Log Jam (Have you got it?)
I was with a class the other day teaching a group some advanced throwing techniques to them. This can be difficult trying to get an opponent to the ground, but once you master the art of relaxing to form the opening of a throw everything comes together lke the pieces of a puzzle for a jigsaw. The beautiful thing about the training in martial arts it is that it takes a lifetime of learning to really master each technique.
The class were not ready for what I was going to say next. “Demonstrate 15 different throws.” They felt the pressure, but they actually put most of the pressure on themselves.
I knew that this was going to be a good healthy test for the mind and character rather than how physical they could be, as they would have to rely on the mind not muscle.
All the class started off well as I certainly imagine they would have, but then coming down to the last 5 when the body is itching to finish and running overtime on adrenaline the mind just couldn’t keep up with it.
So I called for everyone to stop for the moment. Everyone went silent and turned towards me. I began to walk over to one of the students and placed the palm of my hand in front or their forehead as the class watched on. I then gradually moved my hand over the top of the students head in a smooth motion. “This is what everyone needs to do,” I said. People looked around and started to give me that confused look of starring into space. (You know the look i mean.) I once again replied, “This is what we need to do.” Still all with having that same gazed look on themselves.
I said to them, “what are you thinking about?” The answer should be clear mind. In jujutsu terms we call this Mushin, meaning empty mind, this also includes mind over matter. You see, you never want to be to far forward nor to far behind. You need to be here now! You shouldn’t be thinking about what’s going to happen later on in the day or the next week or what happened in work early. You need to be in the now, and if your not your in the now you are missing the boat.
Everyone in the class smiled because they knew the truth behind this. Everyone in class knows that this state of mind happens to us each and everyday and they had bought this mindset it into class. That is the beautiful thing with the classes I teach, I like everybody to be in the now and not away with the fairy’s thinking what’s for lunch tomorrow or I need to get my car fixed. You miss all the great hidden treasures of knowledge if your like that.
So they cleared their minds. You know what happened? The throws just starting popping out to them more smoothly than ever.
You see they already know all of the throwing techniques already, but they were receiving what we call log jam. This is to many thoughts at once; it needs to be like a salt timer with only releasing one granule of salt at a time. If all the salt tried to go at once it would form a together like a log jam with the flow of salt passing through and everything would come to a halt. This is what was happening in class and this is what’s happening in our lives.
Thousands of thoughts cross over our minds every day creating like a log jam. We need to responsive with not allowing the log jam to step in and rather let the thoughts flow freely.
We need to learn to take out the trash. (Clear the log jam) Meaning remove all the unnecessary thoughts that gather into our prolific minds each day. This will make us think more clearly in life.
I know this sure helps me.
All the best
Richard Huntley
