Teacher’s Words | Dao: On Spring Life

Chinese Tai Chi· Promote the Dao and cultivate righteousness

The Yin and Yang of the four seasons are the foundation of all things.

The traditional 24 solar terms of China represent the most perfect culture of Taoism. The Earth responds to all movements with stillness, giving rise to the four seasons and then the twenty-four solar terms, constantly evolving and cycling. The 24 solar terms represent the movement of the universe, a natural science, Tai Chi, and the Tao.

The Beginning of Spring is a solar term when spring returns to the earth. People generally call a certain day “Start of Spring”. In fact, Start of Spring occurs at an extremely precise moment. Before the arrival of the Start of Spring, a deep hole is dug in the soil and a feather is placed at the entrance. When a specific time of day comes, the feather will immediately float up. This is called “Dachun”.

In the third month of spring, this is the period of growth and development. Both heaven and earth come into being, and all things thrive. The various manifestations of “spring life” are due to the emergence of intangible “life” within the Earth’s crust, and the accumulated energy bursts out at a specific moment.

As the ancients said, “Keep warm in spring and cold in autumn.”

In early spring, the weather is alternately warm and cold, and within this coldness lies fire.

Spring cold is different from winter cold. The cold of winter is a precious “cold energy” for health preservation. The cold in spring is an improper cold pathogen.

The cold of spring is more fierce than a tiger. If you don’t keep warm in spring, evil spirits will linger. Being hurt by a tiger is a visible injury. Being hurt by the cold of spring is an invisible wound.

Spring cold brings about all kinds of diseases.If you don’t keep warm in spring, cold pathogens can easily invade your body and are extremely difficult to be expelled, which can become the root cause of various diseases in the future. The cold pathogen that invades in youth will only exert its power when the immune system declines in middle and old age, for instanceRheumatism, gout, stroke, lower back pain, migraine, arthritis, cold legs and other diseasesAll of this is caused by this.

A sage does not treat existing diseases but prevents them. “Spring covering” is the simplest and most genuine method for health preservation and disease prevention.

In spring, life is born.

According to Taoism, giving birth is nurturing, and nurturing is giving birth. The methods of breeding and nurturing vary with different seasons.

Nourish the tendons in spring. When the tendons grow by one point, life will be extended by ten years.

Summer meat care, to develop the tiny airways in the meat.

In autumn, nourish the bones to make them heavy, solid, hard but not brittle.

In winter, nourishing blood leads to abundant blood and vigorous qi. Nourishing blood is essentially nourishing qi.

Everything grows tendons in spring.

In nature, all kinds of small creatures start to be active by the time of the Awakening of Insects. But if they do not come into being in early spring, then by the time of the Awakening of Insects, they will still be dead bodies. For example, willow twigs are hard and brittle in winter and break easily when bent. But when they sprout in spring, they become very flexible because various plants are also growing tendons.

For the complex microcosm of the human body, spring is an excellent time to nourish and generate tendons. Under the observation of advanced instruments such as microscopes, tendons are composed of individual small molecules, completely formed by rows of small life forms. The tendons of the human body, after proper nourishment and development, are like well-trained troops, with the formation of a square array that opens and closes in moderation, being firm yet gentle, and gentle yet firm.

For example: Graphite and diamond

Both are composed of carbon elements, but due to the different atomic arrangement structures, their properties vary greatly. Graphite atoms are arranged in layers and are soft and slippery in nature. In contrast, diamond atoms have a dense three-dimensional structure, making them the hardest naturally occurring substance.

The human body is no different. Under the condition of the same constituent elements, through the exercise of Tai Chi, the third potential is developed, causing changes in the most subtle structures within the body and achieving a qualitative leap in the level of life.

The tendons are the source of human life. The essence of traditional Chinese health-preserving exercises such as the Yijin Jing, Baduanjin, Wuqinxi, and the Art of Breathing lies in nourishing the tendons.

Young people are young because they have long tendons. The reason why the elderly are old is that their tendons are short. There are still many “young elders”, although they are not very old, their bodies have already aged prematurely.

Practicing boxing in spring makes the small troops of the tendons throughout the body very flexible and keeps the small lives of the tendons full of vitality. In this way, the elderly can return to their youth, which is the true saying of “transforming old age into youth”. Young people can stay young forever and experience the true youth of 20.

True Tai Chi is about cultivating “long tendons and strong bones”. The liver governs the tendons and the kidneys govern the bones. When tendons are long, they become flexible; when bones are heavy, they can open and close. Tendons nourish bones, and bones generate tendons. Tendons and bones are in harmony. Only by practicing martial arts in this way can one develop “backbone”. Therefore, Tai Chi is also the most vigorous and vital exercise.

The year’s plan starts with spring

With the New Year comes a fresh start. Tai Chi is a weather sport

Practicing Tai Chi develops the muscles and bones, and nurtures life and vitality

We sincerely invite you to attend the traditional Tai Chi experience class. After the experience class, new class recruitment will be conducted