The martial arts are about brutal fighting, right?  Well, yes and no.

Certainly alongside sex, fighting is probably the second oldest form of interpersonal relationship and as such provides the dark side of the human mirror.  However, being so old a good deal of thought has gone into improving techniques.  In the west this has evolved into a search for mechanistic solutions leading to more powerful weapons and with this has come a distancing of the combatants from the deaths they cause.  Martial arts in the west on a one to one level have been modified into sports such as boxing, wrestling, fencing, or side-tracked completely into games such as football.  They have largely become outlets for competitive energy, safe challenges or ways to keep a body fit and make it live longer.  They are many other things too, to participants and spectators alike (not the least of which is being part of our growing leisure (sic) industry, but they have generally been rendered “safe”.  The element of life and death has been addressed and as far as possible removed.

In the east however (and elsewhere) it seems that for many cultural reasons a different path was followed.  The adoption of technical solutions was relatively delayed and the idea of personal combat came to be seen in stark terms connected to and integral with all aspects of life.  Not just a library of techniques or a physical solution to a problem but a way of being, of living and of becoming.  In short, a path of personal development.

Once we look inward to ourselves in the martial arts we are on dangerous ground, for they are one of the few human activities which combine all our facets and require only our naked selves. We begin to use the intellect and the body in combination with the raw emotions of our spirituality.

It has been said that many roads lead to the top of the mountain of life.  This is one road that often attracts with an outer show of external power, and for many this is enough, but once our needs for self defence have been met (and in modern society these are after all fairly minimal) then there is often a feeling of anticlimax, a gap. It is here that many stop.

Read the whole book here.

Our residential weekend in 2016 will again be at Belsey Bridge Conference Centre this year it will run from Friday afternoon 9th Sept through to Sunday afternoon 11th Sept and provide a wonderful opportunity to learn, explore and develop your Tai Chi in a quiet relaxed atmosphere.

Activities will include classes in Chen Laojia form, Broadsword form, Chi Kung,  Tai Chi exercises – silk reeling, Partner work and Push Hands. The weekend is open to existing students plus anyone with previous experience of Tai Chi. Class size is restricted to 12 people.

Venue: Belsey Bridge, Ditchingham, Bungay, Suffolk, NR35 2DZ
Cost: £290 (en-suite)
Payment in advance. £50 deposit required.
Late booking fee of £30 after 1st August
Includes tuition with full board
To book call me Ian Deavin on 01462 621970

I found myself being very impatient today in a quite general sense, after a series of frustrating events and released it in a physical gesture (that someone probably thought was all about them), but in noticing this I realised that it was quite natural to be impatient.

Probably not a particularly useful social posture, but quite natural – so I can stop beating myself up for being impatient and ask – how does that fit with the notion of personal development?

So what is Zen – or any other sort of Personal Development all about?
Congruence
Balance
Resilience
Reality
Clarity

Fulfilling our Humanity – intellectually and emotionally (spiritually) and physically (Achieving our Potential) – as individuals and as group beings.

And in there it may be that not being patient is entirely appropriate – also it does not necessarily mean that you have to be likeable.

Peter Atkins in his book “On Being” says “it is of some interest to me to know what will happen to my body, for it is an old friend, we have been together for many years, and I am still rather fond of it despite its various idiosyncrasies and mounting imperfections”. While Atkins goes on to state his understanding of “Dualism, the fantasy that Mind is distinct from its substrate Body as represented by Brain” This nonetheless demonstrates beautifully the western cultural linguistic sundering of self into “Me” and “my body” so often leading to an adversarial consideration of needs and desires.

Increasingly we are recognising that the “brain-me” actually arises from the “body-me” – there is not one without the other – no brain without body, no body without brain. Perhaps then no humanity without both brain and body – even if “I” am not aware of the linkage on a day to day basis.

However it does seem to be true that as “I” become aware of and come to trust the “mind/body” self then many aspects change in positive ways. Mind in this instance including both conscious and subconscious.

Perhaps the intellectual scientific approach does not yet go far enough in its consideration of just how embodied is the brain or indeed how embrained is the body. The link it seems is not just intimate it is absolute in its intermingling – separation is not possible or desirable – quite the reverse in fact, apparently the human organism performs optimally when most integrated. Notwithstanding the achievements of mind/brain intellect or indeed of pure physicality which may be regarded as extremes to which our humanity can go but lacking somewhat in balance. Rare indeed is it to find an intellect well aware and connected to its body or vice versa.

This year we have managed to get together a full program of Tai Chi and related activities on the website for the coming 12 months ( actually beyond! ) so if you are interested to plan your participation at the weekend Residential or a Re-Vitalise Retreat – or a push hands or sword form seminar, then you can see what is on by clicking here. 

Likewise if you fancy a Tai Chi and Alexander seminar or Residential weekend ( in 2017 ) then it is all listed here please do browse and click around.

All the best for a Happy New Year and I look forward to seeing you – it promises to be a very interesting year!

Original Chen Style Tai Chi, weekly beginners drop-in classes from January 8th 2016 at 6pm. Venue: JS Dance Academy, 1st Floor, 3 Bury Mead Road, Hitchin, Herts SG5 1RT.

