Yiks so much typeing!!!
Mmm, a few short thoughts. What I do is very fluid, but full of mind. So light that a leaf has now where to rest, a fly cannot land.
(Feels kind of good. You're loose, you're free, nice and cozy, no resistance, no troubles, no hard work, it's nice and easy.
But try being "song" in the limp spaghetti way during tuishou and you've got another story. It's not very relaxing to get plucked and pulled and offset constantly because you have no "song" of the kind described by the GM in your footwork and so your legs and hips just collapse when you are pulled, pushed, twisted or split)
actually its quite hard to do. All movement starts in the mind, the dantian moves, this wave is transferred throughout the body. An tension in the body or self directed movement will block this process. Some may feel that they are doing it, but most that I have seen really don¡¯t have whole body movement or understand the mind in their practice. It really takes quite a while. the spaghetti needs to be cooked, takes time.
In answer to your questions, think of this. If you feel the intent of the mind first because your so relaxed (song) you can lead it, and follow the body. (he starts last but arrives first) This works very well with people who like to pull, push and twist.
The problem for many is that their still working against the body, not really feeling the force or maybe jin is a better word. By the time they feel it, its to late they end up pushing, pulling, and twisting instead of following and leading.
Which if your working on a different level, makes if very difficult to do anything against, as there is no against.
(I feel that "sung" as described by the Grand Master gives you that balance between soft and hard that is so necessary to traditional Yang style TCC. You can move easily, and adapt to any force, but you're not so loose than you just get tossed around.)
follow what your practice is about.
A different take, its not about soft or hard, but about balance. If you get tossed around its because your movement is either directed by you (not following), or your to late to change(not sensitive enough). In either case its because your mind is not aware (dull) and your body is still not soft enough (hard parts, means parts that cannot change). needs more cooking
david
And how does this total relaxation work for sparring or push hands?)
I have pushed with people in Taiwan, china and here. They seemed to like it, know that¡¯s it very hard to really do.
[This message has been edited by bamboo leaf (edited 12-07-2004).]
[This message has been edited by bamboo leaf (edited 12-07-2004).]