A life less ordinary | ||
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Routine
Modern life is fairly routine.
We get up, get showered, go to work, come home, eat, sleep.
Then repeat it all over again.
Ordinary life
Everyday life can be a little like the movie
Groundhog Day.
The same things happen day after day - with little
variation.
People are often bored by their own lives.
Bored
To alleviate boredom, it is common to watch TV,
browse the web, play with mobile phones, video games or
other technological devices.
Other people go on holiday a lot or eat out.
Some just get drunk.
Hijacking your mind
Whilst you are paying off your mortgage, raising your kids and financing
the car, the media bombard you with examples of 'a better
life'. You get to see how rich people live.
They have a bigger house than you, a bigger car, a more lavish lifestyle.
TV, movies, gossip and celebrity media foster an atmosphere of
resentment, fear,
anger, anxiety and envy.
This makes people spend more than they earn,
follow trends and try to keep up with the prevailing fashions.
Morpheus: There is a difference between knowing the path and walking the
path.
(The Matrix)
Adventure
There is very little adventure for most
people in their own lives.
No superhero antics, no Jedi Knights, no thrilling capers. It is all pretty
mundane.
This is why TV is so escapist and popular; it provides a safe outlet for the
bored, restless,
apathetic public.
Apathy
In modern life, people are complacent.
They do most things in a half-assed way. Apathy,
ignorance and laziness
prevail.
Being bothered, making an effort, working hard...
these are not valued.
Only the rare person is willing to make
the best of every opportunity.
This is what tai chi is about.
What's the point?
Once you embrace apathy, it is quite easy to argue that
tai chi is a waste of time. Why bother?
It is far easier to do nothing, to just
watch TV.
Who cares?
Can't this argument be applied to everything:
Why bother getting out of bed?
Making the bed?
Showering?
Brushing your teeth?
Flushing the toilet?
Cleaning up after your dog?
Washing the dishes?
Going to work?
There is a world of difference between existing and
living.
You can choose to live
Instead of watching other people do exciting things, you can
choose to live a little more dangerously yourself.
This is one of the reasons why individuals seek out tai chi practice.
There is risk, challenge,
difficulty and hardship. You could be injured,
hurt.
You will make friends along the way, learn new skills and learn to see the
world in a very different way.
90 minutes
Dr Michael Greger (author of How Not To
Die) recommends 90 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise every day.
The three doctors who wrote The Okinawa Program maintain that tai chi -
with its ancient origins and incredible health
benefits - is the ideal form of
exercise for modern
people.
If this sounds like a lot of exercise, why not chop it up into
smaller increments spaced throughout the day? How many people watch 90
minutes of TV every day?
Tai chi fighting method
The world of tai chi
(the martial art) is largely inaccessible to
outsiders.
It may be easy enough to attend a few classes, but the real
skills and
practices are reserved for those few
who are willing to endure a long, hard
journey.
Not many people ever become skilled and hardly
anyone is an expert.
Great sacrifice is necessary.
Extraordinary
life
An advanced martial artist gains uncanny skills
on the difficult path they have chosen.
Their resolve will be tested again
and again.
There will many setbacks, pitfalls and doubts.
But the rare seeker who embraces the art whole-heartedly will live quite an
extraordinary life.
Eat the food
Watching an exciting martial arts movie
is akin to watching somebody else eat food.
You are just a spectator. An observer. A voyeur.
This is a bit lame.
Wouldn't you rather eat the food yourself?
Wouldn't you rather be the person with awesome
martial arts skills?
Walk the path
Learning tai chi means setting
aside your former life and undertaking a
new path.
You will learn many new things:
Brain work (meditation, awareness, metacognition)
Jing (whole-body power)
Chin na (seizing)
Shuai jiao (take downs)
What I really like about the class is it’s friendly atmosphere with
excellent teaching and a clear
syllabus that means everyone makes progress.
It’s challenging but accessible. Everything is explained to the level you
want and obviously Sifu Waller really demonstrates what is possible in the
art.
(Tim)
A life less ordinary
The training will not be easy.
But if you embrace it fully, your life will never be the same again.
It will most certainly not be boring.
Whilst your friends and colleagues are watching TV or discussing
politics, you will be
fighting with multiple assailants,
wielding weapons and learning how to use
the Tao...
Every day you will follow a way of life uncommon
in the modern world. Not quite the same as talking or watching TV?
Page created
18 April 2005
Last updated
16 June 2023
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