Increasingly more difficult ever day we live in the connected world. "The more connected we are, the more we depend on the wold outside ourselves to tell us how to think and live." - Hamlet's Blackberry by William Powers
What has this to do with karate-do? Karate is a form of practice that requires our undivided attention. An attention that lasts much longer than the mere seconds we experience in the connected world where each new thing seems to drag us away from the last. This takes the responsibility of our inner selves and gives it over to that set of tools that run the connected world where our every move seems to be governed by the little "taps" we receive, i.e. emails, texts, etc.
This disconnection from our inner selves is what karate depends on for its practice and especially self protection. This also applies to our awareness while we walk about our world. If we are busy with connections, i.e. phone calls, texts, surfing, etc., then we will appear to an attacker as an easy victim to surprise attack, etc.
Our brains also do not work this way and it pulls us away from that singularity that promotes productivity, etc. Karate practice takes us away from this world and puts us back in our world where we can let go, relax and re-focus back to the inner self to grow and prosper.
We have to focus on the present, how we're living, thinking, and feeling right now. The connected world is about living, thinking, and feeling in relation to that world and its connection to others in the same world which is not within each of us and the connections real time live person to person provides. Our survival depends on social interactions which are not met in the connected world.
Just like leaving behind the days troubles when you dress for training, we leave it behind us and that is good as we need recharge time away from the hustle and bustle. In the connected world it is imperative we step away, leave it now and then and karate can take us there, refocus us on the inner self, connect us back to the persona social connections that inspire and bring life more alive.
Look at it as mind/brain training and relaxation. Step away and allow the mind to slow down and be itself again. Being connected has its benefits but it does have its down side and that affects our brains and minds taking us away from our nature. We have not evolved enough and if you feel stressed by it from time to time train properly by cutting it off and allowing yourself to be human. You can have both.
Having both means to achieve a balance of life and connectivity. Yin and Yang, achieving an equilibrium that allows you to achieve connectivity and still release it for your benefit. Don't let it control you, you control it thus control your life.
In a fight or self defense it is literally a matter of who controls whom, etc. so if you wish to remain intact, healthy, and wiser then control your world, both inner and outer.
Remember that our social nature, a survival instinct, wants us to feed the human need to connect outward, to answer the call of others for social interactions, as well as the innate need of humans to get time and space apart. Here again the answer is balance between the outward need and inward one.
Bibliography:
Powers, William. "Hamlet's Blackberry: A Practical Philosophy for Building a Good Life in the Digital Age." New York. HarperCollins Publishing. 2010
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
"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
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
All Bottles are Truly Good
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