We have to go uphill every day, at least a little bit. We may have flat days where our equilibrium is never upset and we’re right in balance, or we may have downhill days where everything goes easily. In either case, we still have to find a challenge to engage with, in order to build … [Read more…]
In the “The Book of 5 Rings”, Musashi encourages the reader, the sword-master, to stay in the middle mind. His recommendation is not to let the mind move too far in any one direction, but to make decisions from a central place. And that place in combat is where all discoveries are made. It’s a … [Read more…]
“Sustainability” is a word that we use to describe optimal martial arts practice. It has to do both with the external environment that we’re a part as well as the internal terrain that we navigate for ourselves. And a lot of this internal work has to do with the stories that we tell ourselves. There’s … [Read more…]
There is a power that comes with staying mentally engaged in what we’re doing. In the dojo, when the class works together in this frame of mind, the distance we can go together is really something. When we stay present it gives us much more sensitivity moment by moment. This is critical because life typically … [Read more…]