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Tai Chi

Another Avenue to Connect With Tao

By Caroline Demoise, Master Trainer, Chapel Hill, NC, USA

My experience with tai chi has led me to regard my daily practice as an opportunity to cultivate Tao in everyday life. Sun Lutang expressed the ultimate goal of tai chi as harmonizing with Tao. Tai Chi is a meditation on breath, a meditation on alignment, a meditation on fluid movement and being in the flow of life. But tai chi is not the only way to experience the unity of life and our intrinsic interconnectedness. Dr. Pam Kircher discovered that spending time with people near the end of their lives listening to their experiences as they prepare for transition can bring an awareness of the spiritual aspect in life, clarity on important matters, and a sense of peace and calm. In addition to those with a terminal illness, having a near death experience at any age often opens a person to awareness of spirit and Tao.

Wisdom like this is acquired by examining our experiences and deeply contemplating the meaning of life. Everything in life is grist for the mill of reflection. Examining our motivations, actions and behavior with compassion and insight brings us closer to understanding the truth of life on earth. Seeking to make sense of life is a common theme among people in every culture down through the ages. A variety of spiritual practices give people a framework to understand life’s inner dimension and a pathway to feel their energy body and connect deeply with spirit.

Many people focus on the physical aspect of life for years until one day an experience shifts their attention to life under the surface of work, relationships or accomplishments and they begin to wonder about the meaning of their life. When the moment has come to look inward, to contemplate and to make peace with the experiences, apparent successes, challenges and presumed failures in human life, a door opens to experiencing the richness of life and a remembering of who we really are, a spiritual being having a human experience.

In the same way that people come to tai chi and discover a deeper aspect than they ever imagined, approaching the end of life is a rich opportunity to grow into an awareness of life beyond the physical and to review one’s life from an expanded, meaningful perspective. Dr. Kircher’s audio book, Love is the Link, chronicles her work as a hospice physician and introduces the listener to meaningful stories from people who have had “near death experiences” and stories that the terminally ill shared with her.

I had read Dr. Kircher’s book years ago and found it fascinating. But when I heard the same material read aloud in her voice, it was like having her in the room with me sharing an important spiritual conversation. Transforming this book into an audio experience presents the material in a powerful way. The concepts come across at a much deeper level and the information feels more intimate and personal. If you are interested in acquiring this wisdom and sharing it with others, visit her website www.pamkircher.com.

It is comforting to hear how people who have had a near death experience find their lives have changed. Listening to the stories of terminally ill people help us remember who we really are – an expression of spirit, that for a limited time inhabits a physical body for a human experience. The peace they encounter as they become aware of spirit remains with them and forever changes their lives.

 

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