water

By Leo Ming

I love water and its intrinsic value to life. I am a ‘fish’.

Many years ago, while I was swimming, I thought I would try some taiji in the pool.

Suddenly it dawned on me that the principles of taiji, through the movement under water, can be transferred and combined into being one with this element.

Weightlessness and Weight

A person would gain valuable insight into weightlessness but at the same time learn about how we need ‘weight’ or “chong” to be able to be grounded. Otherwise without this groundedness, we would fall over in the pool.

It takes a long period of patience and practise to do this correctly.

Letting go

The other aspect I learnt from practicing tai chi in water, is to do with the principle of ‘letting go of’. This principle is easier to grasp when in water as we now have an element that surrounds us , catches us and holds us ‘in position. Letting go or ‘fong song’ is critical in order to progress with tiaji and to gain insight.

Many people who come to taiji do the moves beautifully, yet they still have no concept or idea of how we can ‘fong song’. This practice of non-resistance is in alignment with the tao/dao, which is a part of the understanding of taiji. It is exemplified in this saying–

“When you have movement , everything moves, when you are still everything is still.”

Join me for a class to have an experience of ‘fong song’.

To attend a session in Johannesburg, contact your Sifu, Leo Low Ming, on 0833780468.

Sifu Leo holds retreats in Johannesburg often, where the focus is on the practice of qigong and taiji, while relaxing and centering oneself in beautiful surroundings, eating wholesome food.

As tai chi practitioner Ashley describes his experience of the retreats:

Our Tai Chi retreat is a beautiful way to escape from the demands of everyday life, and experience an uplifting and inspirational weekend cocooned in a lovely setting.

The weekend unfolds in the spirit of Tai Chi – no rush, no deadlines, no bootcamp mentality. Instead, genuine connections with like-minded friends, delicious relaxing meals, philosophical discussions, swimming, gong meditation. Oh, and some Tai Chi too!

I come away feeling grounded and centred, my body supple, my mind clear, and my spirit free.

Retreat Highlights

Sifu also brings new aspects to each retreat, like guest speakers and creative ways to learn about the philosophy of tai chi.

In the most recent retreat in October 2016, Sifu held one of the sessions in the swimming pool, to emphasise the learning of flow and resistance. It was not only refreshing in the summer heat, but gave students an experience of weightlessness and groundedness at the same time.

Benefits of Tai Chi Retreats

Tai Chi retreats are tailored for the students who participate, and so are for all levels of tai chi, from beginners to advanced. The focus is on foundation building, on key concepts in tai chi, and on technique. From this base Sifu builds to the level of the group, including:

Beginners get a strong foundation, further getting in touch with themselves and their bodies. Their left and right hand co-ordination improves; developing more neural muscular signals and helping integrate mind and body.
Those with injuries, scoliosis, arthritic conditions benefit from retreats for therapeutic reasons, and the learning the useful exercises.
And those more advanced in taiji, improve their body alignment, perfect the foundation skills, aligning their technique with the correct breathing, and gain refinement of their taiji moves, both mentally and physically.

To attend the next Tai Chi Retreat in Johannesburg, see our Events Page or contact your Sifu, Leo Low Ming, on 0833780468.

water Tag

Learning Tai Chi in water

Weightlessness and Weight

Letting go

Johannesburg Tai Chi Retreats

Retreat Highlights

Benefits of Tai Chi Retreats