This theme was inspired, in part, by an article by Maty Ezraty in the latest Yoga Journal. Writing about the feet in Warrior 3, she cues "Ground deeply down into the big-toe mound, the outer edge of the left foot, and the inner heel."  Seems simple enough.  What struck me was her reference to the "outer edge" of the foot, rather than the outer "corners" of the foot.  

I was trained at Kripalu to use a "4 point" model of the foot, compared to a car resting evenly on all four tires.  In my own experience, I found a "3 point" model more accessible: heel, big toe base, little toe base.  That's what I've been teaching for years.  But it's never felt totally settled to me - I knew there was more to discover about the foot foundation.

Something clicked when I read Maty Ezraty's cue of "outer edge".  When I stand with awareness not just of points, but an entire edge of fleshy contact, suddenly the pose feels totally different.  I feel more relaxed, more effortlessly grounded, more stable.  It feels more aligned with reality.  After all, the foot isn't just a set of points.

I find it fascinating that a shift in language (and by extension, one's mental model of the body) can have such a immediate affect on physical experience.  This is the whole premise of Body Mapping, an extension of the Alexander technique that uses anatomy education to change movement patterns.  It's also a strong argument for yoga teachers to cultivate a rich vocabulary and employ it with care.  

I intend to write more on the subject of yoga linguistics in the future.

Now I think this is a great idea and very admirable.  A local teacher named Susan Ginsberg is doing a similar thing - albeit on a more modest scale - here on the North Shore.  What spurred this blog post is Karan's name for her project: the Urban Zen Initiative.

Now I put on my cranky old man hat.  Zen is a school of Buddhism, and the word basically means "meditation".  By what stretch of the imagination is Donna Karan's undertaking - noble as it may be - a "Zen initiative"?   Does it involve Buddhists?  No, it's mostly yoga teachers.  Does it emphasize seated meditation and direct insight into the nature of things?  No. As far as I can tell, the only connection to Zen is the aesthetic of the website.

This misuse of the word "Zen" is just one drop in a sea of linguistic misappropriation currently washing through our consumer culture.  Seeking to add a tint of spiritual appeal to their products, a sense of calm and Eastern cool, marketers add the word Zen to bath soap, mp3 players, kitchen appliances, spa treatments, etc.   I have a profound respect for Zen practice, and part of me takes offense at the ignorant misuse of the term.  I doubt Donna Karan would think to name her non-Christian project the "Urban Christ Initiative".

Perhaps it all began with "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance", an insightful book only tangentially related to real Zen practice.  Now publishers shamelessly use the template of "Zen and the Art of" for any conceivable undertaking: whittling, information security, competitive eating.

But from the perspective of Zen philosophy, it is in some ways very fitting that the word "Zen" should be so distorted.  Zen is very suspicious of language, the way words seem to be transparently meaningful yet in fact contain irreducible uncertainty (predating the postmodern interrogations of Derrida et al by many centuries).  Zen warns against getting trapped in the idea of "being a Zen practitioner", which builds the ego and leads to complacency.  So perhaps it is for the best that the word "Zen" be thoroughly drained of exotic meaning, so we can get on with the experience of Zen.

PS - For a true example of a Zen initiative, consider the National Buddhist Prison Sangha.

PPS - A good use of the word Zen: describing Obama.