The character/ideogram means "mirror." It also means, "speculum; barrel-head; round rice-cake offering." The mirror in this case is the symbol of Japan. One of the three treasures.
In the Orient, man and cosmos are traditionally considered reflections of each other. The mirror is symbolic as a tool of creation. It reflects upon itself and the image of the spiral appears. There are front and back as reflected by the mirror. Within it we find both man and the universe. Man has a metaphysical relationship to the macrocosm of nature.
The mirror symbolizes calm, serenity and the absolute essence of receptivity. It receives "all forms" upon itself. It is silent and claims no credit for any image it reflects. It is the foundation for the appearance of the image. The mirror is formless and it only reflects the form which exists only because of the reflection of the mirror.
The universe is the reflection of infinity from which all myriad things are born, the one. There is a sameness yet difference in what the mirror reflects and symbolizes.
Since man and the cosmos are represented by the symbology of the mirror we can say that man is a microcosm because he contains all the elements of the universe that is present before his/her birth.
Man or person is a part of the ken-po goku-i as a reflection of what is possible through the singular practice of the dualistic forms of marital arts. Since the gokui reflects on man vs. the cosmos, i.e. heaven and earth, sun and moon, etc., then the later lines reflect the dualistic monism contained within the person, i.e. the mirror reflecting dualism within that function symbiotically making a monistic "one wholehearted" person.
When we say a person's heart is the same as heaven and earth we speak to the reflection of both as mirror images where heaven and earth are in both a microcosmic and macrocosmic state, a reflection of that which resides in the person or person's heart with the heart being the center of the spiritual and physical, i.e. it resides in the middle as does man between the heaven above and the earth below.
Remember, I'm Nobody ....
Just another reminder for those who tend to read my mindless meanderings, I am nobody. Remember this stuff is now more academia then anything else. It is up to you, the reader, to find out if this stuff is true, accurate and doable. Even if I had credentials out the wazzooo it is still your responsibility to find out if this stuff is true, accurate and doable.
The most important thing I state here is the word "doable." If you can't make it work then it is not doable, for you. If you can make it work then you still have to make it doable in reality, i.e. in the mix of physical conflict regardless of whether it is social, asocial or just plain fun. Don't assume .... this is important .... don't assume!
I am really pleased that there are at least thirty-two folks who are willing to actually state out loud that they read my mindless meanderings and I say "thank you" to all who read the blogs.
The most important thing I state here is the word "doable." If you can't make it work then it is not doable, for you. If you can make it work then you still have to make it doable in reality, i.e. in the mix of physical conflict regardless of whether it is social, asocial or just plain fun. Don't assume .... this is important .... don't assume!
I am really pleased that there are at least thirty-two folks who are willing to actually state out loud that they read my mindless meanderings and I say "thank you" to all who read the blogs.
The Universe
That which comprises all the atomistic, i.e. the earth, sun, moon, etc., resulting in a unified whole of the universe. Only in this example and defining aspect of "heaven" can a martial artist see, hear and feel the "whole"hearted aspects of the discipline that is a martial system, i.e. a microcosmic symbol of the universe.
When we discuss the universe in terms of the ancient classics we speak of the whole or holistic that governs through the dualistic monism of yin-yang. Yin-yang are represented by the atomistic or individualistic aspects that make up the whole, i.e. the earth and moon, etc. (The sky often spoken of as heaven and the earth; the sun and moon, soft and hard, etc.)
Once these are integrated as a symbiotic whole or holistic "one" then can we achieve mastery in our disciplines, i.e. the martial systems, that is a parallel to the path of life, i.e. heiko-do. If one path diverges off its course it can pull the other path out of its proper way resulting in falling like a heavy weight crashing down to the earth causing all sorts of damage, physically and spiritually.
When we discuss the universe in terms of the ancient classics we speak of the whole or holistic that governs through the dualistic monism of yin-yang. Yin-yang are represented by the atomistic or individualistic aspects that make up the whole, i.e. the earth and moon, etc. (The sky often spoken of as heaven and the earth; the sun and moon, soft and hard, etc.)
Once these are integrated as a symbiotic whole or holistic "one" then can we achieve mastery in our disciplines, i.e. the martial systems, that is a parallel to the path of life, i.e. heiko-do. If one path diverges off its course it can pull the other path out of its proper way resulting in falling like a heavy weight crashing down to the earth causing all sorts of damage, physically and spiritually.
