Enter the Chi

When I was younger, I used to snigger at those ah peks and ah sohs who did their morning tai chi and qi gong routines. Wagging their arms. Squatting repeatedly. Doing all kinds of funny movements that would induce bowel movement in any sane individual.

Many moons and bowels later (ugh), this tai chi and qi gong have come back to haunt me. Due to my work on policy-making for seniors, I know more about tai chi now, including its clinically-tested benefits. Tai chi, sometimes called tai chi chuan, is a noncompetitive, self-paced system of gentle physical exercise and stretching. To do tai chi, you perform a series of postures or movements in a slow, graceful manner.

Tai chi is actually a “soft” form of martial arts, originating from China in the 12th century. It’s more of a meditative nature – the slow movements and concentration needed focus the mind and heart.

The benefits of tai chi include:
- Reducing anxiety and depression
- Improving balance and coordination
- Reducing the number of falls
- Improving sleep quality, such as staying asleep longer at night and feeling more alert during the day
- Slowing bone loss in women after menopause
- Lowering blood pressure
- Improving cardiovascular fitness
- Relieving chronic pain
- Improving everyday physical functioning

So the ah peks and ah sohs KNEW about the good stuff...

I went for my first tai chi session today. Does this mean I'm an ah pek? No. Tai chi is for everyone.

The session was quite awesome actually. Led by an experienced tai chi Master, we learnt two very simple steps of a 12-step modified Sun style.

The deliberate movement of the routine had a very peaceful and calming effect on me. The Master said the chi energy flows through the body at the various postures, thus balancing the body’s energy flows. Whatever that means.

I’m no expert at chi energy, but I believe all of us have some sort of energy field around us that affect our mood and behaviour. The movements in our five daily prayers have this exact calming effect when done properly. In fact, I think our daily prayers combines both tai chi and yoga postures, with some spa treatment added in for good measure (our wudhu or ablution cools down the strategic parts of our bodies, such as the forearms and face, calming us down).

It will indeed be an exciting journey to learn all 12 steps of tai chi and teaching it to any willing test subj- sorry -friends. And in the process, I hope to apply the lessons learnt in slow, deliberate movements in my prayers, to achieve the purpose of uninhibited communication with God.