In the old days, the Asians (not just Japanese: the idea stems from Chinese thought) had a concept of "the emotional mind" (the subconscious mind) which they thought resided in the heart. If you think about it, in very emotional moments, it is the heart which most notably seems to react, so it was (at that time) a practical observation and guess to talk about the "kokoro" when talking about the actions of the subconscious mind. It's worth noting that when a knowledgeable Asian says someone "has a good heart", they're talking about goodness of controlling spirit that someone has.
The special powers associated with many Asian arts are the powers of the Ki and the powers of the Kokyu-related force. Those powers cannot be controlled by the conscious mind, but must be mediated by the subconscious mind, the "kokoro", idiomatically. The subconscious mind must be developed and strengthened in order to be able to implement and control the Ki-Kokyu skills. "Meditation" is a catchall term for developing the rapport with the subconscious, but the type of mental practices associated with Ki and Kokyu tend to be the practice of manifesting those skills and then gradually conditioning them. 2 cents.
In the old days, the Asians (not just Japanese: the idea stems from Chinese thought) had a concept of "the emotional mind" (the subconscious mind) which they thought resided in the heart. If you think about it, in very emotional moments, it is the heart which most notably seems to react, so it was (at that time) a practical observation and guess to talk about the "kokoro" when talking about the actions of the subconscious mind. It's worth noting that when a knowledgeable Asian says someone "has a good heart", they're talking about goodness of controlling spirit that someone has.
The special powers associated with many Asian arts are the powers of the Ki and the powers of the Kokyu-related force. Those powers cannot be controlled by the conscious mind, but must be mediated by the subconscious mind, the "kokoro", idiomatically. The subconscious mind must be developed and strengthened in order to be able to implement and control the Ki-Kokyu skills. "Meditation" is a catchall term for developing the rapport with the subconscious, but the type of mental practices associated with Ki and Kokyu tend to be the practice of manifesting those skills and then gradually conditioning them. 2 cents.
Interesting. Do you have any good references (English or Japanese. Chinese is not among my skillsets.)?