Paulo has been a tennis instructor in Italy for 25 years and is an international ATP coach. He has also been a Heartfulness practitioner for 30 years. His passions include physical activity in nature, writing and rock music.

Paolo-lezzelle-150x150-1.jpg

Paulo Lezzelle

<h4></h4>
 PAOLO LEZZELLE draws simple parallels between Heartfulness and sport, in this article
 focusing primarily on authenticity and creativity.
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<h2 class="has-text-align-center has-text-color" style="color: #b46d33">
 What I call “mine”
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 “Education is that which remains, if one has forgotten everything he
 learned at school.” quoted by Albert Einstein


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<h4 class="has-text-color" style="color: #95b22c">
 A story
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 In my personal opinion John McEnroe has been the greatest tennis genius of all
 time, superior even to Roger Federer. McEnroe didn’t play better tennis than
 Federer, which is quite impossible, but his game was so original,
 unpredictable, creative and extraordinarily talented, that no one was ever
 able to imitate him. In contrast, in the course of time many Federer imitators
 have appeared on the scene, some of them very highly ranked, while Federer
 remained the most successful and elegant player. Nonetheless, John, that
 quick-tempered brat from New York, was simply unique.



 After a fast escalation to become the top seed in tennis, and after keeping
 that position for some years, John got a little lost in the meanderings of
 life and went down the ladder. His friend and epic rival, Bjorn Borg, had quit
 the scene at quite a young age and in the meantime true war machines were
 emerging, like Ivan Lendl, who based their strength on extremely strict
 programs for athletic training, diet, concentration, and care for all aspects
 of the game. All this was relatively new for the ’80s. In sport in general,
 there was still a lot of space for a level of lightness, for a kind of poetry,
 and for moral values to be upheld. The world of sport was full of human
 stories that maybe today would sound ridiculous. Since those days everything
 has slowly degraded, but this is another subject.



 When our friend John tried to take back the throne, he was unprepared for the
 new wave of merciless competitors. He realized that he was short of the mark
 in aspects of the game where others now surpassed him, and this included the
 planning of yearly tournaments. So he made a resolution to follow the way of
 hard training: gym workouts, diet, strict life conduct, and all that the task
 required.



 He climbed back, but not as much as he wished. Not to number one. He was still
 one of the best players in the world, but he was unable to pass a certain
 threshold. Things being as they were, he realized that the harsh regime wasn’t
 meant for him and he decided to follow his instinct. So he went back to
 hamburgers, fish and chips with beer, and a schedule of tournaments chosen
 among the cities of the world he enjoyed. He restarted to play his beloved
 guitar. He also restarted to quarrel with umpires and opponents whenever he
 felt like it. Last, but not least, as part of the show, some racquets were
 smashed on the ground when he lost points. Within a few months he was back on
 top.


Ladies and gentlemen, John McEnroe!

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<h4 class="has-text-color" style="color: #95b22c">
 Love what you do
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 The world of sport is replete with such stories. After all, all the themes are
 a hint to one thing: You can study as much as you wish, you can be committed,
 you can train hard and cover all your shirts with sweat, but there will always
 be two parameters that matter more than anything else:


Number one, enjoy and love what you do.


 Number two, whatever you learn has to become intimately yours, so much
 interiorized and mastered that you can even dare to break the classic
 technical and tactical standards of action and display something that belongs
 to you and you alone. Only then will you have the right to call what you know
 and do “mine.”



 I’m lucky to be friends with an athletics trainer who has trained top tennis
 players and football teams like Milan and Juventus. One day I asked him what
 it is above all that determines change and improvement in a specific
 performance. I’ve asked the same question to many good trainers, but his
 answer pleased me the most.