Trigrams and Martial Arts
Heaven: ward-off and step forward
Wind: pulling, move back
Water: press, face left
Mountain: shoulder
Earth: roll back, centered
Thunder: splitting, move back
Fire: push, look right
Lake: elbow strike, step forward
Wind: pulling, move back
Water: press, face left
Mountain: shoulder
Earth: roll back, centered
Thunder: splitting, move back
Fire: push, look right
Lake: elbow strike, step forward
I Ching, Trigrams and Martial Systems
The lines of the I Ching hexagrams do reference the marital systems we practice today. This is yet another symbolic connection one see's, hear's, and feel's toward what they do to find balance along the path. The six lines begin at the bottom when reading/interpreting. The first line relates to causes outside the individual and requires "sensing" to perceive with an open-mind.
The second line called the official line is the next level of the individuals responsibility for their life and to create the reality that is reality. This is the thinking stage. In martial systems we attempt to make all of the thinking be accomplished in the dojo and not in combat. Thinking slows the mental processes and delays actions necessary to circumvent or deal correctly with conflict.
Your motivation shows in line three where your feelings are determined and the totality of the three lines for the lower trigram of the hexagram are representative of your attitude toward your inner world, your self. Your open-minded ability speaks to your attitude and your attitude holds great sway on how your attitude is applied and displayed to the outer world where the upper trigram and lines four, five and six are relevant.
The third line when holistically and symbiotically applied with line one and two lead you to the fourth line. The line is the karma of the body, your direction which is not necessarily out of your control. There are aspects that are not and you hopefully dealt with them in the lower trigram. The body leads to the soul that is governed by the heart and your mind. This is a stage where your maturity resulting from the previous lines and your practices in martial arts comes into play for it should have permeated your very being, your soul, to achieve the proper and correct mastery to the level you reach at any given moment.
The final line, line six, is the line that speaks to the results of the hexagram. You entered into this divination with a specific question and solid result that you wish to implement, step by step in detail, that will be either confirmed or denied as appropriate from your spirit as the answer to the moment. Your spirit is the wholehearted commitment you give to your question and answer.
Your spirit must be totally and completely committed as that is the only way to succeed for to have any doubt no matter how much and how hard you practice and train would result in a freeze and a resulting defeat, damage and even death. The spirit and essence of the I Ching and the divination of the hexagram toward your questions and strategies/tactics means absolute commitment in spirit or the mind will balk at the crucial moment.
In this way you take total and absolute responsibility first within yourself for all aspects of your life in and out of the dojo then you, you alone, create the body, soul and spirit that is committed to the path you, only you, choose with the aid of the I Ching as our mentor, guide and confidant.
The second line called the official line is the next level of the individuals responsibility for their life and to create the reality that is reality. This is the thinking stage. In martial systems we attempt to make all of the thinking be accomplished in the dojo and not in combat. Thinking slows the mental processes and delays actions necessary to circumvent or deal correctly with conflict.
Your motivation shows in line three where your feelings are determined and the totality of the three lines for the lower trigram of the hexagram are representative of your attitude toward your inner world, your self. Your open-minded ability speaks to your attitude and your attitude holds great sway on how your attitude is applied and displayed to the outer world where the upper trigram and lines four, five and six are relevant.
The third line when holistically and symbiotically applied with line one and two lead you to the fourth line. The line is the karma of the body, your direction which is not necessarily out of your control. There are aspects that are not and you hopefully dealt with them in the lower trigram. The body leads to the soul that is governed by the heart and your mind. This is a stage where your maturity resulting from the previous lines and your practices in martial arts comes into play for it should have permeated your very being, your soul, to achieve the proper and correct mastery to the level you reach at any given moment.
The final line, line six, is the line that speaks to the results of the hexagram. You entered into this divination with a specific question and solid result that you wish to implement, step by step in detail, that will be either confirmed or denied as appropriate from your spirit as the answer to the moment. Your spirit is the wholehearted commitment you give to your question and answer.
Your spirit must be totally and completely committed as that is the only way to succeed for to have any doubt no matter how much and how hard you practice and train would result in a freeze and a resulting defeat, damage and even death. The spirit and essence of the I Ching and the divination of the hexagram toward your questions and strategies/tactics means absolute commitment in spirit or the mind will balk at the crucial moment.
