On being “natural”

This “natural” is not your “natural”. The master said so right at the first meeting. His explanations later on were mainly based on how to separate “self” from the objects that we observe. The “nature” taiji talks about is about the real nature out there. It is the one outside of self. Not the one the observer feels, sees, or believes.  The master used the analogy of chopsticks to illustrate the naturalness of taiji. One must withdraw the elbow to pull the food back towards the mouth and push the hand out to go get food. Otherwise, one will have a hard time eating with chopsticks. He will also elbow his neighbors all the time.

People all like to eat good things. All food that taste good are harmful to health. If you don’t believe this, you can eat sugar, salt or fatty pork everyday. You will find out what happens. In our daily life, lying down feels more comfortable than sitting; sitting is more comfortable than standing up; standing up feels more comfortable than walking. But for health, the above are the opposite. Therefore, Grandmaster Hong told us to follow the rules not how we feel. Creating new forms or changing forms are usually done according to how the practitioner “feels”. These will result in hurting himself and harming others.