THE POWER OF KI

The Power of Ki
by George Leonard

As a longtime practitioner of the Japanese martial art, aikido, George Leonard is quite familiar with the life-force energy that seemingly flows through all things. Unfortunately, in the West the closest term we have to approximate the nature of this life -force is the word "energy." Leonard feels that this is a bad translation at best. Called ki in Japan, this so-called "energy" has been known by many names in many cultures and historical periods: chi in China, prana in India, pneuma in ancient Greece, mana in Hawaii, elan vital in Vitalist philosophy, the Force in Star Wars.

Leonard joked that when he saw the movie Star Wars, there was a line uttered by Obi One Kenobi that seemed to be copied directly out of his own book, The Ultimate Athlete, "The Force is that particular force which permeates all living things and goes to the ends of the universe." When he met George Lucas, he learned that Lucas had indeed been influenced by his writings.

For Leonard, aikido is a way of harmonizing with the spirit of the universe. Importantly, he emphasized that at some point the scientific paradigm must let go of "proof" and "belief" and must instead engage in direct experience with the ki of aikido. As Leonard said himself, "I don’t believe in ki, I just do it." Because the West is so fascinated by brute strength and force, it has overlooked the subtle nature of ki.

Leonard recounted some of his humorous experiences with the nature of ki in which he confronted men much larger and stronger than he. In an demonstration in front of the conference participants, Leonard revealed the power of ki by repulsing Steve Dinan. When Steve confronted Leonard’s energy, he felt the direct impulse to yield, because the power of Leonard’s ki was so strong. After the demonstration, Leonard emphasized that ki can be enhanced by imagery and visualization and that it is a qualitatively different experience than muscle power.

So how do we explain the phenomenon of ki? Leonard offered a plethora of ideas that are being explored. Some researchers are investigating the electro-magnetic field of the human body, while others are looking at the electro-static field. Leonard mentioned the research of Jan Wallenczak at Stanford, who has demonstrated that there are effects taking place below the thermal barrier (KT), when, according to classical physics, this should not be happening. Other more radical theories and investigations are also cropping up, such as string theory and M theory in physics.

Leonard also mentioned the zero-point energy theory of Harold Putoff. One growing orientation is that we are essentially swimming in a pool of energy that is all around us. Leonard feels that we need to investigate how human intentionality can serve as a bridge to access this ubiquitous energy. Like Marilyn Schlitz, Leonard believes that human intentionality is a vague but very significant force that we are only beginning to understand. Leonard is particularly curious about how intentionality relates to the nature of the subtle energies, such as ki.

After his brief presentation, Leonard had a couple important points to emphasize in conclusion. First, he offered that the nature of ki might well be incorporated into any comprehensive evolutionary theory. He mentioned that although gravity is the weakest of the four recognized forces of physics, its reach is endless, and it overcomes everything in the end. Perhaps ki as well is like gravity in this respect. Leonard also mentioned that after years of experience in teaching people about the nature of ki, he has realized that all people need is permission to begin to access this seemingly amazing ability.

Lastly, Leonard offered an important orientation for the entire conference. Because the Western, scientific worldview is so bent on discovering certain and demonstrable "truth," we often miss out on the mystery and wonder of it all. Leonard rhapsodized that we live in an imponderable universe of unfathomable beauty, truth, and mystery. The only thing that will ever hamper our quest for truth is the very nature of our minds. We must always remain curious and open to new vistas and new horizons. Leonard closed with a poem encapsulating this view:

Do not think this is all there is
More and more wonderful teachings exist
The sword is unfathomable

FEMALE SAMURAI

In General, samurai society was dominated by men, but history records that the female members of the samurai clans often displayed a fighting spirit and a concern for honour and duty matching that of the men.
Women were trained in the martial arts and, in time, many became highly skilled, especially in the use of naginata.

Tales of courageous and devoted samurai women abound in the epic "Heike Monogatari". chief among these is Minamoto Yoshinaka's wife, Tomoe Gozen, but the period produced numerous other heroic samurai women, including Hojo Masako, the wife of Minamoto Yoritomo, who was known as "the general in nun's habit" (on her husbands death, she became a Buddhist nun, the traditional fate of samurai windows). Masako was a prominent political player in the early years of the Hojo regency that succeeded her husband, at one point engaging in open conflict with her father. From her new position as a Buddhist nun, she successfully bullied the samurai class into standing by the shogunate.
These histories reflect the relatively strong position women held in samurai society at the time. Laws governing the shogun's court in the early 13th century allowed women equal rights of inheritance with brothers and the right to bequeath property. Samurai and bushi wives had high status in the household. They controlled household expenditure, managed servants, and were called upon to defend the home in times of war. They were also responsible for rising their children to the samurai ideas of contempt death and unquestioning loyalty to their lord.

"A creature of... no importance"

Over the centureies that followed, the practice of using daughters as pawns in the marriage market (a crucial tool in the struggles of the period) and the influence of neo-confucain philosophy, combined to reduce the status of female samurai.The ideal of fealess devotion was gradually replaced by one of quiet passive obedience, a change reflected by the introduction of the new words for wife: Kani and okusan (person in the innermost recesse of the house).
By the 17th century, many samurai felt that while women were necessary to bear children, they were not really fitting companions for warriors. A cult of homesexuality developed amoung some warriors and, despite repeated prohibiton, many adult samurai formed close relationships with men. In 1687, Ihara Saikaku published his famouse book "Nanshoku okagami" ("The Great Mirror of Manly Love"), which took the homosexual activitys amoung the samurai as its theme. "Woman is a creature of absolutely no importance', he wrote, "but sincere pederastic love is true love".
Samurai women were still expected to show contempt for death when it came to defending their husbands honour. A wife's sacrifice of herself, or her honour, for the sake of her husband was a common theme in Japanese drama. self-renunciation was an imperative for women and remained so even at the end of the 19th century, despite the popularity of western ideas.
Inanzo Nitobe, writing in 1905, devoted one chapter of his book "Bushido: The soul of Japan"
to "The Training and position of women". This underlines the inferior role accorded to women, telling us that: "In the ascending scale of service stood woman, who annihilated herself for a man, that he might annihilate himself for the master, that he in turn might obey Heaven'.
However, the fighting sprit of the female samurai still managed to show itself on occasion. Their martial prowess was demonstered during the Satsuma Rebellion of 1877, when the women of Kagoshima fought against the imperial army. In 1868, the fighting between suporters of of the shogunate and those supporting the imperial restoration privided another such display.
Samurai of the Aizu clan, supporters of the shogunate, were left to defend thier stronghold of wakamatsu Castle without any hope of outside assistance. Heaviley out numbered by an army of 20,000 men, the 3,000 Aizu samurai mobilased anyone who could use a weapon. A group of 20 women formed a unit that fought on the front line.
One women, Nakano Takeko, was highly skilled in the use of the naginata, and during the fighting she rushed into enemy lines and cut down many men. Eventually she was shot in the chest. To aviod the disgrace of capture, she told her sister Yuko to remove her head and take it home.
A monument to her was erected in the Hokai temple in Aizu Bangemachi, Fukishima province.