110 Know Your Guides
Because life is every changing and so are you your guides will also change moment by moment. This is not to say that old guides are of no more help, far from it! New situations, however, will be driven by new information, whether from old or new guides-- and in some cases you will respond better to a fresh guide. Martial arts and various sciences teach that the answer to all questions is within all things. I like this notion a lot because it puts focus on knowing who or what your source is-- for you, right now-- not yesterday or for anyone else. Your sources may differ from those of other people, but that’s okay. Energy is energy and consciousness is consciousness. Both speak through every particle in the heavens and on earth. You can look inward or outward. But just look. Discover who or what is speaking to you and listen.
Exercise
Spend a quiet moment to reflect on a current conflict or area of happiness in our life. Brainstorm as many resources s you can that will help you troubleshoot it. Is there a book that could enhance your success, a lecture you could attend, a friend you could consult, a class you could take, a degree you could pursue, a trip you could take? Then relist your results, including only those guides that you feel speak to you. What if you took a day off from work? How could you use the time to open yourself to the kind of guides that could heighten the quality of our life? Incorporate some of these into your daily routine.
111 Embrace Your Guides
In the dojo, once you have identified our guides, you embrace them. You seek their wisdom. This sort of thing happens all the time. I once heard one master say of another before trading techniques” all I have to do is feel that energy one time, and I’ll be able to do it” the operative word here is feel. Guides transfer energy--just substitute the word download for feel in the sentence above. You absorb and invoke energy from all sources in the universe--physical, emotional and spiritual. For millenniums, martial arts have looked to nature, exploring the elements as well as five traditional animals, for its guides. Energetically, meditation, scans, visualization, and physical movement have been the way to plug in. the process is like a copy and paste method of absorbing new energies and awareness. Once you do integrate this energy and wisdom, the essence of your guides is yours, not symbolically but literally. Embrace your guides. Invoke their wisdoms and sweeten life.
Exercise
Use your power of meditation to help you plug in to your chosen guide’s energy. In its pure form you will feel only positive energy. Let your guide’s energy trigger each of our internal energy centers. Feel how it affects each one differently. Let float into our mind set and inspire you.
Note: any physical exercise you undertake prior to this meditation will enhance it.
112 Crouch with the Tiger
Shaolin martial arts are embedded in study of 5 traditional animals: the tiger, leopard, snake, crane and dragon. Each has its own energy mind set, and unique movement. The first animal, the tiger, embodies great forward, offensive power. Every movement is made with intent to close in on its garget. It is disciplined, comfortable, and capable in close ranges. It can quickly move through the gap between where it stands and where it wants to be. In can stop on a dive if necessary and resume activity at a microscopic crawl. It can wait as long as it must before making a move. It remains centered whether crouching, jetting, leaping, crawling or rolling. Crouching, its quiet, calm massive power stills to a point of invisibility and then explodes from A to Z in an instant. Once the tiger reaches a target, its power to adhere in unparalleled. It knows what to do instinctively and does everything to gain positioning. This energy is essential both in the dojan and out. Feeling it can committing this energy to memory allows you to access to immense forward focus and drive. Such energy provides dramatic balance and resolve, even when life is doing cartwheels.
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Relax and center. Close your eyes. Open all energy channels and feel your self pumping strong positive energy. Consider all the characteristic of the tiger. Visualize an action scene for you from as many angles as you can. Observe the tigers behavior. Using your in breaths invoke the tigerfs energy into your muscles. Try to feel its mind and power. Imagine your favorite meditative setting.(a mountain forest, a river or some other peaceful setting.) Experience the environment through all the tigers senses. Be the tiger. Feel the energy. Consider how you can tap into its iron commitment to get comfortable at close ranges, as well as sustain pure focus and purpose in daily life
113 Shadow of the Leopard
The Leopard relies on extreme speed, hypersensitivity and cumulative effect. It is spontaneously aggressive, yet analytical. The leopard has the unique ability to ricochet off targets and bold back with heightened force, using an opponentfs force to project more power. You can experience this burst of rapid energy just by placing your hand on the corner of a table or doorway, applying some forward pressure, and letting your hand skid off. This sudden surge makes good balance essentially. Master of these techniques, the leopard redirects attacks and turns block into opportunities to launch a flurry of strikes and with constant ricochet, the steady accumulation works. Not as massive as the tiger, the leopard builds power from speed. It uses sensitivity to see emotional and physical shifts as openings. It feels an opponentfs intent. Such hyper senses allows the leopard to sense things before they happen, thus allowing time to analyze and respond in what appears to be one spontaneous act.
