View Single Post
Old 03-27-2012, 07:17 AM   #8
Lorel Latorilla
Location: Osaka
Join Date: Jul 2009
Posts: 311
Japan
Offline
Re: Heart leads mind, mind leads qi, qi leads strength

Quote:
Allen Beebe wrote: View Post
Brought to us by the same folks that "invented" IP and Aiki, and similarly dumbed down to a pale shadow of its former depth and profundity by the very institutions charged to protect it, the great Indian meditative traditions knew and worked with "the mind" at a much "higher definition" than most are aware of.

Using the first phrasing presented:

"The heart leads mind, the mind leads qi, the qi leads the power."

The "heart" can be constituted of a multitude of pre-conscious factors and conditions. For example general genetic components that cause us to be human as opposed to something else carry with it conditions that cause us to interact with the world in certain predictable ways. There are also environmental, social, cultural, temporal and genetic factors that can profoundly influence how, what, why and the quality of our pre-conscious cognition. Also included at the conscious and sub-conscious levels there are influences from Language, past experiences, our judgments and narratives about the past experiences, etc. There is more that can be written but hopefully I've made laid out the general idea. (This of course is a huge continuum from broad and "impersonal" to the highly personal.)

All of these factors, causes and conditions interact and mutually influence on another before one is normally even consciously aware of "having a thought" and these same factors, causes and conditions deeply influence what that thought of which we will be consciously aware of is. HERE is where the one's desires are generated.

The "heart" generates a desire, the "mind" recognizes, sometimes judges and/or arbitrates it. This is usually at this point, or later, that individuals become aware of having a desire. Often the "mind" then forms an "intent" based upon the arisen desire. By definition, this thought manifested as "intent" is evidenced by a cascade of neuro-chemical/electrical changes throughout the body/brain.

The "ki" seems to be related to the messenger/manifestation system.

The "power" is the result.

It should probably be recognized that the entire system can, and does, work backwards as well.

The power, leads the ki.

The ki leads the intent.

The intent leads the heart.

There is a feedback loop that can be, and usually is, mutually influencing. Hence the ability to learn.

Or not.

Quick two bits before dinner. (Just an observation, but it seems to me that most internal folks focus on "mind/intent - qi- power," whereas almost all the founders of internal arts (and many koryu) wind up speak of "heart" - and not in romantic terms.
Allen, very interesting, thank you.

Obviously this applies to everything, and for the purposes of this thread, I am mostly curious about movement and how this psycho-physical progression affects movement and re-train movement.

I feel that "heart" is a given--I mean for those that don't have it, or more accurately, if their hearts generate a desire that is different from what they are "supposed" to do, then obviously the mind itself won't really follow, it won't carve out the particular "pathways", if you will. Essentially, it is absolutely useless to teach someone the more subtle details of the mind-intent-qi-power-stuff if they do not have the will/heart for it. I can understand that internal peeps talk a lot about "mind-intent-qi-power" stuff because their desire to learn, to survive, to live, to improve their bodies, etc. is a given--all they need to do now is to work out the mechanics that will allow them to "fulfill" the desires of their heart/will.

I am interested in what context those comments about the "heart" were made. Perhaps their students lacked a little heart, and therefore couldnt really progress as students? Perhaps they lacked that killer instinct that necessitates a cleverness that leads them to discoveries that will refine their heart, usage of qi, and thus strength?

Unless stated otherwise, all wisdom, follies, harshness, malice that may spring up from my writing are attributable only to me.
  Reply With Quote