There is no try

"Do or do not. There is no try."

How many times over that this quote have been repeaby other ecially with Star Wars fans. Yoda represents the wise master, and as we all suspected the character's creation was most probably inspired by eastern phiconsciousness s hy.

Why? Why is it can't you "try" but must "do"? "Tryiworld ng" implies that there will be failure. You are already afraid of the future that hasn't happened. So your mind is already cluttered with many things and distract you from the task at hand.

I do not really know a word in Japanese that literally parallels the word "try", maybe I'm not well informed enough. In my Japanese language class I was taught to use the word "yatte-miru" (やって見る) which literally means "do then see". So it is not literally "try" but used as such. So culturally, the Japanese are expected to do it first and worry about the results later. The worries of failure should not be there.

Another word that they frequently use is "ganbaru" (頑張る) which equates to something to "giving it my all" or "do my best". You could also say something like "ganbatte-miru" (頑張って見る), "I'll do my best and then see". You could so these compound verbs in Japanese.

Yatte-miru is more common while ganbatte is more towards doing a significant task. The don't say "I'll try my best" but instead "I'll give it my all"... Failure has not happened yet and it should not be an option so I shall not think nor worry about it.

Such culture shall affect the psyche of a person even if it is only mere words. The mindset is there to "do" instead of "try".

But what is the significance of this to training or achieving your goals?  It has something to do with "isshin" (一心), one mind, and "mushin" (無心), no mind. You are doing things whole heartedly, putting all your heart/mind into it (isshin) not broken up by other things such as failure and success, not worried about the past nor the future, not letting anything affect you yet being aware of everything, a higher level of consciousness (mushin). 

So just do... 

Fire safety, self defense, and martial arts

In this entry I shall attempt to make an analogy between fire safety with self defense and martial arts.

Self defense is like fire safety, it is the whole process of preventing a fire in daily life.

Fire safety includes things like making sure that all electrical installations are proper so there won't be any short circuits that could cause a fire. Flammable materials are kept away from heat and fire. Gas lines are checked regularly that they do not leak. Having smoke/heat detectors and fire alarms would help.

In self defense it is the same way. Staying away from unnecessary high risk activities and places. Be mindful on interacting with others. Even how one is dressed and one's mindset must be properly addressed as well. As with fire safety, the more one is ignorant with this, the higher the risk becomes.

What if we have taken all the necessary precautions and shit happens anyway because of an unprecedented factor or something that we have missed.

In fire safety, this is when the fire alarm kicks in and this is where the person then needs to be knowledgeable on how to put out the fire. From knowing not to put out oil or chemical fire with water to puting out a fire with a wet cloth and to having and knowing how to use a fire extinguisher. When all else fails, get out of there and call the fire department.

This is the analogy of knowing martial arts. Knowing the what to do and when to the best of your knowledge. And yes sometimes in this cases that yout best may not be good enough because of unprecedented situations. And this is is where training kicks in. If you train properly in gaining the correct knowledge, then you may mitigate the risk further.

There are no guarantees for safety, albeit fire safety or self defense. One could only mitigate the risk (lower the risk). There is no such thing as zero risk.

If you lead a high risk lifestyle or live in a high risk environment then there would be a need of more mitigation. Iron worker use special clothes, have special tools, and special fire safety equipment to avoid any injuries to himself or others. If the iron worker doesn't care, then it is his choice. He may go his whole life without getting an injury, but it takes one incident to lose an eye and he won't be getting it back.

In self defense, if you know that you lead a high risk lifestyle then proper precautions should be taken in daily life. This may or may not be a part of your martial arts program (usually not... depends on the art and the teacher/instructor).

You could be living in a low risk environment but are complacent or ignorant of the surrounding. This also could escalate your risk. You could be living in a high risk environment but you have taken all the precautions you know, you may have managed some but not all risks, the risk is lowered but still relatively high.

Sometimes the situation that we are in were chosen for us by circumstances. Sometimes we don't know our options to make it better. Could be because of environment and/or maybe because of knowledge. But if by some grace that the situation changes and you now could choose, then make sure that you make a good one, before circumstances choose it for you.