Exercise
Relax and center yourself. Open all of your energy channels and pump strong positive energy through each of them. Consider all the characteristics of the leopard. Script an action scene for each characteristic, from as many angles as you can. Visualize the leopardfs behavior. Invoke this energy into your muscles. Feel the power. Imagine your favorite meditative setting. Experience this environment through all the leopardfs senses. Be that leopard. Feel the energy. Commit the energy to memory. Think of times you can tap this resource in daily life to help you act swiftly yet with precision accuracy, turn attacks into windows for increases strength and personal growth, and reach your goals by accumulated efforts.
114 Soar Like the Crane
The crane is the ultimate defensive artist. Its techniques, however may be the most difficult of the five animals. It waits, testing and evaluating movement, its own and its opponentsf, until the right move exposes itself. Then it relies on graceful, angled attacks, maintaining a keep stability yet destabilizing attacker. Its lines can be short or snappy or long and graceful. The crane has unique ability to remain hauntingly calm, even when being attacked. It faces its opponent, utterly relaxed, circling its environment if necessary, thinking things over and putting itself out of rang until just the right moment. No matter what, the crane will remain composed, alert, and read to soar for as long as it must. Then when absolutely necessary it will make its move using a lot of decoys to focus opponentsff attentions where it wants them and softly redirecting their energies.
Exercise
Practice moving with graceful calm. Light a candle. Imagine a circle around the flame with a diameter of about nine inches. Rotate an open hand around the flame. Watch how the flame harmonizes with your energy flow. Try to harmonize with the flamefs energy flow. Move in when the flame retreats, back when it advances. Keep circling and harmonizing with the flame.
Alternate: imagine your favorite environment. Visualize a crane circling, analyzing, calm and present, perhaps just waiting for the right moment to land,. Invoke the cranefs energy into your muscles. Feel its mind and its graceful, relaxed spirit. Think of times you can tap this resource in daily life to help you move more softly and timely, with graceful fearlessness. Revisit this energy often.
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115 Strike Directly as the Snake
The snake embodies the most chi of any animal. Its internal energy is extremely sensitive and powerful. No wonder understanding this often mysterious creature was one of the Shaolin monksf earliest undertakings. Some of the most coveted martial secrets are rooted in the snakefs ability to completely control attackers with absolute minimum effort. Instead of muscling anything, the snake is known or its piercing focus and its ability to strike in between heartbeats. Its style is punctuated with both intent and avoidance. The snake completely controls its opponentsf attacks by slipping in and out of them, moving only as much as absolutely necessary and wasting no time. It is able o read its environment with intense clarity it moves softly, directly and precisely; and it targets only what is vital. Invoking this energy will sharpen you attention in tight situations and help you glide through them with ease.
Exercise
In a standing position, form your hands into the posture of prayer hands. Turn them over so your left hand is on top, palm down. Start to move this posture into a sideways figure eight, the symbol of infinity. Invoke the snakes energy. Visualize a target about two feet in front of you. Regulate your breathing. Make yourself as sensitive as possible to the pattern of movement. Feel its energy. When you feel the moment is right, and only then, separate your hands smoothly and in the same motion shoot out your right hand and press your right palm to the center of the target. This should feel awkward at first. You will find that as you learn to read the energy patterns with more sensitivity, you will be able to execute your shot with more authority and less effort. Be careful not to overextend your arm. Consider how reading another personfs patterns and shooting straight to the heart of the matter can resolve current conflicts or heighten your joys..
