21ST CENTURY TAI CHI |
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Ideas to bridge the space between thought and action
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Flow is an evasive concept in Tai Chi, and one that teachers often talk about as though it will simply occur at some point, like a credit card bill or getting old. But it doesn't. Flow needs to be teased out, prised open and encouraged to play. But what is it you need to encourage and what is it you need to develop?  8 qualities to develop your FLOW.1. Ligament Strength: This may seem obvious, but you need to work on holding those tai chi postures, gently moving through the transitions and trying to slow down. They won't strengthen with speed, you'll need to take it easy. But that's what we are trying to encourage, so that the ligaments and tendons in the ankles, the knees and the hips will get stronger and enable you in time to glide, rather than stumble from move to move. 2. Movement and Breath: Coordinate the two. If they are out of sync then your movements will be fragmented and you will always shift from one position to another like kangaroo rather than a dolphin. 3. Be HERE now: Obvious really, but your teacher can tell if you are thinking about the next episode of Peaky Blinders rather than the next posture. Focus! 4. Stillness: In order to find flowing movement, look to the quality of stillness. It may seem a contradiction, but it is only in stillness that our minds quieten and the nonsense bubbles to the surface. When it arises, let it go, let it slip slide away. Glide on.  5 & 6 Echoes of others When the mind is quiet, and the nonsense far away, you will hear your own voice coming clearer and clearer. The nonsense that makes up the echos of our mind, and even the words of our teachers (mine too...watch out!) begin to fade when we are quiet. Once more, when you practice , just practice. Don't get distracted by that last tweet you read. 7 & 8 Laugh and Play If we study too much, we only become stiff and unyielding. When we play, we experiment and taste the pleasures of both success and failure - two sides to the equation of learning. When we let go of "trying to be good" and just "do" we live in the moment and we laugh and we play. And in those qualities, we discover the torrent of energy within us to glide over the obstacles of life.  Enjoy the video below. If you want to learn Tai Chi in another way than through the echos of others, and discover the Tai Chi within you trying to come out, then this may be for you. The video is extracted from a small documentary on FLOW, PLAY and STRENGTH that is part of just one of the 12 Workshops on practice and theory that make up the Tai Chi Home Study Course. Find out more here. Here are two simple exercises to help you explore and develop your sense of Spirals in Tai Chi. What is Spiral Energy? The energy of a Spiral can be found within our DNA, within the expression of a galaxy or the shape of a lightbulb. And that should be a clue for us to take with a pinch of salt the claims by many in Tai Chi that the use of spiral energy is something bordering on the mystic. More often than not, this is just a fanciful demonstrations of structure and compliant students rather than a special energy force generated by secret practices. Spiral movements simply prioritise actions that are curved rather than angular and they prefer to utilise the opening and closing of the joints in sequence rather than all together. In effect you get something that resembles a snapping force, like that of a whip as opposed to that of a hammer or a stick. Irrespective of style, temple, cult of the personality of satin suit, you can work on sequencing your joint action by taking things slowly and adding movements one by one, until you feel comfortable with the technique. Take a look at the two video snippets below. They are part of a session I gave on Spiral Energy as part of the Single Whip Workshop. (Find out more below).
