Sensing 'Intention'[credits]
by Robert Morgen
One of the 'mystical' aspects of the martial arts has always
been the ability to feel another person's intention.
Sensing intention gives a person the ability to be in instant
control of a potentially violent encounter, and it's one of the
ways we use the martial arts to test our energy work and meditation
skills in Hoshin Roshi Ryu.
A simple explanation of 'intention'
When a person intends to hit you, that intention carries with it
a very subtle vibration. Since most people are unaware of this they
put off a variety of these subtle vibrations constantly.
Have you ever come home to an angry spouse and felt the entire
house vibrate with the bad energy? This is exactly the same.
When a person tries to hit you they put off a vibration that you
can feel, even with your eyes closed. With training a person can
distinguish between the intention to strike and the strike itself
as there are subtle differences in the feel of the energy
vibrations emanating from the attacker.
In Hoshin class we have a student stand with their eyes closed
and then, very slowly, send a punch towards their face with the
full intention to make contact.
Almost invariably the student will feel the difference in the
subtle energies that surround them and their body, seemingly of its
own accord, will dodge out of the way.
It's fun to see the look of shock on a persons face when they
realize what happened and what they felt.
Another exercise is to have a student stand with his back to
you, then walk slowly (and silently) forward. The student is to
raise a hand when they feel you coming up behind them.
You can vary this by thinking angry thoughts and happy thoughts
and watch the distance at which you become 'noticed' by the
student.
The purpose of teaching a student to feel intention is to
empower them in situations that most people find daunting. When you
know that another person has ill intentions towards you,
then you are in control. Depending on the situation you can leave,
you can seek a diplomatic solution or you can wait till the future
attackers back is turned and hit him with a chair.
While some of these solutions are better than others (Chair Fu
should always be the absolute last resort) what's important here is
that because of your heightened awareness you weren't taken by
surprise when someone attacked you.
For an interesting illustration of using intention and feeling
the difference between the intent to strike and the actual strike
read Chapter 6 of Dr. Glenn Morris' book "Pathnotes of an American
Ninja Master".
Robert Morgen is a Reiki Master who holds a Black Belt in Hoshinjutsu and a Brown Belt in Combat Hapkido. He’s founder of the Mystic Village Online Community
He writes a regular column on subtle (or internal) energy for Fight Times Magazine and a column on Kundalini Awakening at Kundalini Awakening Online Magazine. He’s the author of 3 books and 4 CDs on meditation and energy work.
He’s a member of the Order of Bards, Ovates and Druids as well as the International Bujinkan Dojo Association, Canemasters International and the International Combat Hapkido Federation.
Robert Morgen’s book "Kundalini Awakening for Personal Mastery" (ISBN: 0-9773801-0-6) is available at a bookstore near you. His new book "Easy Meditation for Martial Artists" (ISBN: 0-9773801-3-0) will be available in 2007.
You can learn more about his books, free events and newsletters at his website.
Check out Robert's Books & Audio CDs
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