This article is a reprint of an article by Christine Kane. Performer, songwriter, and creativity consultant Christine Kane publishes her ‘LiveCreative’ weekly ezine with more than 4,000 subscribers. If you want to be the artist of your life and create authentic and lasting success, you can sign up for a FRE*E subscription to LiveCreative at www.christinekane.com. WANT TO SEE HUNDREDS MORE ARTICLES LIKE THIS ONE? See Christine’s blog - Be Creative. Be Conscious. Be Courageous - at ChristineKane.com/blog.
A few years ago, I was in a car with the promoter of one of my performances. He had picked me up at the airport and was driving me to my hotel. On the way, we talked guitars. We got onto the subject of Olson Guitars, arguably the best guitar in the whole world. At one point, the promoter said, “Yea, well, in my entire life I’ll never own an Olson guitar.”
There was a time when I’d let a remark like this slide on by, even adding my own “me either” to the mix. Now, I can’t. Yoda steps into my head and says, (in his Yoda voice) “So certain are you. Always with you it cannot be done.”
So, I turned to the promoter and said, “You are NOT allowed to say that!”
This is because I know the power of language. When you know that words become things, it’s hard to let language slide.
I can’t help it. I have a rule: Friends don’t let friends speak crappily.
Language is powerful. Words can create reality. Even if my promoter friend doesn’t know how on earth he’d ever get his guitar, it doesn’t mean he should cut off the possibility with his own words.
If you’re wondering how to begin watching your words, here are 7 practical language principles for becoming a better creator of your life.
1 - Eliminate “never” and “always.”
Never and always are words of hysteria. “I always mess everything up!” “I’ll never figure this out!” “I’ll never get an Olson Guitar.” First off, it’s not true. If you always messed everything up, you wouldn’t have made it out of the womb. And second off, extreme words are designed to hook you. It’s just your emotions taking a joyride. You’re more powerful than that.
2 - Use AND instead of BUT.
“But” dismisses the statement before it. “And” includes it. For instance, “That’s a good article, but it needs some editing” isn’t nearly as encouraging as “That’s a good article, AND it needs some editing.” “I love you, but…” is another great example of the dismissive power of “but.”
3 - Avoid “Should.”
Should is a heinous word for many reasons. It is victim-speak. It disempowers its object. It negates desires, thereby making it harder to make choices. It adds a nebulous energy to the decision making process. Use empowered language instead: “I could…” “I would…” “I am choosing to,” “I would like to,” “I don’t want to,” or “You might consider…”
4 - Stop calling yourself depressed.
Also stop allowing anyone to tell you that you are depressed. When you call yourself “depressed” or “obsessive compulsive” or “ADHD” or whatever - you’re claiming this thing. You’re calling it forth with the most powerful two words in our language: “I am.” That creates very little option for the transformation of this condition.
5 - Delete the word “hate” from your vocabulary.
“Hate” has lots of energy. When you use it, you send lots of energy out into the very thing you “hate.” Even if it’s negative energy, it’s still a powerful force, adding its charge to that thing. You’re also depleting this energy from your own spirit as you say it.
6 - Be “great.” Or “wonderful.”
A disease of the creative temperament is a belief that we must be authentic at all costs. So we can’t answer a simple “How are you?” without delving into an in-depth scan of our emotional temperature. Try this instead: When people ask you how you’re doing, just say, “I’m great!” I used to think if said this, then I better have a good reason for saying it, like I just won the lottery or something. I thought it would make me look suspicious, and people would start to wonder if something was wrong with me. But then I did it. And you know what? Most people don’t care why you’re great. You’re saying it for you.
7 - Pay attention to the music of your speech.
You know how some people? They talk in question marks? And you have no idea why? But it makes you think you shouldn’t really rely on them? And it makes you not want to hire them?
The music of your language says a lot about you. If you let your sentences droop like Eeyore, (”Thanks for noticing me.”) or if you do the uncertain question mark language, take note of what attitudes are causing this. These patterns are created for a reason. Even if it feels like faking it at first, generate confidence as you speak.
NOTES: As you can see by these mindless meanderings, I read, hear or experience things and use them as catalysts to enlighten my life. This is just one more example “AND” it is a very powerful concept. There are a couple of good movies / documentaries that apply to this same philosophy, they are: “What the Bleep do We Know” and “The Secret”.
What we say and what we imagine can shape the outcome of our potential futures as well as our attitudes emotions and even our character. I have a friend of mine who uses an image of Darth Vader as his wallpaper on his computer. Ii thought to myself and even asked him, is that what you want to become? You want to be consumed by evil and the dark side. Its interesting to note that this same friend is the one who emailed me this article. Positive images and affirmations are the Warriors way of programming our days and thoughts. We should use positive words that create positive energy. If we continually use the same positive words, statements, images and mental pictures we will become those positive energies.
As I woke up this morning and contemplated the meaning of life along with giving thanks for the day and all the treasures that I have, a word popped into my mind “Jerk” now I know someone who like to use this word when she describes someone who may have angered her. She is still young and has many lessons in life to learn. The thought still wandered around my mind at how the use of this word can affect her future as well as the perception of those people she uses this negative word for. Rather than saying that person is a Jerk she should take responsibility for her own emotions and be saying that “I” am angry.
