Morning Ma Bu

This morning I followed the initial advice more closely, to squat while holding onto something. Saturday and yesterday I tried, but I wasn’t doing them properly. I used a rope attached to a high bar, but it changes the gravitational pull somewhat. What I mean is that instead of getting only assistance for balance (falling backwards) it also releases pressure on the lower structure, so the feeling in the hips and legs isn’t there. However, today I felt a difference. I just held on to the doorpost, similar to how we would use a tree to hold on to. Thank you Vova, for reminding me about He Laoshi’s lesson about using ‘dang’ or arch between legs, the connection, or lack thereof, makes or breaks the stance. Now, how to transfer this to unassisted Ma Bu practice…I am more conscious of when my knees start to move forward a bit, since right away the feeling is different. Normally I wouldn’t notice unless my knee starts to ache. Just looking is one thing, but to be aware is another. Usually, the structure collapses due to letting go of tension in the right places. This happens before you can actually ‘see’ that something is wrong. So feeling for proper tension and relaxation in other areas such as the lower back, is what I’m looking for now.