The Dojo Extends Beyond its Walls

If the translation of Do predicates the meaning of one's Truth, what we call home for the purpose of such training is Dojo. Jo (translated as the place, or the Hall) is the center of total focus, where all venerable learning is to take place through myriads of human struggles and energetic interactions. It is therefore stated cogently that the place called "Dojo" must be designated as the place of being enlightened by all things. It is the place where one's purest form of existence must be fo...

 The Enlightenment Needs Vigorous Defense

The ideals of the Enlightenment are products of human reason, but they always struggle with other strands of human nature: loyalty to tribe, deference to authority, magical thinking, the blaming of misfortune on evildoers. The second decade of the 21st century has seen the rise of political movements that depict their countries as being pulled into a hellish dystopia by malign factions that can be resisted only by a strong leader who wrenches the country backward to make it “great again.” The...

 Anger isn't Necessary and Gets In the Way

A prominent author who recently disagreed with me on a technical matter quickly labelled me as belonging to a ‘department of bullshit’. Ouch! How is it possible not to get offended by this sort of thing, especially when it’s coming not from an anonymous troll, but from a famous guy with more than 200,000 followers? By implementing the advice of another Stoic philosopher, the second-century slave-turned-teacher Epictetus, who admonished his students in this way: ‘Remember that it is we who tor...

 Winter Means Things are Getting Better

“Christmas, Kwanza, whatever you call it — I fucking hate it. But winter… that’s different. I love winter. Here’s why. My grandparents dreaded winter. Back when they were kids, winter always meant bad things. Meant another war. Meant foodlines, and power outages, and people their age dying alone in the cold. But when I was a kid, I looked forward to it. And not just because I like to see old people suffering. Because winter meant a new season’s maker codes, and it meant clean snow t...

 The Naturalist's Concern for Death

But just because naturalists do not believe in a life after death does not mean that they don't care what happens after they die. I am deeply concerned, for instance, about whether my family members will be happy and successful after I am gone, whether my friends will continue the traditions we have established, and whether the world will be a better place because of my actions. I hope that what I do in this life will make a long-term difference in the world, though I will never know whether ...

 Science Fiction Inspires

Not only is science fiction an idea of tremendous import, but it is to be an important factor in making the world a better place to live in, through educating the public to the possibilities of science and the influence of science on life which, even today, are not appreciated byu the man on the street. ... If every man, woman, boy and girl, could be induced to read science fiction right along, there would certainly be a great resulting benefit to the community, in that the educational standa...