Evening guys, When I trained at a kung fu club a few years back, we would often take time out to do some meditation, maybe once every month. I've been reading up on [ame="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Wado-Ryu-Karate-Complete-Art-Uncovered/dp/1873861044/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1291496055&sr=8-2"]Frank Johnsons wado ryu book[/ame], and there is a page dedicated to Mokuso, and I'm wondering, do you ever take time out of the "harder" types of training to do more "softer" training such as meditation etc?
^^ we do too... however it's pretty superficial when we do it lol... we really should spend more time on it (in my opinion) but it's pretty much done before/after class out of tradition, ie: "seiza, mokuso, mokuso yame, etc..."
We mokuso at gradings and such but don't really do it day to day. I'd change that as I really like it. My TKD class does a mokuso-ish thing at the end much more regularly (but it's actually closer to what happens at the end of most Yoga sessions). I like the ritual of getting in the right frame of mind for the session and also a chance to go over what has been covered at the end. What do others "use" mokuso for?
We always do a minute of mokuso at the end of each class, but it's also pretty superficial and done as much for tradition as anything else. I like the idea of that minute as a time to switch from aggressive mode to "ready to step out into the world" mode.
Its funny you know, but I can’t help thinking that the world outside the dojo is far more aggressive!! lol. We tend to practice at the start at end of each lesson - primarily to ready ourselves. Here is a good essay on the subject for anyone who wants to go beyond the "superficial". http://www.wadoryu.org.uk/mokuso.html Gary
I'm sure in the grander scheme of things, you're absolutely right. I do think though, that you often have to operate in "hair trigger" mode during a karate class; you have to be primed to throw a punch. Not a good state to be walking through the town in.
I've left the dojo in that state before. And gone in to town. Always fairly lol (rest easy that I haven't hit anyone ) We practice Mokuso at the end of each lesson. It's a time to relax, get the heart rate down and as has already been said, to switch off hair trigger mode
Depends which part of which town I guess. Also, Mokuso helps helps develop your training in terms of "Hei jo shin" and therefore being able to maintain a calm state. Gary
