Be without fear in the face of your enemies.
Be brave and upright that god may love thee.
Speak the truth, always, even if it leads to your death.
Safeguard the helpless and do no wrong.
That is your oath.
(Kingdom of Heaven)
Samurai
'Samurai' means to serve.
It does not mean
warrior - it has
nothing to do with combat.
A samurai is a person who lives for more than himself.
How many people do this in today's culture?
How many martial artists serve anyone else?
In contemporary society it has become fashionable to serve only yourself.
Service
The notion of 'service' denotes a function.
Are we simply functionaries?
If it seems sad to reduce a person to a utility, consider: is our
worth to be found in our actions
Perhaps we are what
we do and our contribution is not so much
the role we play but the
quality of our actions.
Responsibility
Service involves taking care of somebody, being
responsible for their wellbeing.
A martial arts
teacher
takes responsibility for his students and the
art.
He serves both.
His students must be given every opportunity to fulfil their potential,
regardless of ability.
The art must be preserved,
developed
and passed-on.
A martial arts teacher must put his own interests second.
Students serve one another by being considerate and helpful.
They serve the school by attending and by speaking well of it to others or
promoting it.
And they serve the art by excelling.
Giving
If you give rather than take, you may find that life changes.
You no longer want to be
served, but to
serve.
You measure your life by the contribution you make to others, by the quality
of your service.
Be ashamed to die until you have won some
victory for humanity.
(Horace Mann)
Horace Mann was not talking about success, trophies or medals, but real things: caring, love, understanding, consideration and inspiration.
Treatment
How we treat others says an awful lot about the sort of person we are.
Humanity has a history of
abhorrent
behaviour towards everything.
We have killed, damaged and neglected without discrimination.
Has there ever been a single year in recorded human history without war?
The
planet,
animals
and people suffer.
Hope
We also have the potential for such great
compassion.
There is still time for us to change, to atone.
Page created 12 April 2002