the unity of heaven and earth

A general Q & A forum

Moderator:Scott M. Rodell

Post Reply
User avatar
J HepworthYoung
Rank: Chang San feng
Rank: Chang San feng
Posts:276
Joined:Fri Jul 28, 2006 12:19 pm
Location:Sacramento
Contact:
the unity of heaven and earth

Post by J HepworthYoung » Tue Oct 19, 2010 12:50 pm

peng-heaven
lu-earth

the first energies represent a form of duality in which, upon examination, one may draw the conclusion that the energies are not separate, but are as a matter of fact two sides of one energetic reality.

one might examine this from a newtonian point of view, observing that: for every reaction there is an equal and opposite reaction, and likewise that what does up, must come down.

the simple truth which seems to escape many taiji players is that due to flow, there is only one technique or energy, however this truth is so evasive that i really don't seek to address it right now, rather i want to focus on Peng and Lu, whose external postures are called ward off, and roll back.

In my own practice, as the seams between the thirteen postures begin to dissolve, it becomes clear that there is no point at which Peng ends and Lu begins, and to use the descriptive potential of the trigrams one might observe that heaven and earth unite, or rather that the division of heaven and earth becomes seen for what it truly is, an artifact of perception, a subjective and conceptual way of looking at things which has practical value while being at the same time imposed and artificial, such as are the divisions between most things...

to make an analogy one cannot actually make a meaningful and non- subjective distinction between action and reaction, all actions are reactions, and all reactions are actions

one cannot, in my opinion, understand taiji at all, without understanding this simple truth of duality and wholeness, something that can be conceptualized as flow or flowing

if one knows a river, they know that the outside of a curve, despite being greater in distance, is the quicker route, in comparison to the inside of the curve, flow is very much like this and it is contrary to the instinct and alleged knowledge of many people, who frequently assume that the quickest route is the shortest route, however when dealing with the energies of water, which taiji does entail, one will learn that reality does not care for concepts, the water for example does not bother itself with the conflation of a shorter distance with a quicker route

in a manner the distinctions between energies are concepts which are very much akin to the situation with water and flow, the minds thought content becomes as a distraction, an obstacle even, expectation leads one into mistakes of intention, when the mind should not be intentive, but rather attentive

the distinction of Peng and Lu dissolved in my arms, and I find myself considering that abandoning the very concepts which have led me so far has become a requisite step in the development of my own comprehension of my taiji, which I will be the first to admit is deeply personal and could no more take the form of that of another than I myself could change into another person

and so my point becomes ironic, as that any information i share here is utterly worthless if it is true, because one cannot put to work the knowledge of the need to abandon knowledge for the sake of understanding

suffice it to say that practice alone affords understanding, and concepts, as useful as they are, become guides which we must at some point leave behind or we will end up being imprisoned by them

and the first concepts that appear to dissolve in this manner in an apparant fashion, have been the distinction of heaven and earth

Post Reply