I have also had problems with injury to my arm and shoulder from practicing
shakuhachi. I have found that regular massage with a repetitive motion
specialist is the best (sports injuryies and musicians). This person can
also give some exercises to be done every 15 to 20 minutes of practice.
After all shakuhachi is about awareness...following the zen tradition,
Chikudo....awareness of the body as well as the sound. All of the bodily
conditions of tightness really do ultimately affect the sound, therefore
awareness of the body for itself and the sound is most important...the sound
is really coming from one's whole body and not just the mouth or the lungs.
Is that not so? And this source of sound can be definitely heard...its
shallowness or depth is audible. There is always something more to be aware
of, something more to hear. Fine tuned awareness is most important. My
best. Mary Lu Brandwein
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : Wed Jan 31 2001 - 12:46:37 PST