Boundaries and Barriers

There are many different opinions about this subject as it relates to Push Hands. Some people say that in combat you would want the opponent to know nothing of you so you should practice having an energetic boundary around you. The thing to remember here is that we are not just building the vehicle that we use in Tai Chi, we are building the vehicle so choose wisely.

You can decide how much and what part of your energies come out and comingle with the other, even in combat. Consider a spy; he has a “false persona” that he projects to the enemy but it has to be real parts of himself or the enemy senses the barrier. It has to be a “good acting job”. (Actually, acting is a brilliant metaphor for the high level artist.) In normal Push Hands situations, the sensing of energy, the ability to return that energy and not let it get stuck in the body are essential skills. In practicing Fa Jing and other harder energies on each other we have all had to learn how to unstick those energies from our bodies when we have been struck. The supposed danger of someone doing Din Mak on you by accident or touching some acupuncture spot and making your kidney fall off is a little silly. Actually, all the healthiest people that I know in Tai Chi have a vigorous practice that includes the bump and grind, not the rainbows and butterflies.

One of the things you will learn when allowing people in is when their energy is not clean. There are many flavors of this. They can go to an inappropriate wavelength or try to attach to you or dominate you or wind up going past some line and actually start a real fight. The rules should be those you learned in kindergarten.

Don’t steal - Don’t take anything that’s not yours
Clean up after yourself - Don’t leave anything behind
Be nice - Play nicely

It is therefore important that your listening skills and sensing skills inform you in every instance, in every moment how to be aware of what is happening energetically. This is especially important when pushing with someone you don’t know and an excellent skill to help you decide who to play with. Of course if people have not reached a certain level emotionally or psychologically it is a bad idea to allow full connection, they will misperceive what is happening.

For me in Push Hands as in life it is not an unconditional open heartedness that I exhibit. It is absolutely conditional as I am always titrating my experience against the current situation. I am always creating more and more opportunity in my interactions to be completely open and connected. This is all made possible by the great advancement that I have made beyond the dreamy notion of unconditional love and my matriculation to conditional love.