People have a tendency to project their own angers and frustrations onto others. Other people do not create our anger or emotions, we create them ourselves. If someone cuts us off in traffic we become angry or upset, even spurred into road rage and retaliation, all for the most part over an incident that the other driver may be completely unaware of but, some people sit in their cars stewing and brewing over the incident until their heart rate rises along with their blood pressure and their whole day is ruined because of what? We create this anger and frustration.
We can create peace and love as well as anger and hostility, it is our choice to create the emotion and reactions that we “choose”. If we choose the negative side then we are responsibility for all the negative effects that go along with that. If we create positive energies then our days will be filled with peace and harmony.
What we see and how we feel on a daily basis will affect what we become. I choose peace and harmony, it brings a wondrous state of happiness to my life and the outcome of my days. Pleasure and Pain are just an impulse of the nerves, it is our own brain and how it has been programmed that dictates how it is thought, not necessarily felt.
Look into your own lives a see if there are areas that you are creating negative energy. Remember your projected energy can be felt by others and if it is negative, it will create negative reactions and situations. If it is positive then the same will be felt and returned. I can only feel compassion for those people that do not understand this way. They are in an endless loop of negativity created by themselves. I only hope that some day they will break the circle and see the world for they way it truly is “Just the World”. We are the creators of our own world, watch what you ask for, you just might get it!
I am the Peaceful Warrior,
I am the Samurai,
GhostDog
Saturday, May 30, 2009
Thursday, May 28, 2009
I Often Wonder ...
That is my thought for the day “I Often Wonder”. I just completed my second round of the day and saw the sun shining though the narrow cell windows and I wondered to myself what was that peculiar feeling I was feeling? I had to think and wonder for a moment until I finally figured it out. Remembering and thinking that there are lessons and teachers in everything we do, it came to me, I needed time in my day to "just wonder", to just experience, and to just be in the moment. Not necessarily here but, somewhere, maybe even in nature, I needed a time to smell the roses and hear the birds chirp, feel the sun warm may face as it rises above the horizon. I do miss those moments that I feel primarily during hunting season and wonder why I didn't do it year round. Life has a way of easily distracting us, although nature has a way of reminding us of being in the moment, most often in the simplest of ways. A breath of fresh air, a hint of sunshine, the caw of a crow, the perch of a hawk watching over a field, the effortless gliding of a Turkey Vulture on the warm air currents flowing above the earths surface. There are so many ways that I am reminded daily that the moment is calling me.
Clearing the mind and the absence of thought is represented in all of nature and maybe, that is what I am missing. Winter brings a drought, a drought of nature, although in past mindless meanderings I have been reminded that nature is still alive even though it appears to be dormant, just one more lesson. All this thought just makes me wonder … so off I am going to wonder …
Hmmm it feels good to just relax and meld into the moment, I should do this more often …
I often wonder …
Peace be with you all
GhostDog
Clearing the mind and the absence of thought is represented in all of nature and maybe, that is what I am missing. Winter brings a drought, a drought of nature, although in past mindless meanderings I have been reminded that nature is still alive even though it appears to be dormant, just one more lesson. All this thought just makes me wonder … so off I am going to wonder …
Hmmm it feels good to just relax and meld into the moment, I should do this more often …
I often wonder …
Peace be with you all
GhostDog
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
The Jedi and the Sith
Never be afraid of ... "being at your most honest level"
Being at your most honest level is being one with the JEDI. being one with the force. You will begin to understand me and my mindless meanderings if you look at things like this. There is the "Force" and there is the "Dark side" of the force and the Dark Side needs Warriors as well as the good side of the Force and the dark side will recruit in any way shape of form Warriors from the god side of the force. Revenge, Greed, Gluttony, Ego, are just a few of the hungers the Dark Side will feed to win over soldiers for the Dark side. The JEDI must resist the dark side although he is part of the dark side because the force moves in all things. Good and Dark sides are one together in a constant struggle. Toa certain extent one cannot exist without the other although there needs to be an equal balance for harmony to exist.
Following is a folk lore story that I have adapted from the story of the “White Wolf and the Black Wolf”
The Sith and The Jedi
~There was Old Samurai from the days of old, before the Jedi and before the Sith. In the day of steel and sword, the days of flesh and blood.
~While he was practicing Kata in a wooded lot next to his cabin, his little grandson, who was a young Jedi in training who often came in the evenings to sit at the Old Samurai's knee and ask the many questions that children ask.
~ This day in particular, the young Jedi came to his Old Samurai with a look of anger on his face. ~ Old Samurai said, "Come, sit, and tell me what has happened today."
~ The child sat and leaned his chin on his Old Samurai's knee. Looking up into the Old Samurai’s wrinkled, nut brown face and the kind dark eyes, the child's anger turned to quiet tears.
~The Boy said, "I went to the town today, with my father, to go shopping for some necessities to hunt to get some food for our winter food cellar. I was happy to go, because father said that since I had helped him with the some of yard work, I could get something for me, something that I wanted.
~I was so excited to be in the store as I had not been there before. I looked at many things and finally found a nice knife! It was small, but a good size for me, so father got it for me."
~ Here the boy laid his head against the Old Samurai’s knee and became silent. The Old Samurai, softly placed his hand on the boy's raven hair and said, "And then what happened?"
~ Without lifting his head, the boy said, "I went outside to wait for father, and to admire my new knife in the sunlight. ~Some punk city boys from the Sith school came by and saw me, they surrounded me and started saying bad things. They called me dirty and stupid and said that I should not have such a fine knife. The largest of these boys pushed me back and I fell over one of the other boys. I dropped my knife and one of them snatched it up and they all ran away laughing."
