Martial arts movies can be marvellous to watch in TV shows and movies. Even if you're a fully paid up couch potato there's something wonderful about heroes (and heroines) flying through the air, landing on one toe and then seeing off a band of criminals with a few carefully executed moves of precision and grace.

I was thinking about this the other evening as I read the script for our new 'Martial Arts Heightened Awareness' download. There was one particular paragraph: 'The true artist allows something greater than themselves to move through them. It is this connection, even merging, with a sense of force and knowledge greater than themselves that determines perfect action.'

I think that's why movies with martial arts sequences, even if they are obviously enhanced by the use of computers, can be so deeply compelling. We are attracted to and long for that connection.

Pride comes before a fall

And then I remembered a story about a young man who considered himself very accomplished at aikido. He practiced regularly, was supremely fit and fast and passed the various tests used to assess his abilities with flying colours.

One day, he was at the dojo when he saw an old man practicing in the corner of the room. The old man must've been in his 80s, with a wrinkled face and gnarled hands. The young man was curious and so sauntered over to start a conversation.

It turned out that the old man had only been studying aikido for about 4 years. The young man, although only in his late 20s, had over 10 years training behind him and adopted a slightly superior tone, explaining this technique and that move. The old man listened patiently and before long the young man was not only explaining moves but also demonstrating them and encouraging the old man to join him in a practice session.

This evolved into an energetic competition and to the young man's surprise; his older partner wasn't just holding his own but actually throwing the young man with apparent ease.

Two hours later the young man crawled into the showers and saw his older partner as lively as he had been at the beginning of the practice. "I don't believe it," said the young man. "When I saw how old you were I just assumed I'd be better than you."

"I know," said the old man. "Why do you think I won?"

The fact is we all have that inner connection inside ourselves and extraordinary abilities that we can reach down to and draw on. Don't let the face in the mirror fool you.