In this way you take total and absolute responsibility first within yourself for all aspects of your life in and out of the dojo then you, you alone, create the body, soul and spirit that is committed to the path you, only you, choose with the aid of the I Ching as our mentor, guide and confidant.
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| Click for a large view. |
Michi, Dao, Do
Tao, Do or Michi is to be unconscious; a spontaneous self-expression. It is to "act" in accord with the course of nature with out conscious effort, the fulfillment of one's nature, and the achievement of wisdom of the order of the universe. This is achieved through intuition and judgement of the individual, through achievement of harmony within personal life, within family, and within the tribe. Once the individuals inner mental and physical harmony is achieved within self, harmony on a wider scale emerges.
Bibliography:
Stiskin, Nahum. "The Looking Glass God: Shinto, Yin Yang, and a Cosmology for Today." Weatherhill. New York. 1972.
Bibliography:
Stiskin, Nahum. "The Looking Glass God: Shinto, Yin Yang, and a Cosmology for Today." Weatherhill. New York. 1972.
Isshinryu no Gokui to Isshinryu no Megami - Connections
"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 tactual data not seen on all sides and not heard in any direction." - Isshinryu no gokui or Isshinryu Karate Koan
The symbol, Isshinryu no Megami, does depict heaven and earth, i.e. the three stars reside within the heavens above and the sky in this form creates a view port to that heaven and the stars. The earth is alluded to as below the turmoil of the water, the ocean. Since the symbol is used for those who practice the system of karate or Isshinryu the person, being non-specific to male or female, is represented by the goddess in the symbol. It, the goddess, is comprised of both hard and soft which is yin-yang or in-yo in Japanese.
You can reach a bit in symbological fashion that the closed hand, being hard and being yang, is also representative of the male or man often a part of several of the gokui but also underlying the other gokui to connect the practice to person's or humans.
You can look to the turbulance of the water as representative or symbolic of the blood circulating, i.e. the ebb and flow of the water causing the flow itself in a turbulent fashion which is also symbolic of the ebb and flow, the in-yo, the yin-yang of life itself which is in constant flux, as is the water, and changes from yang-to-yin in a circular, apparent but actually spirally helix motion, manner as the changes of the yin-yang symbol.
Again the hands represent the hard and soft which is also symbolized in the references to spitting and drinking which are both hard and soft yet as the same time one yet two as they both are dependent on one another in a singular manner but cohesive as both are born of the human, person, mouth which is also symbolic as taking in sustenance as we would take in instruction to learn while expelling the toxins of the body as our outward breath expels carbon dioxide, a poison to humans, like we try to expel those incorrect and bad habits often attained in less than diligent wholehearted practice and training. We can look to drinking and drinking in knowledge and spitting as spitting out the garbage of instruction.
We see the face of the megami and connect the above to this symbolic aspect of both the gokui and the megami. Now take the time to connect the remainder of the gokui in a separate form then bring it all back into a wholehearted cohesive form.
The turbulent waters and the position of the arms and hand tell us symbolically of the importance of balance and if the hands or body are misused then the turbulence of the water will drown us in hate, despair, anger, and defeat. We would sink like a weight into the water and drown.
The water movement requires us to constantly change our Kamae to keep balanced and leaves us the feeling that it is all transitional in nature as the movement of the water and the person to keep balanced. Our ability to either strike or not strike is the balance of both the open and closed hands of the megami. As we are moved and move according to the moment which is influenced by the movement of the water and the air, i.e. the dark skys and apparent wind also causing us to adjust on the fly, we change our directions looking for opportunities to avoid and apply our abilities. We move with the nature of earth and heavens to see everything, to hear all sounds even those hidden by the water's turbulence and the skies/winds howling to achieve readiness and proper kamae.
We feel when the darkness is darkness the movement of nature with the water and the wind to achieve a tactile connection to the earth, the water, the sky, the wind and the turbulent moments to achieve proficiency, etc.
All this and more are represented in this symbol to give us a means to grasp things from all sides and any direction to feed the mind and allow the mind to learn, adjust and to change accordingly. To seek the journey of perfection within our system, our art and our lives.
This is the doorway provided by the symbological aspects of the Isshinryu-no-megami and the Ken-po Goku-i, warranting recognition of its importance and implementation into training and practice. These and others are "the connections."
