"The Author, it must be remembered, writes from his own standpoint!"
My personal "Interpretive" Lens!

"One thing has always been true: That book ... or ... that person who can give me an idea or a new slant on an old idea is my friend." - Louis L'Amour


"Providing a first step on a path to self-reflection." - C. E. James

"Read not to contradict and confute; nor to believe and take for granted; nor to find talk and discourse; but to weigh and consider..." - Francis Bacon

"What is true today may be reevaluated as false not long after. Judgements are frequently based upon a set of "temporary" circumstances surrounding them. Conflicting ideologies can exist simultaneously. Antagonistic dualities are complementary aspects of a unified whole: are seen as mutually dependent mirror images of each other." - Nahum Stiskin

Warning, Caveat and Note: The postings on this blog are my interpretation of readings, studies and experiences therefore errors and omissions are mine and mine alone. The content surrounding the extracts of books, see bibliography on this blog site, are also mine and mine alone therefore errors and omissions are also mine and mine alone and therefore why I highly recommended one read, study, research and fact find the material for clarity. My effort here is self-clarity toward a fuller understanding of the subject matter. See the bibliography for information on the books.


Note: I will endevor to provide a bibliography and italicize any direct quotes from the materials I use for this blog. If there are mistakes, errors, and/or omissions, I take full responsibility for them as they are mine and mine alone. If you find any mistakes, errors, and/or omissions please comment and let me know along with the correct information and/or sources.

Kenpo Gokui

The lines of the ken-po goku-i are set from an atomistic aspect simply because it is the manner in which the brain learns. Its nature is completely holistic and like the I Ching must be in a form that promotes learning and understanding so a person can see, hear and grasp the nature of a holistic system. The gokui is a method to teach us how to be holistic. Its terseness is the best that can be done to convey its holistic meaning.

A person's heart is the same as Heaven and Earth while the blood circulating is similar to the Sun and Moon yet the manner of drinking and spitting is either soft or hard while a person's unbalance is the same as a weight and the body should be able to change direction at any time as the time to strike is when the opportunity presents itself and both the eyes must see all sides as the ears must listen in all directions while the mind must grasp all the tactile, olfactory and gustation data not seen on all sides and not heard in any direction


Master Zeng said, "Am I preaching what I have not practiced myself?"

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Ignoring the Inner Self

When you practice/train, do you make any efforts toward that inner self to bring about change and thus improvement? One of the basic fundamentals of a FMA is its ritualistic base. It is an age old belief that rituals are what form the habits we live every day. In time and with the rituals of life we develop ingrained habits or ways we live, etc.

Aristotle said it, "We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence,then, is not an act but a habit." We all know that simply performing something in a ritualistic manner doesn't do it. Take performance kata, it is ritualistic in that performance but it does nothing in that way to promote changes nor the ability to defend and protect if attacked.

If we want the ritual of kata to benefit these area's as well as others not mentioned then that behavior must have a "meaning" to the person practicing. If the person does not "believe" nor do they "truly have the convictions" that make the kata work in these instances then they are truly worthless. In reality the benefit or detriment of kata practice is not the kata itself but the person and their inner convictions. Much like the concept of "giri or burden hardest to bear" if you don't feel it, you don't have it; conviction!

Ben Franklin was known for his busyness and his technique which bears out the above is that he would first take a look inward to get the reasons he wanted to change his habits. He looked at both the positive aspects and the negative. Looking only at the positive is out of balance to what needs to be done. Create inner equilibrium that results in absolute convictions. He had to decide and create the inner conviction first before performing the ritualistic behaviors that brought about inner change.

If we wish to accomplish the maximum in our practice then we need to stop looking at the physical first and turn inward toward the mind and brain. Train them first, create the goals we wish to accomplish first, give our selves the absolute conviction of our inner beliefs and then tackle the exterior/physical to achieve the goals.

It is also important to track these convictions and have reminders long after you achieve the goals which is another reason why the ritualistic practices such as we discuss here are necessary. Just saying you will do it does not get it done. Simply going through the motions does not get it done either. Kata also provides through its continued diligent practice the reminders to the mind and brain of the goals set by the convictions of the individual. Ergo, why such things are the "tools to a better way of living."

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