Things to consider when working to improve your kata performance.

 

 

Kata is designed to cultivate and reflect an inner stillness coupled with an outward vitality. Life under quarantine, however, seems to cultivate the opposite- a forced physical stillness with inner anxieties. Maybe today when we practice kata we can begin with a deep slow breath in yoi and exhale on the following move, repeating this pattern through the whole kata. Sensei often remarks that kata is “moving zen”, moving to cultivate inner stillness. Deep abdominal breathing timed with movement stills the “monkey mind”.

 

Sensei also frequently remarks on a student’s eyes when they perform kata. The phrase is chaku gan, or enzan o metsuke (gaze at a far mountain). You are basically allowing your eyes (and mind) to calm down and avoid being too busy and darting, not attaching to any distractions. So when we set our gaze in kata we do not project an image of fear or anxiety, much less anger or passion. The eyes reflect the inner clam of being fully in the present moment (zanshin) with an immovable heart (fudoshin) and a unified intention (chaku-gan). Thus, when something dangerous or unexpected occurs we do not become erratic in our actions or mind, but remain centered and prepared to respond spontaneously in just the right measure.

 

This concept reflects the idea of mushin (no mind), namely that the mind does not attach itself to any single thing. When the eyes focus upon one point the mind follows and thus mushin can be lost. Rather, by relaxing and using our 180 degree vision we "look at a faint star" or "gaze at a far mountain,” taking in the whole of the space around us in calm awareness.

 

Hopefully today our kata can help cultivate the fudoshin as we lessen our fixations and learn to gaze at the far mountain, breath by breath.