No Mind

“While the hands, feet, and body may move the mind does not stop any place at all, and one does not know where it is. Being in a state of No Mind No Thought, one has to come to the level of a scarecrow on the mountain fields.”

The concept of the mind without mind, known as mushin no shin in Japanese, is a concept and practice associated with Zen Buddhism that describes a state at which the mind is free from any thought and lets the body be in a state of complete flow. The moment the mind fixates in any one thought is when the body will stop and be at its most vulnerable. This concept was important to understand and practice for practitioners of the martial arts, as allowing the mind to fixate on any one movement or body part would allow an opponent to strike.

The above quote is from the essay “The Mysterious Record of Immovable Wisdom” by Takuan Soho. Takuan Soho was a buddhist monk that lived during the Sengoku and Edo periods. While famous on his own right as a priest, he is also known for being a friend and mentor to Miyamoto Musashi. In this essay written for Yagyu Munenori, Takuan attempts to relay how important the concept of No Mind is to sword fighting.

For students of the martial arts today, the concept of No Mind is very applicable. When fighting, sparring, or training it is dangerous to fixate on one body part or one technique. As a matter of fact, Takuan wrote that in the highest levels of No Mind, techniques are meaningless. What it means for our martial arts is that we should, in every fight and training session, attempt to be in a state of complete flow. It is definitely easier said than done, but it is something that should become a daily practice.

For our daily lives, where we have multiple small battles in any given day, the concept of No Mind is still applicable. Dwelling on issues, ie. Anxiety, will stop our mind, and our body will follow. For the swordsmen of old, this meant death and while that may not be the case for us today, the concept of allowing the mind to be free of stopping points is essential to live a life where we can always be flowing forward. A No Mind Life.

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