MIND ACTIVITY

Quoting from Grandmaster Wang:

The main goal of mind activity is focusing spirit, stabilizing an tranquilizing mind. So mind activity is a process of curbing disturbing thoughts, ìuncountable thoughts are returning to oneî, it is entering the state of tranquility. The principle of mind activity is that the imagined objects and situations induce feeling of lightness, relax, comfort, bringing pleasant, happy mood, so you are avoiding tension and worry. Usually below listed forms of mind activity are used.

• Relaxation. One method is based on unified, complete experiencing the feeling of relax, by using method of ìas smile, but not smile, as if urinating but not urinatingî. In another method you are experiencing the feeling of relax beginning from head, gradually downward, through neck, shoulders, arms, wrists, palms, chest, waist, abdomen, hips, legs, feet, to the toes. This process of relaxation can be repeated many times. But for a beginner it can be difficult. So a beginner should start from the method of gradual relaxation, and after achieving some ability of relaxing, start practicing the complete relaxation as described above. Method of gradual relaxation: first back, then front. Start from top of head, through neck, shoulders and arms (if it is difficult to relax left and right arm at the same time, you can start from relaxing first one side, then the other, later you can do relaxing both sides at the same time), spine, waist, buttocks, hips, back side of legs, heels, soles of feet, to toes, repeating it 3-5 times. Then start again from top of head, through eyelids, face, mouth, throat, shoulders, front side of arms, wrists, palms, chest, abdomen, front side of legs, feet, to toes, repeating it 3-5 times. After getting some ability of relaxing this way, you should do simultaneous relaxing of all sides. This kind or relaxation can be used as basic form of mind activity in zhan zhuang exercises. Beginners, no matter which posture they practice, should start from relaxation and only later use other kinds of mind activity.

• Listening to a distant sound. Usually you start from listening to a close sound, gradually more and more distant, a very slight sound from very distant source. You shouldnít be impatient. You shouldnít listen firmly to some sound, but rather to slight sounds from various distances in unlimited space.

• Bath in a stream. Imagine that you are lying in water, temperature of which makes you feel comfortable. Whole body is surrounded by water. Water is flowing in direction from head toward feet.

• Shower. Imagine that you are taking shower. Temperature of water gives you comfortable feeling. Water is flowing on surface of your body, from head to feet. Listen to the sound of water flowing and water drops falling on the floor.

• Half of body in water. Imagine that lower part of body is in water. Its temperature gives you comfort. Experience this feeling.

• Standing in water. Imagine that you are standing in water. Its temperature gives you comfortable feeling. Water is lightly hitting your body from different sides and your body is naturally following the movement of water.

• Rooting. Imagine that you are as if a thousand years old tree, standing stable, as if roots of the tree were reaching deep under ground. Hurricane will not move you.

• Wading in mud. Imagine that you are walking, your feet moving through mud. Its temperature gives you comfortable feeling. Mud is giving resistance to your movement and you are walking very slowly.

• Stepping on cotton. Imagine that your feet are resting on a soft layer of cotton- wool. Once and again slightly shift weight to the left and to the right. • Leaning against something. Imagine that you are resting, when your back, buttocks, legs are leaning against something soft and comfortable. Body is light and relaxed, without any effort.

• Suspension. Imagine that some of your hair is tied to a tree branch. Keep the hair slightly stretched but donít let it break. Whole spirit is focused on top of your head.

• Propping. Imagine that your both arms are resting on a balustrade or on balloons filled with air and floating on surface of water.

• Returning sight and watching inside. You can use this method when it is difficult to get rid of disturbing thoughts. Observe your whole body, checking if you are keeping the feeling of lightness, relax and comfort everywhere. If you notice that some part of body is not relaxed, without feeling of comfort, consciously relax it. This way your spirit, mind are directed toward inside of body. When you repeat continuously this experiencing of relax and comfort in whole body, there is no need to fight with disturbing thoughts, and they disappear naturally.

• Following what is happening. When there appear many disturbing thoughts and it is difficult to o get rid of them, just follow it naturally. Donít fight with the thoughts which are coming, donít stop those which are leaving. Think of yourself as a vast sea, and of thoughts as of waves. Although wind creates waves, it doesnít disturb the sea. When wind is ceasing, waves disappear. This way, without trying to control thoughts you are controlling them.

• Attracting. If it is difficult to control thoughts, you can use method of attracting. Imagine that you are a furnace and thoughts are dry leaves. Strong thoughts are leaves which are falling into furnace and are burning. This way mind becomes open, strong, bad thoughts disappear naturally.

• Concentrating and dispersing. When practitioner achieves some basics and is able to experience comfortable feeling of relax during exercise, he can sometimes concentrate this feeling in some part of body and then again expand it to whole body. This concentrating and expanding can be repeated many times. This way not only the whole is trained, but it has positive effects to the part which needs healing.

• Calm watching. Imagine that you are standing, sitting or lying in a beautiful place and you are feeling comfortably. You are calmly watching blue see, bright moon or other beautiful view. You are achieving pleasant mood and gradually entering the state of forgetting yourself.

• Unity of man and nature. Imagine that you are standing, sitting or lying in a beautiful place, feeling comfortably. You can feel that the air is embracing your body. Gradually you can feel that body and air are one. You feel extremely comfortably, as if floating in the air, entering the state of forgetting yourself.