Secrets of Practice

[thelerner]

1> The real learning goes on after class.

 

Take the time to get to know your teachers after class. The after class bull sessions can give you unique glimpses into the heart and history of the art. Even in seminars with amazing Masters don't be afraid to get involved in casual conversation or to ask them out for dinner, drinks or tea. This is best done after class when you and they are in skivvies (out of uniform).

 

I learned this from my Aikido sensei. Don't be afraid to wine and dine with higher ranks. Often they would like nothing better. At a Tao Mountain retreat, I bought wine, marshmallows, chocolate and graham crackers, and invited everyone to a camp fire. It was wonderful to have everyone, including Winn talk casually for hours. When I took Fusion with Masahiro I invited him back to my room and to chat and it was worth getting to classes very early to watch him do tai chi. When I saw Dirk O heading for the pool, I joined him to get in some conversation.

 

Its the perfect chance to break out of student teacher mode, and share a common love of the art. There are traditionalist where this will not work. Though in the case of some Japanese traditionalist heavy drinking will break down barriers.

 

 

2> There is no substitute for time on the mat.

 

Head learning is at best just a pointing finger. Those who practice the most, get the most.

 

 

3>Practice on the mat is not enough.

 

If your practice is not influencing the way you live your life then you should reexamine the practice, perhaps you are not taking it serious enough.

 

 

Those are some of my 'secrets' what are yours?

 

 

Michael

[Leidee]

One secret for me...

 

Use in my training what is useful while it is useful and let it pass when it is the right time. Be flexible and relaxed about what I am doing.

 

Plus - training partners come and go. Let them go or they can drag you into their own energetic/ego driven unhealthy vortex (recent lesson!).

 

Hey - that makes two secrets

 

Oh and number 3 - have FUN!

 

Lordy - just thought of another...loosen your hips.

[Taomeow]

Michael,

 

There's no mats in taiji... other than that, I think what you said is quite true.

 

My taiji teacher has no time to socialize though. He will invite students to his home a couple times a year to celebrate this or that, but the rest of the time, he's either working (most of the time) or practicing or being a father to his kids and a cook to his scientist wife and a host to his Chinese-only speaking visitors. I get a big kick out of the fact that he was so poor in maoist China he couldn't afford a bicycle, and now he has a couple millions' worth beautiful home and drives a luxury car and horseback rides for fun and plays golf, that his life is that of an affluent American now and yet he's one of the very few real taoists I've been lucky to meet. This "going with the flow" is something he doesn't have to talk about -- he IS the flow. He works so hard and finds it so easy! I've never seen him in any other state than that of an abundance of healthy creative energy, nothing ever ails him, he doesn't have any "moods," though his feelings are strong, fast, and obvious -- he's an open book, he's got nothing to hide. I admire him greatly, and besides taiji, I'm learning this "being the flow instead of going with the flow" from him, being the change, being the happening, not the "who things happen to."

 

Other than that, the secret of practice is practice... just doing it enough times for enough lengths of time every time. I'm not great at that, but I'm pretty sure that's where it's at. Of course one has to have done some homework in choosing the "right" practice (there's so much crap out there...)... but once that's taken care of, the biggest secret is, do the leg work... and the heart work will follow.

[Wayfarer64]

I have always been grateful that I had an early mix of training... I started my training with Judo at 9 yo, wrestled and weight-trained as a fresh/soph in High-school, Then Started delving into meditation and learning Hatha Yoga as a junior in HS...I began Hung Gar in my early twenties. I have found the combination of disciplines to have been very useful in building basic core strength, keeping limber, and remaining mindful.

 

The breath connection to all practice IS THE MOST IMPORTANT eliment for me. It keeps me focused no matter what I am working on. Meditation, yoga, Hung Gar each need to have the breath in synch with the mind/body...

 

Now that I am thinking about this I realize that my harmonica playing (since I was 14)- has as much to do with uniting breath/body/mind/spirit as one in a conscious flow - as any meditative or martial training I have done !

 

So it may be my big secret is that bringing music into my heart and being creative with it, rounds out the whole mix...And it sure helps to keep me happy too...

 

Let yourself be as complete a human as you find you have time for every day. Don't get in a rut.

[Starjumper]

Here's a secret I would like to learn. How come some of the threads have the little red flag thingies next to the name and some don't??

[thaddeus]

Here's a secret I would like to learn. How come some of the threads have the little red flag thingies next to the name and some don't??

Ahh, grasshopper we can not spoon feed you the answers. You must work hard for them. However, out of compassion, here is a clue:

The discriminating taobum sees many flags. The non-discriminating taobum has none.

T

[Eric23]

I don't know if it's a secret or not. In my younger days I ran long distances. Through all the training runs I learned that endurance is as much a state of mind as the physical side. Putting the miles in every day, listening to your body. There were times where you had to just put one foot in front of the other, and repeat. To meet your goals, ie finish a marathon, required an extended commitment, perserverance and some tolerance to pain. To me it seems there are parallels to a spiritual practice. You put your time in; some days are a struggle just to get through the routine, but you know that it's still valuable because your maintaining. Other days it all comes together.

[thaddeus]

Those are some of my 'secrets' what are yours?

Be natural. "Doing" something can never be sustained.

T