THE ZONE & NO-MINDEDNESS

The Zone and No-Mindedness are related concepts and essential in experiencing Zen in the Martial Arts. As discussed earlier, the Zone is that realm we enter into where action is automatic, instinctive. It's the place where the mind is clear and we perform at our highest levels.

The traditional term for The Zone is Wu-shin, or "no-mindedness." Before we can talk about what it is, let's first talk about what it is not. No-mindedness is not mindlessness. It's not a thoughtless mind or blank mind void thoughts or emotion. It's not just a quiet mind either. So then, what is it?

In essence, the no-mind is a state where the mind operates freely without the interference of the separate thinker. In other words, the mind functions in a state of wholeness without you distracting it with your thoughts, feelings, or emotions. For example, you're driving down the road thinking of nothing in particular. You turn into a neighborhood. You notice the trees dotting the subdivision and the cars parked along the edge of the street. You absorb the scene as a whole without thought or impression. You make no judgment about what you see. You simply drive.

Suddenly, a child runs out into the street chasing the ball. There's no time to stop or think. The action must be immediate. Without thought, your adrenaline surges. You instinctively take your foot off the gas and slam on the break. How did that happen? You didn't stop to think about it or even tell yourself what to do. Your mind simply took you (the separate thinker) out of the equation and took action freely without permission.

In this situation, the mind took the correct action because it was free to observe the environment in total without becoming bogged down on a fixated point. The no-mind is like a river flowing down its natural course, never becoming stagnated. Or, the no-mind is like a mirror - it never grabs on to anything or keeps anything, but receives every image placed before it. Make sense? Think of watching a football game. You don't concentrate solely on the player with the ball. You watch the field as a whole - aware of the total movement. In like manner, the no-mind observes the whole. It does not anchor itself to a fixed point or thought. In doing so it is moves unencumbered. It takes action freely.

So, how do we cultivate the No-mind? And what is the relationship between the No-mind and the martial arts? We'll address those items in the next post.