"Art is revealed when the difficult appears effortless." - Mark Russell
Webster's definition of practice: 1. A habit, custom or method of doing something. 2a. Repeated performance of an activity in order to learn or perfect a skill. b. Proficiency gained through repeated exercise. 3. Actual performance or use. 4. The exercise of a profession. 5. The business of a professional.
What do you practice? Are you a musician, athlete or dancer? Are you a professional, doctor or lawyer? Do you train people, horses, dogs? If you are a musician and are striving to improve, you practice your instrument and more or less, follow definition 2 above. As an athlete, you repeatedly perform an activity in order to learn and perfect a skill, again following definition 2. As a trainer, using definition 2 you would lead your trainee through repeated performance of an activity to achieve competence in performance. If you are a professional person, a doctor or a lawyer, you would generally concern yourself with definition 4, the exercise of a profession and you would probably have definition 5, the business of a professional. For the purpose of this book, Webster's definition may apply, but there must be more, much more to drawn upon to successfully understand and implement the art of practice.
As we contemplate this endeavor called Practice, there are aspects to the Art of Practice that need to be considered and understood: spiritual, mental, emotional and physical. As we proceed, we will discuss all.
- Spiritual: a person's connection to Source Energy.
- Mental: control of thinking and organization of thought.
- Emotional: What are you feeling, and how you are feeling.
- Physical: The movement of your body in your environment on the physical plane.
The way you practice, the way you train your body and mind or the way you train other's bodies and minds is important for there is an optimal method of body movement in physical space. Joint movement and muscle tension must always be considered. There is an optimal way of thinking about the movement required to perform the specific activity you are practicing. Yes, this is essential. In addition to definitions 2 thru 5 of "practice", much consideration has to be given to definition 1, a habit, custom or method of doing something. The 'doing something' I want to focus on in this book is the approach to practice by living and connecting to the source from whence we came. What we mentally and spiritually bring with us of Source Energy to our practice on the physical plane - into the world we find ourselves, will greatly determine the level of success of our practice.
This work is aimed at pointing a way for you to achieve and accomplish effortlessly with great joy. You create your own world through the power and clarity of your thoughts.
Source
To understand Source Energy, it can be helpful to first ask the question, "What is not Source Energy or what does not come from the source?" The answer is nothing, for all is Source Energy. Every galaxy, every solar system, every star, every planet and all the space in between is comprised of Source Energy. Every rock, plant and animal is Source energy. All things in this infinite universe are comprised of Source Energy. All things in this world are of source energy. It flows in and through all things. Source energy continually creates and sustains the universe from a perspective of goodness and abundance. Whether you are consciously aware of it or not, it flows into your being and creates your life experience.
A person becomes aware of Source Energy by choosing to be aware of it. You can live a life created by default beliefs and random thoughts, often feeling you have no control over this life. You may believe that what you are destined to be is in the hands of another being, worldly or other worldly. Conversely, you can decide that you determine your life by controlling your thoughts and, in essence, control the flow of Source Energy.
How do I know it exists?
How do you experience your connection to source? You discover your connection by deciding to discover this connection. You can learn to feel your connection with source through the practice of meditation. You reach it by withdrawing into the silence of your mind. You can only experience this silence by quieting your mind and stilling the constant din of your thoughts. If you do not or have never meditated, there is an excellent book and CD by Wayne Dyer that describes and explains JAPA meditation. It is titled, "In the Gap"
The Law of Attraction
The Law of Attraction states that people experience the corresponding manifestations of their predominant thoughts, feelings, words, and actions and that people therefore have direct control over reality and their lives through thought. A person's thoughts (conscious and unconscious), emotions, beliefs and actions are said to attract corresponding positive and negative experiences "through the resonance of their energetic vibration." Quite simply, the Law of Attraction can be stated, "like attracts like".
Source Energy and the law of attraction exist and operate whether you are aware and in alignment or unaware and not aligned with the positive aspects of source. Whatever your mind can conceive and believe, you can achieve. With your thoughts, you can pre-determine your intellectual, emotional and physical state of being during practice and greatly affect the results. A thought you hold, by the law of attraction, will draw similar thoughts to it. These thoughts are collective and by continual thinking of them, beliefs are formed.