Isshinryu no Megami - Symbology
This is a compilation into a graphic of my perception of symbols within the Isshinryu symbol, i.e. the Isshinryu no Megami.
I am currently looking to the actual Isshinryu no Gokui to find connections that would be of interest to this blog :-)
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| Click to enlarge and make more readable, updated with new information. |
Ao kusa no hito [青草の人]
The first character/ideogram means, "green; blue," the second character means, "grass; weeds; herbs; pasture; write; draft," and the third character means, "person; man."
Green grass man comes from the Shinto looking-glass God in that it connects the great tai chi to dualistic monism and then to man who is taught and perceived to be a "plant consuming entity." This means to many, vegetarian.
As martial artists we are naturally concerned with fitness and health. We take care of the external physical through the physical practice of martial arts but we don't necessarily give focus to the internal health and fitness of the body except by skimming over diet as we perceive, understand and consume. Apparently the ancient Japanese and Chinese long long ago recognized that man was meant to be a plant oriented consumer. Our nature and our teeth as example are not formed or meant to chew meat or meat oriented foods.
The LGG actually makes reference to the type of teeth are best used to grind grain. Then there are references to our close connections to plant and plant life as it was created and evolved as the Yin to the Yang being "man or mankind." Everything to do with health and fitness are tied closely to plant oriented foods only and introduction of meat leads, and current research bears fruit on this aspect, disease.
As Sensei of traditional or classical martial systems, even sport oriented for optimal performance, it is suggested that ao-kusa-no-hito be discussed and at the very minimum references be provided for self-research. I can see from personal experience the effects of this type of nourishment. We are truly "green-grass man."
Bibliography:
Stiskin, Nahum. "The Looking Glass God: Shinto, Yin Yang, and a Cosmology for Today." Weatherhill. New York. 1972.
Campbell, T. Colin, Campbell, Thomas M. "The China Study: The Most Comprehensive Study of Nutrition ever conducted and the startling implications for diet, weight loss, and long-term health. BenBella Books, Inc. Texas. 2006.
Green grass man comes from the Shinto looking-glass God in that it connects the great tai chi to dualistic monism and then to man who is taught and perceived to be a "plant consuming entity." This means to many, vegetarian.
As martial artists we are naturally concerned with fitness and health. We take care of the external physical through the physical practice of martial arts but we don't necessarily give focus to the internal health and fitness of the body except by skimming over diet as we perceive, understand and consume. Apparently the ancient Japanese and Chinese long long ago recognized that man was meant to be a plant oriented consumer. Our nature and our teeth as example are not formed or meant to chew meat or meat oriented foods.
The LGG actually makes reference to the type of teeth are best used to grind grain. Then there are references to our close connections to plant and plant life as it was created and evolved as the Yin to the Yang being "man or mankind." Everything to do with health and fitness are tied closely to plant oriented foods only and introduction of meat leads, and current research bears fruit on this aspect, disease.
As Sensei of traditional or classical martial systems, even sport oriented for optimal performance, it is suggested that ao-kusa-no-hito be discussed and at the very minimum references be provided for self-research. I can see from personal experience the effects of this type of nourishment. We are truly "green-grass man."
Bibliography:
Stiskin, Nahum. "The Looking Glass God: Shinto, Yin Yang, and a Cosmology for Today." Weatherhill. New York. 1972.
Campbell, T. Colin, Campbell, Thomas M. "The China Study: The Most Comprehensive Study of Nutrition ever conducted and the startling implications for diet, weight loss, and long-term health. BenBella Books, Inc. Texas. 2006.
The Dualistic Monism Doctrine of Martial Arts
A doctrine that says, i.e. monism, that reality consists of a single basic substance or element. It is that which speaks toward a singular energy. Dualistic is the doctrine of duality such as hot and cold, hard and soft, etc. When coupled this explains that the great tai chi, the one, created by singular energies the duality of yin-yang that has grown evolutionarily represented by the I Ching, i.e. the trigrams and hexagrams, etc.
Dualistic Monism governs all life in the universe. It is not cut and dry as hot vs. cold. It does comprise "change" that vacillates from extremes such as hot and cold. There is never a stationary yin or yang for change has its own dynamic that causes things to shift from one to the other through the processes of yin-yang.
