Purity of Arms: Acting Well.

I came across a phrase from the Old Testament that sits in the official doctrine of ethics of the Israeli Defense Force called Tohar HaNeshek – purity of arms.

It speaks to what is the moral use of the weapon and what’s the immoral use of the weapon. Essentially it asks a soldier to reflect on whether an action is just or unjust. And, if a course of action is unjust, it asks that soldier not to take it.

In a sense, as human beings we are weapons. Put in the right hands a weapon can protect. In the wrong hands, it destroys. Our journey through the brief time we are here is littered with moral and immoral actions. Our actions are such that they either nurture and grow each other or they harm and hurt each other.

For me, Tohar HaNeshek speaks to three things: Our actions, our courage and our intent.

Actions

Carlos Castaneda said, “A man of knowledge lives by acting, not by thinking about acting.” The trick is to take the right action. If one buys into Carl Jung’s Collective Unconscious philosophy then you’d think we’d all have the right moral code imprinted in our DNA. You’d think we’d “just know” what’s right and what’s wrong without being taught it. We’d all take the right action to set the other up for success.

Patently, with the way the world seems to be going, our collective idea of what’s right and wrong has been watered down through the eons. I reckon that we have to relearn what we’ve forgotten. We need to learn to become truly human again and take the right actions.

By the way, taking no action when it’s appropriate to do so is also a moral or immoral choice. When it comes to taking moral action, Edward Burke’s words burn into my soul: “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.” I know that I don’t always speak out when I see an injustice done to another. That speaks to my courage or lack thereof.

Courage

I wrestle with the concept of courage. Why don’t I always act morally and appropriately when the situation requires it? Probably because I’m still vested in my own self interest. I don’t want to be disadvantaged. I don’t want to put myself in harm’s way. I want to protect what little I have. Maybe it’s as simple as that I don’t want to upset the apple cart and go with the flow. Maybe it’s as simple as that I need that deal so that I can eat … so, I’ll do business with a company or person that I find morally reprehensible. Maybe I’ll listen to racist and sexist jokes and do nothing because I want to fit in … I want to be liked.

Intent

If this is the case, then maybe it’s because my intent is wrong. I’m patently then here to serve my own interests. If I were truly selfless, I’d act with courage in do the right thing every time. I would set the other person up for success every time. I would practice Tohar HaNeshek. I’d take the morally correct action. Mmmm, clearly there’s still work for me to do on myself.