Want to learn the secret of Tai Chi? Well, it's all in the waist and I'm going to teach you 2 exercises that will not only bring back a flow to your form, but by extending the practice elsewhere, will unite everything you do . Want more exercises to help with your Tai Chi? Check out this post on Energy Work Video Exercises too.  "Hey mOnk! What style do you practice?" Over the last 30 years I have had more people ask me this than I have had hot dinners. My answer is never to name a style or a school or a lineage, for that would be playing into the game of comparisons and judgements. That is not the Way. Instead, my answer is to talk about the waist in Tai Chi, for although the classic texts talk about the importance of the waist, rarely do you see it demonstrated. THE WAIST AND THE DIFFERENT STYLES OF TAI CHII began my Tai Chi journey back in the early 80s and with a flowery style (that shall not be named) overflowing with gentle wrist moves and arm swinging, finger-circling and Buddha smiles, but all unrelated to the waist. I loved it, until I began to wonder where the strength for the moves came from. From there I flirted with other styles, more powerful and demonstrably energy packed. Feet were stomped, fists pounded and even little energetic shouts accompanied the explosive moves. But I'd only just left a decade of karate classes and had had enough of all of that. I was looking for another expression and another source of energy.  It was then that I discovered the basis of what would be my practice for the rest of my life: the power of the waist. I learned 3 simple exercises that I could then relate to all the moves, the footwork, the arms and all the Tai Chi postures. I suddenly realised how to move as a connected human being. Try them yourself. Note that when you turn, your upper body is soft, and flexible and your lower half heavy and grounded. Note where the sense of connection comes from and look for that sense of momentum and swing that I talked about in this post And note that the waist leads, the body follows and the rest all alls into place. Remember, Tai Chi is not just about technique, it is also about principles that can also be applied to almost any other physical practices, from tying your ponytail into place, to cooking a dhal or even to walking (or gliding) down the road. So here they are, (well here are 2/3, but you'll find the other on my web site tucked away somewhere) Exercises that once learned, you will be able to apply to life itself. These exercises feature as just one small part of one exercise video of over 100 in the Complete Tai Chi Course. You can learn more exercises here and here, download the Beginners Guide PDF for even more exercises or just jump right in and start your training at home today. Enjoy and don't forget - apply the principles beyond the exercise. (That, if anyone asks, is the real secret to tai Chi) Learn other great Tai Chi Exercises in this video series Or jump straight in and start learning at home today in the best course online in the known Solar System: The Complete Tai Chi Course - guaranteed to not only teach you Tai Chi, but all the related areas of study too. And Check out all the ebooks you get too (see below)   How is it that Tai Chi practitioners seem to glide, effortlessly as though their joints have been injected with Virgin Olive Oil? Why does a good practitioner, irrespective of style or suit, lineage or look, move like a smooth operator?
But how is it obtained? Where does it reside? What are the ways to build this art of movement into your style? The concept of swing and return is spoken of in some styles, in others as as spirals and circles. But it all amounts to 3 things:
Forget about everything else...Forget everything else. Forget notions of internal fire energy and explosive jin. Forget diagrams with arrows and geometrical positions. Forget anyone that says its all about tapping into Ley-lines or Qi rivers.
More on Momentum and Swing in Tai ChiThese 3 short videos are excerpts are taken from longer videos on this theme, each exploring in greater depth the idea of Swing and Momentum. They are taken from the Complete Tai Chi Course - 12 months of exercises, Tai Chi breathing, Form practice, applications, poetry, music, art, and documentaries. Find out how more here.
Jim Kelly, the martial artist and actor in Enter the Dragon died on June 29th 2013, aged 67. Kelly will be remembered for not just his charismatic fighting role, but his superb lines and presence on screen. Like Lee, he too was often typecast by a myopic Hollywood inhibited by its own prejudices.
“THE ROUND TABLE DEBATE: WORKING WITH THE LITTLE DRAGON
TRANSCRIPT OF RADIO SHOW: THE INTRODUCTIONS Gerald Greene: Good evening and welcome to this week’s episode of Alphabetical Legends. My name is Gerald Greene and on this week’s show we are focusing on the letter L - for popular culture has indeed been blessed with some superb actors that have carried the letter to legendary heights: Christopher Lee, Spike Lee, Lee Van Cleef, Lee Majors and even Jet Li. But over and above all these, there has been one Lee that perhaps defined a whole genre of entertainment and social activities: The Little Dragon himself, Bruce Lee; actor, writer, producer and acknowledged King Of Kung Fu. On tonight’s Round Table Discussion we will be discussing his impact on the lives of so many people across all the continents of the world and to do so, we have invited an esteemed panel of guests. So let’s get on with the introductions: On my left - wearing a well-cut suit as always - I have Mr Williams - How are you Mr Williams? Williams: Busy, very busy. But, hey, still looking good… Gerald Greene: Next to Williams, we have the infamous opponent to Lee in the unforgettable Coliseum fight, Mr Colt. What are you up to these days Colt? Colt: Oh, you know. Loads of TV work, films, endless series. Political campaigning, religious fund-raisers… Gerald Greene: Fascinating, fascinating…maybe we can come back to some of that in another show? To my right side, I have the amiable and admirable Mr O’Hara, star of two films with the little Dragon. Welcome Mr O’Hara.