Believers in the Law of Attraction adhere to the statement by Buddha, "What you have become is the result of what you have thought", and believe it is an expression of the idea that thoughts introduced into reality can attract like energy. In Hebrew Scripture, Proverbs 23:7 states: "As a man thinketh in his heart so is he." In the West, the idea of "positive thinking" became popular during the 19th century. One of the earliest known formulations of the ideas now known as the Law of Attraction is contained in the 1906 book, Thought Vibration or the Law of Attraction in the Thought World by William Walker Atkinson, editor of New Thought magazine. In March 2006 a film named The Secret was developed around the "Law of Attraction", and was later developed into a book by the same name.
Sourcery (Sorcery)
Sourcerer: One who consciously realizes the connection to Source Energy and actively participates in the creation of their life by thinking thoughts that align with source. Also know as a "peaceful warrior".
Skill in Sourcery is essential to the art of practice, for without it, one can never realize their fullest potential. Consciously thinking thoughts that positively reinforce practice will create conditions that will maximize your efforts during practice. There are myriad ways to view practice and how you think about it will affect the quality of the results you achieve.
For example, what would you expect the ultimate outcome of continued practice sessions holding this internal dialogue?
"This piece is impossible to play! It will take me forever to learn this. I heard that performer play it, I will never be as good as they are. I can't get my fingers to do that. I'll never get this learned in time. I am exhausted just stumbling through it once. My hands are going to cramp all through this section. It is too difficult to memorize. I wish it were shorter. I hate doing this!"
What would you expect the outcome of practices holding these thoughts?
"As I practice today, I intend to feel good. I have the ability and technique to perform this piece flawlessly and effortlessly. I will be aware of any insights I may gain in performing this piece. I will feel my connection to Source and allow the energy to flow freely, bringing with it inspiration and understanding. I love to spend time in learning this art."
Clarity
Clarity: Knowing with certainty the desired outcome and the process by which to achieve it; often, a knowledge gained by experiencing what you don't want.
Truth
Good old Webster's defines truth as follows: Truth: 1. accordance with knowledge, fact, or actuality. 2. The real state of affairs; fact. 3. Actuality; reality. 4. A statement that is or is accepted as being true.
Now, I have questions for you, is truth always true, is reality always an actuality, is truth the real state of affairs? Before you answer the questions, here are a few ideas once held as truth, the world is flat, only birds can fly, iron doesn't float. Next, I would want to know if reality is described by truth or truth established by reality. Then I would want to know if there is only one reality that is real and thus always true. We could spend the rest of our lives right here talking and thinking in circles about truth and reality and existence. But let's not. I will contend that there is universal truth that is always true, there is truth of the physical plane that is always true on the physical plane, like gravity.
Focus on understanding truth and reality should be done in a way that will serve us. I believe in universal truth, physical plane truth and personal truths, and I believe that there are myriad personal truths, myriad personal realities -as many as there are souls on earth. We create our reality by what we think, what our predominate thoughts are. Actually, our present reality is a result of past thoughts. Our future reality will be a result of the thoughts we chain together and establish as our beliefs now. Change your thoughts about practice and the results of practice and your practice will change.
Universal Truth: The creation and expansion of all that is by Source Energy.
The Truth About the Self:
- 0. All the power that ever was or will be is here now.
- 1. I am a center of expression for the primal will to good that creates and sustains the universe.
- 2. Through me, its unfailing wisdom and understanding takes form in thought and word.
- 3. Filled with Understanding of its perfect law, I am guided, moment by moment, along the path of liberation.
- 4. From the exhaustless riches of its limitless substance, I draw all things needful, both spiritual and material.
- 5. I recognize the manifestation of the undeviating justice in all the circumstances of my life.
- 6. In all things great and small, I see the beauty of the divine expression.
- 7. I look forward with confidence to the perfect realization of the eternal splendor of the limitless light.
- 8. Living from that will, supported by its unfailing wisdom and understanding, mine is the victorious life.
- 9. In thought and word and deed, I rest my life from day to day on the sure foundation of eternal being.
- 10. The kingdom of spirit is embodied in my flesh.
Thoughts
Thoughts are things. Thoughts have power. Thoughts control source energy. You can consciously have a thought, and you can consciously add other similar thoughts together in a chain of thoughts. You can unconsciously have thoughts enter your mind, and you can unconsciously chain like thoughts together. Whether consciously or unconsciously you create your life through thought. A habitual chain of thoughts you hold and regularly recall are a belief. A belief can be created consciously or unconsciously and can be beneficial to what you want in your life or detrimental. At some point in your life, this life or a future life, you will have to decide which chains of thought, what beliefs serve you and which do not.
