From Duncan:
“Soke has been mentioning the Gojou 悟宝.
The Gojou represents the five ethics which should be kept by a human being in Confucianism. The Tokugawa Shogunate adopted Confucianism as an official ideology. The Gojou therefore became a samurai’s ethics standard. These are also the five values represented by the five pleats in the front of a hakama.
Fumetsu no Fuse
滅の不施
Everlasting giving
Mamichi no Jikai
真道の持戒
Vow of the true way
Shizen no Ninniku
自然の忍にく
Natural resolve
Shizen no Choetsu
自然の超越
Transcendance of nature
Komyou no Satori
光明の悟り
Illumination of the awakening
I was told a story by Nagato Dai Shihan about Fumetsu no Fuse.
There was once a monk who was proud of his ability to fulfill the goal of being able to selflessly give endlessly. Hearing this, a man approached him and said,” I’d like your ear please.” The monk looked at him, then cut of his ear, and gave it to him. The man took it and when he turned to walk away, he threw it into the bushes!
These precepts are given to aid those in developing a balanced life. If ( like anything ) you develop in an unbalanced way, you can loose the capacity to discern right from wrong and live in society harmoniously with the self and others.
Developing in a balanced manner also allows you to see the truth and falseness that lies everywhere around us. It also minimises the chance of being manipulated.
南虎”