~ Here the boy's anger returned, "I hate them, I hate them all!"
~ The Old Samurai, with eyes that had seen too much, lifted his grandson's face so his eyes looked into the boy's. ~ The Old Samurai said, "let me tell you a story.
~ I too, at times, have felt a great hate for those that have taken so much, with no sorrow for what they do. But hate wears you down, and does not hurt your enemy. It is like taking poison and wishing your enemy would die.~I have struggled with these feelings many times.
~ It is as if there are two Warriors inside me, one is a JEDI and one is a SITH.
~The JEDI is good and does no harm. He lives in harmony with all around him and does not take offense when no offense was intended. But will only fight when it is right to do so, and in the right way.
~But, the SITH, is full of anger. The littlest thing will set him into a fit of temper. He fights everyone, all the time, for no reason. He cannot think because his anger and hate are so great. It is helpless anger, for his anger will change nothing.
~Sometimes it is hard to live with these two Warriors inside me, for both of them try to dominate my spirit."
~ The boy, looked intently into the Old Samurai’s eyes, and asked, "Which one wins Grandfather?"
~ The Old Samurai, smiled and said, ~ "The one I feed."
May the Force Be With you,
GhostDog
Being at your most honest level is being one with the JEDI. being one with the force. You will begin to understand me and my mindless meanderings if you look at things like this. There is the "Force" and there is the "Dark side" of the force and the Dark Side needs Warriors as well as the good side of the Force and the dark side will recruit in any way shape of form Warriors from the god side of the force. Revenge, Greed, Gluttony, Ego, are just a few of the hungers the Dark Side will feed to win over soldiers for the Dark side. The JEDI must resist the dark side although he is part of the dark side because the force moves in all things. Good and Dark sides are one together in a constant struggle. Toa certain extent one cannot exist without the other although there needs to be an equal balance for harmony to exist.
Following is a folk lore story that I have adapted from the story of the “White Wolf and the Black Wolf”
The Sith and The Jedi
~There was Old Samurai from the days of old, before the Jedi and before the Sith. In the day of steel and sword, the days of flesh and blood.
~While he was practicing Kata in a wooded lot next to his cabin, his little grandson, who was a young Jedi in training who often came in the evenings to sit at the Old Samurai's knee and ask the many questions that children ask.
~ This day in particular, the young Jedi came to his Old Samurai with a look of anger on his face. ~ Old Samurai said, "Come, sit, and tell me what has happened today."
~ The child sat and leaned his chin on his Old Samurai's knee. Looking up into the Old Samurai’s wrinkled, nut brown face and the kind dark eyes, the child's anger turned to quiet tears.
~The Boy said, "I went to the town today, with my father, to go shopping for some necessities to hunt to get some food for our winter food cellar. I was happy to go, because father said that since I had helped him with the some of yard work, I could get something for me, something that I wanted.
~I was so excited to be in the store as I had not been there before. I looked at many things and finally found a nice knife! It was small, but a good size for me, so father got it for me."
~ Here the boy laid his head against the Old Samurai’s knee and became silent. The Old Samurai, softly placed his hand on the boy's raven hair and said, "And then what happened?"
~ Without lifting his head, the boy said, "I went outside to wait for father, and to admire my new knife in the sunlight. ~Some punk city boys from the Sith school came by and saw me, they surrounded me and started saying bad things. They called me dirty and stupid and said that I should not have such a fine knife. The largest of these boys pushed me back and I fell over one of the other boys. I dropped my knife and one of them snatched it up and they all ran away laughing."
~ Here the boy's anger returned, "I hate them, I hate them all!"
~ The Old Samurai, with eyes that had seen too much, lifted his grandson's face so his eyes looked into the boy's. ~ The Old Samurai said, "let me tell you a story.
~ I too, at times, have felt a great hate for those that have taken so much, with no sorrow for what they do. But hate wears you down, and does not hurt your enemy. It is like taking poison and wishing your enemy would die.~I have struggled with these feelings many times.
~ It is as if there are two Warriors inside me, one is a JEDI and one is a SITH.
~The JEDI is good and does no harm. He lives in harmony with all around him and does not take offense when no offense was intended. But will only fight when it is right to do so, and in the right way.
~But, the SITH, is full of anger. The littlest thing will set him into a fit of temper. He fights everyone, all the time, for no reason. He cannot think because his anger and hate are so great. It is helpless anger, for his anger will change nothing.
~Sometimes it is hard to live with these two Warriors inside me, for both of them try to dominate my spirit."
~ The boy, looked intently into the Old Samurai’s eyes, and asked, "Which one wins Grandfather?"
~ The Old Samurai, smiled and said, ~ "The one I feed."