THE BOUNCE FACTOR Gerald Greene: Colt, can we start with you. Perhaps, more than most of us here, you worked intimately with the man on his third film. The coliseum fight has gone down in the annals of martial history as one of the greatest fight sequences ever filmed. What is your outstanding memory of that Lee during that fight? Colt: Well, he was bouncy. Not very hairy, but extremely bouncy. Gerald Greene: Williams? Williams: Yeah, Tigger had nothing on that cat. He was bouncy, Colt’s right about that. Gerald Greene: O’Hara? O’Hara: A bit bouncy. Though, not so much off screen. Gerald Greene: Mr Han-Man? Han (Luke): Mr Han says that he is in agreement with the general bounciness of the conversation but would like to add that Lee’s Style was unorthodox too. Williams: But effective.” Gerald Greene: Maybe we could leave the ‘bouncy’ discussion a moment and just go back to the coliseum fight. What does the panel think of the symbolism - classicism versus formlessness, Asia versus America or just the Japanese karate Gi versus the Chinese black trousers? Colt…? Colt: Well, I’d have to return to the bouncy argument because I remember, after we watched the first out-takes, I said to Bruce: “Hey Bruce. Don’t you think I’m looking a bit rigid compared to you”, and he says that’s ‘cause you are rigid Colt. So I say “Can’t we change it?” and he says, “It’s your legacy Colt, it’s all you have to work with.”
More interviews, transcripts and conversations with the dead
 Some of you will know that last week I completed a series of Live Broadcasts on social media. The aim was to try and teach the 10 basic steps of Tai Chi without using words: Gestures, demonstrations and repetitions. Each session was filmed in portrait mode (narrow) for Facebook and Instagram and lasts just 5-8 minutes. For anyone that missed the experimental series and would like to catch it, then I have saved all the videos and uploaded them to a short course from my site. Although it asks for a payment, with this code you can get FREE access to the course and accompanying PDFs. Why Learn Tai Chi in Silence?Originally the idea behind staying quiet, was to try and address the needs of both English and Spanish students, using gestures only. I had run one short course in Spanish and the other in English, and quickly go tired of switching back and forth. So I proceeded without words at all. Feedback so far, has shown that by not using words, students could better focus on the moves and not get distracted by explanations whilst learning. So at the end of each session, I recorded brief explanations for each of the moves - what they mean and how best to learn them - as a separate series of endings that are optional to watch or download. You'll find links with the first set for anyone who wishes to go further with their Tai Chi practice. The Quarantine Challenge: 10 Steps and Beyond.See how you get on, use the button below or this link here to get access to the mini course for free. Challenge yourself to learn in silence, and - if you want more, after that, well, there are 2 more levels to work through. Enjoy, stay safe and keep practising a little each day.
 FREE LIVE TRAININGFor the last 2 weeks I've been going live on Facebook for 10 minutes (Mondays to Fridays) to practice a little and share the experience with anyone who wishes to join in. Now I'm going to take this up a notch and invite everyone, intermediate students, teachers or absolute beginners to join me from Monday 30th March 2020 for a new 2 week live session. If you'd like to join me, then read on... CATCH THE PREVIOUS SESSIONSPrevious sessions include 10 minute introductions to Flow, Balance, Coordinations, Foot work and Arm Work . You can catch up with those on: Facebook : These Sessions go out live in the UK at 17.30 (GMT) and in Spain at 18.30 (CET) 13.30 (New York) 10.30 (Los Angeles). You can ask questions, leave comments and connect or share with other users. Instagram TV: Uploaded the following day or day after. Youtube: Uploaded the following day or day after. . SOMETHING TO LEARN OVER THE NEXT 2 WEEKSFor the next 2 weeks I’m going to be teaching you the Short 10 Step Form. You can see it in the video above. (in the video I repeat the Form twice - did you notice?) In these Free Online Sessions - I'm going to be showing you a new posture each day - mostly in silence - few words, so you can concentrate on the moves, not the explanations. I'll be demonstrating each move from every angle and showing you how one flows together. One move a day - for 10 days. To get all the written instructions and well as photos of each move - you'll need to acquire a copy of the book in the link below. But don't fret! The book is free too! See, it is all easier than you think. HOW TO GET YOUR COPY (SORRY, THIS OFFER IS NOW OVER)To get a copy all you need to do is out a '0' in the box to get the book for free. I know that in these moments, many of us are struggling and uncertain as to our economic future. If, like me, you have lost a lot of business and clients, these last weeks, then I understand. Honestly, I do. I'm in a similar position. But you can download the book for free. And you can do the Live course with me for 2 weeks for free. Right now we have to adapt to a new economic order, and I want to do what I can for others, and no-one should have a financial barrier put in the way of their health. Having said that, if you have something to spare, your income is still secure, or you want to support this project, then please Pay What You Can. Everything helps to keep these sessions alive and running. To everyone that joins, I’ll create a student list. Those people on this list will additionally get copies of all the live video sessions for the next 2 weeks (to back up their training and to support the instructions in the book.) WHAT YOU WILL LEARN in 10 DAYS
