Tout le malheur des hommes vient d’une seule chose, qui est de ne savoir pas demeurer en repos dans une chambre.

—Blaise Pascal

All human misfortune comes from one thing: not knowing how to remain at peace in a room.

Overhovedet er Trangen til Ensomhed et Tegn paa, at der dog er Aand i et Menneske, og Maalestokken for, hvad Aand der er. I Oldtiden og i Middelalderen var man opmærksom paa denne Trang til Ensomhed og agtede den i sin Betydning; i vor Tids bestandige Selskabelighed gyser man for Ensomheden, saa man udelukkende ikke veed at bruge den til andet end – for Forbrydere.

—Søren Kierkegaard

On the whole, an urge for solitude is a sign that a human being possesses spirit, and it serves as a measure for the nature of that spirit. In antiquity and the Middle Ages, people were aware of this longing for solitude and recognized its significance. In the constant sociability of our own age, however, people recoil from solitude – to the point where they see no use for it other than as a punishment for criminals.

The warrior's mind never wanders. It is always under control and tethered to the dantian. Then spirit is free to direct the proceedings.

Laetus in praesens. Neque censum existimes, neque appetas dignitatem. Fuge excessum, fuge negotia. Laetus in praesens.

—Marsilio Ficino

Be content with the present. Do not set store by wealth, nor seek high status. Avoid excess; avoid entanglements. Be content with the present.

When we strike a pose not natural to us, either physical or mental, we introduce tension that makes our true centre unavailable to us. If we then try to hold the pose, the tension becomes a block and we loose sight of who we truly are.

here for the
long haul

Tense shoulders simply indicate a wandering mind. And if the shoulders are chronically tense then the mind is chronically wandering – never home.

Root systems remember the soil
from which they were removed.

—Whit Griffin

As living creatures, we are hardwired to love life & to love nature. It's built into us. It's what lends us lightness.

Body as one unit. This is introduced in the first lesson as one of the fundamental principles of Taiji. But really it should be: Mind/body/spirit as one unit. And the point/region about which they unify is the dantian.

Is all you can do is feed all that in
and hope it kindles the spirit.
—Stan Tracey

Energy rising & gathering at the vertex (head top). Imagine wearing a wizard's hat or dunce's cap.

(Interestingly the word dunce comes from Duns Scotus (1265-1308) who Hopkins called 'of realty the rarest-veined unraveller.' Scotus's concept of haecceitas – thisness – Hopkins borrowed and called inscape: the idea that spirit (God) is in the details of a natural thing, in what makes it a unique individual rather than what makes it one of a species. Scotus fell out of favour with the later Renaissance humanists, who were heavily into measurement & classification, hence Duns became dunce (Scotus & his followers wore pointed felt caps, believing it would funnel knowledge into the brain). In the 1960s Gilles Deleuze was also influenced by Scotus in developing his philosophy of difference over sameness.)

Silent knowledge. A knowledge that cannot be couched in words and if you try you end up corrupting.

Try to love the questions
far more than the answers

Nature loves to hide. If you look you don't see. If you listen you won't hear. We need a spirit keen enough to snatch glances when we're not looking & catch rumors when we're not listening.

Affirmer, c’est alléger: non pas charger la vie du poids des valeurs supérieures, mais créer de nouvelles valeurs qui sont celles de la vie, qui rendent la vie légère et active.

—Gilles Deleuze

To affirm is to lighten: not by burdening life with the weight of higher values, but by creating new values — values belonging to life itself — that render life light & active.

The phrase no blame (无咎) occurs in the I Ching (易经) 82 times and the phrase no regret (无悔) occurs 43 times. When you inspect the contents of your mind you begin to realise why.

Each one of the principles, if thoroughly investigated, is an avenue into spirit.

I've had the good fortune to have worked with a few wise old women, and something one of them said to me will always stay with me:

When I'm with a person I have no interest in how famous, wealthy, educated or beautiful they are; the only thing that interests me is: are they a good person?

Naturally the head is a space of intense clarity & brightness, ever shining forth in compassion & enthusiasm. But nowadays it is a space of darkness – full of worry, resentment, angst – separation.

A burgeoning heart
(literally: sending out buds)

The teacher sees something special

glimmering beneath your ego

A flourishing heart
(literally: sending out flowers)

DAODEJING   Chapter 41 starts:

上士 闻道 勤而行之
中士 闻道 若存若亡
下士 闻道 大笑之。
不笑不足以为道。

The superior man, upon hearing of the Way, diligently practices it.
The average man, upon hearing of the Way, is uncertain & doubtful.
The inferior man, upon hearing of the Way, laughs loudly at it.
If he did not laugh, it would not be the Way.

(Often translated with good student, mediocre student, poor student.)

Think of the adjectives superior, average, inferior as describing the quality of the person's mind/energy/spirit. The superior man has more enthusiasm & focus that the average, whereas the inferior man just cannot see beyond his selfish concerns.

CONSISTENCY & INTENSITY

We usually focus on what we're doing or where we're going, but God's primary concern is who we're becoming in the process.

—Mark Batterson

Softness transforms force into energy. When the softness is active – a melting softness – we call this yielding.

We all need a teacher – someone who knows us better than we know ourselves.

Allow the practice to transform your mood