Community Concepts (September 2024)

09/01/2024

Dojo Philosophy for Everyday Life

Cuong Nhu’s philosophies fall into two categories. The first is called the “Fives” since many of them are in groups of five. They address particular life and training challenges like “when to use martial arts to protect yourself,” or “how to build meaningful relationships,” or “how to transition from a teacher to a leader.” The other category is our eight codes of ethics. These are a blueprint for training or, “what can I expect from a lifetime of Cuong Nhu?”

The 7th code of ethics sounds like a straightforward list of good things that people can be. Of course these are worthy goals! All four, though, stand in opposition to the norms of a plugged in, social media and consumerism driven world.

What is a Pure life? Virginal brides leap to mind, but think of it more like pure water. It means a life without pollutants, debris, or manipulation. A pure life is achieved by clarifying your values and not allowing them to bend, break, or be diluted. If I value time spent with my family but I allow myself to be distracted by work or an app on a phone, it’s like pouring dirt into the water. Purity is mostly about letting your whole self be present to the things that you value without trying to multitask or otherwise split your attention.

Simple gets the most push back. We always feel like our lives are uniquely complicated and there’s no way to calm it all down. Think about the purity concept. Take away those elements that dilute what you really value, and gather the time you send into more discrete blocks so that you can be more present. You’ll find that it all looks much more manageable. Because of our digital connectedness, new “priorities” can leap into our minds on another person’s timeline. If we let our mind skip to every request, every post, and every sensational story, then of course we’ll feel like every task is too much. We’re hardly letting ourselves work on it! Block out the time and really commit yourself entirely to each thing that you value. That is Simplicity.

We write “sincerely” at the end of letters because it means that what we’re saying is true and we can be trusted. Just telling the truth is only the beginning of sincerity, though. It’s the purity and simplicity of knowing that we can speak directly to a thing without having to filter through the untruths, agendas, and manipulations that swirl around us. To earn this distinction, people must see us do what we say over and over instead of hearing a lot of talk that bears no fruit and frees us from any responsibility.

Nobility separated from hereditary class is about a higher (or broader) level. A noble aspiration means not just wanting something, but wanting something that we’d all agree is impressive and serves a greater good. Seen as a whole, we can see that the seventh code of ethics is a stairway. We purify and simplify our lives so that our work and our time is effective and in line with our values. We own these actions out loud with sincerity. Then we’re ready to take the ultimate step to expand that purity, simplicity, and sincerity to encompass and uplift others. This is the pure, simple, sincere, and noble life!