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<h5 class="has-text-align-center has-text-color" style="color: #95b22c">
 Whatever you learn has to become intimately yours, 
 so much interiorized and mastered that you can even dare to break the
 classic technical and tactical standards of action and display something
 that belongs to you and you alone.
</h5>

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 In short, he explained that even though it may seem that an exhausting amount
 of repetition will give good results, it is not really so. Why? Because if the
 very change we are struggling for is not known as “good and pleasant” within
 our personal neurological map, it will not work. As a result, in a difficult
 moment of a match (or trial), we will return to old patterns because they are
 the ones we know better. The old style gives us a sense of confidence,
 notwithstanding the fact that we know it isn’t the most effective.



 In other words, Ivan Lendl’s harsh training, while giving results, will not
 work if it is not heartily welcomed and enjoyed. It was good for him but not
 for others. Rather, it may be better to do less, possibly in a more creative
 way. We must always take into account the charge of stress and frustration
 that any kind of activity brings with it. It could even suppress the talent of
 a youth who is by nature more delicate and less bold than others, who may
 require longer to emerge, with more emotional experience in the sporting
 field.


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<h4>
 What is mine?
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 This topic of what is “mine” in sport brings us straight to another field,
 where “I” and “mine” have a fundamental value, but not an egotistic value –
 the field of spirituality. If meditating with great fervor was enough, if
 following a master blindly was enough, if participating in important events
 was enough, we could all have been masters a long time ago! Obviously it’s not
 like that, and it shall never be like that. Unfortunately, we need to repeat
 the very same things before we understand. We need to go off course, to boast
 uselessly, and to get confused. We also need to deceive ourselves into
 believing that all the efforts we have made – often with admirable tenacity –
 were not so great, because perhaps they were not lived in true joy, passion
 and love.



 In a sense it’s like saying, “Well, I did a lot, but it was not my way, it was
 not really me.” I think this is why the great Masters are always able to
 surprise us and puzzle us. In their behavior there is never a dogmatic, static
 truth, but whatever they do they can absolutely call it “mine.”


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Heartfulness sport - part 3

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<h4>
 <spanundefined
 >PAOLO LEZZELLE draws simple parallels
 between the Heartfulness system and sport, in this article focusing
 primarily on how we master time.
 
</h4>

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<h3 style="text-align: center">
 Time, Timing, Timelessness
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 <spanundefined
 >I wish to speak about one of my favorite topics in the sporting field,
 which is a “sense of time” or, more appropriately, timing. I’ve always
 been fascinated by it since I was a child watching sports on TV. Of
 course, I could not understand it in detail way back then, but I sensed
 that any kind of athletic action was strongly determined by the capacity
 of the athlete to catch the right moment to do something. Be it running,
 jumping, or hitting a ball, it seemed to me that the basic dynamics was
 the same, namely, to be there in the right way at the right moment. I
 didn’t know it, but this is what timing is in its essence.


 <spanundefined
 >Later on, as a tennis trainer, I could give a sound meaning to these
 observations, and come to understand the importance of this aspect of
 sport, which in my opinion is hidden behind more apparent aspects.
 Needless to say, I’m deeply grateful to some extraordinary mentors whom
 I’ve been so lucky to meet.


 <spanundefined
 >Oddly enough, the topic of timing is very much related to the topic of
 strength. Assuming that there are different types of strength (I won’t go
 into detail), it may appear that specific physical acts require a lot of
 strength to be performed successfully, which implies muscular mass. But it
 is not so. Most efforts, even the hardest, are much easier if performed
 with synchronicity among body segments. This means that the kinetic chains
 performing the act function without interruption, with smoothness and at
 the right time (kinetic chains are interlinked muscular groups).


 <spanundefined
 >This synchronicity is mainly responsible for strength or energy.
 Therefore, the right timing is the factor that reduces effort and enhances
 the endeavor of the whole performance.


 <spanundefined
 >Then magic can happen! The more we become familiar with this mechanism,
 the more we seem to enter a dimension where time is sort of suspended.
 Slowly we realize that it is no more a question of timing, and becomes
 instead a kind of timeless matter.


