Greetings fellow shadows,
Well since I haven't seen anything really going on around here I thought that I would post on Ki development. As some of you know Ki or Chi can be considered as part of the force. In my case I find it easiest to think of my Ki as my connection with the force around me. So it should follow that the development of my Ki will strengthen my connection with the force and I have found that it has helped tremendously!
What follows isn't something incredibly intense and you may think to yourself that it's all rather obvious and you may also recognize a lot of this material from here at the academy. I have found however that this is written in a very down to earth fashion and is easier to follow and practice. Please don't think that you can read this once and grasp and hold onto everything written here. I refer to this quite often and always find something that I have been lax on. In any case may this help you on your journey with the force.
so without further adu...
"Ki" ("Chi" in Chinese) is a Japanese term for power--physical, mental, and spiritual. It has its roots in the martial arts hundreds of years ago, and there's no real equivalent to it in the English language. The concept is that ki flows from the "hara" or lower abdomen, a point roughly two inches below the navel. To an experienced practitioner, ki is a powerful tool for relating to the world. Here are ten ways you can develop ki for yourself.
1. Create a time and place for stillness.
Ki emerges from within. It's subtle and fleeting at first. In order to get in touch with it, you have to develop a habit of stillness. In the beginning, it helps to have a quiet place to which you can retire and a regular time for going there daily. It's there that, through meditation and quiet introspection, you begin opening the channels for the flow of ki.
2. Go there regularly.
Continuous cycles of rest and action, extend and recharge, are essential for ki to be recognized and utilized in a practical way. The world's pressures--noise, pollution, stress, deadlines, inequities--are relentless. The only way to get on top of them (to "overcome the world", as Don Juan put it), is to make it an invariable habit to withdraw to that secret place regularly, once, twice, three times a day. You owe it to yourself and to those around you!
3. Relax fully.
Telling someone to relax is a bit like telling them NOT to think of an elephant. A better way is to adopt a simple physical movement that produces the desired result. Try this: Stand with your hands at your side. Notice how you're feeling, how your feet come in contact with the floor, how much tightness there is in your body. Then, slowly and gently at first, begin shaking your hands at the wrists. Gradually increase both the speed and intensity of your movements until your hands begin to tingle. Do this for approximately 30 seconds, then just as gradually, slow down. End in an entirely still posture and notice the differences in the way that you feel. You'll probably discover that you feel much more calm, more relaxed, more quiet. That's the beginning of being "centered", and centeredness is the platform from which to extend ki. It's the quiet solid place in the hara.
4. Focus inwardly.
An easy way to do this is simply to concentrate on your hara or "one point". It may help to loop your thumb around your belt buckle and allow your middle finger to touch the abdomen. Where it touches, is your hara. Now, notice the sensation. Direct your full attention to that one single point. Sound silly? Well, take heart. This is a fundamental practice in the Japanese martial art of aikido, so you're in good company.
5. Follow your breath.
We tend, subconsciously, to retain stress in our bodies. A good way to begin letting go of this tension is by following your own breathing, particularly your exhalations. A rule of thumb is that "strength is on the exhale". Practice breathing from the hara (one point) by concentrating only on the exhalation phase. Just allow inhalation to occur and then gently, but forcefully, exhale. If you doubt tht you're stronger when you exhale, try this experiment. Select a weight, say a basket of wet laundry. Stand over it, take a deep breath, hold it, then bend over and pick up the basket. Now try the same thing again, only this time, instead of holding your breath, exhale slowly from the hara just before and while you pick up the basket. Note how much easier it as the second time.
6. Extend ki.
This is a mental act. An easy way is to visualize ki flowing from our one point up into your chest and shoulders and out your arms and hands. It helps to gently point your index finger so that you can "direct" you ki much like pointing a garden hose to direct the flow of water. And here's an odd fact: the more relaxed you are, the better your ki will flow and the more power you will have! Try this: the next time you go through a revolving door (as in an office building), start the door moving by extending ki through your outstretched hand and notice how easily the door moves!
7. Act deliberately.
Many of our so-called actions are really reactions to stimuli of which we may be totally unaware. Often, we don't notice the "triggers" that prompt us to react in various ways--noises, odors,remarks, or even the thoughts of others. We are susceptible in hundreds of subtle ways. One way to avoid this cycle of stimulus/reaction is to make your every act a deliberate one. It takes practice. When pressured to speed up, slow down; when urged to agree (or disagree) suspend judgment. When threatened from without, withdraw within.
8. Walk softly.
Rumor has it that Jimmy Valentine, the legendary safe-cracker of the thirties, used to sandpaper his finger tips until they were raw so that he could feel the tumblers in the safes he was about to open. To walk softly is to touch the earth and others gently. It's an art and a discipline, but it leads to greater awareness and a smoother flow of ki.
9. Neutralize negative energy.
Have you ever been confronted by a hostile person who is intent on sharing their anger with you? Who hasn't! Negative energy abounds and, for some people, it's their predominant form of expression. So, how do you neutralize it? A first step is to follow steps 4 through 7 above, i.e., to become centered. Once you've attained the centered state, step back mentally (and physically, if you have to) from the attack. Don't allow it to become part of you. If you avoid your attacker long enough he or she will tire. There are lots of ways to do this. Experiment. Think of some on your own.
10. Become persent-focused.
A study done some years ago concluded that fully 60 - 70% of the average person's thought content during any given day pertains more to past or future than to the present. If attention is energy, which it is, then think of the dilution of power that occurs on a regular basis. When you worry about the past or fantasize about the future, you're reducing the energy and focus you have for the present. That's the immediate reason for maintaining full present focus. There's a larger reason as well: in order to be fully in the present, you must have confidence that the future will work out. At first, that's purely an act of faith until your own experience demonstrates that it's true. Then, it becomes a matter of solid conviction.