Shuhari - the secret of magic
Easy to do is such an attractive term in the world of magic. Certainly for the hobbyist, who wants to perform for friends and family. But have you never dreamt of being master in an art? Being so good at something, that just how you do it is entertaining in itself.
I’ll be honest I didn’t really believe a skill demonstration would be entertaining or appear magical. Until I meant a true master of cards, in particular second, centre and bottom deals. He literally blew me away with what he was doing. He did it so well, even though it was demonstration and no attempt at actually fooling me as to what he was doing was made, the skill itself was elevated to magic.
I’ve since found the Japanese term, Shuhari which I’ve brutally interpreted to mean mastery of a craft until it is magical. The direct translation is beautiful and describes the three stages of learning.
· shu (守) "protect", "obey"—traditional wisdom—learning fundamentals, techniques, heuristics, proverbs
· ha (破) "detach", "digress"—breaking with tradition—detachment from the illusions of self
· ri (離) "leave", "separate"—transcendence—there are no techniques or proverbs, all moves are natural, becoming one with spirit alone without clinging to forms; transcending the physical
In magic terms:
- In shu, we repeat the sleight or move ourselves so that our bodies absorb the actions as taught. We remain faithful to these moves with no deviation.
- In the next stage of ha, once we have disciplined ourselves to perform the sleights and movements, we make innovations. In this process the taught actions may be broken and discarded.
- Finally, in ri, we completely depart from the teachings, open the door to creative technique, and arrive in a place where we act in accordance with what our heart/mind desires, unhindered while not overstepping laws.
Surely that sounds so much more fun and exciting than ‘easy to do’. Certainly for the hobbyist. Magic isn’t about performing off the shelf tricks, but achieving Shuhari.
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