Biloxi23 Posted August 29, 2010 Share Posted August 29, 2010 "Freeing the Mind" Master Zhongfeng Mingben said, "One must possess a mind that frees the mind." There are two levels, beginning and advanced, attached to these words. When one frees teh mind, it travels until it comes to a stop, therefore the first level of practice teaches to not let the mind stop, but to make it return steadily. When one strikes a blow with his sword, the mind lingers where the blow was struck; this teaching is to make the mind return soundly to oneself. from: "The Sword and the Mind" by Yagyu Munenori Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
benos Posted September 20, 2010 Share Posted September 20, 2010 Good stuff. One could apply analogies for that pertaining to doing pretty much anything. The first that came to mind is when you are shooting a stage and something "goes wrong." Note how your mind stays stuck there and it's difficult to get back in the flow, unless you make a deliberate pause, and redirect your attention. be Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xsniper Posted September 22, 2010 Share Posted September 22, 2010 Yes..it is like you are suddenly in quicksand for awhile and are getting pulled down (into the trouble). I am guessing the skill is to learn to re-focus faster ?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matt2ace Posted September 22, 2010 Share Posted September 22, 2010 Good stuff. One could apply analogies for that pertaining to doing pretty much anything. The first that came to mind is when you are shooting a stage and something "goes wrong." Note how your mind stays stuck there and it's difficult to get back in the flow, unless you make a deliberate pause, and redirect your attention. be I have come to realize that one of my strengths in shooting fits well with your analogy. I find that I have developed a mind that, at least with my shooting, does not dwell on mistakes during stages. It seems (feels) to me that I just flow through them as they occur and continue on with my shooting as if they never happened. I shot a big match last weekend where I had several problems (dropped mag on unloaded start, light strikes, red dot went bad). I found myself enjoying those stages as much as my best performances at the match. Why, because I simply felt the flow of my mind solving the the problem and continuing to shoot at my pace achieving good points, even when the times were long. Several people on my squad commented to me that I seemed to just stay calm, smooth, and fast despite the problems. By finding joy in each stage, the frustrations don't exist the match becomes fun, and I improve as a shooter! I am learning to apply this same philosophy to other aspects of my life, with great success. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kaiserb Posted September 22, 2010 Share Posted September 22, 2010 I have some recent video of myself shooting a stage requiring tac-sequence (1-2-1) on 2 targets at the start. I messed up and doubled the first target, I spent the next 5 seconds of the stage shooting and griping about the screw up. Then I picked up speed after a reload (mentally I went into reload mode), and finished out the second half of the stage. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
benos Posted September 22, 2010 Share Posted September 22, 2010 Yes..it is like you are suddenly in quicksand for awhile and are getting pulled down (into the trouble). I am guessing the skill is to learn to re-focus faster ?? This may seem subtle, but to me it is significant, the trick is in learning to menatlly pause - just long enough to know you paused but not long enough to begin thinking - which facilitates the attention redirect. Good stuff. One could apply analogies for that pertaining to doing pretty much anything. The first that came to mind is when you are shooting a stage and something "goes wrong." Note how your mind stays stuck there and it's difficult to get back in the flow, unless you make a deliberate pause, and redirect your attention. be I have come to realize that one of my strengths in shooting fits well with your analogy. I find that I have developed a mind that, at least with my shooting, does not dwell on mistakes during stages. It seems (feels) to me that I just flow through them as they occur and continue on with my shooting as if they never happened. I shot a big match last weekend where I had several problems (dropped mag on unloaded start, light strikes, red dot went bad). I found myself enjoying those stages as much as my best performances at the match. Why, because I simply felt the flow of my mind solving the the problem and continuing to shoot at my pace achieving good points, even when the times were long. Several people on my squad commented to me that I seemed to just stay calm, smooth, and fast despite the problems. By finding joy in each stage, the frustrations don't exist the match becomes fun, and I improve as a shooter! I am learning to apply this same philosophy to other aspects of my life, with great success. Nice stuff! be Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BisleyBlackhawk Posted July 26, 2011 Share Posted July 26, 2011 Yes..it is like you are suddenly in quicksand for awhile and are getting pulled down (into the trouble). I