The Wonders of Meditation in Motion: Taiji with David Foulk

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Amie Daniel, Staff Editor

If you’re a 90s or 2000s baby, you probably did not escape your formative years without being personally touched by the immense popularity of the yin-yang symbol. Nothing can erase my vivid memories of scrounging for quarters in the backseat of my Mom’s Chevy Cavalier to get my hands on a glistening metallic yin-yang necklace from the grocery store toy machine. The symbol was (and remains to be) ubiquitous, but how many hold even the slightest grasp on the meaning behind the simple yet intriguing icon.

 

For David Foulk, the meditative martial art piqued his curiosity and not before long grew into a sincere passion. This passion has evolved over the years and has allowed him to spread the gift of Taiji with countless others through teaching to people of all kinds. David’s spirited approach to Taiji has allowed him to adapt the form into a modified method that can be done by the elderly, disabled, or wheelchair bound. He has been teaching the art for two decades and can be found leading courses here on campus Tuesday and Thursday mornings, at the Haven on the Lake, and VA centers in the area.

Although it is a truly complex concept, the yin-yang symbol can be described as a revealing of the subtle and cosmic duality of all things. The design invokes the understanding that life is paradoxical, that light cannot exist without dark, and dark cannot exist without light. The largely popular symbol can be a portal to a deeply sacred and gratifying world of meditation in motion; the art of Taiji or Taijiquan.

In addition to the Fall semester course which is already under way, David will be instructing Saturday personal enrichment courses in both T’ai Chi and Qigong beginning September 21st. The courses will provide gentle movement aimed at strengthening your body and mind. Incorporating this practice can prove to be transformational to those who are ready to discover the path. If developing a more relaxed, harmonious state of mind and body is of any interest to you, you do not want to let this opportunity pass you by!