Be knowledgeable of the risks, know how to manage it, and stay safe.

Questions...

"You know what an answer is? It's a terminus, an end. Answers are fine, but questions are where it's at.

Questions bring us closer to understanding. They can start a conversation or spark a revolution. So you might as well start asking, now."

Through The Wormhole with Morgan Freeman

Customer Safety Recommendation for McDonald's Kemang

The following is off topic, but still related to security and safety, thus part of self defense.

I went to McDonald's Kemang this early morning, around 0520hrs. This McD is 24 hours, and I woke up early today around 0400hrs and was not able to go back to sleep, so by 0500hrs, I was hungry, so I drove to McD because I felt like having a Sausage Egg McMuffin.

I entered McD through the smoking area, but not much people were smoking then, but what I smelled was something else, this area reeks of alcohol. It is not surprising for a place that opens 24 hours in Jakarta to have customers that just finished their "late night activities" to have something to eat or just hang out a little bit more until sunrise. I've been to this particular McD in the early morning a few times before, and so far I have never been involved in any incidents, I haven't heard that anybody else had. As far as I know, the drunks are quite docile.

The dining area inside, the non smoking one, was alright. Ordered my food and went to the table and ate it. Saw a customer approached the counter, looking quite drunk, and asking if he could just wrapped up the food to go because his friends could not eat it. The staff obliged and the customer thanked him. I didn't think about it much at first, until I exit the store. I saw the guy and his friends in the smoking area, one of them hunched over the table and had puked his guts out. I was like... ewww... Good thing I did not bring the kids, I would have a hard time explaining to them what just happened, and the situation afterwards as well.

As I walked to my car, this Toyota Fortuner sped through the parking lot into the drive thru just a split second after I passed. If I was just a bit late coming out of the store, I could have been hit! If the driver was drunk, probably would not even see me walking through that parking lot.

As I entered my car, I saw the drunk customer and his friend carrying the puking guy who had literally passed out. They were having a difficult time trying to load him into the car.

This is just an accepted scene, especially places that are opened 24 hours. However, we must never be complacent. McD should be prepared to handle if the situation escalate. What would happen if the drunks that came in are not the docile type and start ? What happens if somebody got hit on their parking lot? Are they ready to manage the situation? There are maybe a number of negative scenarios could happen, but I just named a few in my suggestion to McD Kemang.

The staff in the late shift should know how to deal with that type of situation, how to deal with drunks, trained in de-escalation, and other emergency procedures. This may not be as important in other stores, but when drunks gather together in one place, late at night, the uncertainty comes up a bit higher. Alcohol is the X factor. I am not saying that McD should reject these customers, I'm not saying they are bad, I'm just saying that they could become unpredictable and the staff should be ready for it. If the staff need proper training then management should give it to them, including how to handle crisis management. People think that this is over the top, until it actually happens. Why wait? Action defeats reaction.

I see drunk drivers as well, this is just a known fact for people down here, they don't understand the concept of designated drivers or how dangerous drunk driving really is. McD do not have control over this, but they need to protect other customers as well. Point in fact is with the speeding Toyota Fortuner, I could have been hit. What if my kids were hit? If McD put in speed traps, bollards, and/or chicanes the car could have slowed down, or if the car didn't then they could hit one of these barriers before they hit me, there is a risk mitigation. Putting up a signage is useless for these people, but it does help McD to avoid lawsuits if somebody got hit in their parking lot. That is beside the point, we don't want people to get hit by cars in the parking lot or drive thru. This is something that must be further explored by McD Kemang.

This would seem a bit funny, but they could consider having a bucket prepared around the areas that have drunk people. These drunks could hardly walk, let alone find the bathroom. It would save other customers to have an unsightly view of an adult puking his guts out all over the floor and save the effort for the staff to clean it up.

Again, I'm not saying that McD should reject these customers, just need to think through some scenarios and how to manage them. Don't wait until it's too late. I actually sent such suggestion to McD below (in Bahasa Indonesia).