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Explode with Stillness Like the Dragon
In martial arts, the dragon isa mythical animal with great wisdom. It is strong and hard, capable of riding out and withstanding whatever turbulence is keeping it from happiness. The dragonfs energy will guide you through the hard times. It can help you bite the bullet, when necessary and land a place of advantage from where you can launch an effective shot. The ddragon employs long whole body movement in addition to short snappy shots. Its power come from its ability to coil energy tightly within and then explode outward gracefully, spiraling through space in a continuous dance that fuels itself as it unravels. The dragonfs secret is that it is all the other animals combined.
Element
Relax and center. Open all of your energy channels, and feel yourself pumping strong positive energy through each channel. Consider all the aforementioned characteristics of the dragon. Visualize a dragon coiling up, condensing energy, and then spinning its tail in long graceful lines. Feel its explosive energy. Invoke it into your muscles, and feel how much strength could withstand anything that comes at it. Experience the dragonfs mind and sheer power of its spirit. Be the dragon. What parts of your body are most affected by this energy? Commit the energy to memory. Think of times you can tap this resource in daily life to help you withstand difficult situations until windows of opportunity open and you explode toward your goals with in exhaustible power. Revisit this energy often.
90. Dance of the Elements
Traditionally, martial arts as well as Chinese medicine offer the interplay between the five elements: metal, water, wood, fire, and earth, as a way of living. Each element represents a particular expression of chi. Most dojos zero in on the constructive/creative ad destructive potential of each. This helps you to understand man of the subtler aspect of the Universal Energy and to integrate them into our daily life. For example, metal liquefies into water, which produces wood, which produces fire, which produces earth, which sustains all life and so o. furthermore, for thousands of years, martial arts have taught that ultimately within any particular element each of the others can be found, and that such is the dance of the life everything is part of everything else, a banner that the most current of scientific research enjoys waving. Let such awareness enhance you by bringing you ore contentment and clarity.
Exercise
Visualize the following colors for each element. White for metal, blue for water, green for wood, red for fire and yellow for earth. Focus on them in motion transforming each into the next in the cycle. Focus your attention on your energy pumps. Notice how each pump is affected as you pass from one color to the next. Try visualizing these colors to energize yourself during your daily routines. Note which element facilitate which action. Use this information in future endeavors.
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91. Like Metal
A basic goal of martial training is acquiring enough strength to cut through things. This, the dojo teaches that at times you mst be like metal:solid, hard and able to strike or withstand attack with the power of iron. Early in martial training most practitioners try to avid punches and kicks as much as possible. Later, however, with proper coditioning, you lear there are times when your ability to take a shot yields considerable advantages. This isnft to say that you stand there like a iron statue. Itfs more like split secod transformations from; water into and out of earthh and metal then back to earth to water again. You are taught to remember that iron melts. Nothing stays rigid, because what is ridid breaks. One o the most common dojo anathems is just keep moving donft stop . When your opponent is burning with speed, you turn liquid. If ou are liguid you need to ground before turning solid. If your opponent is liquid, you wonft get anywhere its better to become absorbeant.
Exercise
Make a list of all the properties of metal you ca find. Consider how each of these properties may parallel a way of problem solving a particular incident In your life. Visualize how to move in and out of the most useful properties from other behaviors involved in the incident. Remember to keep moving choregraph a troubleshooting strategy. Try it out.
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92. Like Water
No matter where you go on the planet, water is a symbol of purity, birth and rebirth. Be like water. Thi is the climatically chapter of the tao te ching, and ancient text providing the philosophical basis for a way of living know as Taoism which become a state religion in china roughly twent five hundred years ago. The way or tao of both Taoism and all martial arts is acceptance or noninterference. Lau Tsu, founder of Taoism and author of Tao Te ching, suggested to always go with the flow. Indeed, this has become foremost anthem of our times. It is simple and perfect. Whatever you do, consider the properties of water, and they will get you through. Sometimes you hae to be solft and other times you must be hard. You ca be heated, cold go over things, under, around and even through them. You can explode or be still. Sometimes you hae to vaporize ad become invisible. Be like water ad you will glide though life effortlessly. Your troubles will seem lighter, and your joys will soar higher.
