Maintaining Mental Calmness and Not Losing Our Cool

[mugitani]

As for the place of Zen in popular and scholarly writing, I think you're spot on. There is certainly a lot more about that tradition than any other. Jodo (i.e. Pure Land) is the largest school of Buddhism in Japan, and you will be hard pressed to find a book about it in most bookstores. And I think you're exactly right as to the reasons. So, while the extensive writing on Zen overshadows other important influences, we're still left with this tricky question of how prevalent and influential Zen was compared to other schools of thought.

Re. the link you posted, that was an interesting read. I regret that I don't have the grounding in neo-Confucianism that I wish I had. I did think it was a bit odd that "ease of learning" was associated with schools that speak of humanity having the Truth within them, as if the quality of our True Self is somehow related to the ease of uncovering it. But that's a bit off topic.

Oh yeah, that's maybe another reason for it being under-recognized--neo-Confucian thought can make one's head hurt! Plus the concepts and terms between Zen and neo-Conf can overlap while having important differences. And as Kate points out, knowledge of other schools of Buddhism is often restricted. Research into these histories is daunting even to Japanese scholars, so it's no wonder that Zen gets most of the attention.

The big question is what any of this means to us in practice. Not a lot, maybe...but...I myself have started to feel inclined to see my practice as less connected to any kind of individual development and more related to my role in society, which might be an influence of a particular strand of thought.

As for maintaining mental calmness, history makes more inclined to say there must be many ways--from religious practice to various forms of meditation to purely physical practice--that can help, and one can only choose what is best for oneself.

Aaron

[JKMann]

neo-Confucian thought can make one's head hurt!

I'm glad to hear you say that. I was afraid it was just me.

[ronin1966]

Hello JKMann:

>>So, what do people here recommend to facilitate such mental discipline?

Thorough training comes to mind?!

Kata works nicely as a preliminary method to achieve better dispassion? Emotions occur during training, positive, negative. Seeing those emotions surface, impede our progress in the art... teachers interested in more than only effective violence will point those believes, and perceptions out to us. Perhaps help us alter those emotions which do not serve us well learning, while exploring their arts?

I am curious if any arts maintain specific techniques, intact from its original formation re: addressing this issue in paticular? If not then wtop ushy were they more recently added? Breathing, meditation, chanting techniques are hardly new. If we are a basket case, an emotional mess, how effective will our physical art and its practice actually be? Emotional balance surely must be relevant to a martial artist.

Easily enraged? Depressed? Angry? All kinds of emotions can prevent our learning. How we process that learning is another layer of emotions. Someone intensely trying to stop us can give us a rest from those emotions we brought to practice. Temporary relief to be sure, but relief none the less.

Jeff

[JKMann]

Emotions occur during training, positive, negative. Seeing those emotions surface, impede our progress in the art...

I understand what you're saying, but one could say that seeing those emotions manifest themselves is a step in the right direction. When we become aware of ourselves, that is an important first step. Not being mindful of them is a problem. But when we become aware of them, well, then we might say, you've taken your first step into a larger world.

As for the variety of schools of thought influencing budo, I just finished the first chapter of Budo Perspectives, an article entitled "Twentieth Century Budo and Mystic Experience," in which the author writes about Awa Kenzo (kyudo teacher of Eugen Herrigel). "There is no doubt that Awa's ideology had a close connection with the philosophy of Wang Yangming [a prominent Neo-Confucianist]."

[NewEnglandBudo]

Maintaining mental calm? Easier said than done. So, what do people here recommend to facilitate such mental discipline?

Jeff-san,

Here is an excellent article that shows the divide between "habit" and "training":

D.C. Gunman's Expression Warned of Trouble

By MATTHEW BARAKAT 03/09/10
Associated Press Writer

ARLINGTON, Va. --

There were no obvious signs of trouble when gunman John Patrick Bedell approached a Pentagon security checkpoint Thursday night. But Pentagon police officer Marvin Carraway had seen that facial expression before. It betrayed Bedell's intentions.

"It's hard to describe that look," Carraway said in an interview Monday. "It's a look you would know if you had been in combat."

Carraway was one of three officers who returned fire after Bedell began shooting at them. Carraway and another officer, Jeffery Amos, suffered minor injuries. The officers fatally wounded Bedell, who was described as having a history of mental illness by his family.

The shooting is still under investigation, but Pentagon police chief Richard Keevill has said the officers responded appropriately to the threat.

"The system definitely worked," said Terry Sutherland, spokesman for the Pentagon Force Protection Agency. "The bottom line is these guys did their jobs."

The three officers - Carraway, 44, of Clinton, Md.; Amos, 46, of Woodbridge; and Colin Richards, 29, of Alexandria, all described the experience in similar terms. They said time seemed to slow down, and their training kicked in.

"When the shooter started running, he looked like a big target. At that point, I felt like I couldn't miss," said Richards, who was next to Carraway when the shooting occurred, not far from the Pentagon Metro station. "My vision was, like, big. My hearing - I could hear everything."

Carraway was grazed in the leg when Bedell opened fire on him from what was essentially point-blank range. Amos, who was a short distance away, responded when he heard the gunshot, and he was struck by a bullet in the right shoulder. Neither was seriously injured.

Carraway acknowledged that he was in fortunate not to have been more seriously injured. More than good fortune, though, Carraway believes the officers' training is the primary reason they successfully stopped Bedell.

Carraway, a Marine Corps veteran who served in the first Persian Gulf War, said he had been shot at before. Recognizing the look on Bedell's face as a potential danger gave him moments to prepare. Bedell, who did not speak during the confrontation, opened fire first, but Carraway was able to quickly take cover and return fire.

"My training and my experience - that prevailed," he said.

The officers say they are well aware that the Pentagon is a potential target and that they are the first line of defense. Amos said he is glad that he and the other officers were able to prevent a situation like what occurred last year at Fort Hood, where Maj. Nidal Hasan is charged with 13 counts of murder following a shooting spree on the Army post.

"We couldn't let this guy get into the Pentagon, fearing that the same situation may occur," Amos said. "Our training kicked in, and that's what we're trained to do - stop the threat."

Bedell, 36, left behind a stream of anti-government rants and conspiracy theories involving the U.S. military. He was a graduate student in electrical engineering at San Jose State University.


AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin

From left , Pentagon Police Officers Marvin Carraway, Colin Richards, and Jeffrey Amos, stand together.

Source: http://us.mg2.mail.yahoo.com/dc/launch?.gx=1&.rand=c9rtaobbob0r4

[neko456]

i think situations like this is Ultimate test on this subject. Stress under fire went the opponent has the element of surprises is a real test and these guy's pasted in flying colors. Even after being hit there training and mental awareness took over so that they were able to returned fire dropping the suspect with only minor injuries.

Whne will these preps know that firing or attempting to kill Cops only gets you killed. Note the guy that walked in a killed 3 cops while at breaskfast, 1 day later he was killed in a gun fight with other Cops. They/we have a brotherhood that screeches across the nation. You shoot at or shoot a Cop you Die.