Zachiah Murray
Zachiah Murray Sensei ⋙ Shodan (1st degree black belt)
Zachiah Murray began Aikido training in 2001. Zachiah has been an instructor in the ASC Young People’s classes since 2015. They have been sincerely influenced by the deeply open, heart-felt, and expansive teachings of Motomichi Anno Sensei and the wonderful, rich heart-mind of their chief instructor Linda Holiday Sensei. Zachiah’s approach to Aikido and to teaching young people is one of remembering one’s basic goodness, both on the mat and in the world. When external conditions are disappointing or confusing, coming back to one’s basic goodness helps one keep their balance and respond to life rather than react.
Aikido is great for kids because it is an opportunity for them to realize their basic goodness and learn to live from the inside out. They learn to respond to an “attack,” an unskillful attempt to connect, by staying soft and close, and not allowing themselves or the other person to get hurt. Zachiah says, “When we remember our basic goodness and connection with all of Life, we naturally practice Ban Yu Ai Go—love and protection for all beings. This is the seed I’d like to plant and nourish in the heart of every child.”
Zachiah is a minister in the Kriya Yoga lineage and serves with their teacher, Yogacharya Ellen Grace O’ Brian, at the Center for Spiritual Enlightenment. Zachiah is also ordained in the Order of Interbeing of the Thich Nhat Hanh Plum Village tradition.