INSEPARABLE

 by Phillip Starr

Some years ago, a number of my senior students approached me and asked if I would consider conducting a separate class for them. I told them that I would be happy to do so on one condition; they would have four months in which to increase their flexibility so that they could perform an advanced stretching exercise. One of them exclaimed, “I'll never be able to do that! I'm not flexible at all!” I smiled and told him that he was quite right. If that's what he believed, he'd never be able to perform the exercise.

It wasn't until some weeks later that one of the students asked why I'd made such a request. In our particular style of kung-fu, high kicks are eschewed. So, why would anyone need to develop such a high degree of flexibility? I told him that it had nothing to do with technique; it had to do with his mind. He didn't understand. “A flexible body fosters the development of a flexible mind”, I told him. “And a stiff body creates a stiff mind. Think about that.”

Now, the next portion of this article is excerpted from my book, “Martial Arts and the Mirror Image.” It is a technique for changing one's self-image but it was discovered through the practice and teaching of the traditional martial ways. So, sit back and enjoy this short read...

“I have been a martial arts teacher for most of my life. For more than sixty years I have studied the old, traditional martial ways of both China and Japan, and I have been involved in teaching these disciplines for over forty years. Some time ago, I realized that I could “read” students and prospective students simply by studying the way they held themselves and moved. I had always known and believed the ancient principle that “body and mind are inseparably united”, but I had never really noticed how clearly that principle could be observed! Moreover, I realized that the behaviors and self-image of many students improved following rigorous training, which was aimed at correcting errors in posture, movement, and body alignment. Although the principles of proper body alignment and movement that I teach are based upon old, traditional martial arts exercises and concepts, I saw that virtually anyone - including people who had absolutely no interest in practicing conventional martial disciplines - could derive benefit from them.

It was then that my mind was opened to an epiphany; I saw that trying to change the mind without first training and changing the body is, essentially pointless. The body is a reflection, an outward expression of the mind. It stands and moves in accordance with how the mind “stands and moves.” Once certain forms of standing and moving become ingrained in the body, they reinforce and maintain the same “feeling” in the mind! Body and mind essentially act as two mirrors that face each other.

The mind is pliable and abstract. One cannot actually “see” that it has been changed

 by anything presented to it. On the other hand, the body is easily observable and we

 have no difficulty in observing how it is affected by various stimuli. Being a strong

 believer in the concept of “self-image” psychology, I discerned how the body readily

 expresses one’s self-image. The importance of the self-image cannot be understated. It

 is, in fact, the foundation upon which our personalities and futures, stand. I saw that

 people with a positive self-image always moved and stood in much the same way while

 those who suffered from a negative self-image moved and stood in very different ways.

The fact is that there are numerous self-help courses available to the public at large.

 However, the vast majority of participants in these courses derive very little, if any,

 benefit from them and I realized why. It is because of the way in which they stand and

 move! Virtually all self-help courses direct almost all of their instruction and training

 at the mind, which, as noted earlier, is a plastic, abstract thing. But because the body

 is left out of the instruction, it derives no benefit from it and continues to maintain the

 same posture and forms of movement to which it has become accustomed.

And remember; the body reinforces and affects the thinking of the mind! Intellectual

 understanding is not enough! Both mind and body, because they are a single entity,

 must be trained! The key, of course, lies in knowing exactly what the correct forms of

 posture and movement are, and how to teach them.

The fundamental theory of the Mirror Image Technique is that the mind can be

 influenced by training the body. Moreover, because students can physically see and

feel the changes made to the body through the application of certain principles, it is

 much easier for  them to understand how these same principles affect the mind. We

 change the mind by first  changing the body! We learn and change from the outside

 inwards. The forms of standing and  moving are natural and can be learned by 

 anyone in a relatively short time, regardless of age or sex.”

And further...

“Body and mind are inseparably united.”

“This is an oft-repeated aphorism of numerous Eastern disciplines but all too often it is simply glossed over. Generally, it is used to express the belief that whatever affects the body also affects the mind, and vice-versa. We can observe changes in the body without much difficulty. However, the mind, per se, cannot be seen although it can certainly make its presence known easily enough! And because we cannot see the mind, we tend to think of it as being disassociated from our bodies. When we hear truisms such as “body and mind are inseparably united”, we often agree with them but we give no real thought to what they necessarily imply. We may think of “mind” as being akin to one's “feelings” or “willpower” and although we may agree with the above axiom, we usually tend to brush it aside and think that it seems easy enough to understand. Then we forget about it and fail to apply it to our lives. This is where the Mirror Image Method comes into play.

The Mirror Image Method is based upon the premise that the mind expresses itself through the body; that the body is, in fact, the only vehicle through which the mind can express itself! This means that your posture, your voice, and your physical movements are all outward reflections of your mind. In other words,

“Your body is actually the visible portion of your mind!”

Here's a small example...the next time that students engage in freestyle sparring, watch them very closely. Very. Closely. Especially watch the ones who seem to be timid. I recall watching my students sparring in class one evening and a young lady who was normally quite a strong fighter was retreating every time her opponent advanced. Whenever he attacked, she would back-pedal without attempting a counter-attack. I wondered why and I watched her posture very carefully. And then I saw it. I called our Chief Instructor over and asked him to watch her and see if he could spot the problem. Try as he might, he couldn't see anything at all. So, I pointed it out to him. “Watch her hips”, I said.

The young lady's hips were pulled back slightly. “This is something that, oddly enough, is seen more frequently in women than in men”, I told him. “She's unconsciously trying to protect the reproductive organs by pulling them back. But this 'breaks' her posture and affects her mental bearing. She's causing herself to be afraid.”

I walked over to the young student and told her to straighten her hips and pointed out the flaw in her posture. “Push your hips forward enough that your rear end doesn't jut out”, I said. “And slightly tighten your anal sphincter. That will help because if your hips start to withdraw again, you'll feel it and you can correct it.” Actually, my words were a bit more colorful than this and she understood exactly what I meant. Then she want back to practicing with her sparring partner. She suddenly stopped being so fearful and whenever her partner attacked, she responded with a strong counter-attack. The change in her posture (and consequently, her movement) had changed her mental bearing!

I believe that several of our martial arts forefathers were well aware of how we stand, sit, and move affects our attitude(s) and self-image. I believe that much of this information has been lost over the years and I hope to bring it back...not only for the benefit of those who practice the martial ways, but for everyone.

This is a concept that you mustn't just gloss over and say, “That's interesting...” You must study it, consider it deeply, strive to examine and implement into your training and your life. Feeling down? Do you feel that you just can't “make it?” Are you fearful? Do you find that you're a bit timid when you engage in freestyle sparring practice or other training routines? These and many other mental issues can often be resolved (or their resolution can be initiated) through practice of correct posture and movement. Remember that the body and how it holds itself and moves is really an outward expression of your mind. Body and mind are the same thing. Body and mind are inseparably united. Inseparable. One.