"It's not just self defense, it's about...self control, body discipline, and mind discipline...and breath techniques. It involves yoga. It involves meditation. It's an art, not a sport."
~~Elvis Presley, Martial Artist
Thursday, June 25, 2009
Sunday, April 26, 2009
Brand New Day
Every morning, when we wake up, we have twenty-four brand-new hours to live. What a precious gift! We have the capacity to live in a way that these twenty-four hours will bring peace, joy, and happiness to ourselves and others.
Thich_Nhat_Hanh
Source: Peace Is Every Step : The Path of Mindfulness in Everyday Life
Thich_Nhat_Hanh
Source: Peace Is Every Step : The Path of Mindfulness in Everyday Life
Monday, April 13, 2009
Portrait of a Lady
I smile, of course,
And go on drinking tea,
Yet with these April sunsets, that somehow recall
My buried life, and Paris in the Spring,
I feel immeasurably at peace, and find the world
To be wonderful and youthful, after all.
~~T.S. Elliot
And go on drinking tea,
Yet with these April sunsets, that somehow recall
My buried life, and Paris in the Spring,
I feel immeasurably at peace, and find the world
To be wonderful and youthful, after all.
~~T.S. Elliot
Wednesday, April 08, 2009
A String of Pearls
May I suggest a great little book I really like,
108 INSIGHTS INTO T"AI CHI CHUAN
A String of Pearls
Michael Gilman.
"It is a fact that every action of our body requires energy. Our basic metabolic rate is the base amount of energy our bodies require to exist. When we do work, a chemical reaction occurs using stored energy and leaving behind waste products. It is like burning a log in a fire. We end up with ash and heat. Or burning gas in an automobile leaves carbon monoxide and many other chemicals. There is nothing yet discovered that will use energy and not leave some waste.
Our bodies are the same. We use energy and have waste to deal with. If the chemical residue is not eliminated, the results range from a dull ache to complete shut down of the system. Rest allows the body to move the toxins out.
T'ai Chi is designed to allow for periods of rest following periods of work, usually half of the body works while the other half rests. There are also two very important periods of rest that I call the top and bottom of a roller coaster ride. It is the moment when up changes to down or down changes to up. When Yin changes to Yang and Yang changes to Yin. It is the moment between inhale and exhale. It is the crack between the wall to the infinite, it is the moment of enlightenment. Seek this moment out and gently stretch it with awareness. Your body and mind will find renewal."
108 INSIGHTS INTO T"AI CHI CHUAN
A String of Pearls
Michael Gilman.
"It is a fact that every action of our body requires energy. Our basic metabolic rate is the base amount of energy our bodies require to exist. When we do work, a chemical reaction occurs using stored energy and leaving behind waste products. It is like burning a log in a fire. We end up with ash and heat. Or burning gas in an automobile leaves carbon monoxide and many other chemicals. There is nothing yet discovered that will use energy and not leave some waste.
Our bodies are the same. We use energy and have waste to deal with. If the chemical residue is not eliminated, the results range from a dull ache to complete shut down of the system. Rest allows the body to move the toxins out.
T'ai Chi is designed to allow for periods of rest following periods of work, usually half of the body works while the other half rests. There are also two very important periods of rest that I call the top and bottom of a roller coaster ride. It is the moment when up changes to down or down changes to up. When Yin changes to Yang and Yang changes to Yin. It is the moment between inhale and exhale. It is the crack between the wall to the infinite, it is the moment of enlightenment. Seek this moment out and gently stretch it with awareness. Your body and mind will find renewal."
Tuesday, April 07, 2009
I Saw Lu Yu off to Pick Tea at Tien Mu Mountain
Thousand mountains greeted my departing friend
When spring tea flourishing again
His profound knowledge about picking tea
Through morning mist or twilight clouds
That solitary journey has being my envy
Rendezvous in a temple of a remote mountain
We enjoyed picnic by a clear pebble fountain
In this silent night
Lit a candle light
Knocked a marble bell for chime
While deep in thought for old time.
by Huang Pu Zhen--
Tang Dynasty poet,
friend of Tea Sage Lu Yu
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Lu Yu, a Tang Dynasty Tea sage, and author of "Book of Tea," befriended many poets of his time. Many of them in turn, dedicated poems to him.
Tien Mu mountain is a mountain with lofty twin peaks located in northern Je Jiang province, with lakes of crystal clear water on each peak, hence the name "Tian Mu', meaning eyes of the sky. Tian Mu Mountain is famous for its Tea. During the time of the Ming Dynasty, Tian Mu Tea was already listed as "Imperial Tea
Thursday, December 25, 2008
Thursday, November 06, 2008
Tai chi offers Groundedness
T'ai Chi offers a groundedness and body sense to people who have been intellectuals and spiritual aspirants all their lives. People tell me that for the first time in their lives, they are really aware of their feet and how they are connecting with the earth. They begin to notice the subtle shifts in their bodies from day to day and from moment to moment. And--they begin to become more accepting of these variabilities in their bodies and they begin to celebrate the subtle changes that herald new awareness and new flexibility.
Pam Kircher, MD
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