Eastern Thought (Chi)

[Fruiteloop]

Reading your thread @meowzician I found it very interesting on what you said about those practices with kung fu

It made me aware that I am not that aware of myself. I guess that I am constantly doing and not being in the present moment.

I wonder if this could change.

Chi is often translated as energy but is really just flow. Tai chi is something to do with body flow.

I do stretches often but not regularly so I do not move my body in a fluid way. I sit too much at my computer.

I got anxiety in the past doing nothing, this is less now. I was thinking about doing motions. Not memorizing them but just doing some movement.

Because I went to a tai chi class and it was not a beginner class and they went too fast. So I do not want to do any memorization.

If I am aware of what I am doing I think I can learn specific moves later but right now I want to make it so I have good awareness of the moment.

It does not matter how fast or slow you move as long as it is the right speed to have control I believe. Without that the body will not do what I want it to do.

I was wondering if you or anyone can give me some advice on flow or wu wei?

I spend too much time on the computer and need other activities.

 

[meowzician]

@Fruiteloop

Nice to see you again!

I don't think I'll be able to explain it very well, but here goes: Wu wei is when you get results by working with the nature of things instead of against them. Think of a river--notice how the water simply flows around the rock rather than trying to force through it?

Best book I've ever read that explains wu wei and other Taoist concepts, a book that is also easy reading and quite charming, is Tao of Pooh by Benjamin Hoff. Yes, it uses Winnie the Pooh to explain stuff.

 

[SlowUpTake]

@Fruiteloop have you tried Yoga?

 

[Fruiteloop]

@Fruiteloop

Nice to see you again!

I don't think I'll be able to explain it very well, but here goes: Wu wei is when you resullts by working with the nature of things instead of against them. Think of a river--notice how the water simply flows around the rock rather than trying to force through it?

Best book I've ever read that explains, wu wei and other Taoist concepts, a book that is also easy reading and quite charming, is Tao of Pooh by Benjamin Hoff. Yes, it uses Winnie the Pooh to explain stuff.

Working with and not against.

That is a good concept to keep in mind.

 

[Fruiteloop]

@Fruiteloop have you tried Yoga?

No I have not.

I know that there is religiose meaning to it and a secular version.

You take a pose and meditate well in the pose.

I like what Bruce lee said: Be water my friend.

Fluidity is what I am working on right now. Strengthening muscles.

 

[Wyote]

"To be both the lotus and the water is to exist in a state of ultimate grace: fully experiencing the heaviness and turbulence of the world around you, while remaining rooted in the pure, untainted essence of your own being"​

 

[SlowUpTake]

most yoga studios , which are secular btw, have flow classes.

 

[meowzician]

Working with and not against.

That is a good concept to keep in mind.

Sometimes it's just easier to show rather than tell. Think about a kitty. (I'm a total cat mom, so with me it's always about a kitty). You're spending the night at a friend's house and you really want to pet the kitty! You know if you go try to find and pick up the cat, that the odds are about 10% that the cat is going to cooperate, right? It's going to squirm in your arms, jump down, and hide. LOL Instead you make a warm cup of tea, and sit in the recliner reading a book. A half hour later there's the cat hopping up on the arm of the recliner, checking you out. Why? Because you worked with the nature of the kitty.

 

[Fruiteloop]

I think that the reason I might have a hard time keeping a flow state is because of Si containment.

Si is Introverted Sensation where they body naturally wants to react to everything.

Especially since Fi wants to make it react to everything also.

I sleeped all day today, it was not because I was tired but I had nothing to do. I did not feel bad afterwards.

Without knowing what it is I should be doing I do nothing most of the time when not on track.

I'd like to get better at not reacting but a paradox exists. I do not react at all most of the time, keep everything bottled up.

So I constantly have reslessensess inside me. Do not know what to do about it.

However I can try to find some way to get out my emotions somewhere.

I want to leave the house more often.

 

[meowzician]

most yoga studios , which are secular btw, have flow classes.

Could you explain what you mean by flow?

 

[SlowUpTake]

@meowzician this from yogapedia

"Flow yoga is a dynamic practice of moving from one posture to another, following the breath. Learn about the different styles of flow yoga, such as Vinyasa Flow and Inside Flow, and how they can help you achieve a meditative state and improve your fitness."

 

[Fruiteloop]

I saw a documentary on Tibetan monks who went into brain scanners.

They could increase gamma brainwaves by over 100 times that of normal people.

I never studied scripts translated or untranslated by the Buddha, I only know some acculturated facts.

Siddhartha Gautama had bad anxiety because in his culture suffering was eternal because of reincarnation.

You came back suffered and died. So he was trying to find a way to end suffering.

He did not care about philosophical questions like how big the universe was.

Under the bodhi tree he found enlightenment and when he did flower blossoms feel to the ground.

Before he had been practicing asceticism and almost starved to death but a little girl gave him rice milk.

He came up with a whole system of mediation to stop suffering which was based on non extreme actions.

That all actions have dependencies on all other actions we must balance them by neither adictions nor adversitions.

That is why meditation needs to begin with calmness and observation.

It is not really about breath but grounding oneself to the inner physiology of self regulation.

This can mean that we become aware of the temporariness of experiences.

We train to be aware that sensations come and go.

Some people have superhuman abilities if they train enough but that is not the point.

It is to be still and non reactive, open to what comes in and out.

That way you live life without stress and with love and compassion for all beings.