May 20th, 2016
Mushin is the concept of going from thought to acting without conscious thought. It is actually acting with one mind. It is refined memory to the point of subconscious action. For example, we are all very fortunate that we do not have to consciously remember to breath, ask our heart to beat, and or do the many other automatic tasks that keep us alive daily. Each one of these processes is taking place because it has been conditioned over time to happen automatically. The warrior understands to reach a higher level of performance, they must do it through practice. The goal is to change your state of consciousness to one mind. That is to become one with whatever you are doing at that moment in time. It is the essence of heightened awareness. It is what all warriors train for. Mushin leads to creativity or what is called “Ryu Pa” in Korean. For creativity to happen, the warrior must let go and let flow so to speak. Much like moving from initial memory to refined memory, the process is one that takes time. This is not to say that an artist may not be inspired and have a sudden burst of creativity. It is to say however that the process is most often rooted in years of focused practice.
“Most teachers’ advise is think, think, and think. The Zen masters advice is stop thinking.” Author Unknown.