Life is difficult enough as is, but imagine how much worse it would be without the arts.
Whether we are talking about the fine arts, performing arts, culinary arts, or even martial arts, much of what makes life worthwhile is the product of creativity more than practicality.
Of course, we need food, clothing, shelter, and the ability to defend ourselves, but these needs are fixed.
They are a baseline.
Satisfying these basic needs brings us relief, security, and safety.
Simply put, these needs must be met for our survival.
That which makes life actually worth living, however, is found beyond survival.
Joy is found beyond survival.
The practical necessities of life will inevitably impose themselves on us eventually.
In the meantime, we should unapologetically pursue our creativity wherever it leads us.
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 & Bodyand Kogen Dojo where he teaches Taikyoku Budo and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.
All photos by Robert Van Valkenburgh unless otherwise noted.
We all want to know that we are worthy of love, kindness, and respect.
We want to know that our life, our very existence, has value.
We want to know that this value is inherent to our very being, that we are deserving of affection, appreciation, and compassion simply because we are, not because of something we do or do not do, say, or have to offer.
Deep down, we want to know know that to be loved, cared for, and cared about is our birthright.
As children, we cry, gesture, and even beg for acknowledgement, attention, and validation.
We were not born able to feed, clothe, or shelter ourselves.
Nor were we born able to comfort ourselves.
This need for loving connection is as real as our need for breath itself.
If not received, even if ignored, denied, or punished, the need itself does not go away.
In fact, it is quite likely that the less love we receive, the more we actually need.
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 & Bodyand Kogen Dojo where he teaches Taikyoku Budo and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.
All photos by Robert Van Valkenburgh unless otherwise noted.
Contentment begins with aligning our desires with our needs.
Often, what we want and what we need are quite different from one another. Part of maturing as a human being is developing the ability to look beyond the former and embrace the latter, ideally to the point where they eventually converge such that what we need is actually what we want. The level of contentment we experience in our lives is directly related to our ability to do this willingly, intentionally, and successfully.
It should be mentioned that contentment is a distinctly different measure of our internal state from happiness. One does not guarantee the other. That said, while contentment may not always result in happiness, it is doubtful that a true state of happiness can be achieved without first acquiring some degree of contentment.
Our desires are rooted in some combination of hope and fear related to what we will or will not experience, acquire, and become in some imaginary future. Our needs, on the other hand, exist in the present moment as a matter of fact, separate from and independent of any feelings we may have about them. By realigning our attention and our will toward necessity, by accepting and addressing what we need to be, to do, and to have, by wanting this for ourselves before and above all else, we give ourselves a platform of truth off of which to grow, thrive, and to be content with our progress.
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 & Bodyand Kogen Dojo where he teaches Taikyoku Budo and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.
All photos by Robert Van Valkenburgh unless otherwise noted.
Meditations on God 