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Post by silenttracker on Jun 27, 2005 1:00:39 GMT -5
How quicklly time passes; how fully I've changed.
The life I left behind grows dim. I can hardly see it from here.
I think it best now to take up the quill. To protect myself from the man I might become.
He should remember with the clarity of ink on parchment what his thoughts once were. He should remember the path he set out on, and where it led him.
This then is an attempt to capture my memories, and to honour my mentors and scribe the lessons learned.
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Post by silenttracker on Jun 27, 2005 1:40:34 GMT -5
Above all the Knights of Honor stand for these virtues,
they are the pillars of the Order.
Peace
Wisdom
Respect
Compassion
In Peace, we mean many things. Peace of the mind, heart, and soul of the individual. Peace in the civilizations of men, in the natural world, and the in the interaction between the individual, society, and nature. A farmer who is afraid to tend his field for fear of an orc arrow, does not have peace of mind. Loved ones who have hurt one another and are too proud to reconcile do not have peace of heart.
To promote Peace, the Knighthood strives for Wisdom in all things. Every event, every individual, every situation is unique. Only by attempting to see a problem from all sides, will peacefull solutions be found. This is why all members of the Order are asked to form their own opinions, and to understand the viewpoints of others. If all were to speak in one voice, then the Knighthood would falter. New ideas challenge us to grow. It is more important to understand the benefits and detriments of each solution you can fathom, then to champion only one.
In order to understand the viewpoints of others, one must give them Respect. To marginalize, ignore, or hate an individual means that you have given up the ability to understand why they have made the choices that they have made, and those they are about to make. In doing this, you forego their unique perspective. To give Respect is to try to put yourself in their situation, and see the world as they see it. Doing this will allow you to better understand this person's role in the world. In order to command Respect, one must first learn to give Respect.
Respect of the individual leads to Compassion. By understanding a person's circumstances, and the obstacles they face, you may be inspired to wish the best for them. Through Compassion, and empathy, we can seek to understand what prevents those around us from being at peace, and we can better conceive of how to help them achieve it. By promoting peace in others, we make the land more peacefull.
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Post by silenttracker on Jun 27, 2005 1:54:49 GMT -5
Just as there are different solutions to every problem, there are different paths to every destination.
The Knighthood's pursuit of it's virtues can take many Paths. Each Path has its own dogma, and details a methodology for achieving these virtues. The Paths are fluid, with each individual finding his own way. They are valuable teaching tools in describing how the Virtues can be sought by the individual, and promoted in others.
The Knighthood began with a single Path, known as the Gray Path. Time, experience, and wisdom allowed us to see a second Path, the Green Path, and a third the Yellow. In time more Paths will make themselves evident. It will require further insight into how our world, and how those in it inter-relate. No one in the Knighthood ever ceases to learn, and every new discovery is a blessing which makes us all stronger.
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Post by silenttracker on Jun 27, 2005 2:02:58 GMT -5
The Gray Path is a path of self enlightenment. It promotes the unification of Mind, Body, Heart, and Soul. This is done not only through education and physical training; but by promoting self awareness, and spiritualism. The exact methodology for each individual's training is unique, but the desired results are the same: To become the best person that you can be, in every way. To be true to yourself, and in touch with your feelings. To seek inner Peace and Harmony.
By promoting your own inner Peace, you have the opportunity to learn how to promote it in others. Doing this strengthens the land, and makes our world a more peacefull place; Inwards Out.
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Post by silenttracker on Jun 27, 2005 2:10:01 GMT -5
The Green Path arose with the recognition that man cannot exsist without affecting the land, and the land cannot exsist without affecting man. Self Enlightenment, while important, represents only the Harmony of a single man, one tree in the forest.
To follow the Green Path is to promote the Harmony between man and nature. Understanding the cycles of nature, and the role of each factor, allows us to understand man's place in the scheme of things. By seeking an outer Harmony between man and the land, those that walk the Green Path develop an inner Harmony in themselves; Outwards In.
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Post by silenttracker on Jul 6, 2005 11:35:19 GMT -5
What does it mean to hold Peace as a Virtue? Does that mean we are an Order of Pacifists?
The sacking of Arabel by the orc hordes had no small affect on me. My father fought and died with the Militia. I have seen first hand the attrocities that war brings; the fear, famine, plague, grief, and death. A family could spend generations carefully tending a farm, or an Inn, to see it go up in flame, leaving them without home or livelyhood. Children are left without parents, wives without husbands. War scars the hearts, minds and souls of those it touches, and in truth I still have yet to make my peace with all that I have seen.
These are reasons why Peace in the land is not taken for granted. It is also a reason to show respect for the men and women who bleed and die to maintain that peace, be they Purple Dragons, Silver Shields, or the many adventurers who battle those who would see Isinhold in flames.
The Knights of Honor champion peace, in our own way. Just as the Churches of Tyr, Helm, and Eldath have their own unique views on what this entails, we do ours. Where some are hawks, we might be doves. When some would hide from a problem we would seek a solution. We are taught to try to see every incident as its own unique situation.
We try not to deal in absolutes such as good or evil. Things are rarely so black and white, they are much more often Gray. At the end of the day good and evil can be difficult to quantify, so the question we prefer to ask is: How will this effect peace in the land, and the peace of the individual?
Each situation that arises is carefully evaluated. We try to find a course that will best promote peace. We use words when we can, with those that would listen. We reach out when possible, for a good neighbor is preferable to a hated adversary. There will be times when our course calls for defense, and there will be times when the best action is measured aggression.
The day we stop asking ourselves what are the possible paths we can take is the day that we fail as Knights. There will be times when we judge poorly, or have taken the wrong course, but we pray that we will learn from our mistakes and be able to continue to promote the Peace of the land we love and those in it.
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Post by silenttracker on Jul 11, 2005 21:14:37 GMT -5
...When I first saw Keetena...
*accompanied by a neatly pressed, dried, white flower.*
BREATHLESS
Time stopped. Out of breath.
Life... a dream passed, if the hammer of my heart..
Held not my sould chained.
It would fly to her.
Smile and grant the sun rise.
Turn away and bring the rain.
My life seeking Harmony...pointless.
Hold still now...
She looks at me.
***
...thank you...
LITTLE BREEZE
Alone. Long steps.
Sick in my heart at the ways of men.
The night never so dark.
Suddenly, Little Breeze.
Soft touch on my hand,
Lingered small moment.
Alone once more,
But loneliness took flight
With Little Breeze.
***
...for my fallen brother...
FORGIVE ME
They come.
A sound, like wings.
Dying he falls. Out of sight.
A cry against the gathering dark.
We are undone.
Multiply the stillness by one sound;
By one shout. Your name.
And all that is little in me grows giant.
They will not have you.
Red blood exaggerated on green grass;
Music of steel scraping steel...
Speak softly now; Straining to hear.
I will not leave you.
Not time enough. Not good enough.
The earth takes you gently.
My brother.
***
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