The martial arts also receives its direction from dualistic monism. It is a singular practice that creates equilibrium of the body-mind. It is governing the body-mind to create a steady ebb and flow that is controlled to some extent through a physical-mental practice that is repetitive and fluid. There is no conflict between the extremes but a coexistence or symbiotic relation where they remain a distinct energy but work symbiotically to create either good or evil and all the stages or levels between.
Dualistic Monism governs all life in the universe. It is not cut and dry as hot vs. cold. It does comprise "change" that vacillates from extremes such as hot and cold. There is never a stationary yin or yang for change has its own dynamic that causes things to shift from one to the other through the processes of yin-yang.
The martial arts also receives its direction from dualistic monism. It is a singular practice that creates equilibrium of the body-mind. It is governing the body-mind to create a steady ebb and flow that is controlled to some extent through a physical-mental practice that is repetitive and fluid. There is no conflict between the extremes but a coexistence or symbiotic relation where they remain a distinct energy but work symbiotically to create either good or evil and all the stages or levels between.
Theory vs. Reality
Remember that things you might read or see are simply theory until you are able to vet them out in reality, i.e. reality training or real life encounters. Until then it remains theory and academic. It might seem that simple yet, my theory to date, is nothing is that simple.
Things that seem simple are often very complex but our minds and our nature wants to put things in nice neat compact and simple packages. The first time I was to read about violence I tried to find simple steps to make it jell in my mind. I could not find any such simple formula to learn about it and that was an eye opener. Violence is very complex.
Even now I am reading Rory Miller's new book, "Force Decisions," only to discover yet once again that things are far more complex and convoluted than I imagined.
I was attacked as a teenager by a drug dealer who outweighed me by about one hundred pounds. I survived but felt I could have done something more. Today I reflect on such incidents and say to myself that for fifteen years of age I did pretty darn good. I lived and suffered only some bumps, bruises, cuts and abrasions - very lucky me.
As a Marine I encountered first an attempt to toss me out a second story building. It may not seem like much but you have to remember how much damage you get when gravity pulls you down a couple of feet to the cold hard ground. I managed to actually "act" and "end" the conflict. I survived that one as well. Later I was sleeping in my bunk, rack or bed and suddenly felt a huge pressure on my forehead. I instinctually woke and jumped down off the top rack and pursued my attacker. He was faster and got away but I survived the encounter and lived.
As a Marine, dangerous life you know and this was not even combat, I woke the next morning after a real bender to find my OD green issue blanket in ashes and a burn whole over my torso. This one was just lucky as LCpl Balthazar, never forget this guy, came by and said a couple of Marines kept setting my rack, bunk or bed on fire and he kept getting up and putting it out. I can only say in this event I survived through the will and effort of another Marine willing to set up to the plate.
My thoughts on these events as I consider those close encounters violent in nature but are not indicative of true violence and the kind of violence that one would live with in their jobs like Rory Miller and would live with in their lives like Marc MacYoung.
I was lucky and proud of it as other more minor incidents over the ten year tour as a Marine taught me that at least on those occasions I was lucky to have acted. I came to realize that often how I acted didn't sit well with me but now that I have at least been academically introduced to what violence and what violent people are really like I thank my lucky stars that I have "avoided" it and live a peaceful life.
Some of what I have learned theoretically and academically I have managed to assimilate but many things will remain theory and academic because I chose to have it this way. After all, I am 58 years young and I do want to get to be an old Marine, an old guy and remain healthy but aware.
Don't mind me, just going over some things and trying to achieve some enlightenment. I want to remind everyone who has been so kind as to register that they read my crap and enjoy it but that often it is part theory, part academia and just a smidgeon of experience.
Thanks for listening, you get to think about crap as you gain in years of life experience. I chose my path and I feel I chose wisely, now for some more fun. If you can't tell I like to write and hope to get good at it some day :-)
Things that seem simple are often very complex but our minds and our nature wants to put things in nice neat compact and simple packages. The first time I was to read about violence I tried to find simple steps to make it jell in my mind. I could not find any such simple formula to learn about it and that was an eye opener. Violence is very complex.
Even now I am reading Rory Miller's new book, "Force Decisions," only to discover yet once again that things are far more complex and convoluted than I imagined.
I was attacked as a teenager by a drug dealer who outweighed me by about one hundred pounds. I survived but felt I could have done something more. Today I reflect on such incidents and say to myself that for fifteen years of age I did pretty darn good. I lived and suffered only some bumps, bruises, cuts and abrasions - very lucky me.
