GrandMaster Art Mason's Martial Musing

Martial Arts people are some of the most generous people I know. That is why I am doing this blog post. Please read this article below and follow the links provided. It is your chance to make a difference.

Hello Everyone,

If you look to the right of this article you will find a donation button to help a good friend of mine in Romania with medical expenses. I met this lady about 6 months ago and she helped me to travel to her country to introduce the art of Kyusho Jitsu to martial artists there.

Approximately one week ago from the date of this article she took ill with a serious liver condition. Her life is currently in danger, however the situation is improving. I arranged on Wednesday of this week for a helicopter airlift to Bucharest to save her life. Without this she had no chance for survival. However the problems still exist. The medical system in Romania is very poor and very expense. The economy in the country is in ruins.

Currently I am fund raising and taking donation to help the family with these expenses. Any and all donations are welcome and ALL the money is sent directly to the family. If you would like to help please use the donation button to the right of this article. All donors will have their name added to a card for Miky which Master Art will personally deliver to her when he returns by request of her family as soon as she regains consciousness.

Thank you for your generosity in this matter! Please see UPDATES below.

Sunday July 18th 2010 As of this writing Miky is in stable, but serious condition in Bucharest. She is currently on a machine which is cleaning her blood since her liver is all but shut down. This is LIVER DIALYSIS which will help to regenerate the liver. The cost of this procedure is 3500 euro which is NOT covered by insurances. Please follow the link provided for more information.

To donate to this cause please follow this LINK.

Also note 100% of all Kyusho DVD and eBook sales will go to this cause.

Master Art Mason

With 2010 right on our doorstep it is time once again to look at the New Year with new hopes and dreams. Have you thought about what you want to achieve in 2010?  This year I have several adult members eligible for their 2nd Dan, plus 2 for 3rd Dan, and I am hoping they are thinking about this as we head into the New Year.

Personally this year is looking like a time for promotion in Kyusho Jitsu with a test for 5th Dan. As well as my promotion in Hapkido to 8th Dan.

Why set goals? I have known so many people over the years of my life who do not believe in setting any kind of goal. They also never get anywhere in life. The subconscious mind needs information given to it to do it’s job. Written goals are a way to supply this to it. Thinking about it consciously does not work. We must commit it to writing and reviewing these goals periodically to achieve them. When I revisit my old goals, those set in writing at the end of the year. Most have been reached or at least started.

For martial artists goal setting is of utmost importance. With set goals comes motivation to train and achieve. Overcoming inertia and getting to class is not only good for your physical health but your mental health as well.

Human’s were not meant to be sedentary, which is the way much of our societies have become. With movement come peace of mind and happiness. Along with some of the things mentioned about my New Years Resolution is to continue to be HAPPY.

Yes I really did leave the word ‘defense’ out on purpose from the title. The term ‘self defense’ always conjurers up an image of a fight or attack situation, where training in the martial arts goes much further.

I have news for you. You are attacked each and every day. This attack is done against you directly and it is done thought your 5 senses. With the bombardment of our senses it is little wonder we can function at all. We have become creatures of deleting information. The problem is we often delete the wrong things.

Have you ever felt overwhelmed? Have you felt that your life is not longer on track, or perhaps that something is missing? If you have you are certainly not alone. People feel this day in and day out until they discover something. “The Art of Self “

Now I can hear what some people will say, this being ‘selfish’. If you are thinking that very good because it is! We have nothing else but ourselves. Also, you cannot give what you do not have, so everyone needs to work on themselves FIRST.

Everyday I sit in quiet reflection at my dojo for 15-30 minutes. Some will call this mediation, others reflection, the title doesn’t matter. What matters is that I am alone with me. Here I get to understand me. But this is only the start because then I go out on the floor and teach several hours of classes each day. I also do this for me, and when I do the students are the ones that benefit, much more than I do. When this happens I am in the moment, not somewhere else.

Martial Arts training is a great tool for self discovery because it is all about YOU. You are on the floor training and no one can really help you. A good teacher can be a guide but that is all. You learn to conquor your body and your mind. Add this to some mediation or reflection time and you have the basis for a path to a happier life! Not bad for a few hours per week!