---

Dear McDonald's Kemang,

Saya pagi hari ini Sabtu 30 November 2013 sekitar jam 0520 ke McD Kemang dan saya tidak heran tempatnya berisikan pelanggan-pelanggan yang baru selesai "aktivitas malam" dan banyak di antaranya masih mabuk. Ini sebetulnya suatu hal yang sering ditemukan akan segala tempat yang bukanya 24 jam.

Saya masuk ke dalam McD Kemang lewat smoking area dan baunya bukan bau rokok tapi sudah bau alkohol. Sementara ini kalau saya ke sana pagi-pagi seperti ini, pemabuknya tidak rusuh dan secara relatif masih sopan. Saya melihat seseorang yang mabuknya cukup berat dan bukan saja muntah tapi pingsan dimana temannya harus mengangkat dia ke mobil. Untung anak saya tidak ikut jadi saya tidak harus menjelaskan apa yang telah terjadi.

Sewaktu saya mau balik ke mobil, tiba-tiba ada Toyota Fortuner mengebut ke dalam drive thru beberapa saat setelah saya menyeberangi lajur teersebut. Kalau ternyata pengemudi itu mabuk, mungkin dia tidak akan lihat saya dan saya bisa menjadi korban.

Memang tidak akan bisa dihindari kondisi pelanggan yang datang ke McD Kemang dan sementara saya belum mengalami insiden, akan tetapi McD Kemang bisa mempersiapkan diri jika sesuatu terjadi atau bahkan bisa menghindarinya.

Karena McD Kemang bisa menjadi berkumpulnya orang mabuk, maka ada naiknya resiko untuk para staff ataupun pelanggan lain yang ada di lokasi tersebut.

Berdasarkan pengalaman saya hari ini, saya ada beberapa rekomendasi:

1. 1. Para staff shift malam ke pagi dilatih khusus untuk memanajemen pelanggan yang mabuk atau bahkan diajarkan bagaimana de-eskalasi situasi yang memanas. Karena jika sudah mabuk, banyak faktor tak terduga. Ini bukan tindakan secara fisik, tapi bagaimana cara berbicara kepada pelanggan atau mengatasi situasi dimana bisa terjadi tindakan kekerasan. Walau saya belum mengalami ini, alkohol bisa jadi faktor tak terduga dan bisa saja terjadi suatu saat.
   
2. Ini akan terdengar lucu, tapi mungkin bisa disiapkan ember sekitar orang-orang yang mabuk. Karena kalau sudah mabuk berat, jalan ke toilet untuk muntah pun akan sulit. Ini supaya pelanggan lain tidak perlu melihat muntah berserakan di lantai dan mempermudah staff untuk membersihkan.
   
3. Berikut ini adalah yang paling penting, polisi tidur dan/atau bentuk lain (seperti tiang tambahan, bollards, chicanes) yang bisa memperlambat mobil masuk ke drive thru. Jalur drive thru memotong jalur pelanggan yang akan balik ke mobilnya. Jika mobil tersebut mengebut atau bahkan pengemudinya mabuk, bisa jatuh korban.

Saya angkat isu ini karena saya peduli dan saya adalah residen lama daerah Kemang. Saya ingin Kemang tetap damai dan tentram, terlepas apa yang telah terjadi dengan Kemang 10 - 20 tahun terakhir ini dimana banyak night club bermunculan. Sebagai warga kita punya kewajiban untuk menjaga keamanan dan keselamatan bersama

Terima Kasih,

K'

4 principles of the unification of mind and body

The below was originally posted on my Facebook page:

I want to revisit the translation ki-no-kenkyūkai's "4 principles of the unification of mind and body". The current one, though they are the official translation, seems to be oversimplified and may miss key points of these principles

心身統一の四大原則
shinshin tō itsu no yon daigensoku
4 principles of the unification of mind and body
4 prinsip penyatuan pikiran dan tubuh

一、臍下の一点に心をしずめ統一する。
ichi, seika no itten ni kokoro wo shizume tō itsu suru
1, calmly unify the mind with the one point of the lower abdomen
1, dengan tenang satukan pikiran dengan satu titik yang terletak di perut bawah

