SPIRITUALITY & MARTIAL ARTS: (Part 2)Jeet Kune-Do: A Spiritual Mirror

This is an article I had written a couple of years back as a tribute to the one who has inspired me and with whom I feel I share an eternal connection that transcends the barrier of time-space:
BRUCE LEE...!

In one of my posts, BRUCE LEE'S ENLIGHTENMENT AND JEET KUNE DO, I had promised my readers that I would dedicate a separate post on Jeet Kune do which would describe in detail Bruce Lee's 'ENLIGHTENMENT'. So here is that article which took me more than a year to search and deliver:

JEET KUNE-DO: A Spiritual Mirror

Every martial arts master emphasizes the spiritual significance of martial arts as a means of attaining self-realization. Has it ever occurred to you - how can a warrior (fighter) indulging a fighter, speak of self-realization or enlightenment... when the essence of the latter is purely peace and harmony? If this thought has ever struck to you, then you are taking the 'first step on the journey of a thousand miles' as stated by the great Chinese philosopher Lao Tzu.

When you talk about self-realization or enlightenment, who is it that wants this? 
The reply is swift - I !
When you say 'I', what is that you are referring to? You are not what you think you are!

Take a look at any part of your body say, the palm of your hand.You are sure that it is of a certain shape with five fingers (thumb included) along with all the associated features. Now if you were to take the most sophisticated technology to enable your vision to penetrate deeper, what would you observe? Cluster of cells; further deeper - molecules, atoms and even clearly sub-atomic particles that denote nothing but vibration of energy. Upon the deepest examination, one will find space/emptiness in which this vibration takes place. 

It is thus, the great scientist Einstein shook the world of science by declaring that matter and energy are the same.

Whatever is observed and experienced is purely relative using time and space.

Thus for an object to exist, a subject must necessarily be pre-existing.Otherwise there is no question of existence or non-existence in that state of void. That void is nothingness or emptiness (in fact, cannot be described by words, but only by experiencing this truth) and yet from this nothingness springs forth everything. Thus energy - at - rest (nothingness) experiences a stirring within (energy in movement) and splits into 'seemingly' opposite forces: subject/object, man/woman, good/bad, yin/yang, push/pull, attack/defence and so on.

Upon this split, the opposite forces continue existing unaware of their true non-dual nature. It is consciousness that works through all the animated and non-animated objects. Humans are said to be made in God's own image because humans are the epitome of evolution known to us, as only humans have the ability to transcend the barrier of ego and experience this transcendence consciously. 'Ego' is the sum total of all thoughts and experiences of a living identity, which, is governed by genes and conditioning - genes obtained at birth and which activate at different stages in one's lifetime; conditioning is of the body and mind by the self and the 'others' depending on the environment of existence. The real YOU is what you were prior to your ego. Thus you are what you were prior to your birth (prior to the birth of your body and your consciousness of existence). This state, when meditated upon sincerely, will give you the glimpse of the eternal truth devoid of space and time - THERE IS NO 'I' - the state of void from wherein everything has generated. This is the state prior to the very feeling I AM or AHAM BRAHMASAMI (I AM ALL).

Jeet Kune-Do is a mirror to this self-realization as it embraces all forms of martial arts and yet is bound by none. There is no opposing of Karate, Tae Kwon-Do, Judo or any other form. Rather, Jeet Kune Do utilizes form from every possible source and yet remains unconditioned and non-crystallized by the form. It is ever-flowing as water ('Be water my friend!'). This is the true non-dual philosophy of Jeet Kune Do- non opposing, non-conceptualized, all embracing. It takes the individual to his her true source.

When Bruce Lee stated in the movie Enter the Dragon: 'I DO NOT HIT... IT HITS ALL BY ITSELF!'; he is a master pointing to the truth that there is no 'I'; there is no 'You'. There are no opponents. Energy is playing against energy. Through opposing forces of attack and defence, finally balance and harmony will be restored. 

