Ball practice for better Taijiquan
练太极拳就得要练松。练球的出发点是要大家学习扎根，中定，松腰松胯，全身性的松/动还有舍己从人的精神，只有舍己才能从人。即是舍去自身的僵力，舍去无目的盲动。。。即是顺从他人之力随人而动，沾黏连随等等。
Practitioners will feel that the ball practice is good for relaxation and enhancing flexibility.. Most people in the modern world are full of tension and have weak, problematic spine.. When one understands the correct way of movement, the backward bending of the spine will be a great therapy, it effectively counteracts the damage due to hours spent on forward bending.
It is also a training for getting our central equilibrium as one will need to be stabilized within, be centered, settled and after some training, will be able to generate whole body movement correctly. Gradually one will begin to develop an improved awareness of the skills needed to avoid getting out of balance and can be pushed like a tumbler toy....
At a higher level, it is also to train our body to relax, coordinating with deep breathing and flow like a river that does not go head on with any obstacle i.e no direct or brute force to counter the oncoming force.. one will learn to feel the movement and train our sensitivity to training partner's force and direction. A way to understand Taiji quan's principle of Giving Up Oneself., sticking, following the force etc.
October 2017