Yoko Geri taught me Gyoji

One neat thing about the martial arts is that it has ways of teaching us many lessons that carry over into other areas of life. For myself, Yoko Geri was the teacher. And by the way, Yoko Geri is not the sister of Yoko Ono, but means 'Side Kick.'

Going through the ranks of Karate, Yoko Geri was a thorn in my side. Not only did my training partners break a few of my ribs with it, I had a hell of time throwing a good one. For years it seemed my physical structure was not appropriate for a good side kick. Yet, I persevered...and here is where I learned Gyoji.

Gyoji is a term that has a few meanings, mostly based on it context. For Karate, it means 'continuous practice'. I would frustrate myself in trying to throw a perfect yoko geri and the harder I tried the worse I made it. So, I finally told myself to do just a little bit every day. Gyoji.

I would work on my flexibility, not only with basic leg stretches, but I bought a pulley and some rope and tied my ankle to one end of the rope, looped it through the pulley and pulled my leg up. I would try and go just a bit further higher every time. Even though we were not high kickers, Sensei Dean emphasized some high kicking, because if you can throw a good high side kick, the lower ones are more powerful.

Over the course of a few years and applying Gyoji, my Yoko Geri looked like the one you see in the photo. That is me 32 years ago. I came across the photo a few weeks ago...and surprised myself as to the height and form I had. This from Gyoji...a little bit every day.

Now, I apply this to my other arts, ie, zazen, qigong and, of course, Karate. One of my favorite sayings is "You can't swallow the ocean in one gulp". Same with Karate and other arts. It has also served me in my educational and writing pursuits. They take time, continuous practice and perserverance. The results will show up. Just have faith and enjoy the journey of Gyoji.

Hands palm to palm,
Shinzen

Zen, Gyoji and Boredom

Gyoji is a term, like many Japanese words, with many meanings. On one level it means daily practice of your art. On a deeper level it means essential activity. So we have a word that tells us we need to practice 'essential activity' daily. What is essential activity? For now, let's say Kata practice is...or even better, Sanchin Kata. Sanchin is an essential activity for a martial artist to practice on a daily basis. Why? To state the obvious, it means you will get better and more skilled in Sanchin and Karate in general.

The struggle most of us have, and I include myself in this, is the struggle to keep our daily practice fresh and brand new. This can be especially difficult with a routine and simple Kata like Sanchin. At first you may be excited about practicing but after awhile it gets boring. The mind begins to think it knows Sanchin and begins to wander from its practice. The same goes for Zen meditation. At first it can seem very exciting, but after awhile...yawn...you begin to ask why do you do this. There is nothing here.

To keep practice alive is the struggle with Gyoji. How do you do this? For myself, I tell myself this is the first time I have ever done Sanchin. In fact, every time I practice Sanchin, it is new. It is never the same. You can never ever really practice the same kata twice. The Sanchin you do on Monday is different from the one you do on Tuesday. They are not the same. You fool yourself if you think they are.

When you get bored it is the mind looking at its own rerun of the Kata...and not seeing the Kata now in it freshness of this moment. Your mind is looking at its memory impressions and judgements about the kata, not the kata now and here. This moment is here now and will never return. This Sanchin is here now and will never return. This is the Zen way of looking at practice and applying Gyoji. Maintaining the proverbial 'Beginner's Mind' is the key and central to our practice of Zen and Karate.

So, when you get bored with a kata or another essential activity, check yourself. You are not seeing the moment fresh as it is. You are seeing your mind's discriminations or what I like to call 'reruns' of the moment's essential activity, not the activity in its freshness and thusness. When this happens, be thankful for the boredom...it is a messenger screaming at you to wake up and be here now with your essential activity. After awhile you begin to appreciate the live show in front of you.

Hands palm to palm,
Shinzen