Tai4 ji2 and Chinese medicine

August 16, 2002

Fernando, and Everyone,

> Here's a little quote from Professor Cheng on

> " investing in Loss "

>

> ..To learn T'ai Chi Ch'uan, it is first

> necessary to learn to invest

> in loss.....To invest in loss is to permit

> others to use force to

> attack while you don't use even the slightest

> force to defend

> yourself.. "

>

> Hope this helps.

I really appreciated reading folks'

thoughts about the meaning of this

phrase...so much so that I'd like

to pose a general question regarding

the relationship of the principles

of tai4 ji2 to the practice of Chinese

medicine.

How do people look at this?

Does such a relationship exist?

How can it be defined? described?

taught? studied?

These are not idle questions on

my part as I'm now completing the

first draft of a manuscript for

a book about the relationship of

tai4 ji2 and tui1 na2.

Thanks,

Ken

August 17, 2002

Dear All...

Fernando wrote> Here's a little quote from Professor Cheng on> "investing in Loss"> > > ..To learn T'ai Chi Ch'uan, it is first> necessary to learn to invest > in loss.....To invest in loss is to permit> others to use force to > attack while you don't use even the slightest> force to defend > yourself.."> > Hope this helps.

Marco:

Thanks, I too been reading with interest the comments on "invest in lost" which then seams to me a "Tai Chi related phrase", and maybe one of the reasons why I have such difficulty in understanding or rather comprehending the phrase.

First I thought when Ken sometime introduced it that it was a "coded phrase" to always look on the bright side.

Why? simply because I read it as a comment that being where there is no real genuine in-depth approach to Chinese medicine yet (Guatemala) means that potentially speaking there is a lot of potential...

or, if you know you do not know Chinese (and realise the need) then you can learn it. i.e. the lost of not knowing becomes potentially speaking knowing...

Then I got carried away and started to think that would that be like being happy if and or when my girlfriend leaves me (for always reading about Chinese medicine)...

What I mean is that as with anything else there is a lot of background information needed to actually understand the concept within the meaning.

Ken:

I really appreciated reading folks'thoughts about the meaning of thisphrase...so much so that I'd liketo pose a general question regardingthe relationship of the principlesof tai4 ji2 to the practice of Chinesemedicine.

Marco:

Do you mean tai4 ji2 as in "great supreme", doaist principal...

Ken:

How do people look at this?Does such a relationship exist?How can it be defined? described?taught? studied?These are not idle questions onmy part as I'm now completing thefirst draft of a manuscript fora book about the relationship oftai4 ji2 and tui1 na2.Thanks,Ken

Marco:

Very interesting I am lost for words (sign of deficient understanding-comprehension of Chinese medicine and "its extra curricular needs") any chance you can elaborate a bit?

Although, since in a way this letter came about due to "invest in lost" and Tai Chi Chuan reference as comments for further understanding, one could argue for the importance of learning-doing-knowing Tai Chi Chuan not merely as "Chinese yoga-gymnastic" but as a Chinese-Oriental concept of the world i.e. including Tai4 Ji2, then its implication in such worldly things such as medicine might become more evident...

Marco