May the Force Be With you,
GhostDog
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Moment to Moment
“Be true to the thought of the moment and avoid distraction. Other than continuing to exert yourself, enter into nothing else, but go to the extend of living single thought by single thought” - Hagakure – Yamamoto Tsunetomo
NOTE: It is apparent that I cannot get of the theme of absence of thought or the focus of being involved in the moment, then and there. This is a huge theme for me as it plays into many things in life. If you are absorbed in thought of this or that you will miss what happens in the moment and that moment may be something of grand proportions or a great lesson and it would be a tragedy to miss something so grand because of being caught up in thoughts of this or that or before or after. When you are not thinking there is nothing else to do other than be absorbed into the moment and all that it offers. People may make you angry or upset or any number of things but, it will only last the moment if you have the discipline to not think. We then need to wash out those things that occupy and or distract the self from the path for this is like a drug that you take to forget who you are and what you should be doing. Addiction to thought or emotion is the same as addiction to drugs or alcohol. We absorb ourselves in that thought or feeling because it makes us feel good or comfortable. There should be no feeling anything other than just being. Does the cherry blossom think about its color, beauty or fragrance? It just is color beauty and fragrance. We as humans are distracted by so many thoughts and feelings that it had for us to appreciate the smallest and simplest of things. This also plays into ultimate awareness. We will not be able to sense the subtlest of things or appreciate the beautiful nuances of nature if we are absorbed in thought or seeking the addiction to an emotion or feeling. How can we accept the most of what is around us? To have a completely empty cup. “Single thought by single thought” means to only think about that which is happening at that given moment and then the next moment forgetting about the previous. Hmm I must contemplate this further……….
Oooooohhhhmmmmmm………Peace be with you - GhostDog
NOTE: It is apparent that I cannot get of the theme of absence of thought or the focus of being involved in the moment, then and there. This is a huge theme for me as it plays into many things in life. If you are absorbed in thought of this or that you will miss what happens in the moment and that moment may be something of grand proportions or a great lesson and it would be a tragedy to miss something so grand because of being caught up in thoughts of this or that or before or after. When you are not thinking there is nothing else to do other than be absorbed into the moment and all that it offers. People may make you angry or upset or any number of things but, it will only last the moment if you have the discipline to not think. We then need to wash out those things that occupy and or distract the self from the path for this is like a drug that you take to forget who you are and what you should be doing. Addiction to thought or emotion is the same as addiction to drugs or alcohol. We absorb ourselves in that thought or feeling because it makes us feel good or comfortable. There should be no feeling anything other than just being. Does the cherry blossom think about its color, beauty or fragrance? It just is color beauty and fragrance. We as humans are distracted by so many thoughts and feelings that it had for us to appreciate the smallest and simplest of things. This also plays into ultimate awareness. We will not be able to sense the subtlest of things or appreciate the beautiful nuances of nature if we are absorbed in thought or seeking the addiction to an emotion or feeling. How can we accept the most of what is around us? To have a completely empty cup. “Single thought by single thought” means to only think about that which is happening at that given moment and then the next moment forgetting about the previous. Hmm I must contemplate this further……….
Oooooohhhhmmmmmm………Peace be with you - GhostDog
Monday, May 25, 2009
Conversations with the Grasshopper
>>> GhostDog 5/25/2009 12:16 PM >>>
“It’s all a matter of perspective” I said to my son. “You see son it is a matter of how you see the cup, do you see it as half full or do you see it as half empty? Our perspective in life can be either positive or negative and how you see the cup will be an indicator of how you perceive the world.”
My son replies to me with “When I look at the cup I see JUST THE CUP.”
I said to him “You don’t realize the enormity of the statement you just made. You have no idea how profound and intelligent your statement really is.”
NOTES: The basis of this conversation was the decision to take action in doing or not doing something and the emotional or physical reaction of those actions or decisions by others. “Everything we do echoes in eternity”. You ‘will’ be accountable for your actions one way or the other. You choose not to do something and you may offend someone or hurt their feelings, you choose to do something and you may be unhappy yourself doing it. So, there in, lies the dilemma. This is why the statement “I only see the cup” is so profound. The reaction of others ‘Feelings’ is only a figment of our own (or their) imagination, our own thoughts and those thoughts have no reality. Therefore the cup being half empty or half full is only the image our mind perceives, the creation of a false reality our own mind creates. If we are to truly look at the reality of it, it is just a cup with some liquid in it. This is how we should perceive everything in life, just as it is. But because we are inundated with other peoples perceptions and beliefs since birth it is difficult for us to see the true reality of things, it is hard for us to live in the here and now, in the absolute present. It should not matter the “feelings” of another, for those “Feelings” I have no control of. All I have control of is me. My “Feelings” have no reality unless I create this false reality in my own thoughts, causing me to have physical reactions. Without outside tactile stimulation how can one have physical reactions to thoughts, dreams or the non-reality of our imagination? These things created by the mind have no substance, no reality, it cannot be felt, it cannot be heard, tasted or seen. If we cannot sense through our senses these thoughts then how can thoughts be real? So the reality of it all is “There is just the Cup” is absolutely a profound statement from a 17 year old. If only he knew the gravity of his words. “Go or No Go” There or not there, these are the absolutes. The cup is either there or it is not there and the content level of its void is irrelevant. To much talk and to much contemplation over the ‘Void’ and existence of emptiness. Absolute inner peace may be found in the absence of thought and just the reality of things as they are. Ahh, but the human mind has been conditioned to emotion, feelings and thoughts and giving up on this habit energy is … well it is what it is, and giving thought to it is a distraction from peace of mind and peace of spirit. If only to live without the feelings of guilt or how ‘someone’ else may feel about things. “No thought, no reflection, no analysis, no cultivation, no intention; Let it settle itself.” Natural Law, you don’t see to many deer contemplating the most appropriate and logical way to cross the road.
