Listening Before Acting:Balancing Body, Mind, and Spirit ..By Keith 🇺🇸

[HAEDONG]

Listening Before Acting: Balancing Body, Mind, and Spirit Through Sword Training

By Keith Fentress
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Topic 6: How do the body, mind, and spirit interact with one another during training?
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Topic 19: What have you learned about yourself through martial arts training, and how has it changed your perspective on life?
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At age 63, I have practiced martial arts for more than 40 years. In my younger years, I competed seriously in karate.

My interests later shifted toward aikido, where I was fortunate to be introduced to sword training.

When my children were young, our family began practicing taekwondo together.

That path eventually led me to Haedong Kumdo.

Each martial art came into my life at a different stage.

Karate appealed to my competitive nature and taught me discipline.

Aikido taught me that force does not always need to be met with greater force.

Sword training showed me how dangerous power can be when it is separated from awareness.

Haedong Kumdo is helping me bring these lessons together through the balance of body, mind, and spirit.

As I have grown older, I have faced health challenges and several injuries. Many of those injuries occurred because I did not listen to my body.

If I had to choose one of the most important lessons from my years of training, it would be this: listen to the body. Its signals are honest, even when pride makes us reluctant to hear them.

The body can be pushed through willpower, but often only for a short time and at a cost. Lasting progress requires us to observe the body and train it with care.

This does not mean stopping whenever training becomes uncomfortable.

Martial arts often requires discomfort. The challenge is learning the difference between the discomfort that comes with growth and the pain that warns of injury.

I continue to struggle with the line between determination and pride. Determination has helped me overcome many challenges.

However, it can become stubbornness when I stop paying attention. I learned this during the 2025 Belgian Haedong Kumdo seminar.

On the first day, we were warming up with jumping jacks when I felt something pull in my calf. Instead of stopping, I continued the exercise and trained for another couple of hours.

As the pain increased, I worried that I would be embarrassed by the injury. I also feared that I would not be able to participate fully in my first European seminar.

My pride spoke more loudly than my body.

Harrie Beckers spoke with me about the injury and showed me a modified jumping jack that placed less stress on my joints and muscles.

He also gave me a cream to apply to my calf. Later, I attended my first healing session with Grandmaster Kim.

He examined my energy flow and worked to relieve the pain. I returned to my hotel early, used ice, stretched gently, and rested.

Harrie adjusted the movement to fit my condition. Grandmaster Kim considered the flow of energy through the whole person.

Rest gave my body time to begin healing. Each response worked with my body instead of trying to overpower it.

This reflects something we often see in nature. A rigid branch may break in a storm, while a flexible branch bends and survives.

In aikido, yielding can redirect force more effectively than opposing it.

In sword training, too much tension restricts breathing and separates the sword from the body.

Changing how we respond is not weakness. It shows that we are paying attention and learning from what the body is telling us.
Because I treated the injury, I was able to participate the next day.

When the warmup began and everyone started doing jumping jacks, I did them again in the usual way.

It was ridiculous and prideful. Harrie called me out on it during our first break. He was right. I understood his advice, but I had not yet allowed it to change my actions.

Martial arts has taught me that knowing a lesson is not the same as living it.

What have I learned about myself through martial arts?

Listening to my body does not come naturally to me. I tend to push forward when I think others may be judging my performance.

I am learning that courage is not proved by ignoring pain. Sometimes courage means setting pride aside and accepting a limitation.

That choice may allow us to continue training for many more years.

I am trying to bring this awareness into the rest of my life. When I feel uncomfortable or overwhelmed, I try to pause. I clear my mind, breathe, and ask, ‘What is the most important thing to do now?’

The answer should take into account more than the task in front of me.

I also need to consider my condition, the people around me, and the likely result of my actions.

This simple practice is helping me become more patient with myself and others.

When I calm my mind and breathe, I can better recognize tension in my body. I also become more aware of the feelings of other people. Patience helps me listen. Listening helps me understand.

Recently, I was doing jumping jacks during another warmup when I felt a slight pull in the same calf.

This time, I stopped immediately and changed to a lower impact exercise. I continued the training session, and the mild discomfort disappeared within a few hours.

