Being focused took it to the next level.
There is a huge misconception about warriors and spirituality, mostly based around the Samurai, the ancient Greeks and Spartans practice of meditation and developing a strong sense of ethics.
These legendary warriors where not planning for the next life but rather trying their level best to find a way to survive in this one.
Simply put, meditation and living honestly enabled them to develop the ability to hold the smallest of things in crisp, unblinking focus, while still being aware of the world around them.
Can you even imagine what it would be like to take part in a clash of clans, tribes or states?
The noise would be deafening, horses braying, men screaming, drums and horns blaring and steel crashing into steel, the air filled with smoke and the smell of death.
Not being overwhelmingly distracted amid all of this was almost a super power.
Being focused took it to the next level.
It was this ability more than any swordsmanship or strategy that gave them the best chance of survival.
The favourite tool to help achieve this state was the Zen Koan and the Greeks Cynicism.
In Zen/Chan Buddhism a Koan is a paradoxical anecdote or riddle without a solution, used to demonstrate the inadequacy of logical reasoning and provoke enlightenment.
Ancient Greek Cynicism served the same end.
“Be here now”.
In the todays society we term these things thought experiments and talk of cognitive dissonance, but the goal is the same.
Keep your eye on the prize.
Wing Chun Sydney, Australia 