Your set of values should serve you, not hinder you

In the paragraph titled “Our Values / The Samurai Code of Honour” of my book called Our Spiritual Being Above and Beyond our Human Condition, I state that our values guide our actions; so was it for the samurai who was guided by the Bushido. The following enumerates a few of the values (or lines of conduct) inspired by the great seventeenth century Japanese sword fighter Miyamoto Musachi who won all the sixty or more life-and-death duels he fought during the first part of his life.  According to prevailing modern values, many will find it hard to “agree” with these values. Yet, no matter what our opinion may be, they served him well as a warrior of his time.

Note:     The Japanese sword is, to this day, the symbol of the seemingly contradictory purpose of this weapon which, in the hands of the samurai, served both to PROTECT and SAVE the lives of the gentry as well as that of humble people, while it also served to KILL scoundrels and the enemies of the Daimyo.

1. Value: Accept everything just the way it is.

Question: How many people do you know (and perhaps yourself as well) who refuse to accept the circumstances of life as they unfold? Why me? / That’s not right! / How could he/she have done that? Human beings try to avoid pain at all costs. Should we not look for the lesson life is trying to teach us instead, so as to relentlessly become better human beings? Is it not through hardship that the greatest lessons are taught to us?

2. Value: Seek nothing outside of yourself.

Question: Too often, instead of developing our inner self, do we not tend to rely on the judgment and opinions of others or again, on the current values in society? Should we not rely on what some might call “instinct,” i.e., our own inner wisdom or is it fear that prevents us from doing so?

3. Value: Labelling events or things as GOOD or BAD is a mental construct.

Note: Our spiritual Being Above and Beyond our Human Condition deals extensively with the topic of GOOD and BAD.  As an example, here is a quote: “Positive” and “negative” are neither “good” nor “bad”. It depends on the interpretation given to it by you and the members of the society you live in.

Question: Do we not readily label some people, events, or actions as good or bad as if to feel secure and safe once we have categorized them in this manner? Don’t we also proceed that way, in many ways, to “simplify” our life and appease our soul? If it is intrinsically bad to kill, why then do numerous people feel justified when killing an animal in order to ensure their survival either to save their lives or to feed a hungry stomach? The same question could be asked about killing an invader or an attacker threatening one’s life. Is killing good when it serves to ensure our survival and bad if we do it for other motives? What is your interpretation?

CONCLUSION – I am grateful for your visit to my site on spirituality. Your thoughts and reactions to what precedes would be greatly appreciated… good or bad (pun intended). God speed!