Never thought that the head can be important in the balance of the body. I’m not talking about what’s actually stored in the brain. I’m talking about the physical position and the weight of the head itself.
I was having my usual Tai Ji class this morning, and while doing a balancing act on one leg, my teacher suggested that I tilt my head a little. While I couldn’t get a good ground grip while standing on one leg and waving my hands from one side to the other, the mere tilt gave me enough balance to maintain the dynamic movement.
The main point of this tilt is a concept called “maintaining the core” (守中). The concept of maintaining the core is to maintain the balance, and the balance is achieved if there’s a core to fall back on. The obvious core in Tai Ji stances is the imaginary line lining up the top of your head to your centre of gravity. If this line is crooked, your balance will be affected.
It sounds obvious once it’s laid out like that, but when doing it, I never suspected that my head was tilting. I don’t think you can tell from afar. The adjustment I made was very slight, but sufficient to tilt the balance in my favour. I think my observation of small points making a big difference could well be true throughout the whole body.
My teacher eventually tied this up to how we lead our lives. As we move forward in our lives, maintaining our core is important, so that we maintain a balanced mind, and not be swayed sideways by distractions or dark alleys. My morning session turned into a philosophy in life.
p/s: A note to readers who are practising Tai Chi, a common habit for us is to look at our feet, to check for alignment. This is another example of head tilting and if possible, try not to do this right from the start. Feel with your internal senses rather than checking with your eyes. A mirror would be a better alternative. A video camera would do as well if you have one, and get someone to tape you, someone preferably who knows what you’re doing and where you’re going while you practise your form.
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