MEDITATIVE PATHS 1: What Is Meditation?
First, let me be clear in saying that although, depending on what you read, meditation seems like a magic bullet, it is not going to be the answer to every single question for every single person. But, the truth of the matter is that most of us cause most of the problems in our own lives. Although it can be extremely beneficial in cases of severe psychological imbalance, for the average person it’s the solution to the cause of everyday problems. Bad decisions, bad social relations, bad moods, etc. Meditation is a way for us to run self-diagnostics on our own state of being. It brings us closer and closer to the “why’s” and “how’s” of what we’re doing in our lives with every single session. This self-awareness is the key to making better decisions. This awareness is the key to observing patterns that we can steer more towards or away from depending upon their positive and negative impact. Most importantly, it gives us the ability to be the captain of our own ship by identifying modes of behavior, analyzing their consequences, and eventually to nurture or avoid those behaviors altogether. Now, we’re more productive in our lives at work, and at home in the lives of our loved ones and family members. Now, we’re contributing in positive ways to the greater community around us. We’re fostering patterns and behaviors that will have maximized and ever-depending positive effects for the rest of our lives. Some of the realizations that we come to are understanding our pains, lowering our overall stress, connecting better with those around us, improved mental clarity and focus, and the reduction of background thoughts cluttering our minds and interrupting our efforts at focus and daily progress. The accomplishment of these goals ultimately leads to a very real and most truest form of Inner Peace. All of this from nothing more than ‘sitting quietly’ and ‘doing nothing’.
Traditional Chinese Martial Arts practice incorporates these exact same procedures in it’s practice. The interest in becoming a person capable of the utmost good means being able to combat any and all threats not only from without, but from within as well. The list of human weaknesses which cause so much trouble in society and even in our own lives stem from emotions left unchecked, and a mind bereft of impulse control – either/both of which draw people into daily drama that only deters us from our own personal development.
Because the situations which require us to protect ourselves from physical harm are the most unexpected, the most terrifying, and even many years later the most traumatizing, the ancient masters knew that in order to protect oneself form harm both in the moment and much later into the future, a practitioner of Traditional Chinese Martial Arts would be best served by having these qualities and characteristics nurtured and developed long in advance of any fight for your life situation. The most natural approach then would be to teach these philosophical and spiritual doctrines alongside martial techniques in order for the practitioner to be capable of reaching their highest levels – not only as persons with fighting capabilities, but as a victor who would be guided by compassion and right-mindedness instead of fear and hatred.
The endless drama, the cycle of negative mental and emotional chaos ends here.