It was a small event, but it showed that the lesson from Belgium was finally becoming part of my actions.

This practice of listening has become central to my understanding of the body, mind, and spirit during sword training.

When the mind is distracted, it may fail to understand what the body is communicating. In Belgium, my embarrassment spoke more loudly than my injury.

My body suffered because my mind was occupied with pride and fear.

My true purpose for training was overshadowed by my desire to appear strong.

I have found that balance often begins by quieting the mind. Kimu helps me do this. Its movement and breathing help me relax and focus.

It also helps me notice how my body is moving. I am still learning the principles of Natural Movement, but I am beginning to understand that it is more than a way to perform a technique.

It teaches us to stop interfering with the body's ability to move as a whole.
My younger self would have struggled with this idea.

A sword is a three foot blade meant to be used with power and precision. It is easy to assume that it must be controlled through muscular strength.

However, when the mind tries to command every movement, the body becomes tense. If the spirit is also trying to prove something, the sword is no longer moving as part of the whole person.

A few years ago, an instructor told me that the main benefit of a paired sword exercise was learning to strike powerfully.

The school gave us wooden staffs so we could strike against each other without damaging our mokgums. I participated, but what I remember most was the harsh vibration from each collision.

It traveled down the staff and through my arms. The sensation was very unsettling.

In that exercise, power seemed to have become the purpose. We were trying to make the weapon obey our determination.

We were not learning to move naturally with the sword. To me, the mind was imposing its will without listening to the body or considering the spirit of the exercise.

When overpowering becomes the goal, aggression becomes both the method and the result.

Natural Movement does not mean the absence of power. It means using only the force that is needed. Power can come from balance and timing. It can also come from breathing and the movement of the whole body. Instead of forcing the sword with the arms, the practitioner moves from the center and allows the sword to follow. The technique can be powerful without feeling harsh.

I remember a saying from aikido that asks why we should fight with an opponent when we can dance with a partner. The idea has stayed with me. It does not mean that danger is ignored. It means that meeting opposition does not require us to become rigid or angry. With awareness and proper timing, conflict can become an interaction instead of a collision.

Stories about the founder of aikido, Morihei Ueshiba, describe him sensing an attacker's intention before the attack began.

He spoke of seeing a flash of light that showed the path of the blade. I do not know whether this was literal or spiritual.

It may have been his way of describing a very high level of awareness.

The part that matters to me is that a quiet mind can notice what a tense mind misses.

An experienced martial artist may recognize an attack through a shift of weight or a change in breathing. Tension in the shoulders can also reveal what is coming.

This awareness may feel like sensing intention before movement begins. If the mind is already occupied by fear or anger, these signs can easily be missed.

I believe there is a similar lesson in Jinyoung Ssangkum Ryu Haedong Kumdo.

Technique
gives movement its structure.

Philosophy
guides how we use what we learn.

Healing
reminds us that martial arts should preserve life as well as teach us how to defend it.

Kimu and Natural Movement help bring these principles into our actual training.

The body gives us grounding and honest information.

The mind gives us awareness.

The spirit gives us purpose.
Spirit asks why we train and what kind of person our training is creating.

Are we training with sincerity and respect? Or are we being controlled by fear, frustration, anger, pride, or the desire to impress?

Strong technique alone does not create balance.

Ki, as I understand it today, is the connection among the body, mind, and spirit. It joins intention with breath and movement.

When the body is grounded,
the mind is clear,
and the spirit is sincere,
Ki can flow through the whole action.

In sword training,
it can feel as though energy rises from the earth and passes through the body into the sword.

Nothing within us is working against anything else.

For me, the purpose of balancing body, mind, and spirit is learning to listen before acting. This balance helps us respond to what is actually happening instead of reacting from ego or fear.

In training, it creates movement that is natural and sustainable.

In daily life, it can lead to better decisions and greater patience with others.

The sword can certainly be used to cause harm. Yet the deeper gift of Haedong Kumdo is not simply learning to wield a weapon. The sword becomes a mirror.

It reveals tension in the body and confusion in the mind. It also forces us to examine our intentions. By studying the sword, we study ourselves.

