Harmony was why it paid to pimp our weapons down range. Let me explain. The standard issue M4 carbine rifle is outfitted with what are called rails. These rails enable the weapon to be outfitted with all kinds of sights, scopes, handles, lights, and lasers.
The guys we replaced encouraged us to pimp out (outfit) our weapons with gear because they said the sight of out advanced weapon would intimidate the Iraqis, which was a good thing.
Stopping violence before it starts is a good thing, right?
The guys we replaced encouraged us to pimp out (outfit) our weapons with gear because they said the sight of out advanced weapon would intimidate the Iraqis, which was a good thing.
Stopping violence before it starts is a good thing, right?
Harmony is a complex,
dynamic interaction
with the world as it is.
What makes harmony tricky
is when it's looked at
as one thing or another,
or missed entirely.
One extreme of what-harmony-is might only associate harmony with music and peaceful things. Harmony is divine. Not associated with shadow. This understanding of harmony takes issue with the conflict in the first place and therefore can't conceive of harmony existing in shadow.
This understanding of harmony walks into a room full of Joes, after eating meatloaf at the chow hall, and starts asking everyone to say "excuse me" after they fart.
dynamic interaction
with the world as it is.
What makes harmony tricky
is when it's looked at
as one thing or another,
or missed entirely.
One extreme of what-harmony-is might only associate harmony with music and peaceful things. Harmony is divine. Not associated with shadow. This understanding of harmony takes issue with the conflict in the first place and therefore can't conceive of harmony existing in shadow.
This understanding of harmony walks into a room full of Joes, after eating meatloaf at the chow hall, and starts asking everyone to say "excuse me" after they fart.
The other extreme of harmony is missing its power all together. Instead of understanding the pimped out weapon as a way of harmonizing with a particular environment,
that the weapon is pimped out
is all that's understood.
In other words,
looking tough or badass in all environments is the way forward.
This understanding of harmony walks into a board meeting drops a huge fart and dares anyone to say anything. Harmony is lost in favor of force.
Both extremes miss the mark.
The reason Harmony is central to a modern warrior ethos is that is ubiquitous. Harmony is always possible whether down range or home. The trick to harmony is that you don't create it, you find it.
In other words, any situation you are in
already includes harmony,
you either have the capacity to see it
or you are caught up in trying to make it one way or another or
missing it all together.
that the weapon is pimped out
is all that's understood.
In other words,
looking tough or badass in all environments is the way forward.
This understanding of harmony walks into a board meeting drops a huge fart and dares anyone to say anything. Harmony is lost in favor of force.
Both extremes miss the mark.
The reason Harmony is central to a modern warrior ethos is that is ubiquitous. Harmony is always possible whether down range or home. The trick to harmony is that you don't create it, you find it.
In other words, any situation you are in
already includes harmony,
you either have the capacity to see it
or you are caught up in trying to make it one way or another or
missing it all together.
When I work with my students practicing mindfulness in the gym, what we are doing is creating challenging environments to test ones capacity to recognize the harmony that's implicit to every movement.
Whether it's harmonizing
breath or balance
the trick
again
is not to define
what or how
harmony will act
but to understanding
where it is already.
The gym is the environment, the equipment is the challenge, but it is the mind that must be tamed before harmony will appear. Its kinda hard to find harmony's path if your mind isn't present and off in should-be land.
In meditation harmonizing with the internal environment is called equanimity.
Equanimity is the radical acceptance of things just the way they are.
All aspects of you, both Light and shadow.
What sets the warrior apart from the laymen is the warriors willingness to harmonize with the best and worst aspects of life in general. Trained to take and protect life at the same time, this internal dynamic, once harmonized, enables the warrior to reach their fullest potential and subsequently their fullest power.....the ability to find harmony in all instances.
Whether it's harmonizing
breath or balance
the trick
again
is not to define
what or how
harmony will act
but to understanding
where it is already.
The gym is the environment, the equipment is the challenge, but it is the mind that must be tamed before harmony will appear. Its kinda hard to find harmony's path if your mind isn't present and off in should-be land.
In meditation harmonizing with the internal environment is called equanimity.
Equanimity is the radical acceptance of things just the way they are.
All aspects of you, both Light and shadow.
What sets the warrior apart from the laymen is the warriors willingness to harmonize with the best and worst aspects of life in general. Trained to take and protect life at the same time, this internal dynamic, once harmonized, enables the warrior to reach their fullest potential and subsequently their fullest power.....the ability to find harmony in all instances.
This post was guided by the 91st stanza of the Art of Peace, a book written by Morihei Ueshiba
To learn more about Taming and Training the mind in the gym, follow this link for two of the four week course.
Presently I'm promoting a new comedy on Fox, called Enlisted. It looks funny.
To learn more about Taming and Training the mind in the gym, follow this link for two of the four week course.
Presently I'm promoting a new comedy on Fox, called Enlisted. It looks funny.
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