Grounding as Non-Doing

A reflection on stillness, movement, and balance

Grounding is often spoken about as something we do.

Pressing down.

Rooting.

Activating muscles.

Forcing stillness.

But over time, another understanding appears.

Grounding is not a doing.

It is a non-doing — a quality of presence.

Stillness and presence sit at its centre.

Relaxation may appear, but it is not the goal.

What matters is balance.

________________________________________

Stillness and movement are not opposites

Grounding does not mean becoming static.

When the system is balanced, movement arises naturally with the breath.

It may be subtle or visible.

It may slow down, even to complete stillness in meditation.

Stillness is not stagnation.

Movement is not restlessness.

Both belong.

Energy grounds so that it can:

• flow

• circulate

• sink

In a system that constantly works against gravity, balance needs support.

That support is dynamic, conscious, and unforced.

________________________________________

Fear lives at both ends

Some people fear stillness.

Others fear movement.

Both reactions make sense.

Stillness can feel confronting.

Movement can feel unsafe or uncontrolled.

The invitation is not to choose one, but to allow both in harmony, so neither dominates.

At times, the system may move slightly out of balance — and then return.

That movement away and back is not a mistake.

It’s part of living with awareness.

________________________________________

Grounding as alignment

One way to understand grounding is as alignment of energy and structure.

This may look like:

• sitting or standing a little taller, without tension

• feeling the feet in contact with the ground

• listening to the breath

• sensing energy rather than directing it

In Qigong posture, we use sitting muscles, not squatting muscles.

The pelvic tuck is not contrived — it appears naturally through small adjustments in the hips, knees, and spine.

Nothing is forced.

Structure supports energy.

Energy informs structure.

________________________________________

Upper and lower, opening and sinking

Energy unfolds through the middle Dantian and is stored in the lower.

The lower is both a source and a reservoir.

As this happens:

• the shoulders open outward (not pulled back)

• the armpits seem to soften and widen

• the shoulder blades open, separating and connecting at the same time

• the centre of the chest (CV7) gently hollows

• the clavicles lift without tension

The chin tucks — not by effort, but as a consequence.

The crown lifts, which is often described as “raising the Shen”.

This is not a mechanical lift.

It happens internally, as balance settles and awareness clarifies.

Shen sits above the middle Dantian, yet it is not separate —

not like oil floating on water.

It is the result of presence.

________________________________________

Unity, not sequence

These qualities develop together.

They can be named separately, but they function as one system.

This is why it is difficult to say “start here”.

Because grounding is a non-doing.

Practise may begin with principle, sensation, posture, or breath.

The door does not matter.

________________________________________

Teaching without interference

As a teacher, my role is not to choose the door for someone —

and not to push them through it.

It is to guide, clarify,

and provide an environment where growth can occur.

The best teaching often removes obstacles rather than adding instructions.

At a certain point, the teacher steps out of the way.

________________________________________

Wu Wei and flow

Wu Wei does not mean passivity.

At times it may look still.

At others, it appears as attention in motion —

a quiet attentiveness to natural energy flow, within the body and within life.

Challenge has its place.

Flow states may appear.

But Wu Wei and flow are not the same thing.

They simply share qualities.

________________________________________

A closing reflection

Grounding is not something to achieve.

It is something that returns

when effort softens,

when structure supports rather than constrains,

when awareness listens instead of directing.

Practise becomes less about doing it right

and more about recognising what is already present.