 <spanundefined
 >We could propose an equation:
 


 <spanundefined style="color: #ff0000"
 >More timing = more feeling of timelessness.


 <spanundefined
 >That is to say, less and less effort. Personally, I find it
 fantastic!


 <spanundefined
 >Any sportsperson knows that when they find themselves out of tune, out of
 synchrony, for any reason, they start making mistakes. At that point there
 is only one thing to do: slow down. Slowing down allows us to regain the
 necessary detachment to restart afresh. There is no other way. When you
 are fighting against time (as in biology, so in sport) you will never
 win!

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 <spanundefined
 >This question of time, in all its permutations, is a theme innate to life
 itself. It appears obvious. Life can often appear to be incessant
 confusion, a continuous weaving of so many things, often out of our
 control. Viewed from this perspective, sport is an invaluable
 teacher.


 <spanundefined
 >There is a time to study, a time to ponder, a time to be idle, a time to
 have fun, etc. Timing is so precious, even in apparently small things; in
 conversation for instance, there is a time to speak and a time to listen.
 Good radio DJs are expert in this. Even in cooking, time is essential.
 Needless to say that in music timing is everything!


 <spanundefined
 >So also in life, as in sport, we should not apply too much strength to
 reach a result. On the contrary we should do the right things in the right
 way at the right time. The formula is the same.


 <spanundefined
 >The right predisposition to timing is also acquired through the practice
 of meditation. It helps us find an easy flow of things (the famous “here
 and now” of atavic memory), the functional juxtaposition of the many
 elements of chaos, where we can perceive more clearly the best solution to
 follow with the least effort. A good practice always promotes good timing.
 If we are touched by grace and this daily timing takes us by the hand to
 lead us gently into the dimension of timelessness, then it all gets a
 lighter and wonderful tinge.

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<h5 style="text-align: center">
 <spanundefined style="color: #ff0000"
 >The right predisposition to timing is also 
 acquired through the practice of meditation. 
 It helps us find an easy flow of things 
 (the famous “here and now” of atavic memory), 
 the functional juxtaposition of the many elements of chaos, 
 where we can perceive more clearly 
 the best solution to follow with the least effort.
</h5>

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 <img
 decoding="async"
 alt="Heartfulness-sport-part2"
 class="lazyload w-100"
 src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/Heartfulness_sport_part2_3_13ddea10ed.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-10T09:42:57.144Z"
 />

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 <spanundefined
 >After many years of practice in both sport and meditation, I can say that
 a sporting practitioner, who wants to reach a certain level of performance
 without implementing a meditation discipline, will find insurmountable
 barriers sooner or later. His or her work will look like a computer
 painting – beautiful, excellent perhaps, but alas without a soul.


 <spanundefined
 >Time and space are interlinked. Spiritual masters tell us this all the
 time, Einstein explained it to us, and toddlers prove it to us while they
 innocently play lost in their joyful present. And novice Yoga
 practitioners can also get lost in meditation, finding themselves in an
 undefined elsewhere, still keeping a certain state of presence. We can’t
 explain what it was, but it was beyond space and time. From time to
 timing, and going beyond into timelessness.

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<h4 style="text-align: center">
 Article by
 <spanundefined
 >PAOLO LEZZELLE
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Heartfulness sport – part 2

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<h3 style="text-align: center">
 BALANCE AND PASSION
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<h4>
 PAOLO LEZZELLE draws simple parallels
 between the Heartfulness system and sport in this article focusing primarily
 on balance, relaxation, feeling, joy and passion.
</h4>
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 I wish to draw some simple parallels between aspects of the Heartfulness
 practices and sport, although to really do justice to this would require a
 long time and extensive research, because each reflection seems to attract
 another one. So the themes presented in this series are approached in general
 terms, since the peculiarities of any single sport are innumerable. The
 implicit invitation to sports people of all kinds and levels is to start these
 practices and dive deeper into Heartfulness to find the hidden pearls.


