I've got to capture this idea in the book I am reading now, Meditation and the Martial Arts (Studies in Religion and Culture
Dec 11, 2003 by Michael L. Raposa and Gary L. Ebersole. It speaks to the idea I picked up fresh (fresh for me) from Haidt last year, about the relationship between the rational mind and our unconscious.
I am on page 56 where the author begins to explain Daoist beliefs describing, "The advice supplied to rulers by the Dao de jing can be applied to the governance of a 'country' existing either without or within...Sun's philosophizing about the deeper meaning...[are vague]...no doubt appropriately since the Daoist classics teach that the Dao itself is dark and vague and best described 'without words'..."
Here the internal landscape is described as a country, its citizens sometimes living in harmony and at other times not so much. I get it. I have a deeply analytical side as well as creative, and conflict can occur when both minds seek dominance on a project. Hesitation, doubt, and even "freezing" can occur as a result. Not so much now in my mature years, as my contrasting talents have divided activity based on ability. My internal landscape, at least, is at peace, even if it may appear I am making abrupt shifts in direction.
To free my creative side for action, I must suspend the intellectual chatter. That sort of commentary tempts my intellectual side to take over. I know this silent ability exists, but the very act of talking about it subsumes it.
It is pleasing to see this idea expressed again, confirmed and reinforced, in Raposa's book. I am also intrigued by the idea of active meditation through movement. I am pretty sure I've been a closed hyperactive these many years, slowing myself down with weight and carbohydrate loading. With the weight gone, I must be moving, doing something. I continue to seek out new activities to keep me occupied. Fridays is Yoga-Chi night with Paul Yapp. I have noted that the movements themselves lend themselves to a meditative state, and this book pleasingly confirms my instincts.
I don't have to sit still to meditate!
