Spirituality, Health, and Training to Fight

[dragonprawn]

I'm guessing all the brenches are scare out of their breaches when they see JW coming.

[DeusTrismegistus]

"why were they added to the curriculum?"

And what are "they"?

They would be spiritual practices of a style. They won't be identical across every style so I don't think it is fair to specify something.

[Chris Fleming]

"They would be spiritual practices of a style."

Like what?

[D_Glenn]

How to 'look' with the eyes while training and fighting-- there's points behind the eyes that draw in and also furrow the brow can activate yintang point, basically look and act serious as yintang point gathers and focuses the spirit, that's one of the simplest 'spiritual practices' in the CMAs.

***
Scott P.,

Still waiting on your epic 7 page description of 'ling'...?


.

[Scott P. Phillips]

Glenn,
That's a description of body "serious" or body "toughness," it is a dead end. High level internal arts make the body like a rotten tree stump and the heart like cold dead ashes--only the spirit becomes serious and tough.

[DeusTrismegistus]

"They would be spiritual practices of a style."

Like what?

Sorry I hadn't looked at this thread in awhile.

An example that I think has helped develop this in myself is standing meditation focusing on emptying the mind. This has an obvious impact on my martial arts training but also is a spiritual practice IMO.

[Chris Fleming]

"emptying the mind"

hence, the mind, not the spirit.

[DeusTrismegistus]

"emptying the mind"

hence, the mind, not the spirit.

Just because something is primarily focused on one aspect of our selves does not mean that it does not affect and have an impact on other parts of the self. Are you claiming that someone would have to do something working directly with their spirit to be doing something spiritual? If so by your definition and the link you provided any time you make a conscience decision on whether something is right or wrong that is spiritual, or whenever you pray to god in the christian manner, or whenever you intuitively know something.

Funny how the intuitive faculty is bolstered and improved by the meditation I practice. Even though I am emptying the mind, which is supposedly not spiritual. But if this is not a way of spiritual development then how can it improve something that is by your definition part of the spirit?

Anyways you are operating from a different paradigm than most of us are discussing and one that is IMO and IME erroneous. That is cool though if it is helpful to you and makes you a better person and enhances your being. I can't tell you that your experience is wrong any more than you can tell me that my experience is wrong.

[somatai]

"the body reveals the mind, the mind reveals the spirit"

[wiesiek]

+1
empty your cup

is the basic/fundamental spiritual practise ,
it just happens be uesfull in MA
+
as we all know from IMA practise - basic can became the most advanced one

[Chris Fleming]

"Are you claiming that someone would have to do something working directly with their spirit to be doing something spiritual?"

Um. Duh. But then again, as we've been around and around this, I doubt people even know where to begin with "working directly with their spirit". As we've been around and around this, to most this just means something to do with the faculty, latent or not, of their soul, ie, mind.

[wiesiek]

" empty cup"
in fact means 1
ie, soul+mind+body in one

[Chris Fleming]

So I'll ask you then, what's the difference between the soul and the mind?

[Chris Fleming]

"I can't tell you that your experience is wrong any more than you can tell me that my experience is wrong."

Here's something for honest inquiry: why not? I don't remember that written anywhere. You basically do and then say "I can't and you can't" which is funny to me. So why not?

[paranoidandroid]

Soul is a term by platon(maybe older) that the christians(nietzsche:"Christianity is platonism for the people) adopted and it became popular believe.
Back then they did not have a term for mind. So soul and mind is interchangeable. Only religous people that believe in fairys say that the soul is something different
e.g. (well another term from a philosopher(aristotle) substantia(what makes you special, your essential attributes) or other balony.

There is a very good book by Michael Pauen called(I believe its only in german) Was ist der Mensch(I think, "What is man"), that deals with the popular believes and new knowledge from neuro science.