Find a moment today to just be who you are, right here and right now.
Are you searching for a way to be more present and at peace in your daily life? Practising mindfulness through Tai Chi offers powerful lessons on living in the moment and embracing each stage of your personal journey. In this reflective piece, you’ll discover how the gentle art of Tai Chi teaches us to let go of past worries, quiet the urge to anticipate the future, and truly enjoy the here and now. Whether you’re new to mindfulness or deepening your practice, exploring these layers of awareness can bring balance, flow, and harmony to every part of your life.
I was teaching a Tai Chi class in my little garden studio in Hoedspruit when I had an epiphany. This is often how it works for me; when I try to explain something to someone else, I end up explaining it to myself.
BEING IN THE NOW
My insight was about living in the moment. We’ve all been advised by various sources to ‘be in the now,’ and I’ll admit it’s something I struggle with. My practical and slightly cynical side says, ‘Good advice, but if we all just worried about now, we wouldn’t be saving for our retirement, saving the planet for future generations, or storing food in refrigerators.' But there is a part of me that truly wants to immerse myself in each moment, to put aside worries and regrets and just be. Can I be happy as I am, right now and right here?
Well, I’m learning how to do this through my practice of Tai Chi. I’ve noticed my students sometimes skim over certain moves in the form to get to others. At times, they adjust their posture in anticipation of what’s to come. For example, just before the lovely bend of ‘Pluck the Needle from the Bottom of the Sea,’ we are centred, holding a ball of energy before us. But the tendency is to look down or bend prematurely because we know what’s coming next.
How often do we do this in life? We allow what might happen next to affect what is happening now. I know I have ruined perfectly lovely moments because I was worrying about potential consequences that frequently never happened. How often do we skip the opportunity to pause and centre ourselves because we’re already focused on what’s to come? We don’t notice where we truly are because we’re primed to launch into the next activity.
LAYER BY LAYER
Within Tai Chi practice there are so many lessons; it’s as if you need to peel away the layers to access them. First, there’s the foundation of good posture, the memory and coordination to learn the steps, the gradual build of flexibility and strength, and then, finally, you begin to reach the layers that nourish the spirit. It may start with something as simple as taking time out for yourself, or the health benefits of slowing down and breathing. And then, one day, while doing a move you’ve repeated a thousand times, you suddenly feel it — that moment when you finally know what your teacher or the books mean by moving qi or energy. For me, this awareness came first with the bigger or more obvious moves. The yang upward push at the end of ‘Grasp the Sparrow’s Tail’ and the expansive kicks gave me my first inkling that qi was moving within me.
Now, as I start to peel away the next layer of the Tai Chi onion, I find myself noticing the energy of each moment. It’s not just the big moves with names but the tiny aspects and subtle motions that make them up. Everything is balanced and everything flows. The ability to feel and be in each motion and each moment of the form led me to another insight: no moment can be captured or held. Just as each move in the form flows seamlessly into the next, so too does each moment of our lives. We’re in each moment, but we’re also endlessly part of the harmonious whole.
I know I have many levels left to explore in my study of this ancient martial art. It’s a lifelong practice, based on making the most of each moment. I look forward to peeling back each layer and opening myself to the next lesson. I hope you find a moment today to just be who you are, right here and right now.
Editor's note: You may enjoy The Alchemical Power of Acceptance and this article on A lighter look at the power of now.
Get Social