Peace be with you - GhostDog
“It’s all a matter of perspective” I said to my son. “You see son it is a matter of how you see the cup, do you see it as half full or do you see it as half empty? Our perspective in life can be either positive or negative and how you see the cup will be an indicator of how you perceive the world.”
My son replies to me with “When I look at the cup I see JUST THE CUP.”
I said to him “You don’t realize the enormity of the statement you just made. You have no idea how profound and intelligent your statement really is.”
NOTES: The basis of this conversation was the decision to take action in doing or not doing something and the emotional or physical reaction of those actions or decisions by others. “Everything we do echoes in eternity”. You ‘will’ be accountable for your actions one way or the other. You choose not to do something and you may offend someone or hurt their feelings, you choose to do something and you may be unhappy yourself doing it. So, there in, lies the dilemma. This is why the statement “I only see the cup” is so profound. The reaction of others ‘Feelings’ is only a figment of our own (or their) imagination, our own thoughts and those thoughts have no reality. Therefore the cup being half empty or half full is only the image our mind perceives, the creation of a false reality our own mind creates. If we are to truly look at the reality of it, it is just a cup with some liquid in it. This is how we should perceive everything in life, just as it is. But because we are inundated with other peoples perceptions and beliefs since birth it is difficult for us to see the true reality of things, it is hard for us to live in the here and now, in the absolute present. It should not matter the “feelings” of another, for those “Feelings” I have no control of. All I have control of is me. My “Feelings” have no reality unless I create this false reality in my own thoughts, causing me to have physical reactions. Without outside tactile stimulation how can one have physical reactions to thoughts, dreams or the non-reality of our imagination? These things created by the mind have no substance, no reality, it cannot be felt, it cannot be heard, tasted or seen. If we cannot sense through our senses these thoughts then how can thoughts be real? So the reality of it all is “There is just the Cup” is absolutely a profound statement from a 17 year old. If only he knew the gravity of his words. “Go or No Go” There or not there, these are the absolutes. The cup is either there or it is not there and the content level of its void is irrelevant. To much talk and to much contemplation over the ‘Void’ and existence of emptiness. Absolute inner peace may be found in the absence of thought and just the reality of things as they are. Ahh, but the human mind has been conditioned to emotion, feelings and thoughts and giving up on this habit energy is … well it is what it is, and giving thought to it is a distraction from peace of mind and peace of spirit. If only to live without the feelings of guilt or how ‘someone’ else may feel about things. “No thought, no reflection, no analysis, no cultivation, no intention; Let it settle itself.” Natural Law, you don’t see to many deer contemplating the most appropriate and logical way to cross the road.
Peace be with you - GhostDog
The Centipede
Start log - Star date May 18, 2009 at 12:00 hrs
"The centipede was happy, quiet, Until a toad in fun Said, "Pray, which leg goes after which?" This worked his mind to such a pitch, Hey lay distracted in a ditch Considering how to run."
NOTES: This is a prime example of not thinking to much. Just like in sparring, when you stop to think about what punch you are going to throw or how to block a kick, you get hung up in contemplation and get hit. I most assuredly believe that the toad in the story presented the question to the centipede to get him locked into his own mind and his own thoughts to open a window of opportunity to eat the centipede. As I relate many of life's questions and challenges to combat, this Koan is a way to teach how we need to have a free flowing mind, to be able to react to things without having to stop and think. Too much thought only slows down our reaction time. This is why we must practice our techniques thousands of time and make them a natural reaction so the mind does not have to think about what it is going to do, we should perceive the threat and then react. no formulation of a strategy or contemplation of philosophy. Just the raw physical reaction of self preservation. Don't become the centipede, free you mind and just do. The absence of thought is liberating.
Peace out GhostDog
"The centipede was happy, quiet, Until a toad in fun Said, "Pray, which leg goes after which?" This worked his mind to such a pitch, Hey lay distracted in a ditch Considering how to run."
NOTES: This is a prime example of not thinking to much. Just like in sparring, when you stop to think about what punch you are going to throw or how to block a kick, you get hung up in contemplation and get hit. I most assuredly believe that the toad in the story presented the question to the centipede to get him locked into his own mind and his own thoughts to open a window of opportunity to eat the centipede. As I relate many of life's questions and challenges to combat, this Koan is a way to teach how we need to have a free flowing mind, to be able to react to things without having to stop and think. Too much thought only slows down our reaction time. This is why we must practice our techniques thousands of time and make them a natural reaction so the mind does not have to think about what it is going to do, we should perceive the threat and then react. no formulation of a strategy or contemplation of philosophy. Just the raw physical reaction of self preservation. Don't become the centipede, free you mind and just do. The absence of thought is liberating.
Peace out GhostDog
Tecumseh
May 19, 2009 18:22hrs
Chief Tecumseh – Shawnee Nation, in a speech given to William Henry Harrison before he became governor (and then president)."So live your life that the fear of death can never enter your heart. Trouble no one about their religion; respect others in their view, and demand that they respect yours. Love your life, perfect your life, and beautify all things in your life. Seek to make your life long and its purpose in the service of your people. Prepare a noble death song for the day when you go over the great divide. Always give a word or a sign of salute when meeting or passing a friend, even a stranger, when in a lonely place. Show respect to all people and grovel to none. When you arise in the morning give thanks for the food and for the joy of living. If you see no reason for giving thanks, the fault lies only in yourself. Abuse no one and no thing, for abuse turns the wise ones to fools and robs the spirit of its vision. When it comes your time to die, be not like those whose hearts are filled with the fear of death, so that when their time comes they weep and pray for a little more time to live their lives over again in a different way. Sing your death song and die like a hero going home."
