EIGHT WALLS

The Hachi Shouheki are the eight walls (or barriers) you must overcome in order to master the teachings of Shi-Tamajutsu. Some of these walls can be easily stepped over, some will require a bit of climbing. This depends on your own personality.

1. Omoi -- Expectation. The expectation of winning will cloud your judgement, it will also lead to disappointment if you do not win. The expectation of losing results in a defeatist attitude.

2. Hanappari -- Overconfidence. The gravest mistake that can be made is to underestimate your opponent see yourself as invincible.

3. Haradachi -- Anger. Anger clouds your judgement and prevents you from learning, especially from your own mistakes.

4. Bushou -- Laziness. This can be best defined as "hosing" or allowing firepower to make up for lack of effort on your part.

5. Teku -- Technology. Technology is an asset, it becomes a liability when you use technology as a crutch or when you see technology as a means in, and of, itself. It is not.

6. Iyoku -- Ambition. The desire to win, or to eliminate your opponent influences your thought process.

7. Gougan -- Pride. Pride in your skills, your accomplishments and your abilities will only lead to your eventual downfall. Perhaps not immediately, but the effects of pride have a degrading effect, like water eroding the shores. It is inevitable.

8. Fuseikoui -- Unfair practices. Playing fairly is an essential key to Shi-Tamajutsu. Cheating only cheats you.

Some players will find many of the walls easy to overcome. What is difficult for one may be easy for another. Many people have the misconception that you have to stop negative responses and feelings from entering your mind. Not only is this impossible, it is a ridiculous notion. You cannot control your mind, no matter what misinformed "experts" will say. Even in religions where meditation is an essential part of enlightenment, they do not advocate the "clearing of the mind". They emphasize concentration on good thought and feelings and allowing the negative ones to pass, like clouds in the sky. It is important to know that you cannot stop thoughts and feelings from entering your mind. The trick is not to dwell on them, but to let them pass. For example, it is all right to get angry, but it is not all right to allow your anger to control you. You can't help getting angry, it is part of the human condition, but acting out on your anger often leads to dire consequences. (In fact, it makes the problem of anger worse.)

The idea is to be aware of these walls and how they effect your performance in the game at hand and your long-term performance.

Once you have read through the articles a few times and have begun to absorb the lessons herein, you will see that it is better to have a stoic and quiet mind and spirit. How many times have you thought of games gone buy and been able to figure out what you did wrong? Is this the 20/20 of hindsight? No, it is a product of your inability to relax your mind in times of stress or anxiety. You can't help it, neither can I.

So what can you do? You must strive for a state the Samurai called fudoshin. This is a state of mind that cannot be disturbed buy confusion, doubt or fear. It is the detached mind. All you have to do is PRACTICE calming yourself when you play. You can't stop thoughts and fears from entering your mind, no more than you can stop clouds passing in the sky. The trick is not to hold onto them, but let them pass -- like clouds.

This will not work the first time you try it. Or the second time. It may take YEARS to attain what I call the "calmess under fire". I've been playing since 1984 and I have been practicing Shi-Tamajutsu for about ten of those years. I still don't have the ability to follow my own advice, as it were. However, when I am able, most players don't want to get into my sights.