The Monk who can be cut into 10 Pieces

I was browsing through some old notes and found this story. I heard Master Chang recount it about 20 years ago! I would love to hear what it means to you...

The Monk who can be cut into 10 Pieces
During the 1950’s the Chinese invaded Tibet. All the monks had to flea to the hills before the armies stormed the monasteries. The army went to one monastery, however, and discovered one monk still there meditating in front of the Buddha. The soldiers were scared of him so went back to their general to report what had happened. The General decided to see for himself what was happening. Upon arriving, the General said, “I can cut you up into ten pieces why do you sit there and do nothing?” The monk shouted, “because I am the man you can cut up into ten pieces”. The general realised he could not kill him spiritually and bowed to the monk with respect.

Embodying Technique

I was asked today about whether I experience ups and downs in my training. Of course, it’s only natural; progress is never a straight line. If, however, we spend too long judging our own performance as good or bad, then we risk not actually ever experiencing it.

I notice this when holding a target for some students. Sometimes they miss and become so annoyed at themselves that their next three kicks are equally as bad. Only after they have been able to let go of the self condemnation can they start kicking effectively again. As soon as we judge ourselves, we separate from ourselves and can no longer connect with the energy of what is occurring in the present.

Of course the technique must first be learned, but then a wonderful performance is unselfconscious and allows for a deep spiritual connection between technique and partner. In many ways we embody the experience.

Death by Overwork

I read the other day, that there is a Japanese word, Karoshi, which means, “death by overwork”. A number of workplace studies highlight that extended work schedules and overtime are associated with increased risk of hypertension, cardiovascular disease, fatigue, stress, depression, muscoskeletal disorders, chronic infections, diabetes, etc.

We are working through our lunch breaks and late into the evening, disregarding our body’s call for food, sleep, etc. One could argue that we are training ourselves to ignore many of our bodily messages in order to cope. According to a Global Survey conducted in 2008, 19% of workers globally suffer from work-related ill health.

I’ve often taught how Meditation practice can help us on a mental or emotional level by teaching us to cope with stress for example. But this study also made me think of how Ki Meditation practice helps us at a more physical level too. Through Ki Meditation practice we begin to notice how our body feels; we begin to reconnect with our bodies once again and help guard against the many examples of ill-health listed above.

Calming the Mental Clatter

In Ki Class we often start with moving meditation. Sure, it helps strengthen and stretch us, but probably the main benefit we get is that it helps us to start to concentrate - to calm that mental clatter.

Some people tell me “Oh I can’t do meditation, my mind is too busy.” What they don’t realise is that it’s not just in meditation that it is too busy – this is a constant state; it’s only when we meditate and we try to calm things down that we realise how much of the time we are preoccupied (our mind is in one place, our body is somewhere else).

Our internal voice tells us we can’t do things, we’re not good enough, we’re stupid etc… A lot of the time we try to distract ourselves… other times we listen to the voice and it stops us from fulfilling our potential.

When the mental resistance rears it’s head while sitting, I often speak about simply bringing your attention back to your breath, and using counting as a tool. Another tool you can use when that mental clatter starts is to simply name it “Thinking”, then come back to your breath. When we name it in this way it takes the power from it – you recognise it for what it is – not real, just another distraction.

You know, it’s natural for you to have mental distractions when you sit in meditation. But the more adept you become at calming those distractions/resistance in Ki Class, the more it also helps us in our daily life. People start to say, “you’ve changed you’re not reacting like you used to. You seem more confident.” Each time we bring our mind back to our breath in class… we strengthen our ability out of class.

Thoughts on Perfectionism

I shared the following story in class this week, dedicated to all the perfectionists we have amongst us.

A monk was tendering the garden making it perfect. Japanese gardens are always just so. They have perfectly raked sand and pots in just the right spot. When the master arrived the monk said that he had tried to make it perfect but something just wasn’t right. The master looked down at the pile of leaves the monk had swept up. He picked up the leaves and threw them over the garden, smiled and walked away.

Ben, a student at the London school, emailed me afterwards with these thoughts. I thought it was so lovely I wanted to share it. (Permission was given for me to use this quote)

(The Lecture) reminds me of a thought I had on that, that stems from Ki seminars and other comments you've made about the illusion of permanence. That striving for a state of perfection is like holding ice in your hands. No state is fixed forever. Ice melts to water, just as leaves and flowers in a garden grow then fall to the ground, only to grow and fall again. Such is the cycle of life. Each of us and everything is here today and gone tomorrow. An appreciation of impermanence can free us to see things as they are. We remove the lens and reveal the truth. Which is all great in theory! But a better aim to strive for at least.

Practicing what we're bad at.

I had a student about 4 years ago who complained to me that people were advancing ahead of him and that I wasn't teaching him any new skills.

To some degree this was actually true; he had reached a bit of a plateau in my opinion (as we all sometimes do) and I felt his heart wasn’t totally in it. I could see him getting frustrated with others and a little angry at me. He saw his situation as my fault, something I was 'doing' to him. After a few months, he eventually quit at brown belt (intermediate) level.

I’m sorry that he left, but I saw two main problems which were stopping him advancing.

Firstly, he blamed his age for not being able to do skills. Of course age is a factor, but attitude beats age every time. Actually, it was less that he was old, and more that others were younger than him that was his issue. We do ourselves incredible harm when we make comparisons with other students who we think are younger, better or more talented than us. All this does is hurt our self confidence because others are placed on some unachievable pedestal. I don’t need to be the best. But I want (not need) to be the best that I can be. Instead of making comparisons with others we should look at ourselves, and our own progression.

Secondly, and most importantly, despite my nagging he never practised what he was bad at, those things that didn’t come as easy to him. Practising what we excel at is obviously enjoyable, but it doesn't necessarily mean we'll improve overall. Through the years, my struggle with my own Hapkido practice has taught me great determination, patience and perseverance. Struggling to fall properly, perform a spin kick, do anything that involved jumping, developing confidence when sparring, building a school and being a confident instructor, have all had their challenges for me. When we overcome what we find difficult then we not only improve physically but we also bolster our self-esteem. Sometimes it can feel like you are not making any progress, but then all of a sudden those neural pathways light up and everything ‘clicks’.

What have been your struggles? or what/how have you overcome?

Confidence

Myself and a few students visited our main school in Chicago last month. At one of the early morning Ki Classes Master Chang spoke of confidence. He said that essentially a lack of confidence impacts human beings in three main ways: emotional, intellectual and motivational impairment. When we lack confidence then, we can feel depressed, stuck and helpless; we can also start developing physical ailments. So, having confidence is important to our general well being.

'Confidence', he said, 'comes from a belief that you are in control of what you do, your life'. 'To develop confidence', he continued, 'we need to do those things that we enjoy and are good at. If we don't know what they are we need to be bold, exploring new things until we find them.'

He often talks about the need to take responsibility for ourselves. When we feel confident and in control of our own lives then we can fully express our human potential; then we are no longer blocked.