If you are a student of the arts, any art, get yourself back to regular training. You know you felt better when you did. If you are not a martial artists find something you love to do and do it!

Sing like no one is listening, dance like no one is watching. Connect with yourself and enjoy our physical reality!

Yesterday was a very important day for many people in our school. It was Black Belt testing and promotion day. Nine students were tested and promoted to the rank  of Assistant Black Belt in Hon Sang Mu Sa Hapkido, the art of the Peaceful Warriors’.

Anyone who is a Black Belt knows and understands the feeling of pride, accomplishment and relief that are experienced when the testing is finished.  The night before and afterward is full of restless sleep and excitement.  Today (Sunday) we have a day of special training for the new Black Belts, and those who have promoted beyond.

Getting your first Black Belt is something that you will never forget. I recall the excitement of standing, waiting for my results and being promoted. That was almost 22 years ago.

With all this in mind my message today for my new Black Belt students. Congratulations and welcome to a new start to your training. Martial Arts is a journey, not a destination. Now that this event is finished refocus your mind on new goals of higher and higher learning. You have some exciting times ahead.  A martial arts Black Belt is different from the average person. We understand what it means to work hard, sweat and never quit until the goal is reached.

Keep up the great work, I am proud of all of you!

“It is better to conquer yourself than to win a thousand battles”

In my personal opinion one of the greatest benefits of martial arts training is that it is about conquering the ‘self‘.  Sometimes we however do lose site of this.

I always find it interesting to go out to a bar, or to a party, even a business event and see how people will work to position themselves to conquer or control others.  It is a non stop interaction of energy back and forth.  Children do this constantly with their parents, playing almost a game of wills. Children do it will each other, a prime example being the bully – victim scenario. Adults are pros at it!

Sadly all of this is wasted energy. What we really need to do is conquer the self.  A person who is in the process of conquering his or her self has a certain magnetic quality to them. They will often make fantastic leaders, excellent workers and generally speaking outstanding human beings. Why is this the case? Because they find peace within their own skins.

In a true martial art situation there should never be an opponent to conquer. The only person that needs conquering is the self. When you understand the inner self, controlling the body, the situation or anything else becomes easy. When there is turmoil within, there will always be conflict and the possibility of defeat.

Conquering the self requires a few steps to get started. The first step is understand, truly understanding and internalizing that nothing is permanent. No person, no situation and no event.  Everything is ALWAYS changing! With that in mind we can realize that life is to enjoy, not to become stressed about.  Learning to be happy is not something we want to happen on our death beds. It is something we need to pursue our entire lives.  Babies are happy by nature, the world teaches them to forget and to lose this quality.

Once we understand and internalize impermanence, we can then understand that we control our thoughts.  We chose what we think moment to moment, and no one else does this for us.  If your thoughts are out of control it is because you allowed them to be! It will take time to get them back on track, but then the goal is to conquer the self and the self is your thinking.  Therefore whenever a bad thought arises, look at it, don’t dwell on it, and allow it to pass. Replace it will an empowering thought instead.

The Buddha said “we are what we think”…..PERIOD.

Life is about expansion and happiness. The power of the mind, your mind is greater than any supposed physical reality. Learn and practice every moment of every day to control your thinking.  Those who are martial artists and students of the arts remember this the next time you are on the floor training, and then never let it slip past your attention again afterward.

Remember all paths lead to the same destination. Life is a journey, learn to love it!

A new white belt walks on the floor of the dojo. She feels very odd in her new, crisp uniform. The instructor calls the class to order. The new student is both excited and intimidated at the same time.  She wonders “what is expected of me?”,  ” Can I do this?”

These are all the normal emotions and thoughts of the beginner. However fear may get in the way of his or her training and progression.  “What happens if I can’t do this?”

Over the years I have seen so many people quit martial arts, not because they did not like it, but because the fear of failure is so overwhelming. Some will say this is a lack of self esteem, which is true but it is also not true at the same time. Thus a paradox.

