Re: Internal Power
Posted: Thu Apr 18, 2013 7:30 am
Hi Bob,
Leaving the esoteric ki/qi/prāṇā labels aside for the moment and thinking just in terms of inner energy. I think we need to understand that all inner energy is activated from the moment of our birth and common sense tells us it is actually a component In the western ‘civilisation’ breathing patterns also, even though little thought is given to it.
The cultural eastern and western difference is where: much like the muscular, intellectual and emotional systems, the breathing system of the homo-sapien can be nurtured, strengthened and cultivated as a preventative measure for Asian medicinal purposes but western culture looks more to curative practices.
I haven’t counted ‘em but apart from the martial artist and the like, the only occidentals with a breathing purpose that I know of is the Australian outback bushman who will usually inhale and drink beer through his teeth to stop the flies entering his mouth in the summer when the flies add a mystery flavour and protein to the BBQ.
There are other cultural differences though: In the western manner we tend to exhale loudly and many students ‘collapse’ the breath and lose control or only use a part of the lung capacity, whereas, It has been noted in an old meeting between Kuguri sensei and Jim Elkin sensei, two old Tomiki aikido adepts: that Japanese martial culture was greatly influenced in its development by its agrarian culture, perhaps even to its manner of breathing and language.
{Kuguri/Elkin} http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=en ... 1nvOY&NR=1
As you would obviously know: the Nihongo speaker will usually exhale ‘inwardly’ as opposed to expelling the breath forcefully, or perhaps in what I would call centripetal (seeking the centre) before centrifugal spiralling effect of the energy: which reminds me of our Wado Pinan shodan movement 16 where uchi uke is centripetal as in gathering in to one’s centre whilst the following soto motion is deflecting from one’s centre, Nagashizuki can be like this too..
What this means (to me) is that the connected body starts with the breath at the moment of understanding the concepts of intent and willpower. Intent being inert until willpower gives it life. Breath is life so it is the life force in all aspects of one’s life including wado ryu.
Linking spiral breathing or eternity breathing - in a figure eight across the lungs - to this for practitioners who are still focused on doing things to an opponent, or the effect in terms of the opponent (instead of what is going on in his own body) is probably always going to be a lead balloon given the limitations of the internet and no physical contact with a student. Even with a dojo and the hands on students, he or she has to be at the stage of being switched on to this stuff to get any degree of understanding.
As I write this, I come face to face again with the enormity of Suzuki sensei’s problem of bringing this before the gaijin mind. Particularly the European ‘pragmatic’ legacy of the artisan with very few earlier ‘education’ systems that were not designed to link thought to the notion of obedience in the class hampered primary and secondary systems that reserved research and development for the tertiary students to battle with.
Suzuki’s brilliant answer to his limited language problem was to conjure his set of 8 ohyo Kumite where the principles of Newton’s 3 laws of motion were physically demonstrated, enlisted and physically reachable for the average guy if he was ready to see it. Check out his version of six direction in his ohyo #4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HnNx6hDSmP8
or check out Fukazawa sensei translating it into technique here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cnaKqT7y-I0
and here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SJk_9YET ... F2AA5B251A
Let's not forget Shiomitsu sensei showng how to ‘change the maai’ to nullify by interrupting the spiral in the Hawaii seminar that Honolulu Desktop threw up on the forum before he left us.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y7_UlaneJD8
But the old meijin built a few more into his kata system also.
Perhaps most people still see ohyo kumite in term of linking fighting technique so maybe I can use Suzuki’s spirals example for the forum?
It works for us.
oneya
Leaving the esoteric ki/qi/prāṇā labels aside for the moment and thinking just in terms of inner energy. I think we need to understand that all inner energy is activated from the moment of our birth and common sense tells us it is actually a component In the western ‘civilisation’ breathing patterns also, even though little thought is given to it.
The cultural eastern and western difference is where: much like the muscular, intellectual and emotional systems, the breathing system of the homo-sapien can be nurtured, strengthened and cultivated as a preventative measure for Asian medicinal purposes but western culture looks more to curative practices.
I haven’t counted ‘em but apart from the martial artist and the like, the only occidentals with a breathing purpose that I know of is the Australian outback bushman who will usually inhale and drink beer through his teeth to stop the flies entering his mouth in the summer when the flies add a mystery flavour and protein to the BBQ.
There are other cultural differences though: In the western manner we tend to exhale loudly and many students ‘collapse’ the breath and lose control or only use a part of the lung capacity, whereas, It has been noted in an old meeting between Kuguri sensei and Jim Elkin sensei, two old Tomiki aikido adepts: that Japanese martial culture was greatly influenced in its development by its agrarian culture, perhaps even to its manner of breathing and language.
{Kuguri/Elkin} http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=en ... 1nvOY&NR=1
As you would obviously know: the Nihongo speaker will usually exhale ‘inwardly’ as opposed to expelling the breath forcefully, or perhaps in what I would call centripetal (seeking the centre) before centrifugal spiralling effect of the energy: which reminds me of our Wado Pinan shodan movement 16 where uchi uke is centripetal as in gathering in to one’s centre whilst the following soto motion is deflecting from one’s centre, Nagashizuki can be like this too..
What this means (to me) is that the connected body starts with the breath at the moment of understanding the concepts of intent and willpower. Intent being inert until willpower gives it life. Breath is life so it is the life force in all aspects of one’s life including wado ryu.
Linking spiral breathing or eternity breathing - in a figure eight across the lungs - to this for practitioners who are still focused on doing things to an opponent, or the effect in terms of the opponent (instead of what is going on in his own body) is probably always going to be a lead balloon given the limitations of the internet and no physical contact with a student. Even with a dojo and the hands on students, he or she has to be at the stage of being switched on to this stuff to get any degree of understanding.
As I write this, I come face to face again with the enormity of Suzuki sensei’s problem of bringing this before the gaijin mind. Particularly the European ‘pragmatic’ legacy of the artisan with very few earlier ‘education’ systems that were not designed to link thought to the notion of obedience in the class hampered primary and secondary systems that reserved research and development for the tertiary students to battle with.
Suzuki’s brilliant answer to his limited language problem was to conjure his set of 8 ohyo Kumite where the principles of Newton’s 3 laws of motion were physically demonstrated, enlisted and physically reachable for the average guy if he was ready to see it. Check out his version of six direction in his ohyo #4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HnNx6hDSmP8
or check out Fukazawa sensei translating it into technique here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cnaKqT7y-I0
and here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SJk_9YET ... F2AA5B251A
Let's not forget Shiomitsu sensei showng how to ‘change the maai’ to nullify by interrupting the spiral in the Hawaii seminar that Honolulu Desktop threw up on the forum before he left us.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y7_UlaneJD8
But the old meijin built a few more into his kata system also.
Perhaps most people still see ohyo kumite in term of linking fighting technique so maybe I can use Suzuki’s spirals example for the forum?
It works for us.
oneya