MIND LIKE WATER
The Student arrived home demoralized. After 30 years of training, he felt like a beginner. What was the Master trying to teach him? He thought. He felt that no matter what he did or how hard he tried, the Master was never happy. At least May Jou was kind and made him feel better.
The Book was lying on the coffee table. The cover was old and worn. To the faded ancient warriors, facing each other. What was the meaning of the cover? He sat down on the couch, picked up the book, and looked for the chapter on Mind Like Water.
He began to read…
I traveled to Fujian in the south. I stopped in a small village for the night. The next day, I heard loud voices resonating through the open window of the inn. I looked out and saw a small man surrounded by a group of rowdy teenagers. The man was calm and seemed unconcerned. I was about to run down the inn’s steps and help him when suddenly the teenagers started attacking.
He blocked effortlessly as he moved through the crowd of teenagers. Not one of them was able to land a blow. It was like he knew about the attack before it was delivered. I stood and watched in amazement. After about 10 minutes, the teenagers gave up and moved on.
I ran down the steps of the inn to introduce myself and try to learn his secret. I introduced myself. His name was Liao Wu-ch’ang. I asked him how he knew about the attacks before they struck. He said he didn’t know. It was awareness. His grandfather taught him the secret at an early age. He didn’t know if it was a style of Kung Fu because there were no attacking techniques. Everything was based on awareness, footwork, and blocking.
He told me about the Mind Like Moon, but as we sat down for tea, he started another story.
One day, I was with my grandfather. At the time, I was only 12 years old. We walked through town to pick up some supplies. We walked into a store, and some men were hassling the owner.
My grandfather pushed me off to the side. He walked up to the men and spoke softly to them. I have no idea what he said. They all turned toward him and yelled, making threatening gestures.
My grandfather stood perfectly still. Suddenly, one of the thugs attacked my grandfather. He moved with the attacker like water parting when a stone is thrown in. As the stone sinks, the water surrounds and absorbs the stone. That’s what it looked like to me.
My grandfather absorbed the attack, and suddenly, the attacker was off to the side, breathing heavily, holding his ribs. Another attacker moved in from the front, and another from the side. My grandfather was calm. Just like a stone that enters the water, it creates circular ripples. As the attacks came at my grandfather, it created ripples.
The attacks were absorbed, and the attackers were moved away from my grandfather. My grandfather was now standing six feet away. All three attackers were hurt. I never saw what my grandfather did. It’s like a stone falling into the water, you see it enter, but not what happens after that.
I looked at Liao Wu-ch’ang with a questioning look. He said that after they left the shop, his grandfather said to him, “Remember the way of the water.” As a twelve-year-old, I was confused.
Years later, my grandfather taught me the way of the water. The basic premise is this:
A mind like water is calm and undisturbed, flowing around obstacles. Once an opening presents itself, the water immediately fills it. This refers to a mind undisturbed by thought or emotion, which can clearly and accurately perceive the image that falls upon it.
We talked late into the night about the type of training necessary to develop this mindset.
The student laid the book down on the coffee table. He thought, no wonder May Jou looked so calm and undisturbed. He wondered what the training was to develop a mind like water. Maybe, the next time he was at the school, he could talk to May Jou about what type of training she had.