Serve, Respect, and Live Without Fear
So live your life that the fear of death can never enter your heart.
Trouble no one about their religion;
Respect others in their view, and demand that they respect yours.
Love your life, perfect your life, beautify all things in your life.
Seek to make your life long and its purpose in the service of your people.
Prepare a noble death song for the day when you go over the great divide.
Always give a word or a sign of salute when meeting or passing a friend,
Even a stranger, when in a lonely place.
Show respect to all people and grovel to none.
When you arise in the morning give thanks for the food and for the joy of living.
If you see no reason for giving thanks, the fault lies only in yourself.
Abuse no one and no thing, for abuse turns the wise ones to fools
And robs the spirit of its vision.
When it comes your time to die, be not like those whose hearts are filled
With the fear of death, so that when their time comes they weep
And pray for a little more time to live their lives over again in a different way.
Sing your death song and die like a hero going home.
- Chief Tecumseh (Crouching Tiger) Shawnee Nation 1768-1813
To say anything here I think would be to complicate the already perfect message that this communicates.
So I’ll leave it at that: serve, respect, and live without fear.
[From a blog post by Matt Valentine at Buddhaimonia.com]
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Commentary: I can hardly find a single point offered by Chief Tecumseh which would not seem like a statement which could be specifically applied to how a Jedi should approach life.
Serve, Respect, and Live Without Fear. How wonderful are these thoughts?