As a Marine I encountered first an attempt to toss me out a second story building. It may not seem like much but you have to remember how much damage you get when gravity pulls you down a couple of feet to the cold hard ground. I managed to actually "act" and "end" the conflict. I survived that one as well. Later I was sleeping in my bunk, rack or bed and suddenly felt a huge pressure on my forehead. I instinctually woke and jumped down off the top rack and pursued my attacker. He was faster and got away but I survived the encounter and lived.
As a Marine, dangerous life you know and this was not even combat, I woke the next morning after a real bender to find my OD green issue blanket in ashes and a burn whole over my torso. This one was just lucky as LCpl Balthazar, never forget this guy, came by and said a couple of Marines kept setting my rack, bunk or bed on fire and he kept getting up and putting it out. I can only say in this event I survived through the will and effort of another Marine willing to set up to the plate.
My thoughts on these events as I consider those close encounters violent in nature but are not indicative of true violence and the kind of violence that one would live with in their jobs like Rory Miller and would live with in their lives like Marc MacYoung.
I was lucky and proud of it as other more minor incidents over the ten year tour as a Marine taught me that at least on those occasions I was lucky to have acted. I came to realize that often how I acted didn't sit well with me but now that I have at least been academically introduced to what violence and what violent people are really like I thank my lucky stars that I have "avoided" it and live a peaceful life.
Some of what I have learned theoretically and academically I have managed to assimilate but many things will remain theory and academic because I chose to have it this way. After all, I am 58 years young and I do want to get to be an old Marine, an old guy and remain healthy but aware.
Don't mind me, just going over some things and trying to achieve some enlightenment. I want to remind everyone who has been so kind as to register that they read my crap and enjoy it but that often it is part theory, part academia and just a smidgeon of experience.
Thanks for listening, you get to think about crap as you gain in years of life experience. I chose my path and I feel I chose wisely, now for some more fun. If you can't tell I like to write and hope to get good at it some day :-)
Yin-Yang and 3
I have posted on the frequency and importance of the number 3. In many places, beliefs and customs you find three to appear either surreptitiously or obviously. Then I post on the yin-yang which is often referred to as a symbol of duality. I would also say that this symbol is also representative of the importance given to the number 3 - as in numerology in Chinese culture.
You have yin, you have yang, you have both representing the "one" or the "whole" of the two. Then you have the black side, the white side and then you will find in most renderings a circle surrounding the entire yin-yang, the symbol of the enso, i.e. the zen circle.
The enso surrounding the yin-yang symbol, as a part of the whole, is also representative of "infinity," and "the mirror" or the third jewel of Japanese culture and belief. It is also, by itself, indicative of the void.
So, see, the numerology is represented and representative of all things including the yin-yang. Now you have to ask yourself why is three important to the martial arts such as karate.
Heart, mind and spirit - the unification of the "three" to make a person a whole or wholehearted practitioner leading to other more as to wisdom, serenity and health.
You have yin, you have yang, you have both representing the "one" or the "whole" of the two. Then you have the black side, the white side and then you will find in most renderings a circle surrounding the entire yin-yang, the symbol of the enso, i.e. the zen circle.
The enso surrounding the yin-yang symbol, as a part of the whole, is also representative of "infinity," and "the mirror" or the third jewel of Japanese culture and belief. It is also, by itself, indicative of the void.
So, see, the numerology is represented and representative of all things including the yin-yang. Now you have to ask yourself why is three important to the martial arts such as karate.
Heart, mind and spirit - the unification of the "three" to make a person a whole or wholehearted practitioner leading to other more as to wisdom, serenity and health.
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| Click for larger view, look closely and "see" three. |
The Key [鍵]: Opens [開く] the Door [戸] to Potential
No, what I am trying to accomplish is to give a esoteric gift to those who read my stuff. The gift is a key. This key is to open the door of each person's potential. It is to open the mind so it will think for itself.
I don't want folks to follow anything I provide here or in practice but rather to assimilate all that I have to offer and then decide on their own as to its validity and to its value to that individual, that person, YOU!
I am not saying that anything I provide is either true or false, fact or fiction, or good or evil but rather information that may be or at least seems to be "different." It is not right or wrong, good or bad, true or false - just different.
The sages of China teach that a cornerstone of any great structure is the knowledge gained in its building, creation and foundation. It has to be the kind that is subject to reflection and change as to the moment, the person and the environment, etc.
