One is naturally gratified to receive these benefits from the regular practice of T’ai Chi Chih, but there are deeper effects that must be experienced personally. The practicing student will first notice a tingling in the fingers, and soon a slight shaking of the fingers as the Chi spreads. Heat may appear at points where there is blockage or has been an injury. And often this heat, which is very healing will appear sometime after practice — while walking down the street or engaging in some other activity. A surge of energy is common, and students are advised not to practice T’ai Chi Chih after the evening meal, as the heightened energy may interfere with sleep.
The tingling in the fingers may appear in the very first practice session of T’ai Chi Chih. And the inadvertent trembling only confirms the flow of the energy, which the student feels quickly. This is the first manifestation of the circulation of the Yin and Yang Chi, which separate when we begin to do the movements, and then come together when we rest.
If we practice regularly and get into the habit of doing the movements when we arise in the morning, we will probably continue faithfully because we will notice the effect in our lives and experience the joy through movement.
As we continue, we should one day have the ecstatic feeling that nobody is doing anything, that the Chi is flowing by itself, and T’ai Chi Chih is doing T’ai Chi Chih. I first had this experience at dawn in a Japanese garden. And it was almost like a Satori or enlightenment experience. It will take some time before this occurs.
The third confirmatory sign of our success in T’ai Chi practice will come only after we have been doing T’ai Chi Chih for a long time, to the point where the balanced Chi begins to flow with the movement as we lift our hands — and probably flows through us most of the day while we are carrying out other activities.
Then we will be surprised to learn that we can do T’ai Chi Chih mentally. We can be sitting at a boring lecture or on a plane and, closing our eyes, begin to do the movements in our minds. The Chi then begins to flow just as if we were standing and moving. No one around us will even know we are doing it, but we are getting the benefits of T’ai Chi Chih practice while sitting quietly.
Starting at the point of the circulation of the Vital Force we have now arrived at the point where it has completely influenced mind. I leave you to imagine how wonderful such a realization will be, but it will only come after considerable time.
One of the first effects we will notice is the absence of fatigue in activities that usually tire us. I remember hearing from a former student, a nurse, who said, “I don’t seem to yell at the kids anymore or kick the cat. And when I come home from work, fixing the evening meal doesn’t seem to be a chore. This doesn’t have anything to do with T’ai Chi [Chih], does it?” “What’s the difference?” I replied, “As long as it’s happening.” I’m not going to burden her with the information that I’ve heard scores of such comments. If lives are enhanced, that is enough and no more has to be said.
What is this Chi that seems to be the most important and best-kept secret of life? Nobody has described it better than the Chinese sage Lao Tzu, who 2,500 years ago said, “There is a thing confusedly formed, worn before heaven and earth, silent and void it stands alone and does not change, goes round and round and does not weary. It is capable of being the mother of the world. I know not its name, so I call it ‘the way’.”
Could there be a better description of this cosmic force? This, however, is not a definition. Those who are theologically inclined might equate Chi with divinity. And scientists will see it in electricity and other forces. When this Chi circulates in us, we live. And when through imbalance it totally ceases to circulate, we are dead. So, isn’t it wonderful to know we can accumulate, circulate and balance this great force, that literally makes us what we are?
My great friend Professor Wen-Shan Huang used to refer to Chi a Priori and Chi a Posteriori. That is the Vital Force with which we are born and the Chi that we accumulate and develop as we live — your face before you were born in Zen terms.
So closely is this Chi identified with breath, though it is not the same, that the Chinese use an identical term for the two of them. And how basic is the power of this Chi, which T’ai Chi Chih teaches us how to use?
The great sage from India, Sri Aurobindo who lived in [the 20th] century, made the amazing assertion that if this world were to be abolished, the Chi would be capable of building a new world in its place. We are the product of Chi.
Habit plays a great part in how we condition the Chi, and every thought and every emotion have their effects on it. This is what is meant by the reciprocal character of mind and Chi. The heart-mind is influenced by the Chi and the Chi is influenced by what we think and feel; that is the workings of the mind. The reciprocal character of mind and Chi means that a certain type of mind or mental activity is invariably accompanied by Chi of the corresponding character.
For instance, a particular mood, feeling or thought is always accompanied by Chi of corresponding character and rhythm, which is reflected in the phenomenon of breathing. Less anger produces not only inflamed thoughts healing but also a harsh and accentuated roughness of breathing. On the other hand, when there is calm concentration on an intellectual problem, the thought and breathing exhibit a like calmness. When the concentration is deep, unconsciously the breath is held.
When we meet someone for the first time, we sense the state of his or her Chi, and we say the vibes are “good” or “bad.” Once we are within the aura of that particular stranger, the aura simply being the manifestation of the state of Chi, we are influenced by that Chi. And our first impressions are usually right.
There is so much to be said on this idea of the reciprocal character of mind and Chi that we could go on and on, but I think you get the idea by now.
In truth it is not necessary for you to know all this, simply to practice T’ai Chi Chih and feel the results, but it is necessary to practice. The Chinese say, “You cannot appease the hunger by reading a menu.” In other words, do the finger exercises and soon you will be playing Mozart on the piano or words to that effect.
T’ai Chi Chih has spread so rapidly that it is not always possible to say that something hasn’t been done as yet. However, I do believe athletes have yet to come to realize how the cultivation of the Chi can help in bettering their performance. The young man who lost 75 pounds in 4-1/2 months could not swim one lap in the Olympic-sized university pool before he took T’ai Chi Chih. After 4-1/2 months of regular practice, he was doing 20 laps in the early morning before playing racquetball or several sets of tennis.
When I eventually get the chance to work with athletes, whether it be weightlifters who want to take advantage of this new type of strength, or runners who cannot improve their time in a distance race, I will place them on what I call a maximum Chi program.
T’ai Chi Chih will be the base, and they will be taught how to mentally take the Chi through the meridian channels of the body. They will learn how to rub the backs of the thumbs together preliminary to certain forms of massage, and they will be asked to practice the Nei Kung taught in my book Meditation for Healing before they go to bed at night, while lying flat on their back with their eyes closed. It is my confident belief that the results will be amazing. Also, older athletes who have not lost their skills but continually get muscle pulls et cetera, should be able to prolong their careers by staying in shape.
These athletes will learn how a group of martial arts experts in Japan, with their knowledge of Chi, quickly demolished a building in Tokyo using only their bare hands rather than the old-fashioned swinging iron balls, et cetera.
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