On first impressions and first experiences (Part 1)

Starting anything new can be kind of overwhelming. And my first week of Shim Gum Do classes proved no exception. First there was the rush to get me equipped with a uniform, a sword of appropriate length and a bit of basic instruction in how to tie my very new white belt.

Some of the rituals, like bowing on entering or leaving certain rooms or taking off my shoes on entering the temple  (the big empty shoe racks immediately inside the door help with that one), we're pretty easy to pick up. Others, like knowing when to bow during the opening and closing rituals of class, I'm still working on mastering (when in doubt bow).

Those of you who have known me for a while might be surprised to know that (especially for the first classes) I actually arrived early and so found myself with a bit of time in the lobby/foyer area of the temple. So I started poking through an older book - a first history of Chang Sik Kim's early experience and the revelation and development of Shim Gum Do to him as the Great Zen Master Chang Sik Kim, known as Sa Bu Nim to his students. Sa Bu Nim's history and the development of the art are detailed elsewhere and as a beginner I'm in no position to say anything definitive about either.

But I was very drawn to two parts of an introductory passage in the book. The first was the mantra that my teacher's temple drew from it's heritage to instruct him as a young student, the same mantra those new to meditation are encouraged to use as a focus during meditation in Sa Bu Nim's Mind Light Temple in Brighton -- Kwan Seum Bosal ("Perceive World Sound" or compassionate listening, as it was explained to me).

This resonated and resonates with me and my understanding of my Quaker faith. One of the foundations of Quakerism is that there is 'that of God' within everyone and so everyone can communicate with the divine without the intercession of a priest or a minister. This has lead many Quaker meetings to begin with a period of silent worship in which all present listen for the leadings of Holy Spirit to call them into ministry to the rest of the meeting. As a result, I have begun incorporating that mantra and other meditative teachings from the temple into some of my Quaker worship - as some of my Quaker practice has seeped into my meditation at the temple ... I've been meditating this way for decades, after all.

The other passage that really spoke to me was from a story that I'm told Sa Bu Nim tells frequently from his early life, before he was even a student, serving as a helper in the monastery with the master who recognized his gift. The story spoke of how the master became angry one day when he discovered that his flower had not been watered and was withering, on the verge of death. He yelled at the young Chang Sik Kim, even though watering the flower was not the young man's responsibility. Instead of becoming defensive, he simply went to water the flower to see if it could be revived. This alone is a good lesson in the importance of patience, of humility rather than defiance, but it was what came next that really struck me. Chang Sik Kim realized that without water the flower would die - that water was so essential to the flower it was a mantra for it's life. And so, the story related, he realized that without his personal "life's mantra" (my term as I struggle to understand) he too would wither and die.

This concept, of needing to focus on a life's mantra, really resonates with my present search for meaning, purpose or direction in my life.

It's not entirely clear to me if Sa Bu Nim's 'life mantra' of revealing and disseminating the art and practice of Shim Gum Do was one that he always had within him and that his teacher at the time simply helped him evoke it or if it came about through some other process. But I certainly hope that my study of the mind sword path and the clarity of thought it promises to promote, will assist me in my efforts to find the purpose I hope to discern to lead my own life.

[Part 2 of my first week's impressions will be posted in a few days - remember that bit about things being overwhelming at the top? ;) Hopefully that will also give me some more time to play with formatting and that fun stuff too.]