There will be times when we will doubt ourselves, our choices, and our path.
This is only natural.
When we find ourselves feeling unwaveringly confident in all things, absent of doubt, it is a sign of either our foolishness or our ignorance.
Questioning, not confidence, is the path of wisdom.
Confidence without doubt is hubris.
Wisdom is attained only through curiosity.
Curiosity followed leads us down the path of errors, mistakes, and even failure.
This is the path of knowledge, not to be avoided, but pursued, embraced, and celebrated.
Doubt should not impede us.
It should inspire us.
Doubt is a teacher.
As such, it should be honored, explored, and learned from.
It is only on the far side of doubt that we will find ourselves and our way.
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 Kogen Dojo Self Defense Academy where he teaches Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.
All photos by Robert Van Valkenburgh unless otherwise noted.*
*Robert Van Valkenburgh’s black and white photography can be seen at My Darkness To Light
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Positive change begins by asking newer, better questions. Inquisitiveness, then, can be seen as a positive trait. This is generally true, but there are times when asking questions hinders progress, rather than aiding it.
Sometimes we do not need to know everything in order to accomplish the mission, task, or goal at hand. In some cases, the need to know more is actually just a means of procrastination or resistance to the process, a way of injecting our ego, opinions, or prejudices where they are not needed or wanted.
Other times, having too much information too soon will actually slow us down, either when time is of the essence or when the ‘why’ will become evident as the result of the action, not before it. Knowledge without understanding can cause unnecessary friction, especially when we face something new or frightening wherein understanding is the result of hindsight not forethought.
Action has a greater potential to change our thinking than our thinking does to change our action. Too many questions prior to action can lead to conflict, both internal and external, inaction, or both. Our instincts are more reliable and powerful than our intellects anyway, so we are better served by quieting the latter to listen to the former if we truly value growth and progress.
Meditations on God 