Studies have shown that a person can have as many as 60,000 thoughts a day. How many of the thoughts you think in a day are you aware of? How many of the thoughts you think in a day do you consciously think?
What are you thinking? What do you think about what others think about you? What do you think you know about what others think of you? What do you think about yourself? What do you think you know as being the truth about yourself? What does it matter?
Think thoughts that serve you, have beliefs that serve you and you will create a reality you will enjoy living. Think thoughts that enhance your practice and promote joyous performance, and the reality of your practice will greatly improve.
What are you feeling?
What are you feeling? Many go through the day in a mood, like "I'm in a bad mood." or "I'm Bored". But few actually are in touch with exactly what they are feeling. Are you consciously aware of what emotions you are having at any given moment of the day? It is beneficial to connect with the emotions you are feeling for they are your guidance system.
Do you know what causes the emotion you are feeling? An emotion is caused by a thought you are thinking. Through the law of attraction, a thought you think consciously or unconsciously will attract similar thoughts for you to think. As you think on the resulting chain of thoughts, you experience an emotional state somewhere on the emotional scale between depression and joy depending on the thought pattern you are in. Emotions let you know how your present thoughts are aligning with Source Energy. Thoughts that feel good are aligning with the truth of Source Energy, while feeling bad warns you that a thought you are thinking has a degree of non-alignment with source. Before a practice period, it is essential to determine the emotions you are feeling and if you are not experiencing happiness or joy, you should raise your emotions up the scale. You do this consciously by thinking a thought that elicits an emotion higher on the scale than the thought you were thinking. One of the best I have found is simply, "I want to feel good and I intend to feel good." Hold that thought in your mind, and other similar thoughts of feeling good, by the law of attraction, will associate themselves in your consciousness; and your emotions will improve.
Raising your emotions and thus aligning your thoughts with Source Energy is the first step in practice. In fact, aligning with Source Energy is the Art of Practice. All inspiration, intuition and creativity flow to you from Source Energy. The more fully you are able to align with the Source, the more powerful will be the flow into your awareness.
Practice - Physically speaking:
Practice is the act of manifesting the perfection of Source Energy into movement and activity an individual intends to accomplish in the physical plane of existence.
The Art of practice: The process of preparing intellectually, emotionally, and physically to manifest the perfection of Source Energy into movement and activity an individual intends to accomplish in the physical plane of existence.
Practice: Fashioning the framework, developing the skills, scaling and perfecting movement and thought, in anticipation of the arrival of Source Energy; so as you invite in the flow, the wonder of performance occurs.
An excellent way to understand how to practice is observe the end result of your practice and think backwards through the practice, through the thought, to the Source Energy. Observe from the end, think from the end result. Play a piece you have worked on in practice for some time. Play it for someone. Critically analyze your performance and have someone also analyze it. Was it played effortlessly and beautifully? Was the intention of the composer transferred successfully to the listener? Did your fingers move surely and easily to each note and chord? Now think back to the practice of the piece. Was your practice done in a way to achieve the results desired in the performance?
When playing the classical guitar, the four fingers of the left hand and the thumb and fingers of the right hand produce the sound. The arms and wrists position the hands over the instrument. The shoulders support the arms, the torso supports the shoulders, the legs support and balance the torso. Now consider: "is there a best way to position the legs in relation to the torso, in relation to the shoulders, in relation to the arms, in relation to the wrist, for a finger to move effortlessly and accurately?" Answer: "yes, it is very important to know how the entire body relates to performing a specific action. Each action desired needs to be isolated and analyzed. You must know what muscles and joints are involved in each movement and what the most efficient and relaxed way is to achieve the desired movement. After identifying and understanding the most efficient and stable way to effect movement of, for example, your index finger, you must be careful in practice of that movement to only perform it as rapidly as you are able to without introducing any other movements or inducing any tensions into the body. Give careful attention to unnecessary tension building in the neck and shoulders. As you practice, don't force your way through the exercise. When working on a piece of music, only play as long as you can maintain correct movements without any extra tension. If you notice your shoulders raising or neck tightening, stop immediately. Let your whole body relax and continue even if it is only 1 measure at a time, for once you have learned movements with unnecessary tension, it is very hard to later perform the piece without inducing tension. Induced, unnecessary tension affects flexibility of movement, the speed of movement and the amount of energy required to produce movement. Induced tension will color your interpretation of the music, and often can make it impossible to correctly perform the piece. Difficult sections must be worked at over and over without tension until they are effortless. The following line written by Dressage instructor and horse trainer, Mark Russell, about horse and rider in performance should be well considered:
"Art is revealed when the difficult appears effortless." - Mark Russell
Courage
Courage: The ability to align with intention and act when vulnerable.
