Tai Chi Contribution to Green Exercise

Being mindful of our internal physical self seems to heightened our perception of the natural world something I have called Awe Tai Chi.

I would go further and suggest modern culture has so disconnected people from this inner perceiving that it has become an alien concept, a thing of magic and fantasy. Yet older cultures understood and respected the natural world. Hoare (2014) points to a Maori chieftain who slept on a beach with stranded whales so they did not die alone.

Hoare (2014 p.290) cites Witi Ihimaera Maori author of The Whale Rider 'nor have I ever believed that the interconnectedness - that interface as we call it - stops simply because it's dysfunctional now on the human side'.

A greater awareness of the natural world must enable humanity to respect and find balance with nature something that appears lacking in modern consumerist society's.

A somatic learning found within Embodied Tai Chi offers one way for individuals to get back in touch with our inner perception, to enhance our ecological awareness by breaking the consumerist spell that blinds us to the awe of nature.

From 2020 to 2023 these principles were incorporated into the simple act of nature walks (Hunt 2023) and may add to the growing interest in the benefits of green exercise.

David Hunt Tai Chi February 2024

Reference

Hoare Philip (2014) The Sea Inside: London, Fourth Estate, ISBN 978-0-00-741213-6

Hunt David (2023) Tai Chi Walking Journal: https://embodiedtaichi.org/embodiment