The Tao of the Kettlebell - Verse 8

The supreme good is like water,

which nourishes all things without trying to.

It flows to low places loathed by all men.

Therefore, it is like the Tao.

Live in accordance with the nature of things.

In dwelling, be close to the land.

In meditation, go deep in the heart.

In dealing with others, be gentle and kind.

Stand by your word.

Govern with equity.

Be timely in choosing the right moment.

One who lives in accordance with nature

does not go against the way of things.

He moves in harmony with the present moment,

always knowing the truth of just what to do.

Lao-Tzu

Isn't it interesting that right before it's time to write about the 8th Verse of the Tao Te Ching, I stumble on the quote I had mentioned from my last blog?

The supreme good [insert higher power of your choosing] is like water, which nourishes all things without trying to.

Wayne Dyer's book Change Your Thoughts, Change Your Life, based on the Tao titles this verse, "Living in the Flow."  Dr. Dyer also reminds us that our bodies are 75 percent water and our brain is 85 percent water.  "The rest," he goes on to say, "is simply muscled water."

That's great!  Muscled water!  What does water do?

It flows to low places loathed by all men.  Therefor it is like the Tao.

Think of the God realized beings who got low in order to go high.  Jesus, as one example, associated with all kinds of "low" men. In modern times there are countless examples of this.  If God is like water and we are mostly water then we too are a tiny piece of God.  That also means that we are stronger and more powerful then we, more often than not, give ourselves credit for.  I will be the first to admit to this.

Live in accordance with the nature of things.  In dwelling, be close to the land.  In meditation, go deep in the heart.  In dealing with others, be gentle and kind.  Stand by your word.  Govern with equity.

Be timely in choosing the right moment.

Here Lao-Tzu guides us in a direction that will take you down a path of peaceful living.  Where life will flow.  There is no need to try to force things to happen, when you abide by the Tao and live in accordance with the nature of things, everything will fall into place.  

This verse also reminds me of another quote about water and living in the flow...

"Empty your mind, be formless, shapeless - like water.  Now you put water into a cup, it becomes the cup, you put water into a bottle, it becomes the bottle, you put it in a teapot, it becomes the teapot.  Now water can flow or it can crash.  Be water, my friend."

                                                                                 -Bruce Lee

Strength.  What is it?  What makes it?  One of the key components of strength is tension.  You'll read about this in Pavel Tsatsouline's Power to the People.  So why are we talking about water?  Water is anything but tense?  Well there in lies the rub.  Water can change shape and structure to adapt to the moment.  Evaporate, freeze or flow, water has the flexibility to adjust to the demands of the environment.  Do you?

When training for strength, be like water.  Know when to tense up like ice and when to flow like a stream.  Know when to rise like the tide and crash like a wave.  What barriers are in your way that need eroding?  With time and by living in accordance with the nature of things, you too can overflow.

One who lives in accordance with nature does not go against the way of things.  He moves in harmony with the present moment, always knowing the truth of just what to do.

The key to this verse is here.  He moves in harmony with the present moment...  The present moment.  Be here, in the now.  When you allow yourself to exist outside of the now, you are not in the flow.  Rather your ego is rowing your boat.  Great strength lies in the ability to stay in the present moment.  From the power lifter to the gymnast to the Girevik, the ability to stay with the movement as it happens and have a laser focus on where you are and what you are doing is a key element to pressing through.  Look at 3 typical drills.  A deadlift, an Iron Cross and a heavy near maximal Kettlebell press.  If you're thinking about what you need to pick up from the market while attempting one of the drills, you're probably not going to hit it.  Rather it's going to hit you and probably on the head in the case of the press.  But also look at how fast these near maximal efforts almost command and engage your body in the now.  It's nearly impossible to think about anything else but the task at hand and the more you can dial into that focus during your lift, the stronger you become.  

The real question now is:  How can you take this focus and harmony with the present moment into daily living and be as strong spiritually as you are physically...