Tai chi chuan
The art of Tai Chi Chuan, also called meditation in movement, in a certain sense, can be considered a real practical application of the philosophy of Taoism, a school of thought developed in China in the sixth century BC. by Lao-Tzu and which is based on a principle of reality that takes shape in a continuous evolution and in an endless transformation, where the two opposite elements, the Yin and the Yang, create each other by intertwining in a harmonious dynamic balance.
Every situation, everything that surrounds our reality consists of these two poles which, as we have said, coexist.
Lao Tzu wrote in his work today known as "Tao Te Ching":
"Humans are born soft and weak
They die stiff and strong
The ten thousand plants and trees
Are born soft and tender
And die withered and sere
The stiff and strong
are deaths companions
The soft and flexible
are life's companions.
Better to avoid stiffness and tension,
and seeks flexibility and softness."
"To remain whole, be twisted!
To become straight, let yourself be bent.
To become full, be hollow.."
"One who is good at being a warrior doesn't make a show of his might;
One who is good in battle doesn't get angry.."
"Shape clay into a vessel;
It is the space within that makes it useful.
Cut doors and windows for a room;
It is the holes which make it useful.
Therefore benefit comes from what is there;
Usefulness from what is not there."
In daily practice, Tai Chi Chuan is an ancient discipline useful for strengthening awareness, the elasticity of tendons and muscles and improving posture and balance. It responds to the needs of extremely different ages: in fact, in the execution of the slow form, in addition to all the various exercises, each practitioner can move in according to the possibilities of her/his age and her/his physical state and so can respect her/his own limits and enjoy the same sense of well-being. It was, in origin, just an internal martial art and, over time, it becomes a form of preventive therapy for the balance of body and mind.