When we think of someone with low self esteem we tend to see a shy person, alone in a corner not talking to anyone.  However self esteem cannot really be judged by such simple characteristics. A personal with low self esteem may often be very outgoing. Also self esteem can come in different forms and areas of life. The person in this example may have excellent self esteem in every other area, but martial arts.

Here the teacher is key to getting the new student to understand that a great martial art system is constructed in such a way as to assure success, if the student just comes to class. How is this possible? The school must have teachers on the floor, not just instructors. Will the student work hard? Certainly, but fear of failure will be lessened each time they walk on the mat.

Black Belt is considered to be one of the ultimate symbols of success. As teachers it is our job to show the student the way, and help them overcome fear. Fear of failure is a real fear, it is real because if it remains, failure is assured.

Remind your students and piers in the arts that we were all White Belts once. We all felt the same, and that with a little work it can be overcome. When someone leaves martial arts training for the wrong reason, we all suffer.

As in any other part of life, the student leaving the teacher is natural. Martial Arts is not exception. In my personal training I lasted for 16 years with my first instructor. This is an unusual length of time.

My reasons for leaving are numerous. But it is part of the growth of the individual martial artists. In the school I was trained in things had slowed to a stand still, but I was still thirsty for more knowledge.

I opened my school almost 10 years ago. Since this time I have promoted well over 100 student to the Black Belt level and some far beyond that. In this time I have had several Black Belts decide to move on to other things. Most were junior students, holding junior Black Belt rank. Recently this trend has shifted, and I have had 3 adult Black Belt’s move on.

One Black Belt decided to stop training after promoting to 1st Dan. I am unaware of his reasons as he was a very private man. The other 2 are 2nd Dan’s, both very good, long time students.

Surprisingly none of these men have departed to open their own schools. This seems to be the normal progression of things, except in this case. Sometimes passion will go out of training, in which case some students do leave, while others look for answers within their training.

I must confess that losing any student, but especially a senior student is a sad thing for a teacher. It is like watching your children leave home. It is however often necessary.

I hope that for those of you who have departed from teachers, or are considering it, remember the student / teacher relationship. Be true and honorable, and remember this relationship always.

Once in a while I will run into my old master teacher. Even though 10 years has past, and we see things very differently now from the way we did, he has taught me much. I choose to alway honor that relationship, the relationship of student and teacher.

Why do we love to hang on the past? So often when I meet or talk to people the injury and hurt from their past will come up. Like a cut on the body that we just keep digging at until it opens and bleeds again. What is it about us that makes us want to do this again and again. Don’t you think it is time we all moved on?

Letting go of the attachments to the past is what is required. Then at a higher level we need to let go of all attachments. Why? Because none of these serve us.

The year 2012 is fast coming. We hear a lot of talk about December 21st 2012. Some people say it is the end of the world, which is cool since the world has not ended since 2000 (remember all the hype).  What do I think is happening in 2012? It has already begun, people are beginning to think better. Are you on this leading edge?

There is an old Buddhist tale about the Buddha being approached by a person in the streets. The man asks the Buddha, “are you the messiah?” The Buddha replies “no I am not”. The man then asks “are you a healer?”, the Buddha again replies “no I am not”.  The man asks this time “are you a teacher?”, the Buddha once again replies, “no I am not”. Finally out of frustration the man asks, “well then what are you?!?” The Buddha replies “I am awake.”

Are you waking up? Are you working towards being ‘happy’ and understanding the world you have created around you?

How do you get started? Let go……period. It is time to let go of the hurt of the past, the opinions of other people, your need for the unimportant. Just let go…..but how you ask?

First you must internalize the fact that everything in your life is a result of your thinking to this date. We are what we think about most. If you are not happy with this scenario then you need to think differently. Remember when you were a kid and would pretend to be someone else? Now I am not suggesting you imagine you are superman, but seeing yourself in a different light and focusing in on this, all the time will make the transformation happen if you put enough into it. If you want to be successful, act successful.  This will help reprogram the sun conscious mind.

Also part of letting go is to realize that nothing, including ourselves is permanent. Everything changes and evolves. With this said, why them do we insist on becoming attached to things that are not forever? There is nothing wrong with enjoyment, but attachment is terrible for your self esteem, and stress levels. I just makes you unhappy and jealous!

