Essays From The Master

The3 nature of the self, as known by Kiba Yamashiro

From the beginning, a Warrior of the silent way learns to use his most primal emotions and instincts as tools against ones enemies. They are but like pieces in a game of chess, each with its own unique set of uses as well as its own limitations. All of the primal parts of the brain as well as the most complex of feelings can be used if only one knows how. This was never more apparent then when we were here last, at the beginning of our viper training.
The Viper is the second level of knowledge in the Komuso Nindo system, and is concerned with the primal instincts of man, how to both unleash and harness these powers to gain mastery over the self. This is not a task to be undertaken lightly though, for many cannot face the horrors of the outside world much less the horrors that haunt their dreams and memories. During our last training experience we felt the current of ourselves and we broke down, mentally and therefore physically. Remember that the mind controls the body and when the mind breaks down the body usually follows suit.
It is difficult to fully explain in terms of those who do not know for each nightmare is a personal experience. Imagine if everything that ever bothered you, every negative and hurtful thing that you have heard, seen, felt and experienced both to yourself as well as anyone else, every act of hatred, malice, violence and spite is experienced over again. Not in parts and pieces mind you but in flooding waves of not only Horror and agony, but with less overt torments as depression and lonliness, with no chance of respite. There is no mercy, no kindness, and no pity.
How does one win against the demons of the self, those incorporeal creatures of the prison of our minds? It varies from individual to individual, as does the kind of things that torment each person. For us, we did not immediately win, for everyone has hidden sides of themselves that they may never work through. There is a key to winning the battle though, it is known as Time. It takes time to learn about oneself, and some like us a little more time than others.
What ultimately pulled us from the Jaws of madness was this epiphany: “There is no on else that you can rely on more than yourself.” This realization was followed by us knowing that we would have to pull our whole being, all of our collective selves, crying, screaming, kicking and laughing out of our own personal hell. We did this in order to once again feel the soft ground beneath our feet, to feel the moon shine upon our face and the wind upon our skin. At last through the power of the self we have become free of our chains and so comes the fun part; learning to use these feelings for the greater good of all.

Take this into account: Do you get your feelings hurt easily, do you often feel angry or depressed or that no matter what you do that you will only be a slave of the world, a simple cog in the proverbial machine? These things arise from an imbalance in ones emotions. Please understand that we are not offering a path to salvation or some short cut to enlightenment but a path to freedom, a path to the self. Understand also that we are not trying to tell you that emotions are bad, however (and we would like to make this very clear) anything in too much Excess is detrimental to the mind, be it emotions, sleep, alcohol, water, warmth, medicine or whatever.
Once one finds the balance within themselves then one will begin to understand further what causes others to be unbalanced and at advanced stages to help them also become balanced and so on. In this way those of the silent way seek to change the world by setting a good example. In this way we help ourselves by helping others.