This definition is very meaningful to me, because I often have failed during the performance of what I have practiced by not acting with this courage. My tendency was to essentially give up power and control of performance by not being here, now, in the moment -by not relying on the pre-paving of the event I had done through practice and not inviting the source energy to flow and cause the performance. Instead, I have allowed my thoughts to race about randomly to what if(s) and what will they(s) - creating a cacophony of tension inducing, and scary thoughts and all the while giving the ego one more way to belittle. On the premise "I want to feel good, I want to feel God", I must decide which approach to performance produces the desired result. Without an instant of hesitation, I can loudly proclaim that what I often have allowed in performance in the past is not the way to happiness and bliss! For the sake of emphasis I will re-live one last time my first concert at the conservatory.
I came to the Conservatory fresh from the Army after a tour in Vietnam and one in Korea. I was older than most students, less knowledgeable of music, and less secure on my chosen instrument. At the end of the first year, I was maintaining a 4.0 grade average and doing very well in my studies of the classical guitar, surprisingly well for my time on the instrument. It was now time for my first convocation in front of my peers.
A week before the performance, I got hives all over my body. As the day approached, I lived in fear. The minutes before I was to go out on stage, I threw up. My turn came and I walked out and sat down. The house lights were dim and the stage lights were bright, so I couldn't see the audience, I only could hear and feel them there. I began, "I better have this instrument in tune, If I begin playing and it isn't in tune, some one will laugh. My hands are shaking, why are my hands shaking? They are going to think I am a joke. I wonder if my professors are in the audience? What will they think of me? I wish I had more time to prepare, I'll never make it. They are too quiet, they are holding their breath. I bet they all wish they could listen to someone else. Why are my hands shaking? Why can't I find the first string? I must not wait too long before I begin the piece, they probably are wondering why I haven't started playing."
I did start playing, with hands shaking, and mind running wild. I got fifteen or twenty measures into the piece and forgot the music. I stumbled around a few notes and stopped playing. I could not remember what came next. So I started over. In about twenty measures or so, I lost my place and couldn't remember the music. I stumbled around, grabbing desperately at the strings, and had to stop playing again. I now was in full panic and experiencing sheer terror. I began the piece again, hands shaking, sweat breaking out, shoulders tense, arms locked, fingers like lead, and made it nearly to the end, lost my way, skipped to the ending chords, ended my performance and fled from the stage. Thus, my career as a concert guitarist began!
Over the next couple of days, I thought about what had happened. I would pick up my guitar and play the piece flawlessly. I had been prepared, I played very well. I compared the convocation with my combat tour in Vietnam, where I actually was in danger of losing my life. I realized that playing in the concert was more terrifying to me. It has taken me a while to fully realize why.
When in dangerous circumstances in Vietnam, my focus was only on the immediate event, I was completely aware of each instant, each movement, every sound. My thoughts were not in the past or future, only in the moment. I was afraid, but not dwelling on it. I was clearly focused on now and the actions I needed to perform at that precise moment. I had no thought about what someone might think of me -my thought was only to do, right then, in that moment. In my first public performance, I was not in control of my thoughts and as a result, my emotions. I had no focus on the present moment, I cut back the flow of source with my fear and let my thoughts run wild in the future and the past.
I made a decision to continue performing and in fact majored in Guitar performance. I learned to change my thinking about performance and I learned to stop taking myself so seriously. I came to understand that I was a link from source energy, to composer, to performer, to audience, that the source energy that flowed through the music flowed through me from the composer to the audience. I began to realize that I was merely a conduit to transfer the source into the audience. I began to visualize a light energy flowing into me, then flowing into my hands and into the guitar, then out of the guitar and into the audience, and into their hearts and minds. When I realized that I only had to allow the flow of this energy through me, a great deal of pressure left my consciousness. My focus became how to allow a greater flow of energy into the listener.