In the months ahead we are all going to face the prospect of training alone as the Coronavirus spreads across the globe. I'm in Spain and here we cannot leave our houses unless to buy food or medicine. We cannot socialise in person, we cannot go out for exercise and we obviously cannot attend our Tai Chi Classes. But there is still a lot we can do at home. I’ve compiled a list of resources and ideas for working from home, that includes reading matter, audiobooks and practical courses. I've added a combination of free books/audio/classes for those that find themselves out of work or having had to close their businesses. If this is you, then fear not, there are still a lot of things here to do. Let me know if you have other suggestions and I’ll add them to the list.. Stay at home. Stay safe, and keep practising.  Read and LearnOne way to fill your time is to broaden your knowledge of a subject. Here is a link to a post I wrote about the best books on Tai Chi. available from all online books stores and in some cases even digital libraries too (check your local library website for access details). Additionally, I have some links to free PDF’s that I give away for something to read. You can download:them all here:  Train at HomeIf your classes have been suspended (and if they haven’t, believe me they will soon) then talk to your teacher about running online classes. He/she can use a Youtube private channel or more openly, a Facebook Live stream for a free quick solution. LIVE SESSIONS FREE ON FACEBOOK (AND OTHER PLATFORMS) I've been running a free daily Live session on Facebook Live. In the Uk at 5.30 (GMT) and in Spain at 6.30 (CET) The day after I'm uploading edited versions of the videos to Instagram TV, and the day after that to Youtube. But it's important to try and connect and do it Live with me. Not only do you get longer and more complete sessions, but you get to share and connect with others at the same time. Setting up a routine is important when you self-isolate. Want to join in for 10 minutes a day? Just come over, to Facebook (use a relatives account if you don't have one) find me on Facebook here (Paul Read). The classes are building up towards learning the 10 Step Form. If you'd like to learn this over the next few weeks, then join me Live on Facebook for the details, extra notes and links to special videos. FREE INTRO STARTERS PACK If Facebook is not your thing (and who can blame you?), then you can download this free course of mine: that comes with extra reading matter too. Don't want to learn with me - why should you? Ask your teacher to organise something the same or look out for notifications from other teachers, as I’m sure we will see an explosion of online instructors over the next few weeks.  Listen and LearnIf it's rhythm that moves you, then you might like this 2 part series on Music and the martial arts Or Rest your eyes and switch off for a while by tuning in to the world of podcasts. There are some great podcasts to entertain and educate out there - for example
If you are curious why my 3 series of podcasts are not listed, it's because they are difficult to come by now, though I have compiled the final series in this audiobook - 10 Ways Podcast Series There is also this additional free PDF on Audio Resources AUDIO BOOKS If you prefer a longer listen then I am not sure how many Tai Chi books are in audio form. I have 2 that you can listen to samples of:  Create new ContactsProbably the most important factor is staying positive and nurturing your spirit. Contact your fellow students and create a WhatsApp group. Share videos of your practice, insights, reading matter films suggestions, share a Netflix doc.
My Tai Chi class here in Spain keep in contact and share resources through a WhatsApp group. I can throw resources, videos and links as well as check on what they are doing. At times like this, when all other means of contact are strictly limited, it can be an important thread. that binds us together. It is also possible to do the same with groups on FaceBook or other messenger apps - the important thing is to maintain a dialogue and keep the channels open during the months ahead. Finally, the Free Ranger Taoist Facebook group is sharing other peoples live sessions too, so come over and join that. So thats' it! I hope it's be useful. Keep well, join me on Facebook for the free sessions if you wish, otherwise - keep practising and do connect with people. Keep your spirit strong and let me (and others) know how you are doing.
Start Working and Building New Skills at Home TodayStockpiling food isn't the way to go. Building you energy and immune system is. So here you go...if you know someone who is diagnosed and is positive? Give them a link and let them learn something useful at home. Know someone who is in self-isolation? Send a link. My heart is with you. Together we can overcome this. This course It isn't going to cure anyone, but it might just help. And that is what we all should be dong right now. Helping.
