In this EightOS activation program we will focus on the notion of resistance. We will study this concept using the body and interactive physical exercises.

Together, we will pose and explore these questions: What is resistance? How can we understand it physically? What is the best strategy to resist and to resist resistance? How can we dissolve resistance? How can we scale our understanding of resistance onto social groups and into politics?

In order to make sure that we don’t just do a demonstration but, rather, the full immersion into the practice, this activation program will consist of the 9 hour physical training sessions (2 hours each) that will be spread over 3 weeks (16 March to 3 April 2020). They will culminate in a 6-hour day session (5 April) where we will put everything together. There will also be a follow-up 2-hour session (12 April), which we will use to estimate how well we have integrated the new practices into our day-to-day behavior.

The Methodology

In this session we will explore the different strategies of dissolving resistance as applied to both physical and social bodies.

We will use the techniques derived from Systema martial art, Noguchi Taiso and various body practics, as well as the epidemiology studies in network science in order to first identify, and then have a hands-on embodied experience of the different strategies to resist, to dissolve resistance, to deal with resistance and to be more resistant in the most efficient way.

In order to understand those principles we will use interactive physical exercises to work with each other’s bodies and observe the different strategies to impact and to resist. We will also use training knives in order to add both precision and stress into our training and to observe how these same principles that we study can be applied on every physical scale: from the smallest point of contact to a large-scale impact (both physically and psychologically).

We will see how we can use variability, confluence and escalation/deescalation strategies to dissolve the resistance and to reduce its impact. We will also explore how resistance strategies can be augmented to be more effective.

Finally, we will look into how all those principles can be applied outside of the physical context, in the social, professional, and political realms, using the network theory and epidemiology studies. We will focus especially on the propagation of disease through networks and how networks can self-organize in order to protect themselves against the spread of a virus (or misinformation / ideology).

We will also explore the aesthetic implications of this approach and experiment how this new information that we will have practiced together can impact our movement.

The Training Program

In order to make the most out of the sessions we propose a several day program that will help go deeper into the practice. It will be comprised of 9 sessions spread of 3 weeks ( 2-hour physical training sessions) culminating in a day-long 6-hour session where we will integrate the practical and theoretical knowledge. We will also host a follow-up feedback session one week after in order to see how well the new information was integrated.

It is highly recommended to join the full program, but you can also drop in and out for the short sessions.

Day 1 — 17/03 (Tue) — 2 hours
Physical training session. How to give an impact and bypass the resistance. How to resist more effectively. We will mainly use our hands and bodies.

Day 2 — 19/03 (Thu) — 2 hours
Physical training session. Impact and resistance, circumventing the resistance, controlling the structure of your partner, manipulating the intent, provoking tension.

Day 3 — 21/03 (Sat) — 2 hours
Physical training session. Using the knife as a training device to increase the precision and to introduce an element of stress. Modular bodies.

Day 4 — 24/03 (Tue) — 2 hours
Physical training session + theory. Networks. Different types of networked constellations. How vulnerable network structures may be depending on their structure (highly connected vs modular). How to immunize a group. How to spread a virus.

Day 5 — 26/03 (Thu) — 2 hours
Physical training session + theory. Networks. Continuing the work from Day 4, exploring the strategies of networked resistance and dissemination strategies using movement and physical impulses.

Day 6 — 28/03 (Sat) — 2 hours
Physical training session — combining the body structuring work and resistance circumvention techniques with the group / network practice.

Day 7 — 31/03 (Tue) — 2 hours
Physical training session. Combining the work with impact and resistance, circumventing resistance, using the hands and the body. Body structure control.

Day 8 — 2/04 (Thu) — 2 hours
Physical training session. Tension-release as a recovery strategy, rhythmical variability, polysingularity of attention.

Day 9 — 3/04 (Fri) — 2 hours
Physical training session. Tension-release, propagation of impulse, bypassing resistance, building up (escalation), building down (deescalation). Various strategies, opponent control. Network metaphor.

The exact time for the sessions above will be decided based on the participants’ availability. We might host several sessions a day if needed. The exact sequence may change. It’s recommended to visit all the 9 days not to miss the important elements of the practice.

Day 10 — 5/04 (Sun) — 6 hours
All-day-long theory + practice session
13:00 to 19:00
Physical training session — in this 6 hour session open ONLY to the people who participated in at least 5 of the 9 individual single sessions, we will combine together all the new elements that we’ve experienced and explored together. We will focus on the aesthetic aspect of this implementation. What kind of movement comes up, what sort of dynamics emerges. How it can be perceived from the outside. The last hour will be open to external observers or to the participants who took only a few sessions and couldn’t join the day-long session.

Day 11 — 12/04 (Sun) – 2 hours
Follow up session – transfer package
We will discuss the different ethical implications of the approach and share the stories of how the behavioral patterns we’ve explored during this program could be implemented in our day-to-day practice.