am guessing the skill is to learn to re-focus faster ?? The thing with quicksand is that you are not actually being "pulled" down...your struggles against what you are immersed in (quicksand) are what works against you and results in your being pulled under by your work and struggle and the end result being your drowning. What you need to "refocus" on is the fact that quicksand is water based and if you relax and let go...you will float...maybe more slowly...but float you will. Our failure to let go ends with our getting into worst trouble. "Trying" too hard will only kill us in quicksand and in shooting will make us try to hard adding one mistake after another which only increases our errors. I know it can be difficult to do but as in everything in life we must learn to relax and...to coin the age old mantra...LET GO (easier to type and say for advice) but something well worth seeking and working toward. Shooting under the clock is just about the most perfect example on how to perfect this mindset. The pressures we are so accustomed to life only work against us our REAL life. Bisley Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MQW Posted October 20, 2011 Share Posted October 20, 2011 Okay, you got my attention, my question then is, how do you take the small but deliberate pause to get on track again without losing too much time or at this point, does it matter? this is my single biggest issue when shooting in competitions; its way different in combat, because you can take the time to breath yourself down while behind cover or while moving thru an urban situation or before you go thru a door, etc. that doesn't really work when you are under the clock?? whats your read or a possible solution to this?? Thanks. Good stuff. One could apply analogies for that pertaining to doing pretty much anything. The first that came to mind is when you are shooting a stage and something "goes wrong." Note how your mind stays stuck there and it's difficult to get back in the flow, unless you make a deliberate pause, and redirect your attention. be Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
benos Posted October 20, 2011 Share Posted October 20, 2011 Okay, you got my attention, my question then is, how do you take the small but deliberate pause to get on track again without losing too much time or at this point, does it matter? this is my single biggest issue when shooting in competitions; its way different in combat, because you can take the time to breath yourself down while behind cover or while moving thru an urban situation or before you go thru a door, etc. that doesn't really work when you are under the clock?? whats your read or a possible solution to this?? It is mental process you deliberately strengthen by repeated training. The goal is, you (mentally) pause, just long enough to know that you've paused, but not long enough to begin thinking. be Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
45 Raven Posted October 21, 2011 Share Posted October 21, 2011 FINALLY! I have experienced something discussed on this forum! Just shot a steel match in which a stage started to "slip away" from me. In the past, I would have "camped out" at that point of the stage and put a great deal of thinking into what I was doing wrong and why, resulting in a blown-out stage. This time, I "paused" just long enough to understand that I needed to relax and resume driving the pistol, and as a result the issue turned out to be little more than a "hiccup" in the stage. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RickRak2000 Posted October 21, 2011 Share Posted October 21, 2011 A couple of lines of lyrics from an old funk song may be applicable... "Free your mind and your ass will follow." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
benos Posted October 21, 2011 Share Posted October 21, 2011 FINALLY! I have experienced something discussed on this forum! Just shot a steel match in which a stage started to "slip away" from me. In the past, I would have "camped out" at that point of the stage and put a great deal of thinking into what I was doing wrong and why, resulting in a blown-out stage. This time, I "paused" just long enough to understand that I needed to relax and resume driving the pistol, and as a result the issue turned out to be little more than a "hiccup" in the stage. Beautiful. be Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
photog Posted November 20, 2011 Share Posted November 20, 2011 Once your mind has registered the "mistake", its too late. While the goal may be to not allow your mind to dwell upon it, I think the ultimate goal is not let the mind even contemplate it. It goes back to what is called "beginners mind", which is when we were beginners and did not even know we had made a mistake. Its one of those paradoxes in life, how can we become a proficient beginner? Otherwise, we can strive to achieve a still mind. The analogy is the moon reflected in water. The water does not hold the reflection. The reflection does not linger upon the water. They interact, but do not pause. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
