Look at
misfortune the same way you look at success.
Don't panic! Do your best and forget the consequences.
(Walt Alston)
What is panic?
Panic is an adverse
reaction to unexpected events.
Instead of
going with the flow of what is happening,
the mind begins
racing and
composure is lost.
People react in different ways:
None of these reactions are considered to be constructive in tai chi chuan.
Thinking
Thinking reflects the mind's need to
anticipate and
control the outcome of unfolding events.
It is an attempt to
reassert the
illusion of control now that
reality has become apparent and your ideas have crumbled.
The menu is not the food.
Words and thoughts cannot contain the
actual.
A
taoist accepts that reality is too complex and
convoluted to be controlled.
They treat everything as temporary and provisional, and never hesitate to
let go and step back when events take an adverse turn.
Instead of plotting, scheming and planning, they move smoothly onwards,
following the rhythm of what is
happening rather than seeking to manipulate it.
In a real-life
self defence situation,
thinking is death.
Your opponent will not wait for you to make your mind up.
When in class, if you feel the need to
gather your wits during a
drill, then you are out
of your depth.
You need to practice simpler partnered exercises that offer a
less sophisticated
challenge.
In time, you can return to more
advanced situations, but in the short-term
you need to
calm the mind.
Typically, students who panic and start thinking are the ones who do not
practice
standing qigong
daily and fail to
read tao/zen literature regularly.
Emotional upset
This is a serious folly in the martial arts.
Emotional upset can reflect either crying or
aggression. Both represent a total loss of
composure.
When the emotions overwhelm you, your ability to
interpret information rationally and
respond skilfully vanishes.
You become careless, stupid and vulnerable.
There must be absolutely no
tensing,
flinching,
panicking or
aggression
in tai chi.
At all times, you must maintain composure. Without it, you are not capable
of
yielding.
During partner work you need to be
detached. Dispassionate. Indifferent.
Do not make it personal.
Freezing
Our school offers melee scenarios in which randomness is
optimised and the
unpredictability of events defies control.
Instead of fighting to maintain order, you must composure yourself and go
with what is happening.
When a person freezes, they cannot yield.
Tensing-up the muscles
Only the most inexperienced members of a tai chi class
tense their muscles.
Internal strength removes the need to do this; tensing is a
vestigial reaction, a
throwback to the use of
external strength.
Tensing is an attempt to
block the kinetic energy flow and deny the attacker their ability to
move.
Yet, there are no blocks in tai chi. You never
attempt to stop
the flow.
When somebody persists in using tension, it reflects an underlying
fear, an
inadequacy.
They are yet to
understand tai chi or the
physics involved, and consequently have no faith in the material.
If a student has practiced diligently and pressure-tested the
tai chi, they know that
it can and does work.
They rely upon internal strength and remain composed. When incoming force is
applied, they yield.
No other choice would cross their mind. You cannot express energy (jing)
with tensed muscles.
Don't panic
Students who panic make life
difficult for themselves. They are inconsiderate, careless and
difficult to work with.
They lack experience but are too
impatient to go slowly.
Panicking is the worst thing you can do.
Be calm. Be patient. Be
gentle. Be soft. When something occurs,
move with it. Be
receptive and open.
Page created 13 June 2000