Silence + Chi
T’ai Chi Chih is a mindfulness moving meditation practice that’s easy to learn. The series of 19 movements and one pose helps circulate the Vital Energy, the Chi. Practitioners experience peace, improved health and many more benefits. Our free monthly e-newsletter offers inspiration between issues of the TCC quarterly journal, The Vital Force, in which teachers and students tell stories about ways they’ve benefited from the practice.
“The yinning and yanging is all-important.”– Justin F. Stone, TCC Originator
From a recent issue of The Vital Force:
Silence: “You finish the TCC practice and say ‘AH.’ And then listen to what it brings out inside of you. And what it is, is not words. It’s silence. Silence is the source of so much of what we need to get through our lives. It allows us to reach places of greater depth – calling up something in us and turning us back into ourselves. That’s why my practice – doing it alone and silently – takes me someplace where I can’t get ordinarily. TCC opens me to an otherness that exists within.” – Student of DK, Midland Park, NJ
Editor’s Note: Read more comments from DK’s students in the November issue of The Vital Force.
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Chi: “Our Monday morning TCC sisterhood long has been a grounding force in my life. The sweetness of seeing everyone on Zoom moving together, meditating and sharing our new reality elevates my spirit. The buzz of Chi has intensified. It’s as if the energy is making its presence known. The life force is here, keep going!” – Barbara, student of LR, Seattle, WA
Editor’s Note: Read more comments from LR’s students in the November issue of The Vital Force.
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Moving Art: “(TCC) is a moving art. All the details of moving and flowing and where we put our arms and hands and feet and how we move from our center and soften and drop our shoulders, all contribute to making our practice a work of art. We constantly work on improving because as we improve, we feel the Chi more deeply. When we feel the Chi more deeply, we experience the benefits. We don’t have to think about what they are. They just come. We’re never done working on the quality of our practice. It’s the concentration and focus of our efforts to perfect this art that becomes our meditation.” – LJ, Minneapolis, MN
Editor’s Note: Read more about LJ’s TCC experiences in the November issue of The Vital Force.
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Flow: There are three confirming signs in learning and practicing TCC: first, the [practitioner] will note that his or her fingers begin to tremble a bit while moving…. It means the Intrinsic Energy is now flowing freely. Secondly, after some time, the student may be doing TCC one day and suddenly notice that nobody is doing anything, that TCC is doing TCC…. (it is a joyous experience.) Thirdly, after some years of practice, one may notice that he or she can do the form mentally. With eyes closed one can visualize the movements and will feel the flow of the Chi, the Vital Force, just as though there were physical movements.” – Justin F. Stone
Editor’s Note: Find more of Justin’s writings about moving correctly in the November issue of The Vital Force.
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Want more inspiration? Want connection with the global TCC community? Want tips for a better practice? Join us:
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