SC Musings for NG 4: Yield, Absorb, Redirect, Harmonize

Introduction

Returning from Australia, gushing with experiences and learnings, I paused. “Yield, Absorb, Redirect and Harmonize,” the Tai Chi slogan often repeated by Dr. Lam (2015, p.187), sounded within.

Initially these were just words, and slowly their meaning sunk in, as do the Tai Chi principles. Now let’s dig into the deeper meanings of these words.

Flight, Fight, and the Nature of an Attack

When attacked physically or psychologically we tend to get into a flight or fight mode. Flight is avoidance and running away; confrontation by lashing out is fight. Reactions may also be delayed, where hurts and anger are stored and used later. Many a time, flight and fight blend, as shown later in a case study.

In Tai Chi, an internal martial art, Yield, Absorb, Redirect and Harmonize refer to dealing with an incoming force. That is, when encountering an attack, the recipient yields, receives the force, senses it, absorbs it in the body, redirects or channels the force back to the attacker, and then harmonizes or makes peace. Though it sounds complicated, the process, when demonstrated in a Tai Chi form, is subtle, strategic, and intense.

Aruna’s Story: A Case Study

Aruna encountered and absorbed both physical and emotional abuse from the family she was married into for decades; numb, she continued living like an automaton, till she had had enough. One day she walked out of the marriage, eager to free herself from the negativity and shackles which tied her down.

Yielding to and absorbing negativity, Aruna did not have the approach, knowledge, or tools to redirect or harmonize. Realization of her plight released pent up pain and anger, which compelled her to retaliate through avoidance and flight. This case study of Aruna’s depicts the vulnerability of individuals in social situations. Rarely does society prepare and equip us adequately with the grounding and tools essential to redirect and harmonize.

Understanding Force

Let’s now explore force and lay the foundation for understanding the incoming force. Force has been described by Aristotle as anything that causes an object to undergo “unnatural motion.” Sir Isaac Newton was one of the first scientists to study gravity and force. Any kind of force is just a push or a pull. It can be described as a push or pull on an object (Byjus, 2024).

The NG Holistic Model of a Human Being

We will now understand the incoming force using the NG Holistic Model of a Human Being, Figure 4.1. This model captures the six layers and dimensions a human being is composed of: the physical, psychological, cognitive, behavioural, social, and spiritual, respectively.

  • The physical layer is our body.
  • Emotions are in the psychological layer.
  • The cognitive layer refers to thoughts, ideas, knowledge, and so on.
  • The behavioural layer integrates the previous three layers and manifests in our communication and relationships, which are contained in the social layer.
  • The transparent, invisible layer is the spiritual layer, which exists independently as energy and powers the other layers.

Five elements in nature are represented by each of these layers, and each is given a colour based on its quality. The physical layer, like earth, is brown, while red is used for the psychological layer, representing fire. The cognitive layer is blue, like water, and the behavioural layer is yellow because it is visible. The social layer, in green, is dynamic due to the exchanges which happen in relationships, and the transparent spiritual layer is colourless, like air and ether.

Figure 4.1. NG Holistic Model of a Human Being

Each of the layers and dimensions described above has its own unique type of energy. The physical layer has mechanical energy, chemical energy is present in emotions, the cognitive layer has electrical energy, and the behavioural and social layers have a combination of the aforementioned energies.

Energy is also referred to as force, and as human beings, we are energy systems, comprised of different types and intensities of energy. The mystical characteristic of energy is that it can be experienced but is not visible.

So, we may surmise that as energy systems, we impact each other in various ways and degrees. Only physical force or energy is manifested through actions. A person’s body language and impact on others and the environment give but an indication of the presence of other types of energies. However, these can only be experienced, and are ineffable.

What, Then, Is the Incoming Force?

We now come to the main question: what then is the incoming force? In Tai Chi language, the incoming force is from a physical attack. In social psychology it may be perceived as an attack, and also as the subtle energies which emerge in communication and relationships between individuals.

Yielding and absorbing the force can be demonstrated using a Tai Chi form. Subtler and intangible forces need to be dealt with strategically and intentfully, which we will explore in SC Musings 5.

I request you, Dear Reader, not to get muddled with the concept of force. I did many a cognitive twirl before articulating it. Take it slowly, read it a few times, and it will sink in.

Frequently Asked Questions

It describes how a practitioner deals with an incoming force. The recipient yields by receiving and sensing the force, absorbs it into the body, redirects or channels it back to the attacker, and finally harmonizes, or makes peace, with it.
When attacked physically or psychologically, people tend to default to flight, fight, or a delayed blend of both. The Tai Chi approach of yielding, absorbing, redirecting, and harmonizing offers an alternative: a strategic, grounded way of meeting force rather than simply avoiding or lashing out.
It is a model developed by Nitya Gurukula that describes a human being as composed of six layers, physical, psychological, cognitive, behavioural, social, and spiritual, each associated with a natural element, a colour, and its own type of energy.
Force is described using Aristotle’s and Newton’s foundational ideas of force as a push or pull that causes motion, then extended into the NG Holistic Model to include the subtler, non-physical energies, psychological, cognitive, social, and spiritual, that people exchange in communication and relationships.
Aruna endured decades of physical and emotional abuse in her marriage without the tools to redirect or harmonize what she absorbed. When she finally recognized her situation, the pent up pain and anger drove her to leave through avoidance and flight, illustrating how, without grounding and tools, people default to flight or fight rather than redirecting and harmonizing.

Key Takeaways

  1. Yield, Absorb, Redirect, and Harmonize is a Tai Chi slogan that describes a strategic, four-step way of meeting an incoming force, rather than defaulting to flight or fight.
  2. Without the tools to redirect or harmonize, people who absorb negativity over time, as Aruna did, tend to release it later through avoidance or retaliation.
  3. Force, as understood physically by Aristotle and Newton, extends in the NG Holistic Model of a Human Being to cover psychological, cognitive, behavioural, social, and spiritual energies as well.
  4. The NG Holistic Model maps six layers of a human being, physical, psychological, cognitive, behavioural, social, and spiritual, each with its own element, colour, and energy type.
  5. Yielding and absorbing force can be demonstrated through Tai Chi forms; dealing with the subtler, intangible forces of communication and relationships strategically and intentionally is the subject of the next piece, SC Musings 5.

Recent Post