DATSUSARA — Datsusara Life

Tonight I had the pleasure of meeting someone I would call a "warrior of integrity". That someone was pro MMA fighter Conor "Hurricane" Heun. He was visiting my home gym (10th Planet, Burbank) and shared some of his thoughts in regards to training and living the life of a pro fighter. He talked about many things but the part that struck me was how he stressed the importance of having personal integrity, and how in doing so you make it easier for others to do the same. Conor spends his days doing what he feels is his calling and he's enjoying it to the fullest. Conor Huen is living the Datsusara way.

It was an interesting to me that Conor should happen to speak so much about integrity tonight because that word has been has been very prevalent in my thoughts lately. In part because I recently chose the words "Natural Integrity" as the new Datsusara slogan. I chose these words for many reasons but mostly because it just felt right to me. In one was it conveys a sense of how we use natural materials like hemp to make strong functional gear. But more importantly it was about the message I hope to share, and the spirit I hope to awaken in us all. That spirit being one of the individual choosing their own way of life rather than accepting something that doesn't ring true.

People often suffer from fear of change, or because they desire things they don't really want, but have been told they need. There is a way out, there is, your way. Be as you were before you were even a glimmer in your parents eyes. Find your way.

“If you do follow your bliss you put yourself on a kind of track that has been there all the while, waiting for you, and the life that you ought to be living is the one you are living. Follow your bliss and don't be afraid, and doors will open where you didn't know they were going to be.” -Joseph Campbell

Thanks again to all of you for the support and encouragement, Datsusara would not exist without you.

Around this time of year I get lots of disproving looks, disappointed family members, and a few confused friends. Why? Because I choose my own path and it scares or angers those who don't understand. For myself, the Datsusara way goes well beyond career choices. In all aspects of life I strive to take my own path. In this case, that means I don't celebrate Thanksgiving or Christmas.

I'm sure some of you are wondering why I would forsake such things since, as my Mother loves to remind me, it's all about family gatherings and good food, right? For me it's more than that and I don't feel comfortable celebrating those holidays. I find Thanksgiving to be a reminder of the genocide of American Indians. Christmas offends me because it's a religious holiday and if you object to it you are automatically deemed some kind of Scrooge, and lets not even get into the mass consumerism and terrible holiday music (which is often turned into advertisements, another thing I find distasteful in the extreme).

I love good food, I love being with people I care for and celebrating but I don't care to participate in popular rituals without thunking it through. If it's really all about food and family then lets rename the holidays and be clear on the meaning. My main point here is that it's up to you to take your own path and not simply accept what you are told. This applies to all aspects of life be it jobs, relationships, rituals, etc..

We are all interesting people with much to offer the world but all to often we are afraid to expose ourselves to the judgement of others, and that in turn sets precedent which makes the world more like a jail and less like the paradise it can be. For instance, last night I found out some of my friends at the gym have to wear makeup if they get facial injuries during Jiu Jitsu training. They fear losing their jobs if people knew the truth. This seemed insane to me as I don't see how job performance is effected by having a black eye from doing a sport you love, why should you have to hide that? A silly example perhaps but what I'm saying is that if we don't question suggested rules, the pattern of oppression and deception continues. We become pretenders.

Your life doesn't have to be a series of dictated actions enforced by the expectations of the external world. I think you will find that when you take your own path you'll simply feel better. It's not always the easy choice, sometimes it's more simple to just go along with the herd and not make a fuss. But I for one don't want that kind of life, it doesn't feel true. I like choice, I like freedom, I like being me.

"The privilege of a lifetime is being who you are."

- Joseph Campbell

"Believe nothing.
No matter where you read it,
Or who said it,
Even if I have said it,
Unless it agrees with your own reason
And your own common sense."

- Buddha

edit: added a bonus video along the same line of thought...

p.s. Thanks to all of you for the support you offer by purchasing our gear or simply encouraging me to keep writing this blog despite my general lack of enthusiasm for the blog writing process. All of you are like family to me and although I'm always ready to go it alone, it's nice to know I have such good company.

Datsusara Life

Warriors of Integrity

Be who you are