#255 The Way

After watching some episodes of current Disney hit The Mandalorian, the phrase used by the Mandalorians “this is the way” stuck with me. In Martial Arts “do” or “tao” often describes the path or the way, this is evident in words/phrases like Bushido or the Tao of Jeet Kun Do. While “the path” is meant to be reflective of self discovery based on principles, it can easily be confused as a concrete and already defined way that one should follow. This differentiation was understood by the likes of Bruce Lee who preached abstinence of dogmatic confines such as Karate or Tae Kwon Do which limited a fighter to one discipline and one train of thought. In order to break this mold of thinking, one must clarify the difference between what is fundamentally regarded as “the way” such as improving one’s discipline daily and the interpretation that one must rise early to improve discipline. While there may be truth in the last statement they are fundamentally different as one is open to individuality and one is concrete. As Yoda would say, “The path, for yourself you must find.” or something to that affect 🙂