Energy cannot be created or destroyed. Only forms change, but the end result is equilibrium. Hence, your opponent is not different from you but is in fact your mirror who simply reflects your inner self. As the Taoist philosophy expounds: Everything is for the Tao!

*****

Below: Bruce Lee's favourite reminder to himself: WALK ON !

Time and Timelessness

Our existence in relation to the concept of Time

The concept of time is a paradox. Time and Timelessness are two sides of the same coin.

When one is time-oriented, if observed carefully, one sees that there is actually no present moment. The NOW does not really exist. How? Let's observe:
There are only past and future as reference points concerning time. The NOW (the present) is the future of the past as well as it also remains the past of the future. The NOW is ever-flowing. For example, if you time yourself to feel and proclaim 'NOW' at the 10th second from the current time - even if you feel and experience the state of NOW, at the exact 10th second, the mili-seconds would have already passed away and the NOW remains a feeling based on experience of the 'Now'. It is like sand slipping away from under your feet at a beach by the action of receding waters. The grains of sand in this scenario can be compared to moments in time.

The present is simply the future waiting to be experienced. Present is borrowed from the future.

On the other hand, timelessness is an experience of ceasing to have all reference points. Rather than engaging the mind on the duality of Past and Future, it is simply freed - just let open. This is what the famous philosopher Krishnamurti termed as 'choiceless awareness'. It is akin to a dam which contains the same water on either sides - imagine one side is called Past and the other side is called Future! Once the mind is opened, the past and the future merge and become one entity - TIMELESSNESS. Yet this timelessness is the very source of the illusion - the separation based concept of TIME. Like the dam, the mind restricts energy (due to splitting existence based on the space-time concept, of which time is divided into past/future/present).

When there is no resistance, energy resumes its natural state of flowing continuously. It is a feeling of being in the NOW but without the time's reference points of past and future. In the peak of that experience of being in the present, the NOW gradually fades away... ultimately unravelling TIMELESSNESS.

THIS TIMELESSNESS IS A NEUTRAL STATE -- BEYOND THE DUALITY OF LOVE AND FEAR, PEACE AND CONFLICT, JOY AND SADNESS. It is only in associating with the illusory concept of TIME that these dualities affect our nature of existence.

*** 

 

Bamboo lessons

The popular story of Bamboo and Fern

 - A lesson in acknowledging your blessed roots

The bamboo has always been a thing of marvel to me when I was a child. It took me by surprise when Science taught me that technically speaking, bamboo is actually a grass and not a tree as such. And when I read up more and more on the bamboo, I began to realize how divine it is - being nature's perfect representation of the values of faith, strength, endurance, patience, flexibility and growth. In martial arts circles and among Zen practitioners, there is a famous adage linked to bamboo; that when storm strikes, the stiffest tree will break away but the bamboo remains unbroken as it adapts itself according to the direction of the wind. This is a great lesson in strength and flexibility as well as on a deeper philosophical level, it means yielding oneself to what is - flow in harmony with nature - with the universe, without resistance from the ego.

 

There are many inspirational stories with respect to the bamboo. However, for now, I just wish to share on this popular story that I had recently come across in a motivational book.

It is a simple story that I find it remarkably inspiring and endearing.

The following story is mentioned in the book 'MELODY OF THE HEART' by Mr. Joji Valli:

One day John decided to quit. He quit his job, his relationship, his spirituality. Then he wanted to quit his life. John went to the forest to have one last talk with God.

“God”, John said. “Can’t you give me one good reason not to quit?” His answer surprised John. “Look around”, He said, “Do you see the fern and the bamboo?”

 

“Yes”, John replied.

