June Practice Resources: Exploring the Power of the ITP Kata

June 2021 | Exploring the Power of the ITP Kata

The ITP Kata is foundational to our practice. As part of the 9 commitments, we are connected as a community as we engage in this moving meditation. It is often quoted how the ITP Kata embodies the definition of practice itself...because it is the path upon which one walks.

Another way to consider the life-affirming possibilities the Kata offers is through the wise words of author Annie Dillard: "How we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives. What we do with this hour, and that one, is what we are doing." Each of us practices something every day, whether it is enjoying a cup of coffee each morning, scrolling through a Facebook feed or eating the same meal at the same time each day. When we include the Kata in our daily routine, we are gifting ourselves 40 minutes of transformative potential, a grounded and centered space from which to launch from to move through our day.

The pandemic has caused suffering, not just physically, but emotionally in our isolation from so many of our beloved community members. It is comforting and empowering to consider that when we perform the various elements to the Kata, we are enjoying its incredible health benefits while connecting with fellow ITP practitioners around the world in a shared sequence of movements.

This month's newsletter features a number of resources to explore the power within our ITP Kata practice. We hope the tools below offer ways to deepen your connection to the Kata in its entirety, the physical movements and the imaging and meditation segments. For so many of us that have not been able to enjoy being guided through the Kata this past year, you'll also enjoy a video from ITP president and Mastery Teacher, Pam Kramer, leading us through the Kata in its entirety. As always, thank you for your wholehearted participation in this community. Your support and enthusiasm help to shape and evolve this practice in profound ways.

Wishing you blessings of good health and peace!

The Kata can be practiced in a group or alone. Group practice gathers power from sharing rhythm and intentionality with others. But even when practicing in solitude, you can be reasonably sure that other people are going through the same sequence of movements and experiences, thus creating a community, whether visible or invisible.

- George Leonard and Michael Murphy

The Life We Are Given

LISTEN

POWER VISIONING PROCESS: DEEP RELAXATION & TRANSFORMATIONAL IMAGING

In this 13-minute audio journey, ITP Mastery teacher Roger Marsh guides you through a process of deep relaxation and transformational imaging for three affirmations. Please have three personal affirmations ready to use for this process. Of course you may include the group affirmation ‘My entire being is balanced, vital, and healthy’ as one of them if you choose. This process can help you optimize your transformational imaging practice during that portion of the ITP Kata. It is best engaged while lying down and with headphones on. Enjoy!

Listen to the Recording

READ

A Great Return on Your Investment; An excerpt from The Life We Are Given

Our Kata ends with meditation, but in a fundamental sense it is not finished then. Several years of ITP classes have taught us that this set of exercises often produces an afterglow. The ongoing effects of repeated affirmations, the pleasure of exercised muscles and ligaments, the multiple benefits of imagery and meditation last longer than the Kata itself.

Read the Article

WATCH

Guided Kata Experience led by ITPI President and teacher, Pam Kramer

Enjoy a 45-minute guided Kata experience and reconnect with your personal practice and the larger community.

Watch the Video

PRACTICE

Transformational Imaging: Opening Your Heart to Others

from The Life We Are Given

by George Leonard and Michael Murphy

In The Life We Are Given, it offers a few sample exercises for the transformational imaging portion of the Kata. Below we share an example of imaging focused on opening your heart to others.

Our experience has shown that by somehow grounding every image in the marvelous physical entity we call the body, we significantly increase the effectiveness of the exercise. We also recommend that you take a moment after your imaging exercise to lie still in an attitude of acceptance, thankfulness and alignment with God or the universe.

Imaging exercise: To help open your heart to others, to be a more loving person.

Bring your left hand to your heart center and place your right hand over the left. Ask yourself, “What would it be like if I were a more loving person?”

Begin to create an image of yourself as open-hearted and loving, a person who experiences deep compassion for others. Imagine meeting a person with whom you have been less than compassionate and loving. Bring an image of this person to mind.

Create a vivid mental and emotional experience of opening your heart to them. Tune in to the present-tense feelings in your body as you do so.

How does your body feel when you approach someone in this open-hearted manner? What are the particular qualities of the feeling? Explore different images.

Try taking a deep breath and physically opening your arms wide, expanding your rib cage, making your heart available to others. Stay with it.

Pick a vision that brings a thrill to your body, a feeling of the many possibilities that open up when you open your heart to someone previously unloved. Expand this feeling to encompass all of humanity.

JOIN OUR ONLINE WEEKLY KATA

JOIN US FOR A WEEKLY KATA

Thursdays, 4:30 - 5:45 pm PDT

Online Event via Zoom

Please join us in practicing the ITP Kata together each Thursday, 4:30pm Pacific Time. This online offering, led by ITP teachers via Zoom, is extended to members of our community to provide connection, support and sustenance. Following the guided Kata session, you will have the opportunity to connect with the group for a 15-minute period of personal sharing.

Learn More