ON MASTERY – PART II

concentration

The nature of concentration and focus in the development of mastery

For some scientists, the nature of perception is culturally mediated, especially when comparing the West and the East. Much of the research seems to indicate that Eastern culture is more naturally inclined to be “in concentration,” while Western culture employs the perceptual habit of being “in focus.” Concentration and focus represent the two primary perceptual paradigms in the development of mastery. The subject-object relations of concentration and focus are fundamentally different, where the former is best understood as a gathering of one’s attention, and the latter a selecting of one’s attention. Both are necessary skills that one must develop in the process of continuous, incremental improvement – or mastery. These are the two primary methods of information processing available to us when communicating with someone or learning a new skill. Concentration is governed by Yin energy, while focus is governed by Yang energy. Both are expressions of intent, with concentration by its very nature being an internal process, while focus is an external process. Taking a closer look at these two processes, (more…)

ON MASTERY – PART 1

mobius

The relationship between pain and pleasure in the development of mastery

Gaining pleasure and avoiding pain are perhaps the most fundamental motivators of human behavior. It has been rightly observed that too often we are in a state of pain avoidance rather than pleasure seeking. This phenomenon of the human psyche is one of the most significant obstacles in the cultivation and development of mastery. (more…)

On Daily Practice

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The true purpose of practice is not attainment, but the purification of the mind and body, so that the true Self can express itself.

The student asks the teacher, “Why do we have to practice every day?” “Why do we have to do the same thing, over and over again?” The teacher responds, “So that you can forget what you have learned.”

And so it is that we practice every day in order to learn to forget what we have learned. This appears at first to be a dichotomy, but if one looks closer, we come to understand that it is not. We create the structure and discipline of a daily practice in order to transcend this framework. Over time, the need for discipline and structure falls away, for you are no longer exerting control. The need for control is relinquished and replaced by (more…)

On Sex

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The act of sex is as much spiritual as it is physical, and reflects the great dichotomy of the human condition as a microcosmic experience of the cycle of life, death, and rebirth.

At its most exalted level, sex is both a self-expressive act and feeling that is simultaneously for each other and oneself, unencumbered by custom or apprehension or fear of judgment, for the purpose of healing. Our partner’s role is to encourage and allow, without judgment, the expression and experience of those parts of the self that are in most need of healing. Sex is not so much technique as it is awareness. Sex is a means in itself, as well as an end. It is a means of expression that can allow one to arrive at a heart centered consciousness facilitated by both surrendering and balancing the expressions of the physical and emotional space. Sex and its expression is a marriage of polarities, polarities which adhere to the laws of dynamic equilibrium (more…)

The Tao of Relationships: The 4 Laws of Dynamic Equilibrium

 

Yin Yang Theory, illustrated by the familiar Taiji symbol below, seeks to explain the duality, polarity, and dynamic harmony of the physical, mental, and spiritual forces within the universe. These forces affect everything in the universe, manifest and latent, including the expression of the energies between men and women. Fundamental to Yin Yang Theory, and by extension the relationship between men and women, are The 4 Laws of Dynamic Equilibrium, which illustrate  how the energies of yin and yang interact with one another. The characteristics of the Yin energy include:  female, moon, passive, negative, darkness, earth, water, softness, moisture, night-time, downward seeking, slowness, cold. The characteristics of Yang energy include: male, sun, active, positive, brightness, heaven, fire, hardness, dryness, day-time, upward seeking, restless, hot. (more…)