In order to return to the natural state we need to release everything. We need to let go of the partial tension carried in our bodies: all of the blocks and stagnant energy, all of the places where we are holding on, all set ways of seeing the world, all habits, patterns, etc., every way we carry our past into the present moment. We are letting go of linear time; we want to simply be present in each and every moment without an agenda. This openness, this letting go of all agendas, allows us to be present to what is. This is the quality that we are interested in cultivating. This is ting. This is listening awareness. This is somatic awareness. This is what we choose to cultivate. We are not concerned with what it looks like from outside ourselves. What matters is our experience, the primacy of our somatic experience.
Our intent is to be helpful, to be a blessing. What is a blessing is our presence. It is our heart and our caring that truly matter here. What matters is our kindness and compassion for all beings. It is our presence that makes a difference. It is the act of seeing and knowing the heart of another that makes a difference, seeing him or her as an expression of the One Source. The attention is shifted from our individual identity to the collective. We seek to restore the humanity of humans. The caring for others and for the Earth; this is what makes us uniquely human. This quality of heart, this care for ourselves, each other, and the Earth is our function here. To Love and to be touched by the beauty of Life. To do so we must be present and open. It is this presence and openness that we cultivate in the body.
It is when we stop looking outside ourselves for validation and approval that our path opens to us. It doesn’t matter if others see us or not. Yes, we want to be seen and known for who we are. It’s important to see and know ourselves – not as someone special, but as a part of Source, a ray of sunlight. Acknowledging our true nature as a loving, caring human being. We do not want to “win” at the expense of others. This is not winning for us. We want us all to thrive together. It is about recognizing our oneness with all that is and no longer seeing ourselves as this separate body. We are cells in a universal Being. We are an essential part of this Being we call Gaia or Earth.
It’s about understanding what we are doing and why we are doing it. Our training is not about developing martial skill. It is about clarifying what we care about and what we are willing to stand for. Nietzsche said :“He who has a why to live can bear almost any how.” What is your why? How about to honor and protect all life? That means honoring and protecting our attackers as well. It means acknowledging and caring for the life force energy that manifests through all life. The why is to care for and nurture the gift of life that has been given us. It is a flame that has been given us and our job is to keep that flame alive even, or especially, in these times of darkness. Guarding the sacred flame of life. This is our why.
Movement in Stillness 