One of my friends in Hong Kong just got back from safari in Tanzania. He had got a rare sighting of a family of cheetahs on a hunting trip. The mother cheetah was teaching the two cubs how to hunt. In their initial attempts, the cubs carelessly wondered through the grass, and then picked pace as they saw a small gazelle beginning to run away. They then ran, and with their tiny bodies tried to jump on top of the gazelle. Each time they would try, they would fall and the gazelle would begin to run further away. They would try the same, or similar technique, many times, slowly learning that they had to use their paws to get at the legs of the gazelle. After watching the frustrated attempts of the cubs, the mother thought it fit to show them how to do it. Picking a bigger gazelle as prey, the cheetah tip-toed through the grass silently and elegantly, positioning itself a comfortable distance away from the gazelle. All of a sudden, the chase began. The gazelle was quick, and extremely agile, perhaps more so than the cheetah. The cheetah used its paws expertly to catch the gazelles legs, and eventually after two or three such attempts, the cheetah went straight for the neck, holding it there for some time, and within moments, the gazelle was motionless. The mother cheetah had completed the feat within a couple of minutes, whereas the cubs were not successful after spending much longer. What was the difference? Their size, their experience both certainly counted for a lot. But ultimately it was their predatorial technique and efficiency. There was almost not a single redundant movement from the mother cheetah, whereas the cubs would run when not necessary, and use so much of their energy by trying to jump on the gazelle when it didn’t get them much closer to making the kill.
Arigato Gosaimasu
In martial arts, power is certainly important, but one needs to loosen up, not keep their body excessively tense, otherwise one will tire easily. Our Muay Thai master a few weeks back in the ring explained the importance of exerting energy at the point of contact alone. When the penny dropped on this tip, hits were cleaner, the impact was greater, and most of all, we could last much longer. It was very clear seeing the experienced practitioners, that they were extremely relaxed, ready to move when required, very conscious, and the only moment they would really exert themselves was during impact. They preserved their energies this way and were efficient; if they weren’t they would not fare so well. Once in a meeting in Japan, I was trying to study the dynamics. There was a person at the head of the table, leading the discussions and directing contributions, etc; clearly the leader. Next to him were two people both very quiet, and didn’t make any contribution at all throughout the meeting. The remainder of the table would engage when requested or needed. At the end, the person on the right of the person who was leading, turned out to be most senior. His only contributions were to signal the beginning and the end of the meeting saying ‘arigato gosaimsu,’ or thank you. He was the CEO of the business, and was very successful, even amidst the difficulties in Japan of late. He was clearly aware of what was happening, and needed to know this also, but he only spoke a few words at the beginning and the end. He was aware, and saved his energy.
Inquire & serve
The same principle was in operation with the mother cheetah, the experienced Muay Thai practitioner, and the successful Japanese CEO – they knew the technique and were conscious of when to apply their energy and when to preserve it. This point should not be taken in isolation however, just pertaining to preserving and exerting; the success of its application is intricately connected with techniques specific to the respective field. If we are new to a field, time needs to be invested in learning from the best in that field. They know when to exert their energies and when to preserve them in that particular context. The principle of inquiry from the master, and consequently following or serving; which was being followed in some form by the cubs’ learning from the mother, the masters guidance in the Thai boxing, and am sure Japanese business man learning from other great examples he may have seen, is not something new. Nor is it a coincidence that it continually seems to works. According to the Vedic philosophy, it is an eternal principle, and ‘the’ advocated method of learning, which is so powerful that Lord Krishna, even though He is God Himself, accepted a guru Sandipani Muni, His spiritual master to learn the spiritual science from through submissive enquiry and the rendering of devotional service. If we tune in to this principle of inquiry and service or application in what we’re doing, we will undoubtedly meet with success.
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