Principle

What gives my teacher his uncompromising intensity is his fascination with principle. A principle is a piece of knowledge that applies everywhere and that should therefore be internalised through practice. The practice aims to embed the principles so firmly within your being that they become natural to you. The principle that has been uniquely my teacher's focus and which I believe has led him to Heartwork via the figure of eight is cross-energy. Cross-energy is all about connexion: left foot to right hand, right foot to left hand. If you need to use one hand and then quickly the other you must use each root in turn which means your feet can't be too far apart: the feet need to be engaged with each other as well as with the ground. Cross-energy is all about translating energy from one place to another through interaction: communication. There are two crossing lines - X - the double aspect of things. There are four limbs - the double aspect of the double aspect: doubling-up: binary proliferation. If the top two limbs curl to touch each other and similarly the bottom two limbs then X becomes 8 and we have a figure of eight: unity with a twist. Where the two stems of the X touch we have a heart. When the limbs begin to curl we have ward-off. Ward-off is the simultaneous acceptance and issuance of energy: the hollow chest (or groin) receiving energy and the spreading shoulders (or hips) issuing energy down the embracing limbs: yielding contains attack. Ward-off is also in the hand and foot, the middle accepting and the rim (particularly heel and digits) issuing. Ward-off is the way you approach everything, your loved ones, your enemies, strangers, daunting prospects: accepting but gripping. The energy that issues comes from behind, from that strange place, and can instantly engulf distance and time. When the situation is dangerous just show a little more teeth.