Table of Contents
Preface to the New Edition
Foreword to the 2000 Edition by Sue Bender
Foreword by George Leonard
Introduction
Embodying a Dream
Looking at the Foundations of My Perceptions
The Influence of Aikido Traditions in My Life
How the Videotape Supplements Work
How This Book Works
Part I. The Body—Establishing Our Ground
Chapter 1. Coming to the Path
A Reference Point and a Technique
Into the Present
Coming Into Sensation
Knowing the River
Chapter 2. The Elements of Basic Practice
A Centering Triad: Three Parts
of Attentional Concentration
Utilizing Our Breath
Balancing Our Energy Field
Feeling Gravity
Practicing the Technique
Personalizing Basic Practice
Practicing and Accepting the Mystery
Chapter 3. Adding a Quality
Why a Quality?
Identifying a Quality
Using the Body as the Teacher
A Centerpiece for Practice
Chaper 4. Energy and Stability
Energy Follows Attention
Embellishing Our Center Practice
A Spiral-Breath Meditation
Take Your Time
Chapter 5. Learning
Approaches to Learning
Interest versus Fear
The Grinch and the “Yes .... And, ...” Technique
Practice and Training
Mistakes
Filling in a Hole
Part II. The Mind—Shaping Our Concepts
Chapter 6. The Spirit of Inquiry
The Habit of Interest
The Fine Art of Questioning
A Buoyant State of Curiosity
The Don’t-KnowMind
Chapter 7. Not-Knowing
A Journey into Emptiness
Timing
Mystery
Strength of Spirit
Chapter 8. Intuition
Working from a Stable Base
Not-Knowing: The Doorway
Creating Manageable Pieces for the Process
Interpreting
Nonverbal Communication
Part III. Wisdom Arising—Ways Our Soma is Organized
Chapter 9. The Energetic Field
Shaping Our Field:
Triangle, Square, and Circle
Practicing Being Both Positive and Receptive
Chapter 10. Attentional States
Dropped Attention
Open Attention
Ellipted Attention
Blended Attention
Training Attentional States
Chapter 11. Splits
Basic Splits in the Body
Disembodiment
The Observer
Three Centers: Head, Heart and Hara
Techniques Toward Unification: Healing the Split
Override
How Do I Know When I Am Unified?
Part IV. Embodied Action
Chapter 12. Irimi
The Spirit of Irimi
Facing Our Fear
Evolving by Manageable Percentages
Counterphobia
The Irimi of Questioning
Chapter 13. Different Approaches
The Masculine–The Motivating Force
The Feminine and Non-Action
Balance: Integrating Masculine and Feminine
The Magical Turnaround
Discovering Aspects of Our Being
Chapter 14. The Path Never Ends
The Dance of Clarity and Obscurity
Our Human Prerogative
Chapter 15. Integration
Stage One: Seeing What Is
Stage Two: Accepting What Has Been Seen
Stage Three: Changing the Situation
The Process
The Journey
Chapter 16. Advocating Without Aggression
Enlightened Schizophrenia
Vertical and Horizontal
Listening: The Receptive Circle Shape
Advocating: The Irimi Shape
The Sword That Gives Life
Chapter 17. Balancing Mastery and Mystery
Mastery
Form
Concentration
Containment
Mystery
The Flow State
Not-knowing
The Balance of Mastery & Mystery
Recognizing ‘Agenda Based’ Not-knowing
Conclusion
Part V. Practice Guides
Utilizing Your Breath
Balancing Your Energy Field
Feeling Gravity
Evoking and Choosing a Quality
Basic Practice
Spiral-Breath Meditation
“Yes.... And, ...” Technique
Positive/Receptive
Dropped Attention
Open Attention
Metta Meditation
Read an Excerpt
From the Introduction: How This Book Works
In this book I am presenting my approach to rediscovering the part of ourselves that is wise, kind, and capable of clear and powerful embodied action. This way of being arises out of what I call the “intuitive state,” a spontaneous, intelligent, and creative aspect of ourselves which has not been distorted by our fear and confusion.
Intuition usually arises in a nonlinear fashion. In our Western culture, the habit of sequential thought has been given a superior role in respect to the way life is viewed. In my opinion, based on living in this culture and experiencing the result of this priority, it does not work. It has not made us happy. There are millions of years of evolution in our cells. A deep store of wisdom lies within and we must look within to access it. We can use our discomfort and dissatisfaction with life to investigate other possibilities or ways of living. We can invite our intuition, our wise knowing, to govern or lead our choices toward a full embrace of life.
The first part of this book deals with becoming grounded in our bodies. Without a firm root system or foundation, intuitive perceptions cannot be focused into embodied action. The second section discusses mental perception and working with the movement and power of our thoughts. This paves the way for us to find how to create a spacious environment from which the wisdom of our intuition can arise, as discussed in the third section. The fourth part addresses the nature of embodied action:
irimi, entering fully into life situations, and how to work with our perceptions during the many activities and pressures of life.The practice guides at the end of the book are provided as outlines for quick reference to the techniques described in the previous sections.
It is my hope that you will feel free to take these ideas and make them your own by adjusting them to suit your inner needs. The techniques can be used as they are or changed and integrated into your already existing practice. Each of us is a unique individual. When we are sensitive to our own personal experiences, we lend compassion and support to ourselves by being creative. If we can live in a way that promotes a little more kindness and a little less greed, we will have served ourselves and our planet beautifully.
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