This question is one of the most common quotes that Master Moy’s students will remember. But why did he ask this important question and what does it say about the special Teaching he shared with us?
On the surface, what many remember was Master Moy working on a student’s Tai Chi (no matter their level of experience or health) and then asking the student “How do you feel?”. The student would answer to the best of their ability, revealing to Master Moy how much they had understood the correction. But many did not recognize he was also asking the student to become more conscious of their own body. To wake up inwardly to themselves and to the feelings that the Tai Chi produces.
I believe this was for a very simple but profound reason:
Your feelings are the true Teacher
I know when I began my Tai Chi journey (and I believe this is case for most), I could feel very little. The small amount I did feel was focused on where my body was very tight or in some pain or discomfort. I believe this is where most of us begin. In the West, we are not taught to intentionally pay attention to the feelings of our own body unless truly necessary. So, we find ourselves as Tai Chi beginners with limited experience, relying instead on our instructors or other students to inform us about the Tai Chi. If so inclined, we may learn a little on our own as we watch other people’s Tai Chi. This is natural and a good beginning. But it is only the beginning. “Just one layer of the onion”, as Master Moy often said.
Rather, what if you were able to slowly awaken to the feelings within yourself that are silently communicated to you, by and through the Tai Chi. Allowing your own body to reveal a deeper and more meaningful aspect of the Teaching that is far more insightful than any outside source ever could be. Yes, your own feelings produced by an attentive mind and the natural slow motions of each move not only reveal your current level of health, but perhaps more importantly, how you can use feeling to self-correct your own Tai Chi. As we slowly develop this inner knowing with patience and grace, we become our own internal Teacher. This, I believe, was Master Moy’s real gift and wish for all of us!
Let me share some examples of where feeling the Tai Chi has developed for me over many years and in so doing improved my health:
- Feeling the spine: turning, expansion/contraction, separation, alignment, connection with the arms and legs.
- Feeling the relaxation of the soft tissue including the internals, muscles, fascia and diaphragm.
- Feeling balanced through the middle of the body including the pelvis and skeleton.
- Feeling internal connections such as the bottom of the feet with the palms of the hands, the elbow with the shoulders, the diaphragm with the tail bone as they all work together through the spine.
- Feeling the circulation develop through the tingling of the skin, warmth of the body, the ease of motion and the sense of energy and the quietness of the mind.
These types of feelings and many more are the foundation of the Teaching. But they need to be nurtured through patience and persistent practice. So, try to think less and focus more on what your body is sharing with you by cultivating the endless feelings that are heart of Master Moy’s Tai Chi.
Please share what you feel when you practice your Tai Chi.
Good luck and good health to all!
I feel good ! 👍