Last weekend saw the release of an important CD in Kendo’s series of meditations, his “Zen Kyu Shin Do Meditation”. Kyu Shin Do is the philosophy which was created by the master Japanese judoka and mystic, sensei Kenshiro Abbe, and to commemorate the positive influence that this brilliant visionary has had on the life of the man behind Kendo Nagasaki’s mask, the meditation was released on the anniversary of Yogensha receiving his black belt first dan judo certificate from sensei Abbe.

Those who know Kendo’s history will recall that the man behind Kendo’s mask, Yogensha, was taught judo, kendo, and Zen meditation by sensei Abbe, as well as essential elements of the Kyu Shin Do philosophy, and they were all instrumental in helping young Yogensha excel in judo and become the channel for the spirit guide known as Kendo Nagasaki.

What is not so well-known is that in addition to Kyu Shin Do having led young Yogensha to the foregoing successes, it was also responsible for nothing less than radically transforming his whole life. At the time when he first met sensei Abbe, Yogensha had little direction in life and no understanding of his potential, and it was sensei Abbe’s mentoring in general and Kyu Shin Do in particular which enabled Yogensha to find discipline, focus, and direction, and thus make the very most of his life.

In making this meditation, Kendo is seeking to share the perspectives and practises which helped a young Yogensha find peace, focus, and strength, making such empowerment available to everyone who needs it. More than this, though – he is also fulfilling that most fundamental of Buddhist practises, of being a force for positivity in the society around him.

A further tenet of Buddhism is that, in helping others, you help yourself, and the empowerment which flows from experiencing Kendo’s Zen Kyu Shin Do Meditation should make it progressively easier to be a beacon of peace and strength yourself – an inspiration to others, and so positivity, benevolence, and empowerment will continue to spread further and wider.

This is what is meant when mention is made of The Peace at the Heart of the Warrior – the peace is that which you experience at the centre of the Zen circle, it is accessed through Kyu Shin Do, and you become a warrior in the cause of ever-expanding positivity and empowerment of everyone whom you touch in your life. Zen through Kyu Shin Do empowers you, and others too, through the ways in which they see how you absorb it, feel it, and live by it.