Meditation, Sleep and Dying

When you can’t sleep, or you’re sick and terrified of dying it’s because you can’t let go. Going to sleep is like dying, you stop thinking and drift in a state of just being and if you can do this through meditation practice, you sleep deeply and restoratively. Similarly when you are sick and death is inevitable, you drift in to that state of just being and returning to the source of all things dying peacefully. See how the two are connected? When you meditate you loose the shackles and burdens of life, resting in that beautiful place of refuge … Continue reading Meditation, Sleep and Dying

Intensity In Meditation

  I teach that for mindfulness, meditation and Martial Arts, the mind needs to be aware, focused, sensitive and intense. The right kind of intensity is a key factor and often misunderstood. You cannot be half hearted. The enemies of the mind are apathy and distraction, to avoid them the mind must be intensely focused and that requires the right kind of effort. To me, after posture and breathing are correct, it’s like getting into an elevator and dropping instantly 100 floors down. This is both my meditation and fighting mind, it cannot be disrupted. Sometimes it feels like I’m … Continue reading Intensity In Meditation

Being A Good Student

We often talk about what makes a good Instructor and what makes a good club, but what happens when we turn that on it’s head and ask what makes a good student? The one thing that I discovered was that if I knew how to be a good student I could get far more out of my Instructors than anybody else and that as an Instructor I am far more inclined to teach a good student thoroughly than a bad one. The inescapable facts are that many Instructors don’t get to choose their students, sometimes they teach because they feel … Continue reading Being A Good Student

Buddha Was A Proper Geezer

Translation by me…. Buddha was a proper geezer. As a youngster he was a great martial artist. Despite being a prince he became (in current slang parlance) ‘woke’. The word ‘Buddha’ means ‘one who is awake’. He left his wife and child (making sure they were cared for) and went ‘walkabout’ to find himself. Buddha is not a god. He is not a son of god. He is not immortal. He was not a prophet. He became a master of logic. He was (in slang terms) a ‘proper geezer’. When he found himself he put it in simple logical terms. … Continue reading Buddha Was A Proper Geezer

2 Triples For Happiness

2 Triples For Happiness Anicca – Dukka – Anatta Today wisdom and happiness comes in 2 triples, the first is Anicca, Dukka, and Anatta, the triple gem of existence. Impermanence We all know this, but much of our suffering comes from not accepting it. Everything rises and falls without cease, therefore we need to be able to fully engage, to love, enjoy and then at the right time let go. To be able to do this we need to remind ourselves in daily meditation that all things will pass and just knowing this will broaden our perspective enough to give … Continue reading 2 Triples For Happiness

Making Sense Of The Universe With Kata/Form

“As Above – So Below” In ritual magic you affect the macrocosm by understanding and changing the microcosm. If you want to really understand kata/form and what was in the mind of the originators and you have enough knowledge – try inventing your own. Why would you invent one? It would have to improve the understanding and standard of the practitioner. Do you want to categorise an entire training system into one form? Maybe there are specific ideas and principles that you want to put together and train in one sequence? Very quickly you will begin to understand the problems … Continue reading Making Sense Of The Universe With Kata/Form