二、全身の力を完全に抜く。
ni, zenshin no chikara wo kanzen ni nuku
2, totally loosen up the strength throughout the whole body *
2, kendorkan secara keseluruhan tenaga seluruh tubuh

三、身体の総ての部分の重みを、その最下部におく。
san, karada no subete no bubun no omomi wo, sono saikabu ni oku
3, weight of all parts of the body are to be put at the lowest side of that part
3, berat semua bagian tubuh diletakkan paling bawah bagian tersebut

四、氣を出す。
yon, ki wo dasu
4, let out ki **
4, keluarkan ki

* the word "nuku" (抜く) is usually used to mean "to pull out (in order to release something)". So I use the word "loosen up" in replace of this context

** the word "dasu" (出す) does not literally mean "extend" as the official translation. The dicitionary translation is "to exert" or "to put/pull out". In this context, it could mean "to release" or as I wrote above "to let out"

100%

I have never been diagnosed with attention deficit disorder (ADHD), then again my parents never had me tested. It's not a common thing in Indonesia, at least back when I was in elementary or junior high, to get somebody diagnosed with ADHD, we simply think that the child has disciplinary issues.

I was not that bad. I was mediocre with sometimes less than average achievement during my first 9 years in school. Then I went to a military academy, by my own request, and did very well academically for the 3 years I was there. Maybe I do have disciplinary issues. When I the academy, I didn't do that well in the university either. That's enough of my academic history for now.

I may have a mild version of ADHD. I do have a bit of a learning disability. My mind wanders off after a while, easily distracted, and trouble sitting still for too long. I have difficulty of piecing together thoughts. When I read my eyes goes all over the pages skipping words and lines. At times I need to re-read things because I lost the context of the writings. When I write my thoughts have to many things to put down, going back and forth, such as now. On top of that, my blood type is B, which according to the Japanese have their own issues, as well as advantages of course.

I took up aikido in 1998 under the guidance of Hakim sensei during my "second round" of my university education. The reason of taking it up was quite pragmatic actually, I've torn my knee ligament and had surgery done a couple of years before. My basic was Tae Kwon Do back then, did both WTF then ITF.

A few years later (I think 2001/2002) a couple of my anime/manga mailing list friends introduced me to Ki-no-kenkyūkai under the guidance of Kinoshita sensei. Our organization was affiliated with Aikikai, so if you are familiar with the rift between the two organization then I need not say more. I was not aware of this at the time, but this is for another story, let's just say that I was accepted after a period of scrutiny.

I would actually say that we had no technical training but a lot exercises and this is what we do every training. Study the principles, do them, test them, over and over again. Practicing one mind one body.

Kinoshita sensei made a point that every movement must be done 100%. Not thinking of what is going to happen next or what just happened. The mind must not be separated into different parts, it must be one. In other words, no "multi-tasking". Many people boasts their ability of multi-tasking, but when a person multi-tasks the mind focuses less on each tasks. Doing 2 things at the same time means doing each of them with 50% focus or less. Science has proven this and many were presented in articles or TV shows such as in NatGeo or Discovery.

Kinoshita sensei went on that when working, focus on the task at hand and do not think of the other things. After you have done allocating your resources for this task, you move on to the next. This is more like time management, taking things one at a time but dedicating ones full focus.

In practice, it is the same, each movement is meaningful. There is no such thing as formality. All is done 100% with 100% effect, not worrying about what comes next or what just happened, let's say splitting the mind 80-10-10.

For example with zengo undo (turning 180 degrees back and forth exercise), when you are at one side you do not worry about the other side, but when it's time to turn your mind is already 100% there. The same whether you are doing four directions or eight directions. How and when to turn is part of the practice and experience.

When one starts practicing, one will be taught to do it one step at a time. One technique may have 10 steps and these are done taught one by one. Each move must be done at 100% before moving to the next one, once you moved to the next one, you do not worry what had just happened that was in the past, and you do not worry what is going to happen next as that will be in the future, you focus on the now. Worrying about what just happened and what's going to happen will split your focus. This takes training. Each step is done at a 100% before moving on to the next one rather than only giving 10% for each 10 steps. This is true for every thing, there is only one you.