 The mOnk (who is not a mOnk) talks about Tai Chi, Sword Play and Early Training with international journalist Gerald Greene (co-author of One Last Thing). This article also features in a new free Sword PDF you can download here. Early Weapons Training Early Sword Training (with protective gear) Greene: People may know you from your online courses, your podcasts and irreverent videos, but you are less well known amongst the Pointy community. Could you tell us something of your background in traditional weapon training? mOnksy: It all started when I was about 5. My younger brother and I would habitually dress in plastic medieval armour and clash swords over the most minor of reasons: Who got to eat the last Custard Cream biscuit or who got to be goalkeeper when we played footie in the street outside. Greene: Did you ever evolve beyond plastic weaponry? mOnksy: No. I don't think so due to an incident that occurred a few years later. Whilst defending myself with a stick from a deadly pillow attack from above, I almost lost sight in one eye. I learnt that weapons could do as much damage to the wielder as the opponent, a lesson reinforced when I began learning the nunchaku in my teen years. Going Beyond Plastic Kitchen Training Greene: Did you ever receive any training beyond defending yourself with a stick against pillows? mOnksy: A few years later I began to learn Karate. There I was introduced to the Yawarra sticks, Nunchaku and a shuriken, when someone brought in a fossilised starfish one evening. But these only left me with a thirst for sharper and more pointy weapons. When I finally made it to college, I enrolled in a fencing class. Greene: So it started there? mOnksy: It may have started there but it never developed, for I only attended one class. I was 18 and prone to get distracted by other things. A few years passed before I came back to the martial arts, this time learning a little of Gung fu and Aikido. Although neither of these were very pointy activities, I did manage to keep my interest in weapons alive at home, with the cheese board and the bread knife. The 1980's The Unforgettable 80's Greene: So how did that all that bring you around to Tai Chi sword? mOnksy: As I was becoming aware of the limits of kitchen training, I started exploring the intriguing depths of the internal arts. You have to remember the context of the mid-1980’s. Globally, it appeared that Reagan and Thatcher were intent on bringing down what little was left of our collective dreams for a better world, replacing concepts such as the social good with individual wealth and personal greed. To deal with this new world order, some sought refuge in Step-Aerobic classes and leg-warmers, others escaped by adopting the Internal Arts. I learnt different Tai Chi styles, including the 32 step combined Sword Form from Wen Lin Jun. Sword for Beginners Exhibiting Tai Chi Sword in Spain Greene: It is said that the Sword is the Mother of all Arms and that it takes: “100 days to dominate the Sabre 1000 days to dominate the Lance 10.000 days to dominate the Sword” Yet you offer tuition to the uninitiated, when others say it should only be learnt after the empty hand Forms. mOnksy: It’s true that some instructors do like to repeat these time scales. But once again, I and others believe that the sword has too much to offer to be left to advanced students only, and, I believe this advice on time scales and training order derives from times in which learning sword was a matter of life and death. Additionally, swords back then were sharp, not like the ones we train with now. Today, sword teaches other skills, in a way that the empty hand cannot. In my experience, students quickly gain confidence and are more motivated to finish. They feel less naked in the classroom and more equal with others of different skill levels. The sword is a great leveller. It matters less if your balance is not so great or your swirls are not so big. But it isn’t just me that thinks it is a good idea to teach all everyone irrespective of level… Greene: Who else? mOnksy: Well, Wen Lin Jun. He didn’t insist on me having done years of Tai Chi training before taking up sword, nor did he enrol me on a course of 10.000 days. Then there are people like Petra Kobayashi author of Classical Tai Chi Sword who said: “It is not only the advanced Tai Chi student who can learn sword. Tai Chi sword is known in China as an independent path of exercise that doesn't necessarily require knowledge of the other forms of Tai Chi.” And the encyclopaedic Michael P. Garofalo. We discussed by email a decade back about teaching sword. He was another that offered training to anyone interested. Greene: But you can see why some other instructors may be worried that you offer to teach the uninitiated? mOnksy: Not really. As I said before, we don't train with sharp blades. These are practice swords. They are blunt and harmless. A kitchen knife is far more lethal and easier to conceal. Anyway, I’m not offering a weekend teacher training certificate, nor Sifu-Status workshops. I’m offering a basis in sword handling that has little to do with stabbing or duelling, but more to do with tackling the strains and obstacles that arise in our daily life. It matters little if what you wield is a mop or a samurai sword, it's what lies beneath the lessons that are important: principles such as yielding and sticking, rooting and softness, that are understood and tested with greater clarity when using the Sword. Why Sword is a