Combining the Three Aspects

First is breathing.  Next comes awareness of the breath.  Then comes control of the breath.  Afterwards the breath is forgotten.  Followed by remembrance of the breath.  And finally a return to just breathing.

The three aspects of martial arts are the Physical, Mental and Spiritual.  Discussed in an earlier entry rudimentarily we will now delve deeper into these different facets and discuss the interplay between them for a deeper understanding and more open discourse about them.

At all times these three realities are present and are constantly being expressed, independent of the user's being aware of it or not.  In fact, it is not possible to consciously express all of them at once, for the simple reason that as soon as consciousness gets involved the moment becomes primarily mental.  For example, at this moment the processes leading to comprehension of these words puts the mental understanding of their meaning at the fore-front of the current experience which is being used to affect spiritual change within; all the while this comprehension is only achievable with the assistance of the physical events of eye-movement, sensory input, and brain synapse activity.  These physical happenings are combining with the mental capacity to understand in order to produce an amalgamation ending in a significant and inner spiritually altering experience.

This "three way amalgamation" is at all times occurring to create the present experience in which genesis and conclusion are in exact equilibrium through what is properly called time.




The concept of Nirvana within the Indian Tradition is described as a state of pure bliss or "ultimate reality".  It's opposite being "samsara" or a state of "non-nirvana".  Yogis and gurus have discovered certain methods of achieving this state of "ultimate reality" (most are based on awareness and control of the breath) and here I will let the proverbial cat out of the bag and let you all in on the big secret.  Nirvana, again might be described in this discourse as an instantaneous and simultaneous realization of the association of the three aspects: physical mental and spiritual.  Nirvana, however, cannot be experienced through solely a spiritual, mental, or physical means by itself.

One reaches Nirvana through a combination of mental and physical stimuli affecting the entity in the present to induce a spiritual realization and mental state.  It can occur at any moment, either through extended practice or even by surprise for no explicit reason, or anywhere there inbetween.  The moment of realization culminates into what has been referred to by Alan Watts as the "cosmological experience". and this experience is embodied by two different extremes at opposite ends of a spectrum.  One may feel as if he is the Omnipotent himself, a feeling that one is simultaneously producing and maintaining the entirety of reality (sometimes leading to delusions of grandeur among the unpracticed) or as if he is completely subordinate to reality under complete control of his surroundings / environment. (sometimes leading to a more nihilistic outlook or a feeling of ultimate surrender).

This state, however, is as temporary as anything else and does not usually last very long.  Understand that as one approaches an extreme, eventually there will only be one way to go.  As a great teacher once told me, "Something that turns so far into itself will begin to turn into its opposite."  This reversal can happen both spontaneously, or over a duration of time, just the same as the achievement of Nirvana.  However, the effect of the user achieving this state or having this realization is ever-lasting and never forgotten.

The first time Nirvana is achieved the experience is baffling, after which the user is often confused, amazed, unsettled and shocked all at the same time.  However, through practice and repeated achievement he will come to a realization which is what all religious traditions in the world today are paraphrasing in their own ways.  It is that Nirvana and Samsara are identical.  That they are, in the end, a simple pair of symbiotic opposites used to symbolize and conceptualize the contrasting perspectives of reality we experience.

In the Christian Tradition these are named "Heaven" and "Hell".  Here we refer to "heaven" and "hell" in the sense that they are not ethereal, postmortem destinations, but are instead the perceived, readily tangible and (fortunately) malleable expressions of reality here within.  For example, someone who is suffering is, at that time, in hell and someone who is experiencing joy is, at that time, in heaven.  The defiant, wayward rebellion of Adam and Eve within the Christian tradition being representative of our capacity to change and shape our own reality for better or worse towards heaven, or hell.

So how can I explain this interplay to you?  It is perhaps difficult to explicitly lay it out.  We are, after all, talking about the interaction between physical reality and abstract realms which is an incredibly complicated topic and one that is exceptionally challenging to understand intellectually. (Good on you if you are following this!)  This interplay might be described as a trinity of ever-present realms unified in concept; in which each aspect separately retains its certain individual properties while constantly adapting in accordance with the others and concurrently influencing them outwardly.  This interaction implicitly results in life and in harmony.  A harmony who's 'tune' and beauty originates from the balance between the three.

First is breathing.  Next comes awareness of the breath.  Then comes control of the breath.  Afterwards the breath is forgotten.  Remembrance of the breath follows.  And finally a return to just breathing.


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Concept Develped and Written by:
Alan Wedell