Now here are two true stories to show you what I mean by attachment.  Many years ago I had a friend with a beautiful white Camero. This was his pride, to the point of obsession. One day we were out driving, and he was following me to a house. This person lived on a dirt road. When driving my friend was keeping a little to close. A stone came off one of my back tires and chipped the front of the car. The chip was the size of maybe a small fingernail. He ended the friendship and sold the car. He was devastated! He also always wondered why his life seemed to be so stressful and going nowhere. He almost broke up with his girlfriend when see suggested he was overreaching.

Here is another example. I borrowed my Dad’s car to go to the mall one night. At the mall I was in a minor accident.  I was worried about how angry my father was going to be with me. He was only worried about me being injured. As he said, there is nothing that can happen to a car that cannot be fixed or replaced.

My dad even though he really loved his car also, was not attached to it.  Attachment and letting go, go hand in hand. Can you think of something you are attached to? Material or human, let go, and then you can find the joy in the object or person in reference. How? Remember that nothing is forever. Letting go allows you to fully enjoy the physical experiences life has to offer.

Calm your mind and see things as they really are.

Happy Halloween Everyone,

Each year at Halloween young students will come and ask me if it is OK for them to wear their Dobok (gi) out for Trick or Treating.  Even though it is really a breech of etiquette I always say yes.  Now Halloween is a time to dress up as something you are NOT, these children are all martial artists.

As I was thinking about this today, I realized that perhaps some people see martial arts training as role playing. This can be especially true for new members, but in reality they are not role playing, they have become martial artists.

This all gets down once again to the way we think, especially the belief system that will often tell a person they are not good enough. Many times new adult students will come and talk with me because they feel ackward in class, and feel they are not really good enough to martial artists.  The truth is every accomplished martial artist in the world was once a beginner, a white belt, but we saw what we wanted and went after it.  So should you!

This applies to everything in life. I only use the martial arts as an example, because that is what I am most familiar with.  But here is the important point.

“You are exactly what you want to be…….”

There are no exceptions to this rule. Everything you are is an extension of your thinking, good, bad and indifferent.  Your reality is a result of all your thoughts to date. If you are not happy with this, then your thoughts must change to become what you desire down the road. The first step however is seeing in your mind’s eye, yourself as the way you want to be.

This has been a hard lesson in my life, but only hard because I kept getting in my own way. My belief system needed a major overhaul. The only area I had no trouble in was martial arts. This is because that fire burned very bright and hot. From my first class I could see myself in that Black Belt.

Start right now and imagine the changes you want in your life as a reality. When they appear in your mind they have been created, keep seeing them and they will manifest in your personal reality.

Everything is created twice.

A new student starts our as a white belt, learning movement, kata and self defense forms. He or she learns to block, punch and kick.  Soon forward movement is added as the student will step forward in a stance and either block or strike.  What was once unnatural soon becomes simple.

Patterns or Kata are added to the learning. At first these are simple routines,but grow progressively more difficult at the student progresses. Self Defense techniques are introduced and the eager student quickly learns these movement too, not quite understanding the implications, but have some idea of the importance.

As the student progresses questions begin to develop. The students begins to bore as the constant repetition continues.  Finally he or she will ask the teacher for some deeper knowledge.  Satisfied at this point the student continues to train, realizing how much more important each move and stance have become.

What was once form, becomes something formless as the student’s movements become automatic and effortless.  After years of diligent practice the student is awarded the coveted Black Belt.  But now the question arises, there must be something more?

As the student heads towards mastery, he or she becomes formlessness;  their ability to move from one technique to the other becomes seamless. Then one day it happens, all progress seems to stop. The student feels their technique is losing ground, that they no longer move formlessly.

The final transition to mastery is close at hand. Soon the student will understand that all knowledge is of the self, and he or she is simply learning to move, that there is no technique, only continual motion. Once this knowledge is understood, the new master is once again back to form, the first circle of training is complete.  He or she sees that their art is both empty of form, and empty of formlessness.

They realize there is no defense, only motion. They are ready for the next stage.