“Do every act of your life as though it were
the very last act of your life.”
Before you continue reading this post, take a moment to try
an experiment. Close your eyes for a minute and pay attention to the thoughts
that are going through your head.
Chances are, when you place focused attention on your mind,
you’ll notice a lot of different thoughts flying through your mental landscape:
concerns about a homework assignment, remembering to take the car in for an oil
change, dredging up a days-old argument with a loved one. Thinking (even a lot
of it) is perfectly natural and very useful—it’s what our brains are really good
at doing!
The problem is that if you’re thinking of one thing while
doing another, you’re really not doing a good job with either one. If you’re so
wrapped up thinking about the next episode of your favorite television show
when your girlfriend is talking to you, you’ll end up in hot water with her
when she realizes you really aren’t paying attention! At the Dojo, if you’re
too busy worrying about tomorrow’s math test to focus on the instruction Sensei
is offering, you are missing vital information that’s critical to your
development as a Martial Artist.
What to do about all this thinking? Fortunately, there is a
meditation practice for everyday life called mindfulness. Mindfulness practice
is about being fully aware and fully present, right now. The regrets of
yesterday and the worries of tomorrow are not what concern the mindful warrior:
it’s far more vital to be fully engaged in the Now.
Mindfulness practice can be used for a lot of things. We can
practice mindful listening, mindful talking, mindful walking, even mindful
dishwashing—anything, really, that you do in the course of a day can be done
mindfully. Simply focusing on the act of breathing in and breathing out while
we do something—like brushing our teeth—can bring us fully into the present
moment and enhance our experience of what’s happening, right now.
There’s plenty of science
out there suggesting that mindfulness is extremely beneficial for athletes of
all kinds. Mindfulness exercises
specifically designed for athletes have been shown to improve concentration and
performance. Mindfulness, it turns out, is good for mind and body.
At the Dojo, we can practice mindfulness with a simple
exercise:
“Breathing in, I am aware of my body in the Dojo. Breathing
out, I am grateful for my Sensei’s instruction.”
A simple exercise, but once you begin working mindfulness
into your Martial Arts training, you’ll soon find that you can apply it to
everything you do. Our friends at Kicksite have a bit more to say on the
subject, and we encourage you to check out their recent
article about mindfulness and the Martial Artist. If you’re looking to
expand your mindfulness practice, a great starting point is available here.
So, the next time your feel yourself distracted during
class, or not paying attention to the conversation happening around you, take a
moment to reset and practice mindfulness. Breathe. Concentrate. Become aware.
Your life will be made immeasurably better—and your Martial Arts discipline
that much stronger—when you do!
“As an archer aims an arrow, the wise aim their restless
thoughts, hard to aim, hard to restrain.”
~The Dhammapada,
“Mind.”