NOTES: This is a motivational affirmation for me. I have this taped up in my locker and see it daily. I use it to guide my life as I do many things. Each day it only takes a little reminder or a few seconds of meditation to ground yourself and seek the path to enlightenment. Enlightenment is all there is, but enlightenment in itself is a Zen Kōan. The path of enlightenment is itself a life long discipline and lesson, like the peeling away of the layers of an onion, when you peel back one layer and another lye’s underneath until you get to the last layer and then there is emptiness, all in the hopes of finding the ultimate end or answer only to realize that there is no answer, just a process of learning lessons until we ultimately get to the end and find emptiness and find absolute nirvana in that emptiness. Because having found emptiness allows us to take in the beauty that is around us uninhibited by thought and emotion, it just is and it just being as it is “Nothingness” we find the spectacular beauty in it being that simple. Just being content with nothing (emptiness) and loving it.
The following phrase may help to confuse …
“Our bodies are given life in the mists of nothingness, existing where there is nothing is the meaning of the phrase form is emptiness, that all things are provided for by nothingness is the meaning of the phrase emptiness is form, one should not think that these are two separate things” - Hagakure, The Book of the Samurai – Yamamoto Tsunetomo
The above quote is just another reference to my notes. Whoa! My head is spinning now.
Peace GhostDog
Chief Tecumseh – Shawnee Nation, in a speech given to William Henry Harrison before he became governor (and then president)."So live your life that the fear of death can never enter your heart. Trouble no one about their religion; respect others in their view, and demand that they respect yours. Love your life, perfect your life, and beautify all things in your life. Seek to make your life long and its purpose in the service of your people. Prepare a noble death song for the day when you go over the great divide. Always give a word or a sign of salute when meeting or passing a friend, even a stranger, when in a lonely place. Show respect to all people and grovel to none. When you arise in the morning give thanks for the food and for the joy of living. If you see no reason for giving thanks, the fault lies only in yourself. Abuse no one and no thing, for abuse turns the wise ones to fools and robs the spirit of its vision. When it comes your time to die, be not like those whose hearts are filled with the fear of death, so that when their time comes they weep and pray for a little more time to live their lives over again in a different way. Sing your death song and die like a hero going home."
NOTES: This is a motivational affirmation for me. I have this taped up in my locker and see it daily. I use it to guide my life as I do many things. Each day it only takes a little reminder or a few seconds of meditation to ground yourself and seek the path to enlightenment. Enlightenment is all there is, but enlightenment in itself is a Zen Kōan. The path of enlightenment is itself a life long discipline and lesson, like the peeling away of the layers of an onion, when you peel back one layer and another lye’s underneath until you get to the last layer and then there is emptiness, all in the hopes of finding the ultimate end or answer only to realize that there is no answer, just a process of learning lessons until we ultimately get to the end and find emptiness and find absolute nirvana in that emptiness. Because having found emptiness allows us to take in the beauty that is around us uninhibited by thought and emotion, it just is and it just being as it is “Nothingness” we find the spectacular beauty in it being that simple. Just being content with nothing (emptiness) and loving it.
The following phrase may help to confuse …
“Our bodies are given life in the mists of nothingness, existing where there is nothing is the meaning of the phrase form is emptiness, that all things are provided for by nothingness is the meaning of the phrase emptiness is form, one should not think that these are two separate things” - Hagakure, The Book of the Samurai – Yamamoto Tsunetomo
The above quote is just another reference to my notes. Whoa! My head is spinning now.
Peace GhostDog
Blood & Grass
May 20, 2009 12:22hrs
“Blood makes the Grass Grow Green!” – Author Unknown – GhostDog
NOTES: I am not quite sure where this quote came from or who may have said it so I guess I will take claim to it form not. I am sure I heard in some movie that I have seen and I mostly watch movies with a Warrior type theme. SO, I will add my notes as to what it means to me. This quote is the ultimate reality of “The Circle of Life”. As I say this quote I envision a place in the woods where a deer has died in the fall and I am coming upon the area in the early spring. I envision the grass around the carcass just starting to green up and there is more green grass around the carcass than in other areas. This helps me to reflect on how natural and part of the circle death is, life leads to death and then death to new life. As things in nature die off they only help to provide sustenance and or fertilizer for every thing else around them, so even in death they are providing a service and giving back to the creator, leaving a gift for future generations. We should not fear death or even question it because it is as natural as breathing and when the times comes there should be no remorse or grief only peace and tranquility because we would have come full circle and we are only following the natural order of things.
