Life is a grand unfolding drama, and you, my friends, are both the actor and the observer. You play two primary roles: "the thinker" and the "watcher." These are not separate beings but two aspects of the same self, two states of consciousness.
When you move energy—whether in Tai Chi or life—you are shifting the flow from one part of yourself to another. It is like an artist guiding the brush across the canvas or a river changing its course. The thinker is caught in the whirlpool of thoughts, constantly churning, always active. But the watcher… the watcher is still, the silent observer, detached from the noise, untouched by the currents.
Let me offer you the truth: "You are both the thinker and the watcher." When you are swept away in thought, you are the thinker—the small, separate "i" that believes itself apart from everything else. But when you step back and begin to observe your thoughts instead of identifying with them, you return to your true nature: the watcher, the eternal observer.
In most of life, your energy flows entirely into the thinker. Your thoughts pull at you, and you are carried by their tide. But with practice, you begin to transfer that energy. Slowly, gently, you move your attention from the thinker to the watcher. It begins with small shifts, like the graceful movement of Tai Chi.
Picture yourself as a Tai Chi master, transferring your weight from one leg to another. In the beginning, when you step to the right, all your energy—your focus, your attention—gathers there. Like the mind consumed by thoughts, you are the thinker in that moment, your focus fully immersed in the world of ideas.
Then, with the gentle precision of Tai Chi, you begin to shift some of that weight. You move your focus to the left leg—the leg of the watcher. Now the energy is divided: 70% in the right leg, 30% in the left. The balance is beginning to change; with it, your awareness expands from the world of thoughts into something deeper.
As you continue this practice, the energy flows more toward the left leg—the leg of stillness, of observation. Over time, the watcher becomes stronger and more attuned. Eventually, you find yourself standing in perfect stillness, all your energy in the left leg—the watcher—rooted in the present moment, anchored in your true nature.
In the beginning, dear friends, the mind will still dominate. You may find that 90% of your energy goes into thinking, and only 10% remains in watching.
Thoughts will pull at you, and it will feel as though the mind has control. But with persistent practice, with the quiet dedication to simply observe, something begins to shift. The balance slowly changes. Each time you return to watching, to observing without attachment, the mind's grip weakens. The watcher, the silent observer, becomes stronger and more present.
As your practice deepens, the mind's hold begins to loosen. The energy moves more into the watcher. At first, the ratio might shift to 70% thinking, 30% observing, then 50/50, until eventually, the watcher holds the majority of your focus.
The more you transfer your energy to pure observation, the more you reclaim your inner power. Step by step, the watcher becomes the master, and the thinker becomes the servant.
This, my friends, is the essence of Tai Chi—and life itself. It's not simply about form or movement but about guiding the life force (Qi) that animates them. It’s about attuning yourself to nature's rhythm, shifting your focus with intention, and balancing the dynamic dance between active thought and silent observation.
True movement goes beyond the body; energy flows through you, a seamless dance of mind, body, and spirit in perfect harmony.
In this practice, you become the light that illuminates itself.
So practice, dear friends. Transfer your weight. Watch your thoughts. Move your energy. Let the watcher become the master and the thinker the servant. In this, you will find your true self—the calm, the stillness, the power that flows through all things.
You will become, as we say in Tai Chi, "one with the dao," moving in harmony with the universe. The energy (Qi) is always with you; you must learn how to flow.
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