 The goal of Yoga is the condition of balance. It is difficult to achieve
 because it is not a defined, fixed, and constant condition that we can
 acquire. It rather seems to be something which constantly eludes us. The more
 we try to make it a concrete thing, the more it slips away from us. It’s one
 of the innumerable mysteries of the spiritual quest. Balance exists, or rather
 it can exist in anything, but it does not exist by itself, per se. Wonderful!


 Similarly, in sport, balance is critical. Here too it is the goal par
 excellence. It is made up of many things, a lot of qualities put together;
 while in another way, it’s made up of nothing at all! To feel that we are in
 balance means to feel that this “nothing” is so perfect in itself that we are
 in need of nothing else.


 Total balance, in sport and in the spiritual context, is therefore very
 difficult to preserve in time, because it is a light and intangible condition.


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 alt="heartfulness-sport"
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 Many of us have already experienced the surprise and gratitude that result
 from extraordinary experiences in meditation – sometimes in the form of very
 subtle spirit, other times in the form of a true opening to higher knowledge,
 to where our limit permits. But alas! We are also familiar with the inability
 to keep those conditions for any period of time, for many reasons. A sad waste
 indeed.


 In sport it is the same. Be it a fast- or long-duration sport, it’s the
 condition of focus and full involvement that makes the difference. We try to
 allow this condition to take hold of us and let it act by itself, on our
 behalf, so to say. In sport, as in music, it is called being “in the flow,”
 letting what is beautiful in us manifest freely.


 If meditation is a constant education in higher perception, practice in sport
 is the preparation to be ready in any sense for competition, the true testing
 ground of our attainment.


 The Heartfulness method speaks of technique, perseverance and sincere
 commitment, but most of all it speaks of feelings. Were our feelings not our
 major guides, it would be an empty container, and sooner or later it would
 become a sterile, boring routine.


 Putting together technique and sensitive introspection is not a simple job.
 Some people find it easier to rely on one approach, others prefer the other
 way. If we think about the evolution of the innumerable training methods of
 the last twenty years, we find that they seem to swing between two opposite
 extremes – technical improvement on one side and incentive to inner perception
 on the other. In the middle is a bit of everything.


 A high-level athlete can draw what they need in the moment, relying on pure
 instinct as well as on specific acquired capacities. Throughout this process,
 a relaxed condition is an important prerequisite.


 All sports need a basal condition of relaxation. By this, I don’t mean
 comfortable and passive inactivity, either mental or physical, for example,
 when we are sunbathing. On the contrary, it’s being in a clear and tranquil
 state of presence to whatever happens inside and around us. It is not by
 chance that in Heartfulness we have a technique of relaxation to be performed
 before meditation.

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<h5 style="text-align: center">
 Most sports require the right mix of strength,
 endurance, reactivity, fluency, and much more.
 These are needed both in practice and competition.
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 Most sports require the right mix of strength, endurance, reactivity, fluency,
 and much more. These are needed both in practice and competition. Furthermore,
 we need the Queenly ability – the ability to change. I would say that this is
 an art more than an ability. Getting out of our comfort zone, finding new
 motivation to train at the next level, looking for different strategies in
 competition … few sportspeople have a natural talent for these assets, though
 they can learn with serious dedication.


 We need to change to improve. Yes, but it is easier said than done!
 Unfortunately, we know how much our habits and complexities keep us stagnating
 in the same trends, despite our efforts. In the sporting field, this often
 happens because we make the mistake of seeking change only through hard work
 and extreme abnegation.


 Work is essential, of course, but the way is another: There is no real change
 without joy and passion. Even at the level of the nervous system, it’s only
 pleasure that brings forth the acceptance of new modalities, not fatigue.
 Undesired efforts and exhausting training sessions can give good results in
 the short term (though with an extensive amount of energy that sooner or later
 will present the bill), but it’s only passion that makes barriers appear
 exciting and makes the long road look like a joyful and enriching journey.


