Rectitude

Definition

Choosing what is right, even when the easier choice would be more comfortable.

The lesson

Rectitude is ethical decision, responsibility for mistakes, kept promises, and a refusal to compromise integrity under pressure. The Zen Warrior does not negotiate with what he already knows is right.

You do not need a crisis to practice this. The cheaper action shows up as a shortcut, a silence, or a promise you slide. Stop once, name the right action in a sentence, and take it while the easier one is still available. If you take the cheaper one, say so. That admission is still rectitude.

How. Before one tired or irritated action today, write the right action in a sentence. Do that, or record that you did not.

Watch. A rigid stance you enjoy, mistaken for righteousness because changing it would embarrass you.

The book finishes this. The contested cases, where two duties pull apart and the right action is quiet, costly, and easy to argue against.

The rest of this virtue