03/10/2023
As a martial artist and training in Japan for over a decade, I learned daily misogi is important not only for your spirit, but for your continuing training in discipline. Discipline is one of the most lacking virtue of people today and it is the foundation of our greater virtues. If you cultivate your discipline to the point where you can stay in ice water for an extended amount of time in the morning, especially when you don't even feel like getting out of bed, then you have freedom. Every time I strip off my warm pajamas and stare into the huge bath of freezing cold ice water, I decide that I am strong enough, and that I am the master of my mind and body, and I choose to go in. This continually difficult decision is what strengthens my will and is part of the groundwork of my discipline training. If you have discipline, what you say to yourself has meaning. Whatever you set your mind to, you do it. That is true freedom.
Luckily, you don't have to face ice cold water in the morning to grow your discipline. As long as you are consistently stretching, fighting, or pushing against resistance to do something, you are training your discipline. As an aikido student, one of your best ways to do this is to show up to class -especially when you don't want to. Now the reason you don't want to may be that you are too tired, too busy, or just too lazy. Your challenge is to move past your excuse, and get to class regardless of the story you are telling yourself as to why you can't do it. As a great man once said, "the only thing standing in the way of what you want to do, is the story you tell yourself about why you can't."
Come by and check out class sometime soon!
http://shoubudojo.com/keiko/
ShoubuDojo.com
Aikido Tenshin Shoubu Dojo Cody Lewallen Tucson Arizona
