The Tricky Skill of Not Overdoing

Fill your bowl to the brim

and it will spill.

Keep sharpening your knife

and it will blunt.

     From Verse 9, Tao Te Ching, trans. Stephen Mitchell 

A gift of Qigong is the opportunity it provides to practice the tricky skill of not over-doing. We are taught not to take things to an extreme, but rather to mindfully, and as effortlessly as possible, follow the “water way” of going with the flow. This is a big challenge!

We get to practice not over-doing as we refine our movement skills of course, but it’s also a useful principle to apply to other areas of our lives, such as over-thinking something until we’re totally confused (some Taoist scholars say this is what “sharpening your knife” refers to), over-worrying, over-eating, over-drinking, over-shopping, over-working…. (Add your own favorite “overs” here.) Not pushing things to an extreme may not feel as alluring as the rush of quick and glorious achievement, or the temporary high of distracting excess, but Taoism teaches that moderation is the surest path to true and lasting wisdom, serenity, and joy.

So. When we’re doing a challenging exercise such the progressively deeper squats of “Dynamic Horse”, stay centered in what you are experiencing in that moment. No need to push for more. Maybe you should only bend your knees a little bit for now, that’s fine. As the last lines of verse 9 says, “Do your work, then step back. The only path to serenity.”

Speaking of moderation, did you know there are acupressure points that are used to stop cravings? They’re easy to reach, too! I’ll teach them this week in class. Looking forward to seeing you there!