Vital Key #1

7 VITAL KEYS FOR EMPOWERING YOUR LIFE IN THE NEW THE MILLENNIUM
APPLIED SAMURAI WISDOM
DR. GRANT KRUHLY, SENSEI AND FOUNDER


VITAL KEY # 1


Today we begin with the first of the 7 keys to addressing the challenges I put forth in the last post. To refresh your memory, the agendas and event density of our way of life has all but obliterated our ability to access the power and peace of the present moment. My mission is to help everyone rise up above the system so that the now is always available. My approach is derived from the culture and expertise of the samurai. As professional warrior/gentlemen, the samurai had to be able to access the present moment acutely or be cut down in battle. Since death was their proving ground, we can be sure their methods work.


One of the truly great Masters of Zen and Tea, Takuan Soho, of the late 1500’s and early 1600’s, wrote a work entitled “Taiaki”, or Annals of the Sword Taia. He wrote it for a great Grand Master Swordsman, Yagyu Munenori of the Shinkage Ryu. The subject of the work was enlightenment via the Sword, and in it he mentions the “Four Dignities,” walking, stopping, sitting, and lying down as representative of all the states of man which number some 80,000. I have left off lying down and expanded the 4 to 7 in order to be in concert with today’s world.




WALKING


Have you ever thought much about walking? Probably not. Well, before I go further, I want you to think of a great dancer, stage actor, or martial art master. Pull up their image in your mind. Good, we will come back to them in a moment. If you haven’t got one in mind, take a moment to do so first.


The samurai considered walking to be one of the 7 Dignities because it is a part of everyone’s life. Think about that for a moment, walking is a part of our lives, it is an activity we all do every day. It is also one we take completely for granted. We use walking to go somewhere, or get something. While we walk, our minds are somewhere else, usually in the future, but often in the past or shuttling back and forth, anywhere but on the act of walking itself. If you want to have some fun, go to a park trail somewhere and watch the people going by. Even out in nature it will be a rare day that you see someone who is conscious, present, and in their body. We all are relatively unconscious of our body and the present moment most of the time.

One of my most favorite authors is Eckhart Tolle. In his excellent book, “The Power of Now” he describes with clarity the whole issue of time, and refers to our activity as being “…reduced to a mere stepping stone to the future, with no intrinsic value.” What we want to do is change that fact and walking can help us do it every day. Now go back to the dancer or actor you thought of earlier. Do you know why they seem so graceful, or powerful, or charismatic? They exude presence, because they ARE present. All over the world, people pay huge sums of money just to watch them because human presence is awe-inspiring! Well, with a little practice we can all do that every day all day if we so choose. We can infuse our walk with presence, energy, and dignity and so inspire respect by our deportment. In this way you will notice and experience your life and not just your life situation. Eckhart Tolle makes an excellent point when he says, “Your life situation exists in time. Your life is now. Your life situation is mind-stuff. Your life is real.” I will delve into this area more deeply later on, but for now just realize that your life situation refers to temporary circumstances, your life animates them.


So begin today by walking consciously. When you stand to walk anywhere, take a quick inventory of your body. How do you feel? Are you standing straight, shoulders back and down, chest slightly out, head up? Now breathe through your nose, and unless you’re talking, lightly close your mouth and touch your tongue to the roof of your mouth just behind the front teeth. As you walk, FEEL yourself doing so, notice the ground or floor meeting your feet, hear the sound of your shoes as you step. Unless you’re carrying something, be sure your arms swing as you walk. That is critical. Place some attention in your lower abdomen below your navel. Samurai refer to that area as the Hara and in the west we call it the gut. It connects you to your intuition. Be very sure to hold your head up; there is a whole science to that alone. Lastly, as you move to wherever you are going, allow yourself to feel dignified, notice who and what is around you. Don’t allow your life to missed; remember, your life situation is mind-stuff and circumstances, but your life is real, and when you’re walking, that is part of your life, your personal fingerprint in the world.


RESULT


If you practice this as you walk, you will punch holes in the continuous stream of mental noise and stress. You will begin to awaken and notice your life, your body, and choices you were never aware of before. Your increased aliveness will be reflected back to you from the people and the world around you. Just as you notice the dancer or stage actor, you will also be noticed. Then you make a difference, because you’re really there, engaged in your life. Step by step you will feel and look quite differently, more centered, in control, poised.


Go to the comment section and let me know what you think, and what you experience yourself. Please feel free to ask questions, I will be happy to do my utmost to answer them.

Dr. Grant Kruhly, Sensei & Founder

AppliedSamuraiWisdom.Blogspot.com

GKruhly@gmail.com