51. The Martial Tao drinks tea

☰ I've been doing Baguazhang 八卦掌 martial arts full-time for more than sixteen years. And that for me has literally meant doing it everyday whatever the weather conditions or locations. ☳ And while I am this and that now, I have reached a place where it's getting harder and harder to express or explain the journey I am on, because the Tao 道 can be truly a weird place. ☵ Instead, those experiences are only easily expressed amongst martial artists who have mastered or are mastering their inner-game; And who know that Tea Time equals Me Time is not just about drinking tea 喝茶 - It is about conducting martial warfare from a higher plane. ☶ In this higher plane, victory comes from transcending warfare itself. ☷ It is like the lowly pawn making it to the far-side of the chessboard. And instead of becoming another major piece in the game, decides to go off and do something else. ☴ Hang on a minute, someone may say. That's not our cup of tea 茶碗! A pawn doesn't just leave. The pawn's role is to fight and die for the game... And it is this same kind of rubbish thinking that traps good people in very bad situations, doing what they were taught by others to be right and is in-fact not right. But harmful to all concerned. ☲ The pawn in our example isn't stupid. It realised that there's more to life and death than just being another pawn. It's the difference between chi 气 (air) and the chi 氣 (energy) in Qigong 氣功. ☱ Now my cup of tea 茶碗 needs refilling, so I will leave it here for you to ponder over this as you come to grips with your own martial tao 武道. Liked what you heard & want to connect with me? Join me at… linkedin.com/in/peterhainzl/