Principle of Vigilance

Vulnerability and vigilance are comrades in arms. By the first principle we become aware of danger. By the second we consciously react. Every animal and many plants have highly developed instinctive powers of vigilance. Only man is too arrogant to pay attention when his own life and well-being are in jeopardy.

The practice of vigilance can be divided roughly in two parts. The first, listening, and the second, action.

Listening

Integrity trains the ear and eye, the nose, tooth and stomach to listen intently when we become aware of our vulnerability. The greater the integrity the more finely tuned the instrument, and the more we are able to pick up the subtle movement upstream. It is said that Shih K'uang, a blind musician, could hear the footsteps of a mosquito. In The Art of War it is written that, "The thing is to see the plant before it germinates: if we only see the obvious one wins the battle with difficulty, but he who looks before the surface of things will win with ease."

Vigilance

Vigilance requires conscious action and at times non-action.

Examples:

• When you are ill and your timing is off, don't make an important telephone call.
• If you plan to meet your mother-in-law who is a certifiable troll (See Help Basics -- Trolls) have a plan that prepares you in advance and leaves a grace period to recover. This is key. Most people fail to deal with the aftermath. You misjudge your vulnerability if you don't leave sufficient room to recover.
• If ten adversaries suddenly show up in a meeting unexpectedly and present a proposal you never saw before--sit quietly and don't understand anything (on purpose) so that they must burn their budget (See Help Basics -- Budget) explaining things to you.

At times vigilance requires retreat. Many Westerners see this as a sign of weakness and defeat, but the great fighters understand otherwise. The Art of War instructs, "He will win who knows when to fight and when not to fight" . . . "Attack is the secret of defense, and defense is the planning of attack."

Vigilance also counsels that we be aware and adapt appropriately to the changes in the seasons (both external and internal). For example, in mid-winter when the days reach their shortest cycle the ancient Chinese sages observed that, "Cultured people regulate their consumption and behavior, staying remote and keeping quiet, abstaining from sensual stimulation, and resting the body to stabilize themselves physically and psychologically." (See Thomas Cleary, The Tao of Politics (1990).)

The final principle is "no slippage" in your integrity. In the Book of Serenity the great zen master Hogen says, "If there is a bit of difference it is the remote distance between heaven and earth." In terms of vigilance, any slippage can mean the difference between victory and defeat, or in the words of the contemporary gung fu master, George Xu, "In the wild if you don't pay attention, you bye-bye."

Conscious Vigilance: Practice five times this week you picked up the signal early on, were vigilant and took conscious action.

Unconscious Action: Five times you did not bother to listen to the signs and the results.

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