Understanding comes
about through feeling,
from moment to moment in the mirror of relationship.
(Bruce Lee)
Firm the centre
The last of the
13
postures is called
firm the centre.
'Firm' does not mean stiff or unyielding.
It is the ability to find and maintain the six centres at all times.
Firm the centre requires the
body to have a stable mid-section so that it can remain balanced and
upright without effort.
Without this stability, it is difficult for a tai chi person to utilise
the power of the ground.
Protecting
the centre
It is essential to protect your
centreline but more important to defend the vertical centre.
The position of your wrist and forearm is essential.
There are two options available:
Keeping the wrist in front of your centreline at all times
Moving the wrist to cover your centreline when needed
Option 1 is called a 'closed centre' and option 2
an 'open centre'.
Closed centre
When the wrist is physically placed in front of your
centreline - this is called a closed centre.
This makes good sense if your opponent is in front of you, but what about
multiple opponents?
You must be prepared for attacks to your vertical centre from any side,
not just the front...
A closed centre in not receptive, it has the sense of physical anticipation
and resistance.
If you keep the centre closed all of the time, it can lead to an imbalance
between the front and the back of the body.
This is apparent when beginners have a pronounced 'hunched' posture.
Open centre
Alternatively, the wrist can be in front of the shoulder joint - creating an
'open centre'.
This means that the centreline is not permanently protected.
You can protect the centre by simply turning the waist relative to the opponent.
The idea is to put your upper forearm - known as the 'bridge' -
relative to your opponents lateral centre*.
An open centre uses the
groundpath more effectively because the
joints are not closed.
Keeping an open centre will help to reduce physical tension in the upper
back and neck - this is particularly important for office workers.
Opening & closing the centre
In our school we open and close the
centre.
A beginner is required to keep an open centre in order to improve the health and
encourage the waist to turn.
Intermediate students require a
smaller circle of turn and can begin to close
the centre.
Advanced students will practice with an open or closed centre relative to the
neigong/form method being practiced.
*Sometime the bridge is referred to as 'peng' which can be confusing for beginners because the word peng is also used to mean 'groundpath', a jing (13 postures) and is the name of a posture in the form as well.
Page created 23 March 2000