Theory and Practice
Theory and practice are two most complicated concepts for those who wants to sort something out in their path of development. To bring theory into experience, same as the practice, is a very difficult task, and only by accomplishing it can one understand both theory and practice.
Separation of actions into theory and practice is a very vague concept. It comes from an imperfect structure of education and inability of the brain to really cooperate with both theory and practice. For the mind separation into theory and practice is very conditionally as everything should be understood, be further learnt and basically be practice. True development happens through the mindful activity, so it doesn’t matter what activity you are performing. If you are analyzing someone else’s thoughts or information than that is already practice. If you practice but are not concentrated on what you do – that is not practice and it is not even theory.
We learnt to cheat ourselves with different formulations and the most dangerous part to use it as axiom. For example, an often appearing question is: can you theoretically learn a sequence through a book etc? No, but as you study if you will be holding your brain in real concentrated state, then you are growing concentration, and that is the most important thing.
Even if you are learning the sequence incorrectly but through this increase brain work – it is better than learning a correct sequence without training your brain. By the way, it is a typical mistake of many who practice with masters, being swayed away by exercises and forms.
If we truly want to develop then we need to accurately operate such concepts as theory and practice, we should learn how to get educated. For starters we need two things: ability to observe and discipline of actions. What type of means you will utilize to achieve that – either theory or practice – doesn’t really matter.
Then you should lessen the amount of actions that destroy us, i.e. to understand that for growth you should rid yourself from that which is destructive. This means managing nutrition, breathing, physical body and its geometry. For this we need knowledge, i.e. theory. Using theory, we immerse ourselves in the process of comprehension, and only then this becomes practice. And like so in everything.
Organization of own time should perfect us. Doesn’t matter what we do: study, work, simply move around or relax. Although you should understand that for a developing person a concept of relaxation shouldn’t exist. What do you want to relax from —the hardship of the developmental process? People take rest from actions that destroy their state, so they could then continue to destroy themselves.
A developing human should constantly tune oneself to development in order to be within the process. Only then a true concept of ‘practice’ will come, and not from two hours of doing some daily exercises. Exercise routines are an element of discipline, they teach us to employ ourselves for our own sake. However this employment is not the same as practice, as it only allows us to learn something and then repeat it. Practice starts when we are able to sink our consciousness into our energy and to take control over ourselves from the inside.
So when you are grabbing onto something, don’t think that you are even beginning doing something before the moment of total organization of self and involving oneself in dependency from development, and not from destruction. And here one shouldn’t hurry or wait. Should start doing not form something, but because of. The point of development is in changing oneself and not in reaching some external results that we support ourselves with trying to begin something.
Theory and practice are antagonist concepts, a sort of trap for those who thoughtlessly do something, trap for those who try to look smart in reality not understanding the process of doing. It’s necessary to free self from the homegrown ego that we created according to the laws unknown to us.
19 december 2011
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