Funakoshi's 16 th principle of Karate...
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This principle I believe, is all about awareness...
...awareness of your surroundings and of the circumstances that are ever changing as you go about your daily business.
It's not about being schizophrenic and fearing that your going to be attacked by someone at any moment ...
...it's more of a moving meditation or paying more attention to what is happening to you from a moment to moment reality.
If your attention is firmly anchored in the here and now, which takes a lot of practice to accomplish by the way, your ability to make the proper decision at the proper time will be significantly enhanced.
For example, if your stuck in a traffic jam and talking on a cell phone to someone, maybe the wife or husband...
...you won't even notice the car jacker walking up, smashing your car window and sticking a gun in your face.
Perhaps your at the ATM bank machine at night getting some cash, and your mind is a million miles away, thinking about something else...
...you won't even feel that baseball bat to your head until it's too late.
Get the picture...
To be totally aware of your situation means to have your mind and attention where it belongs...in the present and not in the imaginary realm of the future or reliving memories from the past.
When your mind is focused on the present, you have an array of self defense tools at your disposal...
...your peripheral vision can be developed to a point of being able to see things clearly happening from the side...
...and from the sides to your back, your sense of feeling can be developed so that you know when someone is coming up from your rear.
If your aware of your body and paying attention to it, you can actually feel your ears perking up to sounds coming from behind you...
Your body will alert you to danger but you must be there in the here and now to receive those messages.
Make a habit of reminding yourself throughout the day to simply stop for a moment and cease the activity of the mind. Focus the mind on your surroundings. Exercise your peripheral vision by trying to identify objects off to the sides. Feel the presence of others around you and use your ears to hear people moving about, particularly from the rear.
Practice bringing your mind back into the present and no one will ever be able to sneak up on you or catch you off guard...
RJF