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<h5 style="text-align: center">
 For a practitioner committed
 to the spiritual quest,
 and for athletes who give
 themselves totally to the sport,
 to be in the condition of balance
 is like piercing effortlessly
 through a hurdle-ridden maze,
 always pointing higher despite results.
</h5>

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 All this and much more comes under the umbrella of balance. To perceive it as
 a strength having its own life within us, guiding us out into the world, is
 true manna. For a practitioner committed to the spiritual quest, and for
 athletes who give themselves totally to the sport, to be in the condition of
 balance is like piercing effortlessly through a hurdle-ridden maze, always
 pointing higher despite results.

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<h4 style="text-align: center">Article by PAOLO LEZZELLE</h4>

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Heartfulness sport - part 1

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<h4>PAULO LEZZELLE looks at the noble value sport has as a human endeavor, and how we can all benefit from the quest for wellbeing, aspiration and continuous improvement.</h4>
Since time immemorial, through the expression of our bodies, humans have sought a way to transcend the mere physical and athletic aspects in an effort to perceive their inner resources. This quest for higher levels of self-knowledge has always been there, more or less conscious at different degrees.
The Olympic Games, born from the ancient Greek philosophy, are just an example, maybe the highest in the symbolic sense. The same could be said about the noble tradition of the martial arts of the Far East, or the relatively recent tradition of sports connected to the conquest of mountains.
In any kind of sport, there has certainly always been a latent aspiration to draw the best out of ourselves, and thus reach a sort of realization. In this context, it seems that the word “expression” goes hand in hand with the word “aspiration.” We could say that sport is that very activity which allows us to express ourselves in a full, powerful, and genuine way, the prime impulse being aspiration.
Through the body, we go inside into an abstract dimension. And through this we emerge out again to improve our performance in the physical field. It is a perpetual work of osmosis, where the planes compenetrate and dialogue to find the balance of all forces. And this is but one of the beauties of sport.
Sport is a living thing – more than living! Despite the level of performance, be it a weekend amateur or a professional, sport awakens vital and beneficial energies in every sense: physically, mentally, and emotionally. There is likely no other activity in the material plane that can produce such a sense of well-being as sport can do. And this can be experienced in any sport, the choices being very vast.
Together with music, sport is a show that gives true and beautiful emotions. Empathizing with high-level athletes is easy, because it is absolutely clear that what comes to our perception is much more than a mere run or a goal or a winning shot. Real admiration is then aroused in us, an admiration for intangible qualities that now come true in concrete form, either seen on the screen or live. How we would like to feel the same in our own way!
In essence, sport is like a mirror, and is a very powerful instrument of growth which can open up to a learning process that goes on and on and on. Sport is one of the few situations where we cannot bluff, because the results speak for themselves! It is just an inexorable truth and it applies to any level concerned. Sport compels us to take stock of what we are and humbly come to terms with it. It’s all there: What is your potential? How can you express your potential? What are your shortcomings? What motivates you to persevere?
To go beyond limits doesn’t necessarily mean breaking records. Not at all! That is not the real goal of all efforts. Anybody can exceed a limit, not the one pre-fixed by some standards or by a specimen, but their own, whatever that is. That’s where the real challenge lies, and it’s a wonderful, exciting, intriguing, funny, and evolutionary challenge. That’s where sport acquires its noble value.
When we witness a great performance, where the outcome is determined by such noble qualities more than physical prowess, then it becomes clear from where it all starts – the heart. Be it a team or single sport, it is always the same energy which really makes the difference. Courage, strength, perseverance, trust, introspection, generosity, group spirit, selflessness – all of these qualities come from the heart.
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<h4 style="text-align: center;">Article by PAULO LEZZELLE</h4>
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Paulo Lezzelle

Paulo has been a tennis instructor in Italy for 25 years and is an international ATP coach. He has also been a Heartfulness practitioner for 30 years. His passions include physical activity in nature, writing and rock music.

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