Martial Arts and Connectedness,

Training both your mind and your body

By Quinn V. McMurtry

Do you feel connected, at peace, in touch with whom or what you are? Our modern world boasts being connected by technological advances. Our medical sciences promise cures, surgical procedures and promote pharmacology to an almost unquestioned authority. But, if you still your mind for a moment, what does the voice inside you say? Listening to your inner voice can be done in a variety of ways, but the martial arts can train your mind, body and spirit.

The Unconscious Mind In our postmodern world the conscious mind is a tyrant. The conscious mind charts, graphs, analyzes and attempts to control every aspect of the modern world, while at the same time stunting and neglecting our unconscious mind. According Carl Jung, the mind is divided into the two halves the unconscious

and the conscious. The conscious mind is what you are using now. The conscious mind is the ego; it thinks and plans all that is said and done in the realm of consciousness. The unconscious mind is more intangible, composed of layers ranging from subconscious memories to a larger, more primitive and mystical collective unconscious.

Uniquely human, the unconscious is an ephemeral labyrinth of moods, feelings and instincts. Within the unconscious is retained our experiences, thoughts, feelings, impressions, quirks, nuances and memories that may or may not be consciously remembered. The unconscious is where individuals connect to a more ancient and greater reality called the - collective unconscious. It is from within the collective unconscious that people are innately compelled to seek a higher meaning and search for spirituality.

However, in the modern worlds rush to self-exultation, we further disconnect ourselves from our innately spiritual and intuitive unconscious mind, choosing to focus only on the analytical world of our conscious mind.

Jungs Unconscious Mind Our greatest modern day psychologist was not Sigmund Freud it was Carl Jung. To this day Jungian concepts enrich and provide insight into our modern day world with terms such as introvert, extrovert and archetypical figure. Jung stated that the unconscious is the great guide and advisor to the conscious mind. In his groundbreaking book Man and His Symbols, Carl Jung assesses and theorizes the relationship between the unconscious mind and the modern world. He states: Man . . . never perceives anything fully or comprehends anything completely. He can see, hear, touch, and taste; but how far he sees, how well he hears, what his touch tells him, and what he tastes depend upon the number and quality of his senses. These limit his perception of the

world around him (page 4). For the sake of mental stability and even physiological health, the unconscious and the conscious must be integrally connected and thus move on parallel lines. If they are split apart or "dissociated", psychological disturbance follows (page 37).

Simply put, the modern world is destructive to our unconscious mind, eventually leading us to be disconnected, egoistical and lacking spirituality. It is only through a greater understanding of the unconscious that the modern world will return to balance. As we better understand our complete selves, we become more connected, less egotistical and more spiritual. And it is through the martial arts that understanding and practice form a flowing connection to the conscious and the unconscious.

Life, Death and the Martial Arts Contemplating death leads to spirituality. To live fully, death must be embraced. A Samurai warrior would live and train his entire life to embrace and accept

death willingly. Fear of death is the greatest obstacle to becoming a true master of a martial art. The ancient samurai manual, The Hagakure states:

The Way of the Samurai is found in death. Meditation on inevitable death should be performed daily. Every day, when one's body and mind are at peace, one should meditate upon being ripped apart by arrows, rifles, spears, and swords, being carried away by surging waves, being thrown into the midst of a great fire, being struck by lightning, being shaken to death by a great earthquake, falling from thousand-foot cliffs, dying of disease or committing seppuku at the death of one's master. And every day, without fail, one should consider himself as dead. This is the substance of the Way of the Samurai.

The martial arts are lessons for dying. A fencers sabre is not intended to merely cut an opponent, nor is black belts chokehold meant to only wound. The entire process of all martial arts is to train the mind and body to defend and execute the inevitable death.

Although inevitably we all confront death, to fully embrace dying is something the western world scientifically avoids and spiritually fears. Unconsciously, we are aware of death, but we consciously ignore it. Our modern day conscious world of consumerism and ego ignores death, believing dying to be only for the dead. However, is it not ironic that race car drivers, mountain climbers and skydivers who tempt death report enjoying life more acutely?

Could it be that our unconscious mind agrees with the martial artist? Death and living should be embraced. According to Jung, the collective unconscious provides a connection a life cycle, providing spiritual symbols and an innate knowledge of living and dying in a more connected state of existence just like the ancient Samurai.

