Justin Stone Speaks (August 2017)

PULL QUOTE: It takes actual practice. You must do it yourself.

From Justin Stone Speaks on T’ai Chi Chih, a transcription of a taped lecture, excerpted and reprinted with permission from Good Karma Publishing.

A Chinese monk once said, “When the mind is transparent and pure as if reflected on the mirror-like surface of the water there is nothing in the world you would dislike. When it is serene as the light breeze in the sunshine there will be no one whom you would like to forget.” Such serenity is rare in these hectic days. Nevertheless it is possible.

The Japanese speak of Seijaku, serenity in the midst of activity. Not escaping from the world to some mountaintop, as is taught in the Indian teachings. But finding the real meaning, fulfillment, energy and wisdom in the midst of everyday hustle and bustle. Building a silent an imperturbable center while active in the disappointments and triumphs of our busy lives, this is real fulfillment.

Words will not do it, no matter how reassuring or clever. Passive listening as in hearing well-meaning sermons is a waste of time no matter how good the speaker makes you feel and how clever his theories. It takes actual practice. You must do it yourself.

The quality of the Prana, which the Chinese call Chi must be changed. The Vital Force that flows through you sometimes called the intrinsic energy must be helped to flow freely and to be balanced. It is this energy that makes you what you are. And when it circulates with hindrance there is a feeling of wellbeing.

When the negative and positive aspects, the Yin and the Yang are balanced, impediments seem to drop away. The mind body continuum works to adjust to its maximum potential and the aqueous excess tends to dry up and there is easy weight control. We must remember that the body is about 70% fluid, and too much fluid is decidedly Yin or negative.

It is no surprise of such circumstance that we experience good health and peace of mind – and that we find creativity effortlessly flowing. To one who understands the underlying unity of life it is not surprising that our outer activity is changed as easily as our inner being.

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There are really two ways to bring about these changes. What must be changed is this life force, this intrinsic energy. And this can be affected by working thru the mind, which is difficult to do, or by working thru the Chi, the Vital Force, which can be relatively easy. Both ways are effective.

The practices of Zen and Indian deep meditation work with the mind. And mind control can be painful. Indeed living a busy life it is almost impossible to fully succeed in these efforts because the mind is always restless and sometimes troubled. Nevertheless conscientious practice of Zen and Zen meditation will definitely have an effect on the Chi, the Vital Force. And bring about deep changes in us.

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There are few who are prepared to make the sacrifices necessary for this type of practice, which is best served if we retreat from the world. It is much easier and more suitable for our way of life to work from the other side, to directly cultivate the Chi itself, to free it so it circulates easily – and to balance the negative and positive aspects of this Vital Force, the Yin and Yang Chi.

Looking from the other end we will find that such practice automatically influences the mind and brings about the desired results. Practice of Hatha Yoga if successful will have the effect. But there are few true teachers in the West and there are dangers to the strenuous practice and Hatha Yoga is not an end in itself, but a preliminary Yoga leading to concentration, meditation and Samadhi.

The Chinese thousands of years ago cultivated the science of Yin and Yang. In Chinese cosmology, from the reality without aspect that they call the Tao, comes first manifestations, the Yin Chi and the Yang Chi. One negative and positive energy. The Tao itself is also called the great T’ai Chi; they are synonyms. And [they are] sometimes translated as supreme ultimate.

From the unity of the supreme ultimate, the un-carved block, we get the division into the Yin Chi and the Yang Chi. And this takes place before heaven, earth and man appear. Heaven results from the accumulation of the Yang Chi and earth comes from the accumulation of the Yin Chi. Man comes about as the result of the so-called wedding of heaven and earth. This is why Japanese flower arrangement is always three pointed. Heaven on top, the earth below and man in the middle. So, man and with his excess, the individual is actually the product of the Yin Chi and Yang Chi. This corresponds perfectly with the findings of science, which reduces so called matter to energy, sometimes with unfortunate results.

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DIDN”T ULTIMATLEY USE

None of this is important to know except that we can consciously build ourselves in desired ways by making use of this knowledge. The Chinese perfected Chi Kung disciplines. That is the circulation of balancing of the Chi, the Vital Force, to make possible this type of practice. T’ai Chi Ch’uan whose 108 movements are difficult to learn and sometimes to practice, is an ancient way of bringing about the desired results. And it is effective if mastered. I taught T’ai Chi Ch’uan for many years at various places including two universities, and still practice it myself regularly. However, few are motivated enough to learn all the movements and do them regularly. And my experience has been that T’ai Chi Ch’uan does not offer benefits until mastered.

On the contrary T’ai Chi Chih or Joy Thru Movement seems to bring results almost instantly. The very first time it was taught in New Mexico in 1947 [Justin most likely means 1974] a Catholic priest regained his sense of smell in the first session. I admit I was surprised as I have been so many times since then, because I first originated T’ai Chi Chih in the early 1970’s and did not teach it until that first class in 1974. And I had no way of knowing what to expect from this discipline whose name literally means ‘knowledge of the supreme ultimate’.

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What is the relationship between Karma and the Chi we have been talking about?

That is about the deepest question [a person] could ask. And to answer it properly I’m going to have to go into some weighty matters – including the part of habit and habit energy weighs in our lives.

When the brain orders a particular action a move is made called Vritti in the Indian language. Faint at first, this groove becomes deeper as we repeat and repeat the same action. Let’s say I have a disappointment and take a few drinks afterward. It seems to make me feel better, so the next time I am depressed I drink again. Soon drinking becomes a habitual action in response to disappointment. Now, the Vritti, the habit move, has been made so deep, that it becomes what the Indians call Vashana, literally habit energy.

We are molded by habit energies, perhaps through many lives. It is true that in meditation and in T’ai Chi practice we are building habits and they are constructive ones. The Vashanas, the habit energies, contribute to our lives. When these habit energies, may they be the constructive or destructive, become overly strong they develop into lasting tendencies that may endure through many lifetimes. These tendencies are called Samskaras. It is the reason why many of us do things we really don’t want to do. Actions we don’t understand, such as the habitual drinking of the drunkard, which he seems powerless to oppose. Only by ‘burning the seeds of Karma’ that is erasing the beginnings of these Vashanas, the habit energies, can we change, and that is truly Yoga. Without going back and erasing the causes we are powerless.

Now, when we do deep meditation these grooves are smoothed out and the strength of the Vashanas are clinging, gradually lessens. To do this erasure through deep meditation is difficult. To do it through T’ai Chi practice is easy. As the Chi, the vital force, begins to flow more freely and the blockage disappears, our whole make-up changes. We are not thinking as we practice just keeping our concentration in the soles of the feet. So, we have all the advantages of meditation plus those of exercise and spiritual cultivation.

Just as the flow of the Chi can help us lose unwanted pounds, so can this flow erase unwanted habits. Many smokers seem to give up cigarettes naturally without effort once the Chi begins flowing. Others find their characteristic moves become more joyous. Remember what we think and feel influences the Chi, but the Chi also influences what we think and feel. We are no longer solely creatures of habit, as the free flowing Chi seems to break our bounds. T’ai Chi Chih appears to be the easiest and perhaps the best way to erase the seeds of Karma. Isn’t this the direction in which freedom lies?