Practicing Taichi together in the park: A case study of Taichiscape and older people's wellbeing

Abstract

Inspired by Gesler's notion of therapeutic landscapes, this paper proposes a new concept, ‘Taichiscape’, to demonstrate how older people obtain a sense of healing and wellbeing through the practice of group Taichi in the park. Based on extensive fieldwork with 42 older people between 2020 and 2021 in Tianhe Park in Guangzhou, China, the paper presents Taichiscape in three aspects: (1) From the physical aspect, the Chinese traditional health concepts of ‘becoming one with nature’ and the form of Yin‐Yang balance, allowing older people to maintain closeness and be immersed in the natural environment, rhythmically connecting with natural elements, and relaxing via flourishing positive affect (PA); (2) In terms of socialising, older people practice Taichi together to establish a synchronised rhythm in a spatiotemporal order and collectively create a positive social atmosphere, where they gain a sense of PA through belonging, self‐esteem and pleasure; (3) At the body level, through the rhythm of slowness, older people enjoy diverse and bodily sensations that temporally nurture their minds and souls and initiate the therapeutic process of embodied restoration. Theoretically, the healing power of Taichiscape is habitually, contextually, and temporally constructed through a dynamic creation between human and nonhuman elements. This work extends knowledge of therapeutic landscapes by underlining how slowness in Taichiscape can be seen as a sign of progress and an active pursuit of wellbeing, and older people's sense of control over their lives.