230. Baguazhang and the Taoist concept of Detachment as experienced everyday

The Way through Baguazhang - 八卦掌道

Most people, despite what I have repeatedly said, will not believe me when I say that the internal martial art of baguazhang is not for the average person on the street. Unless, of course, you happen to make your way to Wudangshan and hobnob’it with them in China. There will be a very good chance that walking the circle will be a very, very, lonely existence. Sure, in the beginning it will be exciting as you join a local martial arts school and find common ground amongst fellow practitioners. But as soon as the decision is made to stop playing around as an evening hobby, and start doing it seriously like it really matters, things start to change. The universe or whatever your beliefs are, steps in and begins the process of making it ‘real’. From a slow tiny problem that easily solvable, over time the hurdles start ratcheting up to the point where you either give up or become a ‘Lifer’. I chose the latter. And it has meant that whenever I write or talk about this stuff, I know that I am speaking from experience. Which for my audience is great. Here is somebody actually leaving a path others can choose to follow. A little bit crazy and a little bit humdrum. Sometimes I make clear and concise sense. And at other times, I seem to be talking full-on shit. Whichever way I am swinging, I have to bear the consequences of what I am saying, writing and doing. And that means eventually something will happen in my life where I will and must experience my own words as a real event. But here’s the thing. And listen carefully. If I must eat my words, then I will eat my words and complete the circle. But when I do eat my words, I become a little more removed from the guys on the gym or dojo floor. It’s like climbing the stairs up to the next floor and with each ascent, living a new reality in the moment of that reality. The guys on the lower floors don’t know the truth and keep making up stories. Those same stories that become ones glass ceiling, the way birds keep flying into glass panes without ever realising that they could go around it. While at the same time, no matter how much the guys on the floors above try to help, we never seem to be able to understand until we reach their floor. Thankfully, the circular nature of baguazhang allows us to wilfully redo our steps again, and again, and again until we have figured it out for ourselves. Which is this: Going into an event prepared in advance because of repeated experience, usually ends in not experiencing it again. Instead, what happens is that one ends up waiting for an event that never comes. And because it never comes, what was the point of being prepared? Those at the bottom will seek the answer through blame, while those ascending will feel blessed that the internal martial art of baguazhang is teaching what the Taoist concept of ‘Detachment’ really is.