Correct feeling (a concept originated by, to the best of my knowledge, Maruyama Shuji Sensei, founder of Kokikai Aikido) is a quality I possess that is directly related to coordination of mind and body. So what is coordination of mind and body? Well, to begin with, coordination of mind and body isn't an either you have it or you don't proposition. There are varying degrees of coordination I may have depending on the circumstances. Generally, I am more coordinated when my mind is closer to "now" than when it isn't. My strongest possible state, at which I can perform closest to my realizable potential, is when correct feeling is maximized.
By way of review, my body is always perfectly in the moment (at now). While my mind is perfectly free to roam moments past and contemplate possible moments future it is permanently locked out of the current moment for two reasons. First, now has no extension in either space or time. So the question "how long is a moment?" is as meaningless as asking "how wide is a number on the real number line?". Second, my mind cannot directly experience reality, it must rely on sensory input to form an approximation of reality. This takes time which means moments have to pass before my mind catches up with the reality that was. The reality that is exists just slightly ahead of my perception of it.
Perfect coordination of mind and body would have both mind and body in the moment (at now) simultaneously. But, as can be seen in the preceding paragraph, this is for all practical purposes impossible. What is possible is for my mind to approach now virtually without limit, hence the varying degrees of mind/body coordination.
The degree of coordination of mind and body is the difference between now and my perception of it. Correct feeling then is seen to be a variable quality that is based on my degree of mind/body coordination at any given time. Correct feeling can be thought of as "strong" when the degree of mind/body coordination is high and "weak" when low.
Practicing Ki exercises allows me to: get in touch with how I feel when mind and body are coordinated to varying degrees, strengthen correct feeling by increasing the degree of mind/body coordination via repetitive iterations under increased force loads and learn to manipulate my degree of mind/body coordination by purposely shifting my awareness to and away from my center. Daily Ki development training has enhanced my Aikido and allowed me to experience Aikido on a deeper level that I would otherwise experience it without this practice.
No comments:
Post a Comment