Wu Wei

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0><tr> <td valign="top" colspan=2 height=90 BGCOLOR="#006699" TEXT="#080000" background="05d785a3.jpg"> <div> <FONT SIZE="5" COLOR="#FFFFFF" FACE="Arial" ><B>Isshinryu Karate Do, Stamford Dojo</B></FONT><B>    </B><B> |    </B></div> <div> <A HREF="id155.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Concepts"><U><B><IMG SRC="03b0e0e0.png" border=0 width="14" height="14" ALT="up" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></U></A><B>   </B><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="14" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" WIDTH="14"><B>     </B><A HREF="id163.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Tsuri no Kokoro"><U><B><IMG SRC="02f0e0e0.png" border=0 width="14" height="14" ALT="previous" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></U></A><B>  </B><A HREF="id178.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Use Mind (Heart) Not Force"><U><B><IMG SRC="0300e0e0.png" border=0 width="14" height="14" ALT="next" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></U></A></div> <div> </div> </td> </tr><tr> <td valign="top" width=210 BGCOLOR="#FFCC66" TEXT="#080000" background="1dd7d803.jpg"> <div> Please (Email on the Contact Page) send in your definitions, ideas, concepts, or constructs which have to do with the mental and philosophical development of oneself in martial arts.  We will edit these and place the best ones here for our readers from which to learn.</div> <div> <A HREF="id155.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Concepts"><U> <IMG SRC="482641e0.jpg" border=0 ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" width="100" height="30"></U></A></div> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> </td> <td valign="top" height=390 BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000" background="1dd7d803.jpg"> <div> <B>Wu Wei</B></div> <div> Wu Wei means "Doing without doing". Another extremely important aspect of Taoism. As I mentioned before, Wu Wei seeks to limit entropy, that is to minimise effort in achieving our goals. There is no such thing as a problem. If there is a problem and you can do something about it, do that thing and then there is no problem. If you can't do anything about it, then it's not a problem. Easy when you know how!</div> <bR> <div> With Wu Wei, we attampt to flow like a river through life. If a river comes across a boulder, does it try to flow over it, or push it to one side? Of course not, it simply flows around it. And so in life, if we come across a problem, we must find the path of least resistance, the most natural path, i.e. the one that is in harmony with the nature of the problem.</div> <bR> <div> For instance, in tackling crime, governments concentrate on punishment for those who have committed a crime. But the damage is already done. Surely the Wu Wei in every person would have told them that the way to prevent crime is to remove a potential criminal's need to commit the crime in the first place. Changing public attitudes, removing want and poverty.</div> <bR> <div> Take the smoking laws. Taoism in general is against legislation and censorship and morality on the basis that these are all other people's opinions being imposed on you and that is basically anti-Tao because it is forcing or coerscing people against their natural inclinations and is thus not at all Wu Wei. With the smoking laws, politicians are telling youngsters that smoking is something adults do and is not for kids. But we all know that if there's one thing a growing kid wants to do, it is to be like a grown-up. So they smoke because it's cool to break the rules and to do something that only adults do - it makes them feel more like adults by smoking.</div> <bR> <div> So remove all the smoking laws and let anyone smoke no matter what age. Kids, adults, pensioners, everyone will be allowed to smoke if they want. This will remove the urge to smoke in kids because it is no longer denied them, so it isn't "rebellious", it's not something just adults do so it's not seen as "grown up" to smoke - all the reasons for smoking have gone - it's just not fun any more. The problem will be solved by using the path of least resistance, the natural path.</div> <bR> <div>  <FONT SIZE="6" COLOR="#993300" FACE="Vladimir Script" >John Gagnon</FONT></div> <div> Rokudan, Isshinryu Karate Do, Renshi, OKF</div> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <A HREF="id155.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Concepts"><U> <IMG SRC="482641e0.jpg" border=0 ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" width="100" height="30"></U></A></div> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>