Listen to Instincts Listen to your gut. Follow your heart. Follow your bliss, these are phrases that we all know, but more than likely fail to do. The rational conscious mind commandeers the instincts of our unconscious further stunting and impeding the connection to the mind and body. According Jung, Primitive man was much more governed by his instincts than are his "rational" modern descendants, who have learned to "control" themselves.

Today, the more rational and modern mind fails to properly listen to the primitive unconscious. Now out of balance, our modern minds and western methods are intolerant of mysticism, spirituality and intuition.

Conversely, as if following an ancient manual, traditional martial arts endeavor to consciously adapt the physical to the unconscious. Through continual repetition and practice, such as sparring, body movements become consciously studied and engrained into the unconscious. Physical reactions associated with flight or fight are adapted and manipulated to connect the mind and body, thereby adapting to the conscious mind an unconscious instinct or reaction.

Other forms of martial arts interpret and reshape energy flow and nature, while other arts mimic animal postures. Regardless of form or method, the martial artist exercises connections to the unconscious, and although it may sound overly mystical, it is said that the higher the level of perfection a martial artist achieves, the closer he or she bridges the distance between heaven and earth.

A Collective Wisdom Theoretically similar to Jungs collective unconscious of pre- existing forms and archetypes, the martial artist applies physical and meditative training to enable one to connect to centuries old collective wisdom found in Kung Fu, Jiu-jitsu and Karate.

Although there are many varieties of martial arts, all forms of martial arts collectively evolved by accumulating centuries of knowledge and wisdom. From master to student, this knowledge was shaped, individually mastered and applied. By practicing a collective art, the martial artist connects to a greater and more ancient body of unconscious wisdom.

Flowing It is said that the body has its own mystical level of engagement with the unconsciousness. It is only through the body that we are able to connect more profoundly to an unconscious reality. Author and psychologist, Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, refers to this psychological state as flow. Flow is defined as a mental state of operation in which a person in an activity is fully immersed in a feeling of energized focus towards full involvement and success in the process of the activity.

Flow can be achieved with a variety of physical activities such as sewing, throwing, running, working, farming, meditating and practicing the martial arts. However, the mental state of flow is something rarely experienced in the

modern world. Analytically and consciously motivated, modern man becomes detached and untethered from the unconscious mind and achieving flow becomes extremely rare. Those who typically experience a state of flow are said to be in the moment. In our modern world a state of flow is typically only experienced by athletes, artists, performers and martial artists.

Yin-yang and the Martial Arts Carl Jung states that our scientific understanding has grown, so our world has become dehumanized. Man feels himself isolated in the cosmos, because he is no longer involved with nature and has lost his emotional "unconscious identity. p. 85. Another way to understand what Jung theorizes is through the ancient Yin and Yang symbol.

Often misunderstood as good versus evil or simply a bright and dark symbol, the Yin and Yang is profoundly connected to the mind and body existing harmoniously. Yang, represented by the white in the yin-yang symbol, which symbolize the creative, while yin, represented by black, is dissolution and return (to creation). The yin and yang forces are cyclical and evolving into each other, represented by the white dot on the black yin side of the symbol, and by the black dot on the white yang side. In this view, the universe depends on the interaction between these two forces. The way to be content is to balance between these two forces and thus find harmony in

the Tao. If the yin-yang forces in the body get unbalanced, then illness results. The martial arts affirm and apply the duality of the yin-yang principle. Focused on finding a balance, both physical and mental, the martial artist hopes to attain a more enlightened embodiment found in systematically training the mind and body and balancing the duality of the conscious and unconscious mind.

Martial Arts in our Postmodern World If you learn one thing from this article, I hope that you have a better understanding of how important the unconscious can be to your life. Obviously the martial arts are not for everyone but the unconscious mind is and forever will be a part of who and what we are.

However, if you do choose to begin studying and practicing the martial arts, your life will gradually change and your unconscious mind will achieve balance. Here is one word of warning. Know that the martial arts are under assault, highjacked by a type of blood lust and marketed for corporate profits. The martial arts have been, in a sense, split into halves one, the spiritual unconscious is ignored and discarded, while, from the other half, the conscious, technical movements are used to promote brutality. Popular sports organizations, such as the UFC, (Ultimate Fighting Challenge) seek only lethal knowledge, ignoring the unconscious and spiritual connection that embodies traditional martial arts. So, when choosing a martial art or a school of instruction be careful and look for a master that contemplates the unconscious mind and seeks a connection to it.