2. I remember that I knew- hyper-awareness of hyper-reality

I remember that I knew
I remember that I was troubled
But the calm has come and the storm has ebbed
As I understood sometime ago, my SOUL has lost its HUNGER
It has become satisfied with worldly busyness and undertakings
And so I forgot
But all the while it nagged
And I now remember
And I watched Buddha's story again
And I feel guilty again

All is everything and yet nothing
But to apply it in a realistic world is unrealistic
No, it is just that I am not BRAVE enough
Are we increasingly trapped in this modern world?
With KPIs and intellectual abilities being quantified?
Moral worth can never be measured
If only we spend less time talking, condemning and assessing
And allow our fellow human beings more time to experience, reflect and grow spiritually
Are we charged cowardly to admit that we are imperfect?
Is it truly a sign of weakness?
I am acutely aware that I am not BRAVE enough to be what I understand man to be and do what I understand man to do
So I admit
I am acutely aware that I lack the personality to invoke and inspire in others what I know
And yet what do I know? Was I not just momentarily clear about everything? Have I not lost it over again?
Any why do I deserve such a privileged position?
All I can do is share and show the inkling of the possibility
Everyone has to arrive in their own way


The greatest paradox is that True love betters us and yet traps us
And yet to leave true love is humanly cruel but spiritually divine
Such is man's dilemma
He may want to love selflessly
But others would not be trustworthy enough to receive and in turn be awakened
For past experiences have taught them to be wary

So I sigh as I always do and just remember that I knew
When the world slowed and I saw it all
And then lost it all
My hyper-awareness of hyper-reality

5. On the SOUL again- My understanding of it again and the Utility of such a concept

I was trying to combat insomnia so I applied my mind as I lay in bed last night.

What is the SOUL? What is my personal definition and understanding of it?

The conception of the SOUL comes from self-consciousness which in turn gives birth to self-identity. Only then man think of "his" SOUL.

The SOUL to me is not necessarily real nor does it need to be. As before, "I find little reason to purport that we are spiritually privileged creatures. Indeed, we are the product of lucky exaptations and rugged ancestry. But given the power we hold over the rest of terran life, environment and this planet's possible trajectories." I still value it. Why? My moral-realist sociological stance is that many would understand it in terms of a religious viewpoint which is to be an intangible part of them. This conception of a SOUL survives beyond the perishable body and thus they behave according to a notion of good behavior so as to ensure a good rewards for their SOUL in the afterlife. This by and large aids the functioning of society which in turn renders the concept of the SOUL is definitely mechanistically useful (even if it may not be real).

The SOUL to me also requires going beyond the first step of self-awareness. If we are self-conscious but hold onto a biologically deterministic concept of man then the SOUL would just be survivalist notions invoked by the brain so as to allow for better self-preservation of the man as a species-being.

The SOUL requires an awareness of the emotive aspects of human experience. It is more than awareness in fact, it is the embracing and acceptance of the emotive aspects of human experience. And the idea that our existence is not so mundane and determined after all.

Now I shall delve deeper and state the difference between my understanding of the SOUL and IDENTITY for it seems both involve self-awareness. The SOUL to me is the emotive and true side of man and not his social ego/ identity for that is something which he acts out according to the social conditions that he is in in order to achieve various goals. The SOUL is the side of man which he knows to be his true self for man cannot lie to himself in his mind. He can deny himself but he cannot blatantly lie to himself. The SOUL has a voice. Some call it CONSCIENCE. I understand it to be the witness-consciousness. It shouts out the truth even when you do not want to hear it. That inner voice is the voice of your SOUL.

I am getting closer to my understanding of the SOUL. Therefore, please allow me to reiterate. The SOUL is my true and emotive self which is hidden away from social conditions. It is the true appreciation of all my experiences. Thus the SOUL can be nurtured through the experiences of life and meaningful expression and reflection. (On the other hand, identity is taught and perfected through social conditioning.)

I repeat myself on an important point. The SOUL may not be real. It may be and most likely is a survivalist notion invoked by the brain. But what are its other advantages to man? For although survival is the ultimate aim of all species-beings, I do not see it as a noble enough endeavor for a beautiful creature like man. Thus I should explore the benefits of the SOUL to man in a moral-realist individualist aspect more in depth.

The fact that the SOUL is hidden away from man makes it ideal for genuine, deep and personal reflection away from agents of social conditioning (which adds value to extended consciousness: the ability to add the awareness of the past and future into the mix and factor in such variables into decision-making). However, it can always be argued that one can never be entirely free from the influence of such agents (such as Semantics being the most influential and thus scary from a philosophically purist stance) but at least the SOUL allows for the possibility for such a beneficial enterprise. The other utility of the SOUL to man is that it allows for a development of his true individuality which allows for room for the assumption of responsibility for the consequences of his actions. This when coupled with the first advantage allows for the betterment of man's external actions. Lastly, the SOUL allows for men to connect to possibilities beyond the tangible world as the SOUL precisely exists in an intangible realm which is so real and vital to man. It allows his mind to expand beyond the purely biological and deterministic and to develop new mental horizons for all his actions.

