The wise man adapts himself to the circumstances. Confucius The warrior has a set of standards which he lives by and his code of honor has tenets that he is not willing to part with or break. His code of honor is an absolute in his life. Knowing this, you may think that the warrior’s code of honor doesn’t allow him to adapt to the circumstances, as Confucius teaches, but in reality it does allow the warrior to adapt himself to the circumstances as needed. Warrior honor is not black and white. It is much more complicated than that. Adapting to the circumstances doesn’t mean that the warrior has situational ethics. It doesn’t mean that he picks and chooses when to live by his code of honor and when not to live by his code of honor. By adapting to the circumstances, Confucius is telling us to adapt our modes of action, not to compromise our standards or honor. For example, there is a time to take action and there is a time to wait. There is a time to speak up and a time to stay silent. The warrior must be wise enough to adapt himself to the circumstance of the moment, not live by absolutes such as never allowing someone to shove him without severe consequences. Certain situations may call for the warrior to swallow his pride and walk away from an insult, instead of responding to it in a more direct manner, in order to accomplish his objective. Know your objective in each situation and adapt yourself as needed to accomplish your objective without compromising your honor or code of ethics. This is what Confucius was trying to teach us. Bohdi Sanders ( from the book, WARRIOR: The Way of Warriorhood)
Posted on: Sat, 22 Jun 2013 06:28:13 +0000
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