Now, on a side note, I also use this quote from one Warrior to another when one encounters injuries or tribulations in life. A little blood shed or pain is all part of life. Pick yourself up dust your self off and rub some dirt on it and get back in the game! You don’t see wild animals sobbing in pain or with grief when they are attacked in the bush. I have seen deer hit by cars that pick themselves up and run off into the woods. Self Preservation, no time for worry, no time for grief, just protect yourself at all cost and damn the pain. We have a tendency as humans to be afflicted with human emotion and allow that emotion to invade our thoughts and actions, when in reality they are just that, thoughts, to a certain extent just figments of our imagination. They are non existent and have no form or reality, we only imagine them in our own minds and no one else could feel or touch them, we cannot actually touch our own thoughts, so how then can they be real if we cannot actually touch them? If we were to dismiss all idle thoughts in our minds running non-stop from past to future and future to past we may find we might actually be able to experience a little bit of the “Here and Now”, “Ultimate Awareness”. Just as the centipede is distracted by his thoughts by the toad in the above example, we can be distracted by our own thoughts and become self absorbed and consumed to the point of distraction until we are no longer aware of our surrounding and the things going on around us. This distraction is an area of vulnerability that may turn disastrous in the face of danger. We should move about in our daily lives in a state of ultimate awareness, not only is this invigorating and spiritually cleansing, it is natural and allows us to experience life as we are meant to. So, when I say “Blood makes the Grass grow green” What I am really saying is that we should not be troubled by injuries or problems because in the big picture it is really insignificant. Blood, Sweat and tears are all natural and part of life. We need to deal with them in the same way that nature deals with them. I don’t see to many trees crying out in pain when they get struck by lighting or infested with disease, they struggle to carry on or adapt to the new circumstances. Have you ever seen how a tree will grow around wires of fences? It is a great lesson in life in adaptation. So remember you blood and your sweat and your tears is all part of life and natural. SO GET BACK UP! RUB SOME DIRT ON IT! AND GET BACK IN THE FIGHT!
– This post is dedicated to my son’s friend Mike, who broke his arm (Quite graphically) the other day in training. He exemplified this post quite well as he dealt with the several hours of agonizing pain until he received treatment from the ER. Strength and Honor Mike, never say die and never quit, you’ll be back to training before you know it. Eat well, get lots of sleep and drink lots of milk!
Peace and love and all that happiness stuff GhostDog
“Blood makes the Grass Grow Green!” – Author Unknown – GhostDog
NOTES: I am not quite sure where this quote came from or who may have said it so I guess I will take claim to it form not. I am sure I heard in some movie that I have seen and I mostly watch movies with a Warrior type theme. SO, I will add my notes as to what it means to me. This quote is the ultimate reality of “The Circle of Life”. As I say this quote I envision a place in the woods where a deer has died in the fall and I am coming upon the area in the early spring. I envision the grass around the carcass just starting to green up and there is more green grass around the carcass than in other areas. This helps me to reflect on how natural and part of the circle death is, life leads to death and then death to new life. As things in nature die off they only help to provide sustenance and or fertilizer for every thing else around them, so even in death they are providing a service and giving back to the creator, leaving a gift for future generations. We should not fear death or even question it because it is as natural as breathing and when the times comes there should be no remorse or grief only peace and tranquility because we would have come full circle and we are only following the natural order of things.
Now, on a side note, I also use this quote from one Warrior to another when one encounters injuries or tribulations in life. A little blood shed or pain is all part of life. Pick yourself up dust your self off and rub some dirt on it and get back in the game! You don’t see wild animals sobbing in pain or with grief when they are attacked in the bush. I have seen deer hit by cars that pick themselves up and run off into the woods. Self Preservation, no time for worry, no time for grief, just protect yourself at all cost and damn the pain. We have a tendency as humans to be afflicted with human emotion and allow that emotion to invade our thoughts and actions, when in reality they are just that, thoughts, to a certain extent just figments of our imagination. They are non existent and have no form or reality, we only imagine them in our own minds and no one else could feel or touch them, we cannot actually touch our own thoughts, so how then can they be real if we cannot actually touch them? If we were to dismiss all idle thoughts in our minds running non-stop from past to future and future to past we may find we might actually be able to experience a little bit of the “Here and Now”, “Ultimate Awareness”. Just as the centipede is distracted by his thoughts by the toad in the above example, we can be distracted by our own thoughts and become self absorbed and consumed to the point of distraction until we are no longer aware of our surrounding and the things going on around us. This distraction is an area of vulnerability that may turn disastrous in the face of danger. We should move about in our daily lives in a state of ultimate awareness, not only is this invigorating and spiritually cleansing, it is natural and allows us to experience life as we are meant to. So, when I say “Blood makes the Grass grow green” What I am really saying is that we should not be troubled by injuries or problems because in the big picture it is really insignificant. Blood, Sweat and tears are all natural and part of life. We need to deal with them in the same way that nature deals with them. I don’t see to many trees crying out in pain when they get struck by lighting or infested with disease, they struggle to carry on or adapt to the new circumstances. Have you ever seen how a tree will grow around wires of fences? It is a great lesson in life in adaptation. So remember you blood and your sweat and your tears is all part of life and natural. SO GET BACK UP! RUB SOME DIRT ON IT! AND GET BACK IN THE FIGHT!
– This post is dedicated to my son’s friend Mike, who broke his arm (Quite graphically) the other day in training. He exemplified this post quite well as he dealt with the several hours of agonizing pain until he received treatment from the ER. Strength and Honor Mike, never say die and never quit, you’ll be back to training before you know it. Eat well, get lots of sleep and drink lots of milk!
Peace and love and all that happiness stuff GhostDog
The Riddle of Steel
May 21, 2009 11:24hrs
“The heart of a man is like a piece of unworked iron. It must be hammered by adversity and forged by the suffering and challenges flung by the thoughtless gods, nigh unto the point of breaking. It must be purged and hardened in the fires of conflict. It must be purified and shaped on the anvil of despair and loss. Only when your heart has become as steel will you be worthy to wield a keen edged sword in battle and win against enemies, as did the gods when they conquered the dark giants. When you have mastered the mystery of steel, my son, your sword will be you very soul.”