I hope all who read this and my output are discovering the key and using it to open their door to their potential.
The Natural Way
Changes are governed by the theory and context taught as yin-yang. This means that change occurs by degrees. The ken-po goku-i teaches us that one must remain true to the universe or nature's laws. When the goku-i expresses how human hearts and human blood circulation are similar to the Heaven and Earth; Sun and Moon this is one of its lessons.
The circulation of the Earth around the sun as well as the moon around the Earth this is always done by degrees. The sun rises, reaches it apex over the Earth, and finally sets at the rhythm and pattern that never truly changes except in minute ways. Night changes to day changes to night as the blood takes nutrients of the color red to the body and takes back waste in the color of blue to rid the body of contaminants, etc. This is the natural way, nature's way and the way of the universe.
In humans we have anger-joy, fear-fortitude, frustration-serenity, etc. The process of change that cannot be forced nor should it be. Yet, we continue to push the envelope by pushing the natural order of things to get somewhere fast, to do things quickly and to get more time. The results are self-evident and the only true path is to follow the natural way of things, the yin-yang of things and the way of the universe/nature.
The circulation of the Earth around the sun as well as the moon around the Earth this is always done by degrees. The sun rises, reaches it apex over the Earth, and finally sets at the rhythm and pattern that never truly changes except in minute ways. Night changes to day changes to night as the blood takes nutrients of the color red to the body and takes back waste in the color of blue to rid the body of contaminants, etc. This is the natural way, nature's way and the way of the universe.
In humans we have anger-joy, fear-fortitude, frustration-serenity, etc. The process of change that cannot be forced nor should it be. Yet, we continue to push the envelope by pushing the natural order of things to get somewhere fast, to do things quickly and to get more time. The results are self-evident and the only true path is to follow the natural way of things, the yin-yang of things and the way of the universe/nature.
How does yin and yang work?
A complex question I go into with trepidation. I will try to explain it as simplistically as I can with the limited knowledge I have at this moment. Yin-yang is dualistic monism or a theory of dynamic relativity. When we judge something as either yin or yang we are not saying it is pure yin or pure yang but rather one or the other relative to the other.
The theory of nature is that it exists in a constant state of flux or change. It changes constantly in quality, quantity, and/or structure as to its yin-yang elements. It is an endless ebb and flow of movement of nature's processes.
Whether you are breaking something down into its atomistic parts, its particulars or whether you are considering the "whole" of something or its holistic nature you find no neutrality. Think of breathing in and out where one is either yin or yang with aspects of lesser intensity or context being yin with a bit of yang then yang with a bit of yin. When judging an entity as either yin or yang, you never do so "absolutely."
We can observe and detect a dominate yin or yang tendency, i.e. one is yin or yang relative to the other. The yin-yang symbol is an excellent representation of this yin-yang process.
Read the ken-po goku-i kaon of karate and see, hear, and feel the presence of yin-yang within heaven, earth, sun and moon and man or humans.
To gain more insight to the true meaning of how yin-yang fit into our view of nature or the universe read the bibliography.
Bibliography:
Stiskin, Nahum. "The Looking Glass God: Shinto, Yin Yang, and a Cosmology for Today." Weatherhill. New York. 1972.
The theory of nature is that it exists in a constant state of flux or change. It changes constantly in quality, quantity, and/or structure as to its yin-yang elements. It is an endless ebb and flow of movement of nature's processes.
Whether you are breaking something down into its atomistic parts, its particulars or whether you are considering the "whole" of something or its holistic nature you find no neutrality. Think of breathing in and out where one is either yin or yang with aspects of lesser intensity or context being yin with a bit of yang then yang with a bit of yin. When judging an entity as either yin or yang, you never do so "absolutely."
We can observe and detect a dominate yin or yang tendency, i.e. one is yin or yang relative to the other. The yin-yang symbol is an excellent representation of this yin-yang process.
Read the ken-po goku-i kaon of karate and see, hear, and feel the presence of yin-yang within heaven, earth, sun and moon and man or humans.
To gain more insight to the true meaning of how yin-yang fit into our view of nature or the universe read the bibliography.
Bibliography:
Stiskin, Nahum. "The Looking Glass God: Shinto, Yin Yang, and a Cosmology for Today." Weatherhill. New York. 1972.