Running and Yoga
As the New Year approaches I think about resolutions or intentions. A mixture of running, yoga and tai-chi is a combination that appeals to me as a kind of core physical discipline.
Autumn Running
This is an image from my running log. Whatever else I do, whatever else is going on in my life I must resolve to run and I must resolve to meditate. Some combination of running, yoga asanas, pranayama, tai-chi/qigong and meditation would seem good.
I completed this morning’s run in a little under 36 minutes, which is significantly slower than my best time of 30 minutes about a year ago. While running I mentally repeating the Ho’oponopono mantra: “I’m sorry, please forgive me, I love you and I thank you”.
My meditation was ‘japa’ meditation on my personal mantra using a mala. I followed this up with zhan zhuang or standing stake.
Tai Chi Notes
The Mei Quan community site has some useful guidance on the 24 step short form:
Step one is called Opening the Form. I find this easy to remember .. the rest not so much.
Step 2 is called Part the Wild Horse’s Mane. It starts from left bow stance, moves to right bow stance and returns to left bow stance.
Step 3, White Crane Spreads its wings involves much waving of hands and seems more complicated than it is. Most of this step in in left hanging stance.
Step 4 is Brush Knee with Twist Step and I am finding this difficult.
Step 5 is called Play the Guitar and is as far as I’ve gone with the form.
So far I’ve not really practiced much outside the class, which is why I feel I’ve retained so little.
Another possibly useful resource can be found at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P5hvODK2zW4 which seems to be the beginning of a video series on the short form. I haven’t look at it in all.
The Conjurer’s Fallacy
Does Chi energy exist? This video suggests that it does:
This video, on the other hand, seems to have been made to challenge the testimony in the first:
While I agree with the premise that extraordinary claims require extraordinary proof I think that this is an example of what I would call the ‘conjurer’s fallacy’, the notion that any feat, claimed to be paranormal, that can be reproduced by conjuring has been produced by conjuring. There is more to the video about Dynamo Jack than the burning of a newspaper and it is the whole testimony rather than a part of it that is suggestive of a paranormal energy.