At my next seminar, I cannot guarantee that I will avoid jumping jacks.

I can guarantee that I will pay attention while doing them. More importantly, I will continue learning to listen to my body and mind. I will also listen to my teachers, my surroundings, and the people around me.

After more than 40 years, martial arts continues to teach me that wisdom is not measured by how much force we can use or how much pain we can tolerate.

Wisdom is shown by seeing clearly and setting aside ego. It is choosing the right action at the right time.

When body, mind, and spirit are balanced, the sword becomes more than a weapon. It becomes a way to understand ourselves and live with greater awareness.

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■ Grandmaster’s Commentary on Keith Fentress’s Essay

Keith’s essay is a sincere reflection drawn from more than forty years of martial arts experience. His successes, mistakes, and injuries demonstrate how the body, mind, and spirit influence one another.

His calf injury at the 2025 Belgian seminar is especially meaningful. Although his body warned him and others offered guidance, pride caused him to repeat the same movement. He later realized that understanding a lesson is not the same as living it.

A teaching becomes genuine only when it changes our actions.

When Keith felt the same warning during another warm-up, he stopped and chose a safer exercise. He did not abandon training; he adapted his method. This reflects Follow the Energy—observing the actual condition and responding without unnecessary resistance.

His distinction between determination and pride is also important. Listening to the body does not mean avoiding difficulty. It means recognizing the difference between the discomfort of growth and the pain that warns of injury.

This principle also applies to sword training. Excessive tension restricts breathing and separates the sword from the body. Natural Movement allows power to arise from balance, timing, breathing, and whole-body movement.

The sword follows the body.
The body follows the mind.
The mind follows nature.

Keith’s description of the sword as a mirror is especially meaningful. It reveals tension in the body, confusion in the mind, and hidden intentions within the spirit. By observing the sword, we observe ourselves.

Keith’s essay shows that wisdom is not measured by force or endurance, but by setting aside the ego and choosing the proper response at the proper time.

I hope he approaches his upcoming examination with a calm mind, natural breathing, and trust in his training.

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Grandmaster Kim Jeong Seong
Founder, Jinyoung Ssangkum Ryu
President, United World Haedong Kumdo Federation

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■ Keith Fentress의 논문에 대한 총재 논평

Keith의 논문은 40년이 넘는 무술 경험에서 나온 진솔한 성찰이다. 그는 성공과 실수, 부상과 행동의 변화를 통해 몸과 마음, 정신이 어떻게 연결되어 있는지를 보여준다. 이러한 솔직함은 그의 글에 깊이와 신뢰성을 더한다.

그가 수련한 가라테, 합기도, 태권도, 검 수련과 해동검도는 각각 규율, 힘의 전환, 책임과 조화라는 서로 다른 가르침을 주었다. 여러 무술을 수련했다는 사실보다 더욱 중요한 것은, 그가 각각의 가르침을 연결하여 자신의 삶에 적용하는 능력을 키워 가고 있다는 점이다.

2025년 벨기에 해동검도 세미나에서 겪은 종아리 부상은 특히 의미가 깊다. 몸이 이미 경고를 보내고 있었고 Harrie Beckers와 나 역시 더 안전한 방법을 알려주었지만, 자존심과 부끄러움 때문에 그는 같은 동작을 다시 반복하였다. Keith는 가르침을 머리로 이해하는 것과 실제 삶에서 실천하는 것은 같지 않다는 사실을 솔직하게 인정한다.

가르침은 우리의 행동을 변화시킬 때 비로소 진정한 것이 된다.

이후 다른 준비운동에서 같은 경고를 느꼈을 때, Keith는 즉시 멈추고 충격이 적은 운동을 선택하였다. 그는 수련을 포기한 것이 아니라, 몸을 거스르지 않고 계속할 수 있도록 방법을 바꾼 것이다. 이것이 바로 Follow the Energy의 본질이다. 실제 상태를 관찰하고 불필요한 저항 없이 그에 맞게 대응하는 것이다. 때로는 나아가고, 때로는 물러나며, 때로는 방향을 바꾸어야 한다. 올바른 대응은 자존심이나 습관이 아니라 깨어 있는 의식이 결정해야 한다.

