Tuesday night class #1

some quick notes from the first class, mostly in order

balance on one foot, rotate ankle, then knee, then hip.  Switch

knees unlocked, twisted out, hips leveled , = sacrum dropped

abdominal breathing

embrace the tree  - connecting, push on forearm w & w/o palm inward tilt

push clouds

energizing breath arms swing, then hands attracting, then store in  dan tien 

bench sliding on to cracking corn

circle of chairs

seated forward, perineum free

inner smile

excellent~

Before bed routine, 2007

It's been a year now that I've been doing a routine before going to sleep.  It didn't take long before I wasn't waking at 3 am, tossing and turning for an hour before getting back to sleep.  Not that sleeping better is the only benefit!

What I do is based on the eight pieces of brocade with some additions.  The content doesn't matter too much, what matters is doing it!   So a few guidelines to get started - 

1. Don't miss a day.  Even if you are tired or overtired, doing 10 minutes will be more beneficial than the 10 extra minutes in bed.
2. The movements are a help to quieting your mind.  Consciously do at least one of them each night with a still mind, feeling the moments of the stretch, and not thinking or analyzing.
3. If your body wants to move, move.  There's no right way, no wrong way.  

I start by shaking to loosen the day's tension.   Standing easy (horse stance), feet shoulder width apart, arms hanging loose, knees unlocked.  Shaking from the hands, letting the movement travel to the shoulders and torso, or shaking the knees, letting the movements propagate.   Holding the arms out like a scarecrow is a good variation, or even above your head.   Do this for a couple of minutes, moving on when ready.

Sometimes I'll do a few spine twists, arms and hands following alternately to slap against the lower dan tien and corresponding spot on the back (gate of life).    Or hug the tree until my neck loosens and head floats up a bit.     

Here's the usual order I follow for the 8 pieces:

1. "Reaching up high with interlocked fingers" 
   
2. "Drawing the bow"
   
3. "One hand up, other down"
   
4. "Twisting your tail"
   
5. "Back and forward bend"
   
6. "Stand on toes and drop down"
   
7. "turning and clenching fist"
   
8. "Looking back over the shoulder"

I breathe with my abdomen while doing these.   Inhaling on the expansion, exhaling on the contraction of each movement.

Of course, there's many variations to each piece.  Not surprising, over hundreds of years.  I don't know if there is an ideal or an optimum way.  Probably not.  I suspect everyone who explores and pursues this finds their own way.   Taoism is nothing if not pragmatic.  If it works, keep it, if not, find something that does.

That's it for tonight.