Once you have practiced correctly and thoroughly, it is no longer that you take it one step at a time, but you have taken the whole thing as an end to end process, instead of 10 steps you see one process. When you give this process 100%, then you have given 100% to all of the steps at the same time.

When facing many opponents, it is the same principle. When facing one, you are not worried about the other. How to do this must be explored in practice. You give 100% to one opponent, and then another, and then another. When you are dealing with one and worried about another, your focus goes lower than a mere 50%, as to think about thinking of the other opponent has taken away a percentage of your mind as well.

What about having all of the opponents as one? This clicked to me when I saw Kubota sensei was demonstrating a technique when his hands were grabbed by two people. First he will demonstrate the technique when one person grabbed both his hands, then he'll have one person grabbed one hand and then demonstrated the same technique, then he will have one demonstrated for his other hands. Then it clicked, it is not a technique of managing two separate people, but a technique of managing two people as one entity, or somebody that is of twice the size/strength of one person. If the mind is able to perceive this, with correct practice, then it is probable. After that apply it for multiple opponents that are attacking freely. Easier said then done. That's why such concept must be explored / experimented upon in order to be understood.

Albeit facing one or many, there is only one you and there is only one mind and body, therefore the principle must be the same, one is many and many is one.

There is no such thing as late

I was watching TV, History Channel if I recalled correctly, there was an interesting view on how battles or wars were usually lost, they used the "war of attrition" strategy, meaning kill and destroy as much things as you can and they will eventually give up or there is nothing left to defend.

Then they show how most battles or wars were won, it is about being in a position of more advantage. They used many examples on the application of Sun Tzu's Art of War, which apparently, in the way they present it, is not a strategy of attrition.

Analogy-wise, it is like between a game of chess and a game of igo (囲碁). In chess, you take out your opponent's piece one by one, until you are able to expose the king, and corner it for the kill. In igo, it is totally different, you start with an empty board and start placing your pieces strategically, making your opponent unable to move/place his piece.

There is saying that whether you are facing one opponent or many opponents, it is just the same. The same could be said when you are in a theater of war. The strategy for war or battles, and the strategy for one-on-one combat is the same. As in igo, one must be in the correct position/location in order to make his opponent unable to move, or at most the movement is weak and predictable, thus controllable.

If the mindset is being in the right position, then many of the classical techniques will start to make sense, other than just trying to pummel the other guy to death.

One of the interesting things when I started practicing Aikido is the view that there are some techniques that are used when you are late to take actions, ura (back) n most cases, omotte (front) for yokomen attacks. After a few years, the view of a late action does not make sense. In a situation where life and death is at stake there should be no such thing as late.

The terminology itself, ura and omotte themselves are not describing whether or not you are being late or early, it is actually referring to your position in regards to your partner, whether you are going through the front or through the back, inside or outside. Again, it is about position, just like igo.

When you are attacked, there is no time of thinking where the opponent is going to be, what attack is he going to use, or which hands. These are all irrelevant thinking which will lead to a cluttered mind and have you end up freezing and eventually killed. The first thing you do to break out of your freeze is that you move, left, right, front, back, whatever, anywhere, just move. After this move then you will find your position in reference to your opponent, and this will determine what you will need to do next.

In training you practice moving in a certain way. This will be one of the earlier things being taught, not the technique itself, techniques should come much later. One needs to train to move in getting into an advantageous position, and then if one does not know any technique, one could attempt to run away safely. Getting into a position of advantage should be the primary movement, this could even mean movement or non movement, depending on the situation, and perhaps depending on the skill of the practitioner himself.

There is no such thing as early or late, it has to be in the right moment. Even being early could get you killed. All the techniques should be executed while being in the position of advantage and at the correct moment, not forcing your way through while you yourself is unbalanced which therefore having access only to an inefficient means of generating power.

Simply put... be in the right place at the right time...

But simpler said than done...