Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
A program of physical education for martial arts practitioners and anyone interested in body improvement
Using simple, clear language to demystify the Zen mindset, Ralston draws on more than three decades of experience teaching students and apprentices worldwide who have applied his body-being approach.
More of a transformative guide than a specific list of exercises devoted to any particular physical approach, Zen Body-Being explains how to create a state of mental control, enhanced feeling-awareness, correct structural alignment, increased spatial acuity, and even a greater interactive presence.
Exercises are simple, often involving feeling-imagery and meditative awareness, which have a profound and sometimes instant effect. Areas of exploration include:
- Beginner's Body-Being
- Three aspects of body awareness
- Five principles for an effortlessly effective body
- Opening a door--five steps to transformation
- Fourteen points on structural alignment
Where similar guides teach readers what to do, this book teaches readers how to be.
About the Author
Peter Ralston has black belts in judo, jujitsu, and karate. The founder of the martial arts tradition Cheng Hsin and the school dedicated to it, he leads workshops on a wide range of disciplines.Laura Ralston is an editor, model maker, and collaborator with her husband. They live in San Antonio, TX.