BJJ meditations: Courage, lunacy, and love in Jiu Jitsu

Can you do jiu jitsu without equal doses of courage and lunacy?

Courage and lunacy are often overlooked in this sport, depending on one’s proclivities.

The naive plunge heedlessly into the fight. They don’t realize how dangerous it is. While they may see the immediate risk of an acute injury, they overlook the wear and tear that comes from years in the game.

Courage comes from knowing the risks and facing them strategically. And facing them starts a seamless transition into lunacy.

This image was created with DALL-E AI, using the following prompt: Painting of a King, a Lunatic, and a Lover at a table, deep in conversation.
This image was created with DALL-E AI, using the following prompt: Painting of a King, a Lunatic, and a Lover at a table, deep in conversation.

My hands belong to a man twice my age. My ears are comically mangled. My knees creak and pop like an old wood floor.

What keeps me in the game if not this potent concoction of courage and lunacy?

There’s something else. Something deeper.

Love.

I love jiu jitsu not because it’s made me more courageous. Not because of its liberating flirtation with lunacy. But because it’s transformational.

I love jiu jitsu for what it might make me and for what it might make you. But that’s a love that demands some courage and lunacy.

Category: Attitude

Tag: Fear/Courage

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