One of the biggest benefits that you can get from studying Tai Chi is to improve your physical and mental health. What most people do not understand about Tai Chi, even some beginning students, is that the power to do this comes not from the muscles but from the Chi. It is much easier for non-spiritual people to visualize the body as a complete of electrical circuits and the Chi as the electrical potential that runs across those circuits.

Electrical circuits all pass through junctures, places that redirect and they also have a power source, a place that power is generated and distributed. In the circuit board of the body we can also find these same connection points: you can find these points in the neck, shoulders and lined down the spine like Christmas lights on a tree. The power source is located just behind and about 2" below your belly button. This area is the seat of the Chi, called the Lower Tantien, and it is here that we draw the energy that we need to heal ourselves.

The body's circuits can become blocked however, limiting and even preventing this vital energy from doing its job in much the same way that frayed wired or rusted connection can interfere with an electrical signal. The first step in correcting this problem is to get in touch with your Chi. Try the following steps to get started:

• Begin with at least 15 minutes of Taoist meditation.
• While still in a seated position press the palms together. Feel the union that begins to form between the palms. When the attention is focused on this union the sensation that you are looking for begins with the heat transfer between the palms. After a period it becomes difficult to tell where one palm begins and the other ends.
• Once the connection has been established and stabilized you need to practice releasing and reforming this connection, without separating your palms. Repeat this exercise several times.