30 days to Become a Scholar-Warrior: Day 1, Perspective
Some months ago I read a novel characterizing life in French Saigon in 1908. mysterious fragrance. I read this book and it made me think of how culture shocked I as.
Its was messed up. There’s this disgruntled feeling by the Vietnamese of that time of the rule of the French and there’s this main character whose a hypocrite of sorts.
He’s educated by the French as a doctor but wants to overthrow them.
He’s even best associates with the French garrison commander of his local area. Amid this, you see the experiences of culture in Vietnam and there’s this culture shock as the reader. Its hard to read certain things and understand. Its like, “this goes against my values by I’m not going to necessarily accept them.
Yet at the same time, I’m going to hear out this story. I’m going to hear out this perspective, even if at the very end I still chose to disagree with this person or the other aspects of what they’re fighting for, even if I agree with the idea that one SHOULD fight.”
And that’s perplexingly cool
Its interesting but its a real eye-opener on exercising this thing of filtering stuff that you consume based on your values. Yet at the same time you’re maintaining a level of compassion and also enough flexibility to understand where someone is coming form.
Its understanding CONTEXT.
Its context that kills!
In blogging they say content kills!
In sports they say its speed.
In Oruc Barbarossa’s swashbuckling lifestyle as a North African-Turkish pirate, its naval swiftness that wins the day.
But in history, CONTEXT that empowers understanding through disseminating historical content fairly.
Look deep!
There are hundreds if not thousands of scholars of the past who’ve devoted volumes in writing to share their worldview with us today.
Literally volumes!
Across platforms, mediums, industries, and fields. Many have even interjected through various fields in one lifetime, polymaths in their own right, to even break free of the dogma of isolation in one field. They've enhanced the works of their won fields through understanding the integrative nature of life and human existence.
Use context to break out of the 21st century Bubble
It took two Opium wars and several other issues that resulted in one of the most devastating civil wars in human history: The Taiping rebellion of the mid 19th century. Along this time you also had the Indian War of Independence (Indian Rebellion)! Could you imagine, two of the largest populated countries int he world having such violent upheaval? And the ramifications for the next hundred years? Its contextualizing Indian opinion of the British, and Chinese opinion of the same (along with of Americans).
Its in homage to this that I wanted to start a little project: 30 days to become a scholar-warrior.
The concept of a scholar-warrior has been related in several different cultures and creeds. In one way you could say that its being an advocate of moderation or even of the middle path. In some ways its been used to explain having BALANCE.
Taking on the Scholar-Warrior Challenge
Going along with the themes shared on Chronicles of Fitness (learning to understand the context that you live in and exact empathy, and using fitness to fully live out change) we start our challenge to create balance through education in the world around us and physicality to make us better capable to perform.
With that, our first challenge is to read on gross perspectives on history! How did the Taiping rebellion happen? What were both the British and Chinese perspectives on the situation?
Or choose a personal historical topic, especially one that sits home with you and read the perspective that doesn’t call to you, the one that makes you seethe. Its not to agree with that perspective necessarily. Its to learn and become better #fittoperform.
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