Master Shi Heng Yi – 5 hindrances to self-mastery

INTRODUCTION

Master Shi Heng Yi – 5 hindrances to self-mastery | Shi Heng YI | TEDxVitosha

Meet Shaolin Master Shi Heng Yi in his serene talk about self-discovery. Learn why rainfall is an essential part of each flowering. And every small step – part of the journey to the highest peek. The hindrances along the way to self-discovery and personal growth are easy to overcome. Learn how from his talk. For more than 30 years, Master Shi Heng Yi has been studying and practicing the interaction between mind and body. His strength is the ability to smoothly combine this knowledge with physical exercises and to practice Martial art –Kung Fu and Qi Gong. He has an academic background but he prefers to live at the Shaolin Temple Europe, Monastery located in Otterberg, Germany. Since 2010 he has been taking care of the settlement and he personifies the sustainable development and spreading the Shaolin culture and philosophy. As a contemporary monk, Master Yi holds a smartphone in the folds of his clothes as he sees no contradiction between living together with ancient knowledge and high technology. “The universal law of being successful and happy at the same time means finding the balance”, says master Yi. And as for flying – yes, he really can do it! He only needs a stick and a little space. We expect him to fly-in and share about the Shaolin way at TEDxVitosha 2020. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx

CONTENTS

内容来自 Youtube 自动识别的字幕，可能有误。中文内容借助 DeepL Translator 和谷歌翻译进行加工，非常业余。

good morning!

it has been quite a privilege being able to grow up in two quite different ways of life
I was born in Germany
and at the same time had the chance to learn more about an ancient art coming from the Shaolin Temple
when you grow up in an Asian family it is quite common that
firstly you don't have you with your father
and secondly you either become medical doctor, engineer or lawyer elsewise your parents will be very unhappy

so having that set
I finished my academic education with two university degrees MBA
and quite a collection of different certificates and diplomas
everything that my parents thought be useful to have

but throughout this education
I felt something was missing
because I was learning about many different aspects
how the plan is working
what an atom is made out of
how political system is functioning
but somehow the subject was missing to learn something about myself

so with the age of four for the first time I got introduced into the monastic practices
and I was very happy to find out that the main part of these practices were dealing with the exploration and the discovery of yourself
there was mental training
development of behavior combined with the physical training
all aspects of what nowadays is known as shaolin kung fu
now despite the wishes of my parents to somehow go out in the market and try to manage the world
I decided to continue this monastic life and start learning more about myself first

now in the preparation for this talk
I was asked to share a few words on what is important in this lifetime
and see it's already challenging to put three decades into a single talk
but the picture I would like to show you
summarizes very much what I consider as being valuable in this lifetime

there is something about sharing with others
there is something about connection
there is the training and development of yourself
it is to enjoy your time even doing nothing
and one main aspect is to find a way and do the things you like to do

now when I received the invitation to have a talk at today's event
especially under the slogan high higher highest
something very particular came up on my mind
and a master from the Shaolin Temple once told me a story that I would like to share with you

a man was living close to a mountain
and every day he was thinking how would it be to climb that mountain and what would I see on the peak
so finally the day came
and the man went on the journey
arriving at the foot of the mountain he met the first traveller
so he asked how did you get up the mountain and what did you see from the top
and so the traveler shared his path and also the view that he had

but then the man was thinking
the way that this traveler described to me sounds very exhausting
I need to find another way to climb
so he continued to walk on the foot of the mountain until he met the next traveler
so once again he asked
how did you climb up that mountain and what did you see from the top
and so again the traveler shared his story

still not being determined on which direction and which way to go
the man asked 30 more people 30 more travelers
when he finished talking to all of them he finally made up his mind
now that so many people already shared with me their pasts and especially what they all saw from the top
I don't need to climb there anymore
it is very unfortunate this man never went on the journey

now to conclude this story
firstly each individual needs to find the most suitable way to climb that mountain
but secondly
there is information possible to be shared with words,
but it is impossible to share the experience of clarity when you are standing on that peak by yourself

to invest the right effort in climbing that peak
it's very much what all the Buddhist practices, the Shaolin training or any spiritual practice is about

clarity means you see more clear
when you see more clear, interrelations become more apparent
when you see more clear, there is no need to believe anyone or believe anything
seeing clear means you can distinguish for yourself
which is the proper direction to take and which decisions do I have to make
in order to make my goals or aspirations start to shape

now at today's talk you will have the chance to become inspired by quite a lot of different travelers
but in this particular talk I can't and I won't tell you which way to go
it's just that along your personal journey
you will encounter challenges
those challenges will either prevent you or some of them even stop you from moving on and climbing that mountain
in the shaolin temple we refer to them as the five hindrances

