“The undisturbed mind is like a calm body of water reflecting the brilliance of the moon.
Empty the mind and you will realize the undisturbed mind.” - Yagyu Jubei Mitsuyoshi
The best Aikidoists don’t let anything bother them.
The place all good Aikidoists are trying to get to is to become undisturbed. Undisturbed doesn’t mean to be apathetic or listless. Rather, to be undisturbed is a mindfully engaged state where we are calm and composed and our actions are appropriate. In the marital arts, to be undisturbed can be called mushin (無心) or “no mind.”
In Japanese, to “not be disturbed by others” is dokuritsufuki (独立不羈). Dokuritsufuki also means “to act according to one's own beliefs.” Thus, one could posit that to be undisturbed is to know who we are and to not allow ourselves to be easily led astray. Perhaps that is why Psychiatrist Carl Jung said, "Knowing your own darkness is the best method for dealing with the darknesses of other people.”
To be undisturbed is one of those things that cannot be learned by words. In meditation, to be undisturbed could be thought of as equanimity. Within a mindset of equanimity, we only mindfully observe the thoughts and do not mindlessly engage, judge, or react to them. The goal in Aikido is the same. In Aikido, there is no reaction because reactions are mindless. Thus, whether it is a thought or an attack, we are always supposed to maintain a composed and equanimous mind which enables us to mindfully observe and always act with propriety.
As martial artists, we are always trying to get the interval between being attacked and action to be as small as possible. It is our opponent’s job to goad us into over reacting so that we will fall into their trap and lose. It is our job to maintain our composure which will not only enable us to defeat them but also defeat them in a way that is both compassionate and done with as little harm as possible - that is Aikido. In training, we initially try to make that interval smaller physically with things like speed and footwork. However, the physical only takes so far. Later in our training, we realize that the size of the interval is merely a function of the calmness of our minds.
Thus, the true key to being undisturbed begins with repetition training. Repetition or doing the techniques over and over enables us to lower our minds into a subconscious state. Here, the physicalness falls away and we “lose ourselves” in the movement. “Losing ourselves” is just an expression. What really happens is that we enter into a subconscious state where our “reactions,” for lack of a better word, become faster. We cannot consciously think and subconsciously flow our bodies at the same time. It is thought that conscious movement happens somewhere around 0.20 seconds while subconscious movement is around 0.08 seconds. An equanimous mindset is not something which happens overnight but naturally develops over time when our training is constant and consistent.
The monk, Takuan Soho said, “When this No-Mind has been well developed, the mind does not stop with one thing nor does it lack any one thing. It appears appropriately when facing a time of need.” When we face an opponent, our minds are supposed to clear and calm. In Aikido and in life, things will happen which are mostly out of our control. Realizing that control is just an illusion, the Aikidoist trains themselves to be undisturbed and to go with the flow. The best Aikidoists don’t let anything bother them.
Today’s goal: When something happens, don’t react or get upset. Be undisturbed.
Watch this video to better understand how meditation works and an undisturbed mind.