Elegance

Elegant: Characterized by dignified richness and grace; luxurious or opulent in a restrained manner; characterized by a sense of propriety or refinement; impressively fastidious in manners and taste. At seminar this weekend, our soke, watching us perform a series of particular kata, stopped us with his gentle but firm arigatoo gozaimsasu. He moved to the center of the training dojo, and began to speak. "Iaido must be elegant" he said. "People are afraid of swords. To make iaido elegant is to make people lose their fear and make it accessible to them." He then performed the same kata; his moves were smooth and graceful, unhurried and well, elegant. 

 It gave me pause, as elegant was not a word that I had heard in some time - not for years in common speech, and some time even in the literature that I read. 

 What is elegance? You can see the definition of elegant above: dignified richness and grace, luxurious in a restrained fashion, a sense of propriety and refinement, fastidious (paying extreme attention to) manners and taste. It would seem to be a thing to be sought after: a sense of propriety and manners, dignity, restraint. 

 So why is it something at that we apparently no longer value - or even mention? 

 We have become a society obsessed by looks and attention and ourselves. Our self and our self image is important, often the most important thing going on in our own lives (and it should be so too in the lives of others). Our cultural heroes revel in the impact that they make through their appearances, sometimes even more so than the substance of their work. The ability to follow a sustained chain of thinking and logic has been replaced with the 3 minute song and the 30 second promo. Even in the business world, the well thought out and well executed plan is buried under the imperative of "Let's make money - now!" 

 Elegance is not flashy, but it can be beautiful. It is not loud, but it can be impactful. It is not a fast download of sensory images, but it can overload the senses. It is also not rushed. It cannot be made better by a bevy of lights and colors and cameras and screaming fans. Often it takes time and effort to develop this elegance, something that we as a society no longer have the time - or interest - to do. 

 I challenge you: take one aspect of your life, one solitary element, and seek to make it elegant. See what a thing of dignity, grace, propriety and restraint looks like and can do - not just for you, but for those around you as well.