“The wind howls but the mountain remains still.” Japanese proverb
A warrior knows stubbornness. The Japanese word for stubborn is ganko (頑固). When I was younger, my mom always used to say to me, “Ganbatte” (頑張って) when I had a test or a lot of homework. When a person embarks on any type of worthwhile pursuit, well-wishers often say, “Ganbatte!” which means “Do your best.” Ganko and ganbatte share the same root kanji (頑) and so we can infer that doing one’s best has its root in stubbornness. To accomplish any meaningful task, a warrior needs to be firm in their conviction and resolute in their actions or in other words they need to be more than a little bit “stubborn.” When the odds are stacked up against us and we are backed into a corner, the only thing which will help us see things through until the end is some sort of inner drive that won’t allow us to quit. That inner drive or resolute firmness is stubbornness and it is supposed to be the basis for warrior spirit or konjo (根性). The warrior’s spirit is a mixture of perseverance and stubbornness combined with a little bit of craziness. After all a person must be a little bit irrational to keep going after everyone else has quit. Wars are won upon many battles. Some of those battles are won and some lost, but a person can only win the war if they are stubborn enough to see it through until its end. A warrior has a spirit which never gives into adversity and never gives up because they have the stubbornness to be still when the wind howls. Thus, when things get tough, a warrior knows stubbornness.
Today’s goal: Gambatte! Do your best and don’t let anything stop you from achieving your goal.