2006年NPR美国国家公共电台十月-The Perfection of Character

（单词翻译）

It is Monday morning which means it is time for another installment¹ of This I Believe. And today our essay comes from an NPR listener in Herndon Virginia. 26-year-old Angelina Michetti is a contracting officer for the federal government, but her belief arises from something she does after work. Here's our series' curator Jay Alison.

Angelina Michetti holds a first degree black belt in karate². Her personal beliefs stem from that practice, but also from the linkage³ and even the contradiction, between her contemporary religious upbringing in America and the ancient Japanese martial⁴ art. Here she is with her essay for This I believe.

I believe in the principles of my karate-do, my dojo-kun. It is my way, seek perfection of character, be faithful, endeavor, respect others, refrain from violent behavior. It is my philosophy, my creed⁵. I believe in this as I sweat through my gi, rubbing my inner elbow's raw on my sides. My beliefs are in my callused feet that once bore blood blisters⁶ as big as my palm. My beliefs are in my broken nose and soft jaw⁷ from walking into punches. My beliefs are in my kiai! I yelp⁸, shout, bark when striking, blocking, kicking. My beliefs are also in the hardwood floors, the concrete, the field house rubber matting I train on. I believe in the dojo-kun as I line up with the others at the end of every training, sweated through. I kneel, close my eyes, meditate⁹, open my eyes and recite. I recite in my own voice with all the others, trying not to pant. I recite in my head. We recite as one.

I know my beliefs are paradox¹⁰. My Judeo-Christian heritage says, strive to create a meaningful life, have respect for others, be peaceful, it's all me, my being, my life. But my beliefs are also a dojo-kun, that are Japanese principles. There is no individual, no me. There is blind obedience¹¹, suppression of individual conscience, never ever questioning of a teacher or a leader. My beliefs are in ancient system created for bodyguards¹² who lived and died for their emperor. But I am alive and breathing in America in the 21st century. And my belief is light and dark, water and fire, air and earth, yin and yang. I believe in contradictions, I believe in breathing as one, I bow my head as we kneel as one in one line before Sensei--our teacher. Once, twice, the line rises and falls as one. I raise my head to recite the dojo-kun, seek perfection of character, be faithful, endeavor ,respect others, refrain from violent behavior. This I Believe.

Angelina Michetti with her essay for This I Believe. Michetti says she attends her karate school two or three times a week, but she thinks about the philosophy all the time. If you would like to submit an essay to our series or browse¹³ through all those that have been submitted to date, visit our website npr. org. For This I Believe, I'm Jay Alison.
--------------------------------
black belt
(柔道等有道位者所系的)黑腰带的,黑腰带级选手(柔道中达到最高级别者)
upbringing
The rearing and training received during childhood.
dojo-kun
The Dojo Kun is recited at the conclusion of every karate training, allowing the students to reflect upon the guiding principles of karate-do.
raw
疼痛处; 擦伤[红肿]处
judeo-christian
adj.
同是犹太教与基督教的, 犹太教与基督教所共有的
Sensei
A judo¹⁴ or karate teacher.
柔道或空手道教师
A teacher or mentor¹⁵.
教师
Used as a form of address for such a person.
教师：用作为这样的人的称呼形式
kiai
The kiai is the main component¹⁶ of the Japanese art of kiaijutsu, which basically means "the art of shouting".
gi
Keikogi (稽古着 or 稽古衣) is a Japanese word which means uniform for training (keiko means practice, gi means dress or clothes). This word is used to describe the uniform which is worn for traditional martial arts class