The Inner Voice

Uchinaru-goe [内なる声] refers to one’s “inner voice,” the one we hear in our head. In the self defense community they refer to it as the “monkey brain.”

On psychological terms it’s one’s “ego” driving the inner conversation and tends to be the monkey driving our more negative emotions along the trail to violence, psi and regret - to name a few.

In “the way or Tao,” one trains and practices to remove as much influence of the inner voice as possible, to drive out the ego or monkey so we can avoid such dangerous curves, drop offs and cliffs the egoistic monkey wants us to take.

Mastering the inner self is the most challenging aspect of martial reality and is the basis of first lesson in the dojo, the art of mokuso or meditation in a seiza sitting position.

Mokuso is that art form that challenges and presents us with being present or being in the moment (Sono shunkan ni iru [その瞬間にいる]).

Within mokuso we continue to build on our character because that character is the only path toward avoidance of situations and things that expose us to a violent word that is our nature as humans. In these modern times our species works diligently to take or violent nature down to laying just out of reach allowing us to survive as a collective with mutual benefits. 

Only when we have mastered mokuso, built a proper character and attained a personality connecting us all as one can we move on to the principled methodologies of protection against that which is negative and violent.

Before one lays hands on another he or she must lay hands on self and be that selfs master.