God continued. “When I planted the fern and the bamboo seeds, I took very good care of them. I gave them light. I gave them water. The fern quickly grew from the earth. Its brilliant green covered the floor. Yet nothing came from the bamboo seed. But I did not quit on the bamboo. In the second year the fern grew more vibrant and plentiful. And again, nothing came from the bamboo seed. But I did not quit on the bamboo. In the third year there was nothing from the bamboo seed. But I would not quit. In the fourth year, again, there was nothing from the bamboo seed. I would not quit. Well, then in the fifth year a tiny sprout emerged from the earth. Compared to the fern, it was seemingly small and insignificant, but just six months later the bamboo rose to over 100 feet tall.

It had spent the five years growing roots. Those roots made it strong and gave it what it needed to survive. I would not give any of my creations a challenge it could not handle.”

God said to John, “Did you know, my child, that all this time you have been struggling, you have actually been growing roots? I would not quit on the bamboo. I will never quit on you. Don’t compare yourself to others.”

He said, “The bamboo had a different purpose than the fern. Yet they both make the forest beautiful. Your time will come.”

God said to John, “You will rise high.”

“How high should I rise?” John asked.

“How high will the bamboo rise?” He asked in return.

“As high as it can?” John answered.

“Yes.” He said, “Give me glory by rising as high as you can.”

John left the forest convinced that God will never give up on him and John himself will never give up too.

 

*******

 

Martial Arts: The estranged child of Mother India

This was an article I had written for one of my martial artist comrade's blog a few years back:

If you ask our average Indian citizen, “what is martial arts ?”, he/she imagines either a kung fu film or video arcade game containing loud and heroic elements with plenty of arm waving and aggressive gestures. Sadly, many such folks do not even know that martial arts, arguably, took birth in ancient India, a country that now worships Cricket. A vast majority believes martial arts to be an export from the Orient. It appears that in our country, martial arts is like a tourist wandering with passport problems. The truth is, it is the long lost child of India that has not been given its due recognition.

Wrestling and boxing are considered the earliest forms of fighting for survival or sport. The oldest fighting records date back to over 5000 years in Indian epics (Ramayana, Mahabharata) and illustrated in scrolls in Egyptian tombs over 4000 years ago.

Martial arts evolved in ancient India. Two good examples are Vajramukti (thunderbolt fist) and Kalaripayattu (meaning fight school in Malayalam). The former was developed by the warrior caste or Kshatriyas. It consists of grappling, boxing, gymnastics, weaponry and the study of vital point striking. The latter developed in Kerala and is popular to this day. It is complemented by ‘nature-cure’ techniques and bone setting practices to treat those who get hurt while learning or practising this art. Also called ‘mother of all martial arts’, it involves 7 levels of physical agility, weapons handling and hand-to-hand combat.

Later, along with Buddhism, martial arts spread to Tibet as ‘Lions Roar’ and to China as Tai chi chuan, qigong, kung fu, shaolin boxing Xingyiquan, Baguazhang and Kempo; crossed over to Japan as aikido, karate, judo and ju-jitsu. In Taiwan, judo was developed. Reaching Korea, martial arts developed as Tae-kwon do.

It was an Indian monk Bodhidharma (also known as Da Mo in China) who started it all. Born around 440 CE in Kanchi( the then capital of southern Indian kingdom of Pallava) into the warrior caste, he received Buddhist teachings from a young age and was also said to be proficient in Kalaripayattu, which he took across the Himalayas to Tibet and then to China and started what became known as Chan(or Zen) Buddhism. In the shaolin temple, he taught zen principles and yogic martial arts exercises to strengthen the weak and sickly monks who, after years of static meditation, lacked physical strength and vigour. Qigong and Shaolin kung fu developed thereafter.

To support the fact that Indian martial arts is the source of all others, let us look at two other aspects, namely "Lion’s roar" and "Internal energy". Tibetan Buddhist lamas for self-protection developed Lion’s roar. It uses the anatomy of the body both for defence and attack. It does not kill but makes the attacker temporarily incapable of action by clutching or striking such part of the attacker’s body to make it numb. This is exactly similar to the south Indian combat form Marma Adi(vital point strike) and Japanese Dim-mak(death-touch). Chi kung or Qigong which implies the use and development of internal energy called chi or qi is no different from the prana of Pranayam in Yoga. Chi isn’t something martial arts discovered. The gentle art (qigong or tai chi) is just a reference to its roots in Yoga and meditation.

