> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.zenmedicine.co/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Adopt the Posture. - URL: https://www.zenmedicine.co/adopt-the-posture/ - Published: 2025-08-08T14:17:51.000Z - Updated: 2025-08-08T14:17:51.000Z - Description: Embodying existential orientations with the internal martial arts. - Author: Eric Brown ## Obsessing over the idea of ‘postures’ recently… - *The eager medical student furiously taking notes as they watch the lead surgeon perform a complex task.* - *The devoted monk in a deep reverential bow to his teacher.* - *The abusive drunk, asleep on the couch, empty beer bottle dangerously close to falling out of his hand as the TV glows in the background.* - *The yogi on their rubber runner mat, saluting the sun and the dawning of the light of day in a deep downward dog, the first red rays of sunlight glimmering off toned muscle.* These conjure a clear image in your mind. These are *postures*. Complete mind-body orientations. **They are an attitude; a relationship to life. A mindset carved in flesh. An existential mode made manifest.** - *Do you want to be a leader?* - *Do you want to be happy?* - *Do you want to be a loving partner?* - *Do you want to be an apprentice under masters?* **ADOPT THE POSTURE.** Step into the total mind-body orientation—the *asana*—the *posture* of that role, that identity, that expectation, that living relationship. What is the posture of a disciple of Zen? A successful AI tech entrepreneur? A wild and untamed writer? A passionate lover? A good person? Conjure the image. The attitude expressed through action over time. Notice where it differs from your current reality. Then… **ADOPT THE POSTURE.** Take total ownership and step into the existential orientation that is written in embodied language. In yoga philosophy and practice, these postures are called *asanas*. The definition of an asana is a *comfortable, steady position*. Yes, at the beginning, the posture is uncomfortable. You have to work out bio-psycho-spiritual knots in the body-mind complex before you settle comfortably into them. Often, you have to increase both your *flexibility* and your *strength* to unlock a new *asana*. Deep lesson in there for those paying attention. Eventually, you learn to access the posture, it becomes comfortable, and easy to hold over time. The once-foreign posture is now a *natural expression of who you are.* You say you want to be a student—‘always in beginner's mind’—but how teachable are you? Do you listen when someone gives you feedback? Do you pay close attention when someone is demonstrating a technique to you? Do you *lean in* to the lessons? Do you revel in mistakes as part of the mastery process? You say you want to be a leader—but are you someone worthy of being followed? Do you take proactive steps to carve order out of chaos? Are you a living example of ‘do what I say not what I do’ and somehow expect respect to just show up in front of you? **ADOPT. THE. POSTURE.** This is the subtle yet profound wisdom found within the internal martial arts—chi gong, tai chi, kung fu, yoga. They are *postures* and *forms*. The [8 Brocades](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UpN3AcXLSSk&ref=zenmedicine.co) of the Shaolin. Warrior pose in yoga. You can learn more about the warrior spirit from holding warrior pose for 5 minutes straight than you can from most books. Discipline, courage, self-mastery, integrity, balance, purpose, devotion. It’s all there, written in the ancient embodied teaching of Warrior pose. Want to become more powerful? To move force in the world? This is not a theory; this is a practice. Train the [Shaolin elementary forms](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kNNPYeBmmXk&ref=zenmedicine.co), and *learn how to generate power* in your body-mind. *What do you want?* *Who do you want to become?* *How do you want to show up in the world?* **Adopt the posture. Train the form. Embody the archetype. Ingrain it into your nervous system so deeply it becomes a natural Way of Being.** Don’t talk about it, *be about it*. EB.