Letting Go (February 2012)

At the end of the year, it’s natural to explore the idea of “letting go,” as we welcome the new year. For me it is also a time to clean out closets and drawers, letting go of things I no longer use or need. This year in clearing out my office, I shredded five years of tax records that had been stashed away gathering dust. It’s also a time to consciously let go of challenges, regrets or old habit patterns. What is it that no longer serves you?

The practice of Seijaku, the advanced form of T’ai Chi Chih, is a useful tool in helping us let go. With each repetition of a movement, we pass through an area of resistance and then return to softness. Softness means letting go. It is necessary to completely let go of the resistance in order to be soft. This repetition of holding fast and letting go while doing Seijaku is an effective practice that makes it easier for us to let go in other areas of our lives.

It also applies in our TCC practice. We can let go of thoughts and let the mind rest in the soles of the feet, ensuring an even flow of Chi throughout the body. We can let go of any tension and muscular effort, and relax so that Chi flows more freely. Where there is tension, Chi cannot flow. So by letting go, we open to the healing flow of the Life Force.

The final letting go will be when we let go of this physical body in what we call “death.” By then we’ll have had a lot of experience with letting go, so it can be a natural process. Justin has been teaching us about letting go and non-attachment all of his life. He continues to teach us this valuable lesson in his final process of letting go. Thank you, Justin.