Conan The Barbarian, Robert E. Howard
NOTES: Keep in mind that this is a very deep philosophical statement and much meditation on the meaning of this should be done. This is like a Zen riddle the more you ponder on it the more it reveals. I have lived my life by this code and reflect on it almost daily. “Only when your heart has become as steel will you be worthy to wield a keen edged sword in battle and win against enemies” This is not literal it is figurative, your heart must be pure in many ways and also empty like the steel of a sword to effectively win in battle, one must be empty in mind of nothing other than battle to truly win against all enemies. No thoughts of work or how to throw a punch, kick or block you just do it without thought. There is no thought of win or loose just in the moment, Just like steel, it just is. This is a very stoic stance in life but, a very effective one. This is just the same as the following …
“The way of the samurai is found in death. Meditation on inevitable death should be performed daily. Every day when ones mind and body are at peace, one should meditate upon being ripped apart by arrows, bullets, spears and swords and being carried away by surging waves. And every day without fail one should consider himself a dead. This is the substance of the way of the samurai.” - Hagakure, The Book of the Samurai – Yamamoto Tsunetomo
NOTE: Understand that at the thought of death many are confused and scared therefore clouding their judgment when your life has to be put on the line to save another. This thought even for a brief moment can be life or death. There should be no fear of death, death is just a transition and dieing in battle for the good of mankind is an honorable death and should be welcomed, not feared. That fear will follow you to the after life and condemn you to a restless sleep. These are deep thoughts, as the Native Americans used to say live your life in a way that allows you to prepare a noble and honorable death song.
Strength and Honor GhostDog
“The heart of a man is like a piece of unworked iron. It must be hammered by adversity and forged by the suffering and challenges flung by the thoughtless gods, nigh unto the point of breaking. It must be purged and hardened in the fires of conflict. It must be purified and shaped on the anvil of despair and loss. Only when your heart has become as steel will you be worthy to wield a keen edged sword in battle and win against enemies, as did the gods when they conquered the dark giants. When you have mastered the mystery of steel, my son, your sword will be you very soul.”
Conan The Barbarian, Robert E. Howard
NOTES: Keep in mind that this is a very deep philosophical statement and much meditation on the meaning of this should be done. This is like a Zen riddle the more you ponder on it the more it reveals. I have lived my life by this code and reflect on it almost daily. “Only when your heart has become as steel will you be worthy to wield a keen edged sword in battle and win against enemies” This is not literal it is figurative, your heart must be pure in many ways and also empty like the steel of a sword to effectively win in battle, one must be empty in mind of nothing other than battle to truly win against all enemies. No thoughts of work or how to throw a punch, kick or block you just do it without thought. There is no thought of win or loose just in the moment, Just like steel, it just is. This is a very stoic stance in life but, a very effective one. This is just the same as the following …
“The way of the samurai is found in death. Meditation on inevitable death should be performed daily. Every day when ones mind and body are at peace, one should meditate upon being ripped apart by arrows, bullets, spears and swords and being carried away by surging waves. And every day without fail one should consider himself a dead. This is the substance of the way of the samurai.” - Hagakure, The Book of the Samurai – Yamamoto Tsunetomo
NOTE: Understand that at the thought of death many are confused and scared therefore clouding their judgment when your life has to be put on the line to save another. This thought even for a brief moment can be life or death. There should be no fear of death, death is just a transition and dieing in battle for the good of mankind is an honorable death and should be welcomed, not feared. That fear will follow you to the after life and condemn you to a restless sleep. These are deep thoughts, as the Native Americans used to say live your life in a way that allows you to prepare a noble and honorable death song.
Strength and Honor GhostDog
Do dont Say
May 23, 2009 12:37hrs
”One may explain water, but the mouth will not wet. One may expound fully on the nature of fire, but the mouth will not become hot. Without touching real water and real fire, one will not know these things. Even explaining a book will not make it understood. Food may be concisely defined, but that alone will not relieve one’s hunger” - The Unfettered Mind, Writings from a Zen Master to a Master Swordsman – Takuan Soho
NOTES: This is an example of practice what you preach. Many will say to others of how to do things or how to act but they themselves do not follow the way, they only talk the way. This can be found in many aspects of life, in Martial Arts, Enlightenment, Spirituality, Right living, etc. they are all ways that have to have study and practice but, that study and practice has to be more than just talking or the telling to others it has to be the physical practice of the way.
Peace - GhostDog
”One may explain water, but the mouth will not wet. One may expound fully on the nature of fire, but the mouth will not become hot. Without touching real water and real fire, one will not know these things. Even explaining a book will not make it understood. Food may be concisely defined, but that alone will not relieve one’s hunger” - The Unfettered Mind, Writings from a Zen Master to a Master Swordsman – Takuan Soho
NOTES: This is an example of practice what you preach. Many will say to others of how to do things or how to act but they themselves do not follow the way, they only talk the way. This can be found in many aspects of life, in Martial Arts, Enlightenment, Spirituality, Right living, etc. they are all ways that have to have study and practice but, that study and practice has to be more than just talking or the telling to others it has to be the physical practice of the way.
Peace - GhostDog
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