결단력과 자존심을 구별한 점도 중요하다. 결단력은 어려움을 극복하도록 돕지만, 의식이 따르지 않으면 고집으로 변할 수 있다. 몸의 소리를 듣는다는 것은 수련이 힘들 때마다 멈춘다는 의미가 아니다. 성장 과정에서 오는 불편함과 부상을 경고하는 통증을 구별하는 것이다.

단단한 나뭇가지와 유연한 나뭇가지를 비교한 내용은 이 원리를 분명하게 보여준다. 단단한 가지는 폭풍 속에서 부러질 수 있지만, 유연한 가지는 휘어지면서 살아남는다. 유연함은 약함이 아니라 성숙한 강함이다.

이 원리는 검 수련에도 그대로 적용된다. 지나친 긴장은 호흡을 방해하고 검을 몸으로부터 분리한다. 자연스러운 움직임은 힘을 없애는 것이 아니라, 균형과 타이밍, 호흡과 조화로운 움직임을 통해 힘이 나오도록 한다.

검은 몸을 따른다.
몸은 마음을 따른다.
마음은 자연을 따른다.

마음이 고요해지면 몸의 소리를 들을 수 있으며, 긴장과 두려움, 자존심에 가려진 것을 알아차릴 수 있다. 기무와 고른 호흡은 몸을 이완시키고 호흡을 안정시키며 마음을 본래의 상태로 되돌림으로써 이러한 의식을 돕는다.

Keith는 몸과 마음, 정신이 서로 구별되면서도 연결되어 있다는 사실을 이해하고 있다.

몸은 중심과 정직한 정보를 제공한다.
마음은 알아차림과 분별력을 제공한다.
정신은 방향과 목적을 제공한다.

이 세 가지는 끊임없이 서로 영향을 주고받는다. 두려움이나 자존심은 마음이 몸의 경고를 무시하게 할 수 있다. 긴장은 호흡과 의식을 제한하며, 목적이 혼란스러워지면 수련은 다른 사람을 보호하고 돕기 위한 것이 아니라 자신의 자아를 위한 것으로 변할 수 있다.

따라서 술기만으로 무예의 전체를 나타낼 수는 없다. 진영쌍검류 해동검도에서는 술기와 철학, 의술이 하나로 연결되어야 한다. 술기는 움직임의 구조를 만들고, 철학은 그 방향을 제시하며, 의술은 무예의 가장 높은 목적이 생명을 보호하고 회복시키는 데 있음을 일깨워 준다.

검은 거울이 되어 몸의 긴장과 마음의 혼란, 정신 속에 숨겨진 의도를 드러낸다. 검을 관찰하는 것은 곧 우리 자신을 관찰하는 것이다.

40년이 넘는 수련을 통해 Keith는 중요한 사실을 깨달았다. 지혜는 얼마나 강한 힘을 사용하거나 얼마나 많은 고통을 견디는가로 측정되지 않는다. 지혜는 현실을 분명히 바라보고 자아를 내려놓으며, 적절한 순간에 올바른 대응을 선택하는 능력으로 나타난다.

Listening Before Acting, 즉 행동하기 전에 먼저 듣는다는 제목은 이 논문의 핵심이자 성숙한 수련의 중요한 원리를 나타낸다. 움직이기 전에 먼저 알아차려야 한다. 자신의 의지를 강요하기 전에 상황을 이해해야 하며, 다른 사람을 지도하기 전에 먼저 자기 안에 균형을 세워야 한다.

Keith는 이제 무예가 판단과 인간관계, 건강과 일상생활에 어떻게 영향을 주어야 하는지를 이해하기 시작하였다. 아는 것에서 실천하는 것으로 나아가는 것이 진정한 수련의 길이다.

이번 심사에서 Keith가 이 논문에 담긴 자기 인식과 진정성, 책임감을 충분히 보여주기를 바란다. 자신을 증명하려 하기보다 고요한 마음과 자연스러운 호흡으로, 지금까지 쌓아 온 수련을 믿고 심사에 임하기를 바란다.

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총재 김정성
진영쌍검류 창시자
사단법인 세계해동검도연합회 총재