What is Relax part 2

I have written about what it is to relax in previous posts (here and here). But that is just the physical portion of relaxing. While physically relaxing the body is part of being able to apply taiji, it is not the complete picture.

Taiji is about the mind. The most important part of this is to relax the mind. Whether you are practising your form, or pushing hands, or facing a real opponent, the most important aspect of taiji is to do it with a relaxed mind. So what is a relaxed mind? It is one which is not overly focused, yet does not wander all over the place. For example, while practising your form, you may be paying some attention to your kua to make sure you sink and relax it properly, yet at the same time, your attention is not so focused on your kua that it becomes your single preoccupation. When practising your form, while you try to practise each move to show its application, you are not so focused on showing the applications of each move. When pushing hands, while you try to listen to your opponent's force, you are not actively seeking to know where his force is going.

This "in between yes and no" is the most important thing about relaxing your mind. The focus is there, but it is not sharp. In a way, it is like aiming your camera at a specific nearby object, yet not focusing the lens to get a sharp image. In this way, while the specific nearby object appears slightly blurred, the surroundings are not lost.