Having said this, shouldn’t we be proud of our great culture and heritage? If we compare martial arts to Lord Krishna, China to Yashoda and India to Devaki- then yes; Yashoda did raise Krishna, but Devaki remains the original mother. Unfortunately some of the things that originated in India is not as appreciated in India as is revered elsewhere- be it Ayurveda, Yoga or Buddhism. Martial arts need good support and encouragement in India. A sense of awareness must prevail about the holistic benefit of learning martial arts, and not confining its significance to just self-defence, or a form of exercise. Every Indian woman must be encouraged to learn keeping in mind the need for self-defence and preserving one’s honour and dignity.

Bruce Lee learnt and practised Wing chun which was conceptualized by two Chinese women some centuries back. Martial arts is a never-ending learning process, wherein at a philosophical or spiritual level, becomes a quest for self-realization. So Mother India – embrace your child and nurture it !

The Dark Night of the Soul

"The darkest part of the night is just before dawn"

Dark Night of the Soul" (Spanish: La noche oscura del alma) is the title of a poem written by 16th-century Spanish poet and Roman Catholic mystic Saint John of the Cross, and of a treatise he wrote later, commenting on the poem.

         "O guiding Night,
           O Night more lovely than Dawn,
           O Night that has united the lover with his beloved
           Transforming the Lover in her Beloved."

I couldn't find a better opportunity to write on this subject today being Good Friday - when Jesus went through immense suffering - a period of dark night of His soul.

 The dark night of the soul is a period of intense turmoil faced on the journey of spirituality. It is a period of immense confusion, inner-conflict, chaos and helplessness perceived and experienced by the person. It is an ordeal every seeker passes through. This phase is destined to come into our lives, in order to come face-to-face with our 'other' aspect. This 'other aspect' is what some psychologists call THE SHADOW.



All of us are born complete, perfect in our thoughts and feelings until the time we begin to categorize our perception of the world and its associated experiences. From about the age of 3, we start living in the illusion of duality  - split from the source first as 'I' and 'The Other'. Then starts the split life of categorizing the world into ever conceivable opposite forms - good/bad, ugly/beautiful, small-big, etc. 

Check out the following short video on shadow. It is a beautiful presentation on this subject:

Note: All of us possess split personality or multilple personalities. We often project the image that is best suited for survival consciously. Our brain's main function is primarily to sustain our existence - survival mode! The thoughts that arise after the brain processes the inputs from the environment are only miniscule. Not only does the brain register thoughts with a delay of fraction of seconds, but it takes only selective thoughts for projection, the rest being dormant in the subconscious mind - which if unused/ redundant is either deleted from the memory or goes into the unconscious memory.

In psychology-spirituality, the term 'shadow' stands for that dormant part of us, that we do not consciously project. This is normally the dark side of us, which remains embedded and forming our karmic patterns and sapping our energy. In Christian philosophy it has been referred to as THE DARK NIGHT OF THE SOUL. Jesus, Moses, St. John of Cross, etc. had gone through this. Jesus himself let out the deepest pain by expressing his human side, behind the 'prophet' image, by crying out in pain while on cross: "Father, Why have you forsaken me? ". It has also been said that Jesus went through his dark night earlier to this episode, during his ordeal of 40 days and 40 nights where he was lured into temptations by the devil.

Suffering seems eternal. Feelings of abandonment, powerlessness and at the extreme end even suicide tend to arise from the depths of of the self. In short, the self is completely exposed with repressed energies surfacing and appearing to devour the energy of the self !

