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So often, it can feel like human incarnation has us in its giant, crushing grip. If we give in to feelings of being overwhelmed by circumstance, we can easily collapse under the pressure. Hemingway defined heroism as: “grace under pressure.” To achieve that grace, we must begin with a thorough acceptance of what the present moment offers. Human incarnation always involves some dark and oppressive elements. We incarnated into mortal, gravity-bound bodies subject to imperfections and ills. Matter, even the latest high-tech gadgets, often resist our intentions. You may have scarcities of key resources like energy, money, time, companionship, and health. The human collective can be like a drunken, careening cyclops ready to engulf us in its havoc. As James Joyce wrote, “History is the nightmare from which I am trying to awaken.” The pressure part of the formula is not hard to find, nor is it hard to find people who are grotesquely distorted by the pressure.
To achieve grace under pressure we need the stance of what I call “existential impeccability.” We flow through the moment with calm, alert, efficient precision, focused on the path, rather than distant goals.
The Everyday I Ching suggests, “Go calmly about your daily routine. Occupy yourself with ordinary, everyday matters. Do not consider any task as being beneath you. You cannot be too thorough in your attention to detail. Know your limitations. Do not overextend yourself or try to take on more than you are truly capable of.” These simple phrases contain priceless wisdom which I explore in Mechanical Resistance Matrix. Pathfinding/Day Mapping is a very brief document that provides a practical method for navigating gracefully through the pressures of the day. See also: Antidote to Worry and the documents/videos in the Warrior Stance part of the category section of this site.
This an auspicious time to act with grace under pressure.
