Tai Chi: Vitality in Motion by Liliana Atz
Tai Chi Chi Kung is an ancient Chinese psychophysical discipline that is based on the principles of Taoist philosophy. This tradition regards the universe as an energy field, the result of the perfect interaction of the two fundamental cosmic principles Yin/Yang, which constitute the symbol of the Dao and represent the most important and characteristic concept of Daoism. Through understanding the cosmos, the universe and nature, one comes, for Taoism, to self-understanding, to one’s individual growth. This tradition views the universe as an energy field; there is a holistic, analog view of the human being, according to which health and well-being are the consequence of man’s psychological, energetic, physiological and spiritual balance. Observation of nature and its phenomena over the millennia hypothesizes a reality in which what happens in the Macrocosm happens in a small way, by analogy, in the human Microcosm. The observation of the cyclic alternation of day and night is symbolically related to the shady and sunny side of a hill. It is a single reality that carries within itself both shadow and light, in their chasing and unchanging succession in space and time. Here the originality of Taoist thought is manifested; opposition is there, as nature teaches, but it is relative. Darkness exists only when compared with light and any reality is never absolute. Form is generated from formlessness, just as then form will lead to formlessness. This “formlessness,” this potentiality in the making is referred to by the term Tao, literally “the Way,” the matrix of the universe. Out of nothingness emerges something that is called “WuChi,” the “non-pole,” the embryo of a still undifferentiated existence whose symbol is an empty circle, a circle that is filled into the symbol of “Tai Chi,” the “great pole.” Tai Chi is the differentiation present in potency but not yet realized. It is still unity, but it contains within itself the potential for new birth. The symbol, with its fusion of the black part into the white part and the white part into the black part, all inscribed within a circle, communicates the idea of the intimate fusion of the two aspects that together constitute the totality of life. The Dao rotates by configuring the perpetual and inevitable transformation of the Whole. Chi (energy), the product of Yin/Yang interaction, forms the basis of the world of phenomena. In the human body it is that principle that moves, warms and protects against external influences. Health and mental/physical well-being are the natural consequence of the harmonious circulation of Chi within the network of meridians (energy channels of the body within which energy flows) while its imbalances promote the onset of disease. On the physical level, in fact, the round, slow and graceful movements allow the musculoskeletal system to be strengthened, loosen the joints, and promote the opening of the body and its internal organs. By working on the body, somatizations at the psychic level are dissolved: in a process that is reverse and complementary to the Western process, one works on the mind to make the body well. In addition to the twelve organic meridians and Zang-Fu, Chinese medicine cites the “Eight Curious Vessels” or Extraordinary Channels as aspects on which Tai Chi Chi Kung goes to influence. Activation of these Channels on the one hand enables a reduction in the rate at which individual vitality is consumed, enhancing the potential for life and health and, on the other hand, promoting the opening of the psychic and spiritual centers, which are closely linked to these structures. It is thought, that the Eight Curious Vessels develop in the prenatal period, even before the formation of the meridians. They are, according to Mark Seem, Fundamental energy channels, closely related to the genetic code and instrumental in the manifestation of our constitutional terrain. (2) Bottalo states that these Channels “are the foundation of the creation and continuous recreation that is life, to remind the individual that he or she must constantly and continually be reborn.” (3) Tai Chi Kung is then the meritorious work done on Chi (life energy, breath, breath…) is the art of cultivating Chi, increasing and strengthening it through external and internal techniques: breathing, posture, movement, mental concentration and meditation. Each of these elements is part and form of the other, which it can influence and modify. The exercises practiced provide skillful guidance of the life force that can be directed to every cell in the body by fostering the development of the subtle and powerful awareness of chi. Bibliography:– Fundamentals of Traditional Chinese Medicine – F. Bottalo, Rosa Brotzu – Ed Xenia;– Jin Shin Do – I.M. Teeguarden – Ed. Mediterranean; (2– Handbook of Qi Shu – F. Bottalo – Ed. Xenia; (3)
Psychology and the holistic view of man: between West and East. In body-mind energy balancing work Shiatsu & Co. by Liliana Atz
