A couple of beginners trialled my classes recently who had achieved a high standard of practise in schools of Yoga. The first questions these beginners asked me were about what they should be doing with their breathing and if they shoudn’t be controlling their breathing to time it with their movements. They were uncomfortable with my answer.
How to breathe is also a fairly common question raised by new students if they’ve done some research online about Tai Chi before attending a class. Online it is very common to see Tai Chi described as a form of exercise or meditation in motion characterised by slow movements and controlled breathing, or where breathing is said to be consciously co-ordinated with the movements.
In my opinion, these descriptions of Tai Chi represent misunderstandings about both the nature of Tai Chi and the nature of breathing itself which can be corrected when seen through the light of the ancient Chinese culture from which Tai Chi was born.
In ancient Chinese culture, or classical Chinese thought (some like to call this a philosophy), context is everything and therefore movement and breathing is always in relation to a specific context. This can either complicate or simplify things, depending on how you see it.
The simplest principle governing the practise of Tai Chi is guided by the Daoist philosophy of natural order. In Tai Chi we are merely aiming to re-learn how to move naturally – we are seeking the natural order of whole body movement in our environment. Of course, because breathing is inextricably linked to movement, we are also aiming to re-learn how to breathe naturally.
The logical and practical conclusion to moving and breathing naturally, is to just let it happen…naturally. Attempting to control breathing, especially in time with complex movements performed in the Tai Chi form, is therefore not natural. It also adds tension. This is especially the case when the practical applications (and martial applications for that matter) of the movements are entirely context based.
Because natural movement patterns and by corollary, breathing patterns, are context based, it is simpler and more effective to leave it to the natural mechanisms of the body/mind to manage the process without conscious control. From at least several hundred of years of practice, Tai Chi masters know very well that attempting conscious control of certain body mechanisms can cause more trouble than it’s worth. This is because conscious control often – if not always – interupts natural harmonic processes out in the real world, which is where it really matters.
So according to learning and practising breathing, in the Chen-style Tai Chi tradition, we simply breathe naturally. We breathe naturally by keeping the mouth a relaxed shut, tongue relaxed, gently and naturally touching the pallette behind the top teeth and breathing through the nose.
Over time, as a beginner begins to relax the body, its structure, alignment and co-ordination improve, so does the breathing. Breathing becomes softer, slower, and deeper, achieving a natural harmony with mind and movement. By spending our time in practise allowing this natural process to re-emerge, it enables the process to become our automatic way of breathing in all of life’s complicated contexts.