Meditation has always been an essential pillar of martial arts practice. The focus, the awareness and the flow all contributing to a higher level of performance.
Many of us are drawn to martial arts, in part, by the stoic nature of the master. To be that focussed, that still and that confident, in the face of adversity is an admirable skill. To read your opponent, react calmly to unpredictable attacks and impose your technique successfully requires years of practice and an unwavering mind.
From historical figures like Miyamoto Musashi to modern day legends like Rickson Gracie, meditation has long been part of the philosophy. Developing the mind in martial arts is clearly as important as developing the body.
Sometimes when I make my routines, I get in very special stage of meditation. And this is beautiful because I’m able to exercise and totally clean my mind and keep myself in the present moment. When you control your breath, you can actually control yourself mentally and physically. You can really understand your fears and your emotional stress.
Rickson Gracie
Why is meditation important for martial arts?
Meditation has been shown to increase focus and concentration, boost energy, improve reactions, reduce stress, enhance sleep and promote recovery. It increases awareness of your thoughts, feelings and emotions and it heightens your experience of the present moment.
These outcomes impact both the health and the performance of a martial artist.
Much has been written on the benefits of meditation and the importance of meditation for martial arts but here are some of the key takeaways.
Quality practice – Drilling techniques requires focus, concentration and patience. A great martial artist has great attention to detail and is able to make adjustments to techniques, without getting the ego involved, until they are perfect.
Improved performance – If you are engaged in combat but your mind is somewhere else your distance, timing, and reactions will suffer. You’ll struggle to hit your target and be a much easier target to hit.
Risk of injury – Any distraction or lapse in concentration can result in serious injury. This is true for all sports but even more so for the combative arts. You must remain focussed and aware at all times even when fatigue sets in to reduce the risk of injury.
Understand your fears and emotional stress – Combat can be very stressful. Even the thought of training can be enough to increase fear and anxiety. Meditation allows you to understand your inner experience more and bring those heightened reactions under control.
Enhanced recovery – Martial arts training is tough, especially sparring. When you add up the hours required to develop technique and the hours of supplemental training required to improve fitness you have a high-volume of work to recover from. Meditation helps by turning on the parasympathetic nervous system and shifting the body into a state of recovery. It can also increase the quality and length of your sleep.
Mushin – No-mindedness is a mental state where an individual is free from thoughts of anger, fear, or ego during combat, practice or everyday life. The martial artist is free to act and react towards an opponent without hesitation and without disturbance from inner turmoil. In sports, Mushin is more commonly referred to as flow.
A 2-Minute Meditation for Martial Arts
Zazen, or sitting meditation, is a common practice in martial arts and a great starting point for beginners. The aim of Zazen is to sit and observe the breath along with the thoughts, feelings and sensations of sitting. That is, suspending all judgment and letting words, ideas, images, thoughts and emotions pass by without getting involved in them.
Zazen Instructions:
- Sit comfortably, with your spine erect, cross-legged on a cushion on the floor. You can sit in any posture that is comfortable for you: Burmese, Half-Lotus, Full-Lotus or Seiza positions. You are free to sit in a chair if that suits you better.
- Close your eyes, take a few deep breaths, and feel the connection between your body and the cushion. Notice any sensations of pressure, warmth, tingling, vibration, etc. Notice the movement of your body as you breathe.
- Gradually become aware of the process of breathing. The gentle inhale and exhale. The sensation of your abdomen rising and falling. Notice wherever you feel the breath most clearly—either at the nostrils, or in the belly.
- Allow your attention to rest naturally in the sensation of breathing. There is no need to control the pace or intensity of your breath. Just let it come and go naturally.
- Any time your mind wanders, gently return it to the sensation of breathing.
- As you focus on the breath, you will notice that other perceptions and sensations continue to appear: sounds, thoughts, feelings, and emotions wander in and out of your mind. Simply notice these phenomena as they emerge, and then return to the sensation of breathing.
- Continue in this way for two minutes, or until you feel ready to finish.
Practice this meditation daily and it will slowly but surely impact your martial arts practice. You may want to progress to other inner martial arts such as Tai Chi and Qigong, but try to maintain a consistent meditation practice over the long term.