pattern then begin to learn the second. Once both are very familiar you can add them together. Repeat this method for all the quarter. It should not take more than a month’s daily practice to learn the entire form. You will be able to do parts of the form in less than a week.  Remember that it is the feeling behind the form that is the most important thing. The movements are just a device to get in touch with their feelings. As you begin to learn the form and no longer have to think about the movements, the form will begin to take on a life of its own.  Like a favorite song, it will evoke feelings and push you to move.  I doing forms you should always strive for this interplay. You move the form and the form moves you.  It is the voice of your higher mind, your subconscious that is moving you. As you continue this interplay you will begin to get closer in touch with different levels of concentration.

In the beginning, your experiences may vary greatly just like your daily state of mind is in constant flux. The more you do the form, the more things will calm down and become consistent.  You may go through different phases in your state of mind. There is not time to describe all of these now. You may notice at the time the form feels very quite, very soft. Some times it will feel very powerful, sometimes very peaceful. At the time you may notice that your legs or arms will get sore. Some times you will feel invigorated. In general, the form is designed to evoke the following:  Balance physically mentally and emotionally; Focus and enhance concentration; vitality and longevity; peace of mind and clear thought.