Passion is a fickle friend who will ultimately disappoint those who rely on it.
Passion comes, goes, and changes focus as it sees fit.
It is selfish, fleeting, and easily swayed when challenges arise.
Passion is an excuse for all manner of immature, irresponsible, and even hurtful decisions.
It overrides what we know to be true about ourselves, about others, and about who we know we are and want to be.
Passion is the enemy of reason, morality, and integrity.
It ignores the laws of cause and effect, and the consequences thereof.
Passion will abandon us once it has been satisfied, leaving only regret, remorse, and shame in its wake.
It is a distraction from the truth.
Passion pulls us away from ourselves, widening the divide between us and our hope for contentment and fulfillment.
It is a liar, a thief, and a trickster, promising to give us more than we have worked for, more than we have earned, and more than we deserve.
Passion, instead of the beacon of hope it claims to be, is better perceived as a warning that, if followed, will cause us to stray from the path of honor, meaning, and purpose.
Holistic Budo: As it is in budo, so too it is in life. As it is in life, so too it is in budo.
Robert Van Valkenburgh is co-founder of Taikyoku Mind & Body and Kogen Dojo where he teaches Taikyoku Budo and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.
All photos by Robert Van Valkenburgh unless otherwise noted.
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