miyamoto Posted January 13, 2012 Share Posted January 13, 2012 Good topic, The thing is to just train the mind to simply stop its life long conditioned response to label and judge everything in our lives automatically. This continual wallowing in subject and object is the greatest limiter to true living that there is. The problem is, its how we were born and its how we lived each moment since then. So every now and again, with pure effort (without effort) we find those snatches of what clear living can be like. This is where automatic judgement does not muddy our sense perceptions and squander our energies and pull our attentions in a thousand different emotional and meaningless directions. The ability to redirect the mind without conscious thought. Right concentration on things that count. Even in the midst of terrible situations, you have the ability and potential to see straight through what others try to push into your face. Sit No dwelling on subject, no dwelling on object. Both are truly the same if it were not for our conditioned mind seeking out comfort and putting all sense phenomena in its pleasant and labeled box for our inspections. As said here before, many tools can be used to move us along this path, from shooting to tea ceremony, from fishing to the martial arts. These are tools truthfully, to try to let mental attachments be realized for what they are and leave the mind. Its why Buddhists often take their vows and take the robe, shaving the head, etc. They take steps to minimize those things which we have always subconsciously put value in. Sitting meditation is simply another tool to help them on the way. Even terrible circumstances can show realization. Only you, have to accept your fate with a clear mind and a clear heart. Right effort counts yes, but the situation is what we are part of. They are not separate. I recently was hit by a car while riding my motorcycle, I was conscious without conscious thought of simply being part of the whole without judgement. I did everything I could physically to avoid damage, but emotion was not present. I smacked into the asphalt, got up, then passed out, then did it again. hehe. Thinking afterward, I felt right with my training. I won't lie though, I am pissed about my bike getting hosed lol j/k After a while, you will notice that everything around you and everyone is a valuable moment for realization and training on the way. Just be cognizant of the mind getting trapped into continual judgements for the sake of its petty comforts. Realize the mind getting caught and the circumstances behind it, then with subtle hands move the mind back on the way. Then, after a life of right effort, you can step into your grave with a glad heart and those around you would be allowed to share that too. That is only part of how we can influence future generations. A well lived life can truly help those in our sphere. Its nice to see people on here making good effort for the sake of their own true mind. Its the only true meaning of freedom. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
benos Posted January 13, 2012 Share Posted January 13, 2012 Thank you for the inspiring post miyamoto. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RammerJammer Posted January 14, 2012 Share Posted January 14, 2012 In combat you reach a point from terror and pain and confusion and misery where all actions become automatic and you are completely detached. In the worst situations I only registered one or two minor pieces of sensory data like a smell or a taste in my mouth. When I look back it seems like my memories are silent and two dimensional but I was always perfectly focused and detached. Having experienced that its a wonder why I will miss a steel plate 4 times simply because I am flustered about missing it the first time. I think the desire to do well kills me mentally. In Iraq there were several times when I got really down and was positive that I would never make it back. I tended to develop a 'lets get this over with' attitude and amazingly those periods were the easiest. Maybe if I accept defeat and simply shoot because I am supposed too I will be awesome. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
benos Posted January 17, 2012 Share Posted January 17, 2012 In combat you reach a point from terror and pain and confusion and misery where all actions become automatic and you are completely detached. In the worst situations I only registered one or two minor pieces of sensory data like a smell or a taste in my mouth. When I look back it seems like my memories are silent and two dimensional but I was always perfectly focused and detached. Having experienced that its a wonder why I will miss a steel plate 4 times simply because I am flustered about missing it the first time. Maybe it might help to imagine that the targets are shooting back at you. "Boards don't hit back." -Bruce Lee http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jP-Iq-eZusg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arbutrator Posted January 20, 2012 Share Posted January 20, 2012 (edited) Free your mind and your ass will follow....Jon Luc Ponte Thinking is going over what you don't know.. Feeling is orchestrating the things you are in constant compilation of....Where your treasures are, there to well be your heart. Edited January 21, 2012 by Arbutrator Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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