"Quiet the mind and the soul will speak."
-Ma Jaya Sati Bhagavati
"The present moment is the only moment available to us, and it is the door to all moments."
-Thich Nhat Hanh
Time is something interesting. There's the objective; that which we all experience collectively, and the subjective.
What passes as a minute objectively can feel like an hour when bored or doing something detestfully tedious, or can pass in an instant. I have noticed whenever I spar and am under pressure time seems to slow. When adrenaline kicks in this happens reliably. And the more you observe something consciously the longer each instant can take.
(Didn't have time to put this in the original post, so adding now)
The proof of the above paragraph was found when scientists conducting experiments on unstable matter, such as uranium, noticed that when directly observing it, uranium would stop decaying in terms of its half-life. This effect is known as the quantum zeno-effect, and without getting into the heavy mathematics concerning it and quantum mechanics, what it simply means that observing something enough times effectively means it will 'freeze' in terms of causality. The curious name derives from the Zeno arrow paradox, which essentially posited that if an arrow in flight is not seen moving from one instant to the next, it must actually be frozen.
"It is easy to show using standard theory that if a system starts in an eigenstate of some observable, and measurements are made of that observable N times a second, then, even if the state is not a stationary one, the probability that the system will be in the same state after, say, one second, tends to one as N tends to infinity; that is, that continual observations will prevent motion…"
— Alan Turing
So there is physical and mathematical evidence that this is true, and that one can effectively divide time by observing it in a certain way, or certain number of ways given a time constant. This also posits that there is an opposite zeno-effect, where one can speed up the rate of causality and time's passing, but that is an entirely different matter (heh pun) and while related to observing individual instances of causality and existing in the now, instead of focusing on it, one is speeding the process up.
Time is essential to martial arts. Not only for timing in terms of how one does a technique, but also in combat. It eludes me why so many neglect this essential which can revolutionize how we do the arts; very few exist in the present, which is all that exists. The past no longer does, and the future has yet to exist.
Take the example of sparring; one can predict the entire fight fairly reliably. If you fight someone doing Tae Kwon Do it is fair to presume there will be kicking. But what happens when we plan the entire fight around that, attempting to exist in what has yet to happen, the future, and then they come out only punching?
It is only in existing the now that we are able to best take into account what is occurring. That's a very simple premise, but very few actually do it. Most take the present for granted, and that has led to many people's downfalls.
So how to find the present?
Have you ever questioned why breathing is focused upon so much in meditating?
It is not only for health reasons, but it provides a concrete center. When you breathe, you exist alive. Breathing in, as you focus on breathing, you realize mindfulness of what you are doing in the present.
When you can capture the sensation and experience of existing you can begin to recognize it outside of just breathing. Breathing is a kind of gateway toward being mindful of the present at your own choosing. I recommend applying it to everything until you always exist in the moment, but not everyone is a Zen monk or attempting to be. But at least you can always return to that concrete reality of the now of existing, even if what you experience could be considered by some a kind of illusion. That does nothing to take away the truth that you are existing because you are experiencing.
And when you can enjoy what you are doing in the present, than you know your existence itself has become joyful.
And what you do when joyful is what you do best.
The exercise to do this is very simple. Breathe-in and breathe-out. As you breathe in, recognize you are breathing in. As you exhale, recognize you are breathing out.
I recommend breathing in for 3-5 seconds, holding the breathe for 3-5 seconds, and then exhaling for three to five seconds. This is something the military teaches, so it ties into martial arts through that. But in truth you don't have to breathe in or our for a certain amount of time. Just breathe in and out, and you are doing the exercise. As long as you are focusing on, and aware of the breathe, you are doing the exercise well. And if your mind wanders, as it often may even after years of experience and practice, just breathe in and out again. You may only be able to do it once per time, but sooner or later you will find you can do multiple repetitions, and eventually you will find you have been doing it for hours in what felt like only a brief amount of time.
When you find your now, your existence in the presence, you unlock a door to experiencing life better.
And you will find that what you can do in the present is great.
"Enjoy simple things with intensity. Just a cup of tea can be a deep meditation."
-Bhagwan Shree Ragneesh
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