Welcome Addition in the class Displaying Wooden tai Chi Swords Greene: You said you were teaching Tai Chi before introducing Sword. How did you finally introduce the Sword into your classes? mOnksy: I did it progressively. I had been teaching empty hand Tai Chi Forms in the UK and Spain for many years, when one week I brought into class 20 bamboo poles I had cut down from the rivers-edge that morning. This was a cheap way to introduce the use of weapon training and a bamboo staff is, at the beginning, more user-friendly than a sword. Greene: How did they react? mOnksy: Initially they looked bemused, but curious. Then, within a few weeks, they grew to love it. Over time, we exchanged the bamboo poles for wooden tai chi practice swords. Greene: Young people do like to play with weapons mOnksy: These were not youngsters. The average age in my Sword class was 55- 75 plus. Greene: Well, some men do get excited about such things. It is the age group that buy fast motorbikes as a way of handling their middle aged crisis. mOnksy: Possibly. I couldn’t say. My class was 99% women. Greene: Oh. mOnksy: Anyway, to my surprise they all embraced the Sword. Even those students who had just begun their Tai Chi training. Attendance and class satisfaction remained higher in the sword classes than in the empty hand classes. The exercises and the partner work seemed to encourage greater participation, energy levels and enthusiasm to attend. Either that or people just liked walking down the street with a sword on their backs, like an Urban Ninja Turtle. Greene: Are you saying the Sword Form doesn’t take 10.000 days to learn? mOnksy: For beginners, the sword form has more exaggerated and less subtle postures, so in a way the moves are easier to identify and remember. It is a shorter form too, and if you relax, the momentum and swing of the moves can show you what to do. It’s as if the sword is directing you and not the other way round. Additionally, I have to say, that sword is just more fun. It’s promise (if not its practice) of danger makes it thrilling too, and people love to talk about it in the class, joke, laugh and in doing so relax more. Personally, I believe this is the secret to effectively learning - encourage a greater sense of play in the class.  Online Sword Work Greene: Other than a local class, you are now teaching sword as an online course. What convinced you that the sword, with its complexities and classroom challenges, could be taught in this way? mOnksy: After having offered a number of other courses online these last few years, I was asked by a number of students to consider offering sword. So that’s what I have done. Yes, of course there are some limitations to online learning, but there are also advantages too. Greene: What advantages are there to learning sword online? mOnksy: The same pros and cons that exist for all online courses. Although you don’t get to train with a partner or a group (you can of course do the course with one or more friends) the classes are much cheaper and more convenient. You can study when, where and how often you like. You get to see the form and techniques from all angles without people standing in front of you and blocking your view, and you get to repeat classes as often as you like. You get back-up materials, step-by-step photographic, audio, visual and written instructions. From the feedback so far, this course has turned out to the most popular to date. What can Sword Teach us? Greene: You often write about the anachronism of the martial arts, with their need to update their aims and practices. How does sword fighting fit into this overview? mOnksy: I’ve argued that there needs to be another emphasis with the martial arts for lots of different reasons, not solely to do with effectiveness or not on the street. Today, more instructors attempt to balance these aims in their classes, but we still live in a world chronically out of balance. For most of us, we will never need to defend family or country with our fists or swords. We have a police force and an army for these things. We do, however still live in a world in which 5% of the population have everything whilst the rest of us bicker over the scraps under the table. The Chinese Boxers of the past and the great sword fighters of history come to mind as models for understanding and creatively responding to this imbalance. Greene: Such as? mOnksy: Spartacus and Robin Hood spring to mind. Or there is Syrio Forel - the Bravoss Dancer and the Witcher of more recent days. Even the Tao Te Ching is clear on this : “The Tao of heaven is to take from this that have too much and give to those that do not have enough” Greene: And Sword can help us do this? mOnksy: Thats depends on how it is taught. A blade can teach us that was is sharp, can easily become blunt. It can help us in the coordination of mind and body, finding a balance of weight and purpose, and a focus on breath and harmony that many of the empty hand Tai Chi forms lack. Metaphorically, it helps cut away the veil of illusion that social media inserts on your time-line and enables us to focus on other things than the size of our weapons. (See track below). But, as I say, it depends on how it is taught. Greene: Thanks for your time and unique perspective Mr. mOnk. mOnksy: My pleasure Gerald. SWORD EXTRAS: READ AND LISTEN
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“My imagination is a monastery, and I am its monk” John Keats
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