“By protecting others, you save yourself.” - Kambei Shimada, Seven Samurai
The best martial artist strives to be an unsung hero. In Japanese, an “unsung hero” is ennoshitanochikaramochi (縁の下の力持ち) and is considered to be someone who does a “thankless task.” A person who is capable of being an unsung hero has put in the work to suppress their ego and developed themselves as a human being. To engage in unsung hero behavior is to work for the benefit of others even if it means sacrificing oneself. The place that we are all trying to get to in our training is mushin (無心) or “nothingness.” One way to get there is that we have to learn to abandon ourselves. To abandon oneself is to be able to move with kouzennoki (浩然の氣) which means to be “unencumbered” physically, mentally, and spiritually. To be able to shed our attachments in the spiritual world, we must first shed them in the physical world. One way to do this is to work selflessly for the benefit of others and that is possibly why the term samurai (侍) means “one who serves.” One of the main tenets of a warrior’s life is to act without the desire for reward. In Buddhism, “to let go of any desire for reward or fear of punishment” is called mukudoku (無功徳). Selfishness, on a certain level, is a primal survival mechanism and thus, if we don’t take of ourselves, we won’t survive. However, this is not the Paleolithic era, and we don’t live in caves. The modern martial artist is supposed to be a sophisticatedly evolved human being who uses martial arts training to develop themselves. To effectively work for the benefit of others, we have to develop a high level of sensitivity. In class, one way to develop this sensitivity is in terms of attacking suki or “weak points.” In martial arts training, we train ourselves to become “good at finding weak points” or suki wo mitsukeru noga jozu desu (隙を見つけるのが上手です). Being able to find weak points enable us to suki wo mitsukeru (隙を見つける) or “to seize an opportunity” and gain the victory. The idea is that stronger opponents have weak points which are harder to find. To effectively find them requires a certain level of sensitivity and self-development. To capitalize upon an opening which is fleeting in the moment also requires a large amount of self-sacrifice. We cannot jump into the void if we hold our lives near and dear. Wars are not won by grand gestures but by the little and oftentimes intangible things which aren’t readily apparent to the uninitiated. The best martial artists do things that no one will ever see to ensure that others have a good time, are cared for, and are safe even if it means sacrificing their own good time, comfort, or safety. Quietly working for the benefit of others is the highest level in martial arts training and that is why the best martial artist strives to be the unsung hero.
Today’s goal: Do something for someone without letting them know.