the five hindrances are describing different states of the mind
in those state of the mind it becomes very hard to see clearly and therefore engage in the right decisions

the first hindrance is called sensual desire

sensual desire arises in the moment when you are paying attention to something that is giving you a positive emotion
this positive emotion can originate from five gates of your body
seeing hearing smelling tasting or feeling

so in your mind you climb up that mountain
after one mile of walking you discover a beautiful restaurant surrounded by beautiful people
you smell delicious food and the great variety of beverages

when you follow that temptation you have already lost your track
when this temptation becomes so strong that you don't want to leave that place anymore
then the sensual desire has turned into an obsession
in both cases remaining at that place means you can't get clarity

the second hindrance ill-will describes a state of the mind that arises from negative emotions

in that state of the mind you have an aversion a rejection or simply dislike against either object a situation or can be even a person
to simplify
it means you are climbing the mountain and it starts to rain but you don't like rain
you discover the roads are bumpy but you don't like bumpy roads
in order to cross the river you need to swim in fact you don't like swimming

whatever it is that you dislike, it won't make it a pleasant journey, unless you learn to let go of this ill-will
it's more likely even that you won't continue that journey

the third hindrance originally translated as loss and torpor

loss means it's the heaviness of the body
torpor means is the dullness of the mind

it is characterized by sleepiness, non motivation, lack of energy and oftentimes can manifest itself in a state of depression

now simile used in Buddhism describes it as imprisonment
you find yourself locked in a Cell
it becomes very hard to make any type of mental or physical effort

so in order to continue your path there is only one option left
you need to find a way to get out from that hole, from that cell

now the fourth hindrance is called restlessness, it is the state of an unsettled mind

unsettled mind means your mind cannot settle
settle where
settle in the present moment

an unsettled mind either is worrying about the future
or traveling into the past and rejecting/judging about an event that happened into your past

a simile used here is
the monkey mind constantly jumping from one branch to another unable to stay for too long time at the present moment

the problem is there is no time to see clearly anymore

now the last of the five hindrances is called skeptical doubt
and it's very closely related to a state of mind which is based on indecisiveness

it is very easy in that state of mind getting lost in thoughts
can I do this
is this the right path
what will the others say
what if this what if that
the mind cannot synchronize with your own actions anymore

and the result is that you are getting disconnected with the goals and aspirations that once you have said to yourself
when the way is filled with too much doubts
more often you will stop instead of moving on

that we know the five hindrances now
what are we going to do about them

you need to align and structure your life in such a way to prevent those hindrances from arising
if you are not successful you need to use techniques in order to remove them
each of these hindrances is placing a dark cloud on your mind or on the way of your climb

simply remember one thing: just let it RAIN
this is a four-step method to help you removing those hindrances

the first step is Recognized in what state of the mind you are finding yourself in
afterwards learn to Accept, Acknowledge and Allow the situation or a person to be the way how it is, to be the way how they are
Investigate your emotional and mental state and ask questions
why did it come up
what is going to be the consequence if I remain in that state
and ultimately Non-identification means it is the practice
I am NOT the body
I am not the mind
I am not my emotion
it's just that I can see all these three aspects about me

all of our lifetimes
all of our lives are too unique

to copy the past from someone else
to bring meaning to your life
to bring value into your life

you need to learn and master yourself
and don't let the hindrances stop you

if any of you chooses to climb that path, to clarity
I will be very happy to meet you at the peak

Comments

﹀

Took some notes for myself and now sharing them for anyone who might find them valuable ??

5 Hindrances to Self-Mastery

1. Sensual desire (sight/touch/taste/smell/hearing) = Am I addicted?
2. Ill will / aversion = Am I feeling a negative emotion?
3. Dullness / heaviness = Am I unmotivated?
4. Restlessness = Is my mind jumping from though to thought?
5. Sceptical doubt = Am I indecisive?

Rain (is the solution)
Recognise which one you're experiencing
Accept that's what you're experiencing
Investigate why you're experiencing it
Non-identify with that experience: 'i am not the body, i am not the mind, i am not my emotion'

I wish the talk would go on for longer and if he could share stories of people overcoming each of them ??

﹀

One of the best ted talk. The talk itself is a meditation.

﹀

I should apply Shaolin Kung Fu in daily life.

﹀

Few people develop this part of their lives. Our society values a beautiful car over a beautiful mind. What's the point of a beautiful car if you are restless and unhappy?

﹀

1st hindrance is what whole western lifestyle based on. Bruce Wayne even eastern society is based around the same things, just in different ways. People seem to be the same all around, aside from cultures we all overthink, get addicted etc. otherwise they wouldn’t have came up with this philosophy.