Once upon a time
Posted on Mon Jan 29th, 2024 @ 9:22am by Ensign Aurora Ng
631 words; about a 3 minute read
Start log. "Character as strong as stainless steel, with an uncompromising character."
One aspect of Chinese culture is the emphasis on knowing one's place in the universe. Your birth order determines your seniority in the family and expectation to venerate your elders, for they are the ones who accumulate knowledge and wisdom and you in turn pass on your experiences to those younger.
Po Chi Lam is a name not known outside the region, nor is the name Wong Kei Ying, although some might know the name Wong Fei Hung, but more from popular culture, which has a tendency to dramatize for entertainment's effect. Now more famous for martial arts (Hung Ga), both Wongs, senior and junior were medical men, first of all.
Equally adept at both fields, the focus and technique was legendary. No textbooks or formalized education existed at the time for medicine at the time, except that which was passed down through the generations. One time, a patient was mesmerized by Wong Kei Ying's ability to reach for various jars and with absolute precision measure out precise tael and catty measurement of powdered drugs and herbs with nothing more than the trained eye and deft touches. When asked, the old Master smiled. "Everything in life, you will do once. Nothing else matters except doing this one thing, right now, in this moment." That would be the translation into Federation Standard English, with creative poetic license, but the point stands.
Wong Fei Hung, Master Wong the younger, was renowned for his martial arts, but it wasn't so much his martial arts that are celebrated, it was more of his fighting stance. Slightly side on, left foot forward, right hand lowered behind him, the left hand with palm facing inwards, the merged fingers beckoning. Such a challenge was done honourably of course, for it allowed the other party to back down. But sure enough, the enraged would charge forward, letting go of the self, letting the heart control the actions, while Master Wong would control with the head, letting cool emotion, honour and dignity guide his hands and feet.
It is here at this point that we digress, for much has been said about Honour. Klingons have Honour, but what is it? What is this elusive concept that drives them forward? Why is so much in this log focused on simple acts of medicine, or martial arts without touching on the history? How are these acts Honourable in and of itself?
Life is a struggle, from the very moment each of us draws air into our lungs and we cry, to struggling to stand on wobbly hands and feet to walk on our feet for the first time, to shape our minds and our mouths into words so others can understand us. To study, to learn, so that we can reduce our fears and we go into our existence, our world, our galaxy, our universe boldly.
The lesson here is that Honour also shares a root phoneme with the word Honest or Honesty. To be truthful. This is the key that thousands of years of history and culture and words cannot define. There is no tangible object, there is no specific goal or objective. It is merely the search for the truth. To find the truth in one's self, in others, in our environment, in our very existence.
If we are not constantly challenging ourselves, to find the truth in our surroundings, then we live a life not just to our best, but also with dignity, to embrace it... With honour.
End log
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