For Beginners – The Mind Leads…

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  • #130007

    Anonymous
    Guest

    “In all chi development arts, the standard phrase is “the mind leads, the chi follows the mind, the blood follows the chi, and the strength follows the blood.”” from The Power of Internal Martial Arts and Chi

    Bruce has been teaching connection, lengthening, bend and stretch, open and close for 40 years. You can throw in breathing, dissolving, and the 16 part neigung* if you like. The first day I met Bruce in October of 1990, Bruce taught me about connection, lengthening, bend and stretch, and open and close. I didn’t understand, but he taught it.

    My point is that we start with the basics and build on them to the goal. If the goal is to have the mind lead the chi, shouldn’t we start with “strength follows the blood”?

    All these years, all the same material. So, what does “the strength follows the blood” actually mean and where do you start?

    *The 16 part neigung could be considered details that are supposed to help you eventually get to the highest level of open and close.

    #136797

    Anonymous
    Guest

    Knowledge is linear;
    understanding is not.

    Tai Chi is circular;
    Bagua is spherical;
    neither is linear.

    Personal experiences have been my best tools for understanding.

    I’ve been willing to suspend my skepticism about the existence of Qi and assume that it exists.
    (like in calculus, I assume that “zero,” the null set, exists.
    although I don’t understand calculus, when I see the Golden Gate Bridge, I know that “zero” has strength.
    When I see Bruce bop Isaac, I know that bagua has strength.)

    In my life I’ve had 4 useful experiences.
    One is seeing Qi in the gaps between my thumb and index finger.
    Others need not believe me,
    But for me it is a learning tool.
    For instance, assume Qi exists outside the body in your aura.
    What does this say about the relationship of your blood to Qi?
    To the relationship between internal and external?
    To strength?
    To mind?
    To goals?

    #136798

    Anonymous
    Guest

    So, let’s start by assuming that Qi exists and the phrase I quoted is correct. Where does that take us?

    The mind leads the Qi and it follows. The Qi does something and the blood follows which presumably produces strength. Hence, “Bruce bop Isaac”.

    You could interpret this to mean the mind tells the Qi to do something which tells the blood to do something which produces strength. Strength is really the end product or result. So we only need to be concerned with mind, Qi, and blood. And, most importantly, it makes sense to start at the beginning with understanding the blood and how it produces strength.

    If you re-read my post “Developing Internal Power – Why the Internal Arts Stand”. You’ll get a better idea how to start working with your blood circulation. My mistake in that post was that I focused on the venous return rather than the arterial vessels. You have to learn both.

    So, we all understand what is meant by mind and intent. No one seems to know what the hell Qi is. And Western medicine knows more about blood circulation than you’ll ever need to understand for the internal arts. So, as they say in the Sound of Music: “Let’s start at the very beginning. A very good place to start.”

    How does blood produce strength?

    #136799

    Anonymous
    Guest

    The focus on first principles, and grounding in what one is experiencing and thus can work on (Marcus Aurelius of each thing- and the focus of our actions).. -the one thing I’d question, (or give a different viewpoint) is the below assertion- which is common in current discussions:

    “So, we all understand what is meant by mind and intent.”

    I think nature of mind, and what it is that is focusing (and what focusing is, which if done in certain-ways is “intent” vs other ways- it is touching&grasping what is it “intending on”)..

    to recognize that it perhaps not as obvious as seems; else the abilities might be more common than they are (as an example: distraction- I wanted to focus on __ and I dispersed/gaps, or thought about something else… unless there is some “outside force” disturbing us :)

    -perhaps what we think of as our conscious focus is just one part of what is bubbling up.. what is it that is really choosing what to focus on? -does revising that change our sense of self? – to intend, or ting-listen, to embody the mind into the flesh as a felt-shift, that doesn’t just mean to think about or even “look” that way with mind and “feel” for it.. but a distinct function).. or perhaps not.

    Anyway- just as what you seem to be proposing as fluids following results in strength (a certain kind of power= force applied to do “work”).. and to investigate what the fluids produce strength means.. likewise: “mind” “leads” ___ (thus, investigating what mind is vs what intent is, vs just awareness and/or focusing)… and yet, as you imply the question of priority and focus to build a foundation.. (which is first).
    ………………
    “Journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” TaoTe Classic (Ch64.. signif #, so perhaps more so concept?)
    (which step.. so many commentators think this is airy-fluff generalities, any movement starts.. but what other chs are like that? -it seems to refer to a specific ‘single’ step… which?) .

    and of course “What you practice, you Become.” (becoming as expressing more of one’s nature, vs distortion/adding upon-layering over).. and ‘how’ you practice is how you become (not only within that practice, but it is visible in changes to other all actions one does.. the changes permeate one’s personality, or so I’ve found.)

    ps the Sound of Music quote: I’ve noticed how often films/tv shows have a character asked “what’s going on… or something, and they say, ‘where should I begin?’ (ie there is so much) -sometimes, start as the start.. other times, start at the end and work backwards (as in a story the end means closest to ‘now’… in a method that may not be the same thing).. interesting question- especially as “understanding” as knowing is often an all-at-once.. transfering it is attempting to rebuild it bit-by-bit.

    #136800

    Anonymous
    Guest

    IMO, this approach is fruitless. Clever, but fruitless. I tried it. I failed. You seem to be smarter than I am so maybe you’ll be successful.

    #136801

    Anonymous
    Guest

    I gave this some more thought and I think you could make the argument that meditation comes at the problem from the direction you describe; however, you are not doing Bagua and your goal is not “Bruce bop Isacc.”. You are doing Taoist sitting meditation. In that approach, inner dissolving becomes the focus and breathing will embody physical connection, lengthening, bend and stretch, open and close.

    I actually did this for 10 years with good results. I always thought my early progress was largely due to sitting meditation and specifically inner dissolving (I hated breathing exercises and favored just breathing naturally.). Around 12 years after I met Bruce, I realized my body was holding me back and I re-focused my efforts on the movement practices.

    In retrospect, I think I made good decisions.

    #136802

    Anonymous
    Guest

    I also should have added that this isn’t about thinking. That’s a big mistake. Don’t confuse inner dissolving with thinking.

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