It so happens that the phase of dark night appears mostly at a time when the spiritual seeker has almost neared enlightenment - or to put it in another way, as if the spiritual seeker 'feels' enlightened. Then comes the dark night with a bang! As the world is a projection of our mind, the seeker suddenly finds himself/herself in a peculiar place, with peculiar people and peculiar events happening that shakes the very foundation of his/her spiritual conquest - unaware that it was all self-created!

This phase is created and projected by the sage for the purpose of bringing out the shadow-side, accepting its presence, acknowledging its significance and releasing it with love and thus allow healing to happen.

'I am enlightened' is a subtle ego that still lurks within the sage (seeker). The sage faces perils unbeknownst to him/her as to how could such drastic things occur. The challenges that come in the way puts the sage in a whrilpool of chaos! This chaotic whirlpool churns out all the hidden negativities that lay dormant within the sage - fear, anger, violent demeanour, extreme emotional outbursts,tears, burning sensation, inferiority complex, etc. The sage ends up chanting statements repeatedly without being aware like:

WHAT THE HELL IS HAPPENING TO ME? WHERE THE HELL HAVE I LANDED? WHY MUST I BE THE VICTIM? THE WORLD IS AGAINST ME. IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO BE DOING WHAT I AM DOING? I AM PAYING FOR MY SINS. I HATE THIS LIFE! I HAVE NO REASON TO LIVE ANYMORE...GOD - SAVE ME OUT OF THIS MESS !!!

The period of dark night of the soul is a testing phase for the sage. It is actually a blessing in disguise because all the repressed negative energies have an opportunity to be released. In facing one's demons, by being conscious and allowing the negativities to surface, one not only gets to see all that one is not, but also feels compassion for all those possessed by such negativities. At this time, the body goes through a tremendous revolution from inside, although it is not visible from outside. Many blockages are removed and there could be frequent surge of energy flowing through the various chakras. The healing progresses and if one is conscious at this time, one notices visible changes in food habits and breathing pattern. One needs to consume a lot of water at this time and live on a healthy diet especially a lot of fruits and vegetables to ensure steady supply of energy due to the restoration in progress. On the social side, one would benefit a lot in the presence of trusted friends, supportive family members and understanding people around. The guidance from a spiritual guru would be very beneficial, provided the guru lets the student to find his/her own way and give motivational support only where and when necessary.

Healing at this time can be explained with the analogy of a soiled pan. To remove the grease, you would run hot water over it, leaving it there for a few hours, then with a cleaning agent start scrubbing the whole pain. The water in the pan becomes darker and darker on the surface, but deep inside, where the bottom of the pan is being scrubbed, you know that it the cleaning is getting effective.

Similarly, during this crisis of the spirit,though everything appears messed up, the truth is that healing is going on. At the peak of this crisis, one finally surrenders to the Divine Will. The dark night of the soul is a brief period of crisis like the solar eclipse. Although it is dark for a while, the sun is never extinguished.

Like in swimming, when all resistance is given up and the body surrenders to water, holding the breath, one is naturally pushed to the surface and it becomes easier to float, breathe and swim. Similarly, the soul instead of sinking deeper and deeper, finally manages to emerge from its own projected illusions and sees reality for what it is. At this stage, the sage learns acceptance his duality - of what the sage is not. Knowing what the sage is not, the sage then CHOOSES to be what he/she should be.The sage knows that he/she has more strength and courage then he/she had ever imagined. Done away with the victim mentality and all false illusions, the sage now projects his/her gratitude to the universe, and takes part in the creative manifestation of his/her life's purpose. The sage now truly begins to live out his/her authentic self; the 'Dharma' or the true nature of oneself.

The God within makes peace with it's other self - the devil for one is incomplete without the other as life is but a dynamic play of the interdependent complementary opposite energies. Having learnt true compassion, love and humility, the sage becomes a light unto himself/herself and like a candle, guides the way for others going their own dark night.

Happy Easter - May we resurrect from our darkness like Jesus Himself.

*****

Ratish