I have dismissed it in the past and still see no reason why the SOUL is rightfully a spiritual entity. But I am curious: is it truly what I think it to be? And how beautiful it would be if indeed the SOUL had a spiritual utility? And what utility would that be?

1. The Buddha reminds me that I momentarily knew....

More on Musashi's "Five Rings"

Below are some quotes on what strikes me and what applies to Krav Maga fight philosophy.

Pay attention to the mind, not the body.

The observing eye is stronger, the perceiving eye is weaker.

Having a position without a position

A strike is when you consciously and deliberately deliver the blow you intend to strike.

Determine that today you will overcome yourself of the day before.

You can threaten by means of your body, sword and voice.

When an excessive number of sword moves are taught, it must be to commercialize the art and impress beginners of knowledge with many moves.

We Fight

We fight because we fear
We fear because we breath
We breathe because we cling
We cling because we fear

We fight because we defend
We defend because we feel
We feel because we possess
We possess because we fear

We fight because we want
We want because we are not complete
We are not complete because we are
We are because we do not know better
We do not know better because we are human

The Cult of the body

The body is our vessel and tool and is revered in human history. Thus the phenomenon of the "Cult of the body" is when an individual holds his/her pbysical prowess and abilities in reverence and seeks to continually improved himself/herself in this field. This is a multi-dimensional phenomenon which on a biological level is related to the biological imperative to reproduce and produce offspring. The physical characteristics of the body then serves as bodily markers of hereditary traits. The "Cult of the body" also serves as bodily markers hich are directly or indirectly linked to positive capabilities. These capabilities are those that are held in high regard and tied to concepts of the positive examples of what it means to be a particular sex. To be manly is to be fit for example.

But beyond this, I will explore the relevance of the 'Cult of the body' and its connections with my Moral man theory. Firstly, the 'Cult of the body' can be understood as the conduit of the perfection of the mind through the body. This can be explained through physical activities that the person puts his body through in order to achieve temperance of his mind where the 'mental monkey is caged in the battered body'. This no doubt is a good action and purpose of the 'Cult of the body' where the Moral man can then better understand worldly pain and struggles through first-hand physical experiences. The Moral man can also better understand worldly constructs of what can be accomplished by the human body and thus the limits of the human condition.

But this is only skin-deep. The next level of progression is where the body and mind are both equally challenged and the Moral man harnesses the 'Cult of the body' to express his will in the utmost experience of reality. This is when he stretches his mind and body to the limit of where it can go and he appreciates the co-existence and importance of each faculty. He is no longer purely interested in moving faster, jumping higher for example. He is now interested in how this abilities make his mental perception of the world sharper. He enjoys the light breeze that graces his sweat-laden frame whilst in motion. This combined application of both body and mind gives him joy past pure sporting achievement and social recognition. It also alleviates him from worldly pain and burdens as it is a spiritual recluse for him.

The final and ambitious level of progression is when the Moral man achieves the infinite (mind) through the finite (body). In fact, this is the level where the Moral man gets as close as he can to perfection (God) as he stretches his finite through his infinite. This is also when he can spread this phenomenon to others through infectious displays of physical prowess that inspire others to try similarly. The Moral man should also seek to cultivate this in others so that they too can be as close to God as possible and feel the weightless joy that he does.

Intellectual rebellion for the Good

This post will be a sketch of what I conceptualized upon a paper in University. It was an educational pedagogy, even before I decided that I wanted to be a teacher. It is entitled “Intellectual rebellion for the Good”. This anachronistic oddity is indeed interesting to look back upon and examine if and how my actions within formal educational boundaries have aligned with this unaffected intellectual exploration from the yesteryears.

It firstly involves a macro environment which firstly entails the necessary existence of a healthy socio-emotional foundational basis for the student. Students must also be exercising the practice and of the values of “the Good”. This process involves constant alignment and realignment and concrete fruitful action thereafter in order to actualize the moral learning points and benefit the community. Every intellectual and scholastic endeavour is to be done with the end goal of “the Good” and not peripheral advantages like wealth and status.

Then we proceed with the process of creating an intellectual rebel who acts in the direction of and for the Good. The first stage basically involves the mastering of basics whereby the student must grasp a competent knowledge of the world around him. The educator plays the role of sharing of knowledge.

The second stage involves testing the students’ understanding through reflective processes and later bridge into higher order thinking processes. This stage is important because misunderstandings can lead to greater understandings when reflected and improved upon. The educator plays the role of assessor and guide.

The third stage for the student is to challenge his knowledge. This is executed via open-ended questioning techniques and reflective processes now take on a collaborative dimension in which the student starts to learn how to negotiate and assemble an intellectual product from various perspectives (which would at times be conflicting). The educator plays the role of facilitator in this stage.

The last stage is when the student now becomes an Intellectual rebel for the Good. There are clear lines of intellectual engagement in which the student truly believes in and upholds. Constructive rebellion is the goal, not anarchism. The intellectual rebel explores, challenges, deconstructs, consolidates and finally reconstructs in the direction of and for the Good.