I am pleased to be running a new beginners class in Hitchin for 2016 – this will be at the delightful J.S. Dance Academy studio on the edge of Bury Mead Road estate in Hitchin. This Friday class will begin on January 8th 2016 and run weekly as a drop-in from 6-7pm with a special introductory cost of £5 for January (rising to £7 in February); so if you have been considering Tai Chi or would simply like to try it, then this would be an excellent opportunity.

Contact me for further information or see here for details.

Mindfulness is receiving a lot of attention in “alternative” circles at the moment – but it is worth reflecting that it is, and has been, a vital component of spiritual meditation and of martial arts for centuries – helping us to link mind, body and spirit on a daily basis.

For example we use the practice of mindfulness throughout Tai Chi both externally and internally by calming the body and quietening the mind. This creates a meditation – a relaxed state of awareness in mind and body where our focus – our mantra – is our body moving in the world – from quiescent standing to dynamic fluidity. We use the habit of mindfulness to keep us connected and present – grounded in reality where our subconscious can work most beneficially without interruption and to achieve in Tai Chi a level of skill that we could not do with conscious intellect alone.

So how can we practice mindfulness in Tai Chi and continue the practice elsewhere?

Calming the body enables us to feel the slightest change, the smallest movement – while quietening the mind allows us to observe and notice what is going on in and around our body. We can use this internally to adjust how we move and to compare the external effect – thus we can create a feedback between our way of moving and our actions – also generally in relation to partner work where we use mindful attention to work with a partner so as to further understand how we move and how others do so – and how people move in relation to each other. We can then develop this movement to improve our balance, ease of moving and power of action – whether on our own or when in relation to others.

Mindfulness extends beyond our Tai Chi practice as we continue the principles into all aspects of daily life where we use it in physical actions and in the intellectual and emotional areas of living, working, relating, caring, loving and co-operating in positive and negative situations. Being mindful in our mind/body/spirit enables us to move from reactive to responsive and so to develop our own humanity and personal expression.

Simply Observing and Noting are vital habits of mindfulness allied to:

• Copying – (and observing and noting)
• Using repetition – (observing and noting)
• Seeking new opportunities to observe
• Replaying actions with changes – (observing and noting)
• Trying old exercises in new ways e.g. slower, faster
• Trying new exercises
• Looking carefully and deeply – observing ever smaller detail
• Looking for connections
• Looking for patterns
• Looking for discontinuities and differences
• Working co-operatively with partners
• Seeking understanding – considering one’s observations and their relationship

I thoroughly enjoyed hosting and teaching my first retreat for Re-Vitalise this last weekend at the wonderful St Katherines Parmoor – a full-of-character country house in Buckinghamshire with lots of space indoors and out, lovely rooms and amazing vegetarian food – I certainly had a great time and from feedback so far, so did the guests.

Re-Vitalise is run by the husband and wife team of Andy and Denise Spragg who have been organising successful Tai Chi and Yoga retreats for over 10 years, with many people coming back time and again – so I was mindful of the responsibility they were giving me in handing over some of their guests for the whole weekend – but I needn’t have worried they were a great group and we got on really well. A 7.30 am start is always a shock at the weekend, but despite the wind the rain stayed away so we ventured out first thing for a sensory walk in the extensive gardens so we could wake up gently and naturally followed by some Chi Kung and light movement before breakfast. Then at intervals through the day I took everyone through a relaxed introduction to Chen Style Tai Chi with some history, basic exercises, a few moves from the Laojia form and some light partner work to investigate sensitivity and balance.

It was very gratifying to find that everyone “clicked” together – so we progressed smoothly through the weekend paced with short breaks and long lunches! Oh and long convivial dinners too!

Check out next year’s Re-Vitalise Tai Chi and Yoga retreats – and book early here.

I like the “teach what they can take” approach but also see a need to give a view of what is possible.

A problem exists that where a really good teacher is available every day then the best way is one to one coupled with group work, but with UK students who have to travel long distances and do not practice so much as they might, then it becomes important that they remain 1) motivated and 2) have a way of guiding their practice in a way consistent with their teacher. I guess that ideally the student would grasp the “internal feeling” and learn quickly how to use this as a guide; many of us use our intellect to develop a model which we can then use as a guide when the teacher is not there.

I am aware that physical practice links to the emotional/spiritual and the intellectual but not everyone is open to that – this is one of those “eyes glazing over moments”

The link between health and martial arts is very important, but difficult to understand for people who are prejudiced (even in a nice way) against martial arts. It is difficult to show that the training is the same for both and that the martial background and a “does it work/absorb what is useful” approach are essential to getting the health part right – just as the health aspect is essential to developing the martial effectiveness.

Read the full article here.

Run by our friends Andy and Denise Spragg at Re-Vitalise, hosted by Ian, this Tai Chi retreat weekend is now on “Black Friday offer” at half it’s normal price – so an excellent chance to treat yourself or someone you love to a pre-Christmas present!

Normally £315 – now only £160 Full Board – book here

Starting on the Friday evening 4th Dec and running through to the Sunday 6th at around 3.00pm, Ian will deliver the retreat in his usual friendly style, striking a relaxed chord running up to this busy time of year, while he introduces you to this wonderful style of Tai Chi.  Suitable for both beginners and experienced practitioners.

The retreat will be held at St Katherine’s, Parmoor, just outside Marlow in Buckinghamshire. This is a fascinating house which was once owned by the Knights Templar, it is a rural retreat centre and a unique venue set in the gorgeous Buckinghamshire Countryside.

Come along and study this amazing form in a gorgeous location. Book here.