Exercise
Consider a point and conflict or stress in your current life. What properties of water can e employed to help bring you a state of resolution and peace? Now just follow through by trying to use some of those properties. See how you feel. Consider how using the same properties may heighten a current source of joy.
93. e Like Wood
Some of the most elegant movements in martial arts are associated with the element of wood. These movements grow naturally out of the fluidit of water actions, reaching in all directions. When it is balanced, this energy is direct, even piercing, yet graceful and flexible. Most martial artist lear to make movement associated ith thsis element appear quite simple. For example, one of my favorite postures begins from a lvery low, almost croached stance. You rise upward into a standing postion and, evn so slowly, raise one leg above your head like a slow motion kick, until it is fully straightened, extending your arms outwoard like a figure skater. Much like watching a ballet or ice dancer, this is one of those postures that looks so graceful that itfs easy to miss the trained strength behind it. Itfs a great example of what martial arts call s soft, peaceful energy being guided by iron will. Anger and tensiion indicate that this element is blocked. When such energy is imbalanced, you feel as though you hae lost center and have become rigid. You run the risk of snapping. To utilize this element, on the mats or in daily life, you must move from an orientation of water and remain supple able to bend in any direction.
Exercise
Consider a point of conflict or stress in your current life. What properties of wood can be employed to help bring you to a state of resolution and peace? Now just follow through and try to use those properties. See how you feel. Consider how using the same properties may heighten a current source of joy.
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94. Be Like Fire
Martial arts tell us to balance the element of fire in our lives. When it is stabilized, it will sparkle your eyes; give you healthy, radiant ski, war off diease; increae potency and sex drive; as well as keep you trim. Fire vitality. It is the energy behind good health. It gives you penetrating speed and capability to be productive. On the mats, when you summon the power of fire, your lies can lengthen in an instant. You can blaze shots high or low in seconds. Strikes mold into fiery grabs and rapid takedowns. You swiftly adhere, penetrate ad get the job done. But fire can be destructive, so summon it with care. If left uncontrolled, fire can dehydrate you. This increases physical, emotional and spiritual toins, leaving you vulnerable on many levels. Systptoms of imbalance surface as headaches, body pain or stomach disordes. In the dojo you are wary of staying in this energy field too long. Simly put it will stress you out. When it is prolonged, this element will turn on itself, as is the case of type a personality. By when it is balanced, it greatly increases your ability to succeed at whatever you do.
Exercise
Consider an endeavor in your current life. List all the properties of fire that you can identify. Which could be employed to create advantages and ultimately lead you to success? Follow through and try to use those properties. See how you feel. Remember that these elements can be invoked to enhance lifefs pleasure as well as solve problems.
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95. Be Like Earth
Earth energy roots and centers you. Martial training says that to be like earth is to feel sure footed and powerful. Earth energy is downwar. So, when it comes to technique, this energy makes it difficult for anyone t push you over. This is why the dojo teaches you to place your consceiousness in the lower dan tien and move from there. It opes a steady flow of chi throughout your body. It is transformative. Earth is the energy in between postures that allows each to blossom. It absorbs and channels energy from the universe to nurture, strengthen and promote growth. It absorbs, cleanses and protet. On the mats, you learn to let some shots run straight through you like lighting into the ground, and you keep on going undaunted. You learn that you have the ame capacity at work, home or wherever. Blocked of this energy, you become prey to the smallest conflicts. You move in fear and weakness rather then in confidence and strength. Earth energy flows in and out of all transformation, providing a solid foundation for each of the other elements. Settle into yourself. Move from the ground.
Exercise
Consider an endeavor in your current life. List all the properties of earth that you can identify. How can these properties be utilized to provide balance between problem solving actions and lead you to success? Follow through and try to use those properties. See how you feel. Remember that these elements can be invoked to enhance lifefs pleasures as well as solve problems.
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