Direction for openings and closings to go

[Anonymous]

My assumption is the openings should go like a wave – start in the body and go to the shoulder => to the elbow => to the wrist => to the fingertips. While closings should go in reverse direction from fingertips to the body. Is it correct or not? Or maybe there should be no direction and we should be able to start from the wrist separately. Or maybe we should be able to go any direction at will for example start opening at the fingertips and go to the body and then start closing again at the fingertips and go to the body.
What would you advise?

[Anonymous]

Hello there, others may advise better, but I’d say what you mention is good to investigate ‘once you’ve developed the ability to do-open&close’ (not before that is clear).. but the confusion/temptation of mixing a bodily-movement (likely mush with the breath-flow) likely distorts what it is…

in other words, it would likely be clearest to do opening (Kai) all the jts that are involved open simul (each indiv, yet start-stop together).. “all jts involved” as to start only do these and those, and “later” do other- and then finally do more (if try and include too many jts/cavity-pockets, it will overwhelm)..
…………….
so rather than a flow-seq, if you can’t get them to click-engage: indiv as well as ‘as a grp’, likely that is from using the “conscious mind” to direct-micro-manage.. look-attn make body-belly, and then shift-look-attn to make shoulder.. and then elbow..
-so if you need to engage parts at a time, possible that you aren’t being aware of all the parts at once, let alone able to have “mind in your body” (move each of your fingers.. many have their mind in each of fingers enough so that you can feel and move them all together, vs have to focus mind/attn on only one or a few at a time).

ie First separate and “then” combine (and I’d “separate” by making it distinct what is opening and what is closing in each part- distinct from a “wave” in flesh.. and distinct from other parts opening/closing, and then have parts Kai-He together with each other… each reinforcing the other.. but those are stages).
-I’m not clear if you are reacting to the instructions Bruce is giving in the Training Circle, or from other instruction ~circling hands etc. (hopefully what you have read he has made clear a progression of how to include more parts.. as well as his, hopefully, making distinct what the sensation of opening/closing feels like- vs just movement of skeleton-jts and of the flesh..

* but you’ll review and revise what your understanding as you progress.. think of it as “today’s understanding”.. and practice as best you can, but don’t assume that is or isn’t).

I hope this helps- either way, your discovery/exploration, and most of all, your practicing-doing- builds of experience in your “uncon” over time..

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the answer.
Yes I do get info from openings and closings circle. First month is about wrist and hand. But the same question is present – for me it is easier and logical to do openings like a wave from wrist to fingertips. And closings in reverse direction.

[Anonymous]

Before thinking of the sequence of opening, we are trying to practice opening the wrist and hand only. There is five checklist points to follow in order to know whether you get the idea of opening and closing correctly. We can open some joints/fingers here and there at will or feel like having energy flow but it could very well be superficial feeling and not opening and closing as is required.
Concentrate on getting the wrist to be able to open at will and eventually opening the hand is a simultaneous process in which it open at once (Bruce was explaining and giving example in the hitting of pool balls). Maybe it takes months to years to have the hand to open at once and it will be like an empty hand or light hand. You need to learn to open up step by step first in order to be able to open the whole hand all at once later.
The video on Gods playing in the clouds (movement 2) is an example of joints opening out from the tantien to the five extremists and then closing in reverse. It is an example of one joint open and all joints open at the same time. That is a typical taichi expression and that skill may take decade to master.( I have not learned Gods playing in the cloud yet and have to make an educated quess from what Bruce is showing.I am hoping somebody can tell us what is the qi dynamics or what is happening in the body when Bruce shows all the intermediate qigong moves. Then there is no need to make up stories to fill our gaps in practice.)

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