Part 1: West.Starting from childhood, as the structuring nucleus of the human universe, various psychological studies have highlighted how the relationship with the mother and/or other reference figures is decisive in the activation of those temperamental traits that manifest themselves from the first year of life. These traits represent the biological matrix from which, in interaction with the environment, personality traits will develop.Eysenck (1) states that temperamental traits have a genetic basis, however, we do not inherit the behaviour, but the biological structures that give rise to those behaviours that we manifest more frequently than others. There are certain biological intermediaries, such as hormones and neurotransmitters, that translate genetic potential into behavioural constants (personality traits). In interaction with the environment, the physiological underpinnings we inherit produce both those behaviours that can be detected in the laboratory, such as gestalt retention and sensory threshold, and those behaviours that are observed in natural contexts, such as sociability, sexuality, and aggression. Affective communication is thus outlined as the first source of stimulation of the child’s behaviour and, subsequently, through a process of introjection, also the basis on which to structure the framework of its internal world. This capacity seems to be profoundly conditioned by the type of emotional response he was able to enjoy during his childhood experience. The intrapsychic world of the child is, in this sense, the result of the interrelation between its original temperamental, communicative, emotional and responsive structure and that of its attachment figures. The ability to recognise one’s emotions, which the child progressively articulates, without resorting to defensive operations of deformation and limitation of them, is fundamental to his development, because it leads him to establish adequate intrapsychic communication with the world of his affections. According to Bowlby (2), Internal Operating Models (MOI) are formed in the child, i.e. models of the relationship of self and self with other. These are mental representations constructed by the individual, containing schemata, representations of the world, which enable him to make predictions and create expectations in his relations with others. Over time, MOI become automated, until they operate at the level of the unconscious, that is, until they become tendential characteristics of the individual’s personality.For Bowlby, there are several Internal Operating Models for each of the main motivational systems. It is on this basis that the motives of the self are constructed, i.e. all information concerning oneself ends up being organised in a series of cognitive structures called ‘self-schemas’, within which one finds both representations of specific events concerning the individual and more general representations, the outcome of the customary evaluation of one’s personal conduct. The security and support provided by the attachment bond are, therefore, indispensable factors in the child’s acquisition of independence. The absence of such a bond, or its rupture, has the effect of halting or at any rate considerably slowing down the development of the child’s communication and movement skills and, as a whole, his or her entire affective and mental development, and of marking the successive stages in the construction of a personal identity. The latter is built in increasingly differentiated and complex concentric circles: primary and then secondary socialisation (family, school, peer group, etc.). At each stage, the individual takes on new roles that add to and transform previous roles, changing personal identity as a mirror of social identity.In the sociological field, various research has proven the intertwining of temperamental and personality traits with the individual’s primary and secondary socialisation. Entering a group (school, joining groups of various kinds, military service, entering the world of work), are experiences that punctuate a person’s entire life and are closely linked to both the type of group one joins and the characteristics of the neophyte. The individual enters the ‘group culture’ with his or her baggage of experiences, self-assessment and self-preservation mechanisms, becoming a more or less active member and structuring his or her identity through implicit acceptance of the group’s rules. Imbalance, illness.In ‘normal’ situations, the person becomes an active agent of his or her own socialisation. The opportunities that society offers him may be more or less extensive, but the space for choice is never completely reduced, leaving him the possibility of directing the process of his own socialisation and identity construction. In other cases, the close intertwining of social, occupational, environmental and genetic conditions means that the disease may unconsciously be experienced as the only escape route from an otherwise untenable situation. Body work (according to the Western view).It was Sigmund Freud, who stated that a large number of illnesses were nothing more than the bodily expression of childhood experiences characterised by great pain and fear. Freud’s work was expanded by his pupil W. Reich, who introduced the examination of the person’s body into psychoanalysis; he was the first to talk about what is now called body language. Reich experienced how direct pressure on the muscles of the body helped the patient to get in touch with strong forgotten emotions and painful memories. The unity between the mind, body and emotional aspects of the person became evident.Alexander Lowen, a patient and student of Reich, coined the term ‘bioenergy’ for it. Lowen observed how a person whose energy flow is blocked loses much of his or her vitality and personality, causing imbalances at various levels. As the individual begins to grow up, he learns how the free expression of his emotions both in the family and in society clashes with rejection, disapproval, humiliation and punishment. This is followed by a natural unconscious control of emotions through the permanent blocking of the body parts involved in these manifestations. Unlocking the ‘armour’ that the individual has created during his or her evolution leads him or her to reconnect with his or her forgotten parts and their acceptance can, over time, turn into a delicate path of personal re-evolution.Recent developments of the Bowlbian school (2) also recognise how body contact represents a fundamental component of the therapeutic relationship, as it can foster in the patient the perception of
