Was it Yideng's pride?

[Dennis Chen]

We all know for a fact that Duan Zhixing was a very proud man. It was his pride that allowed the little baby to die.

But what about Yideng? Did his becoming a monk wash away all that pride?

Yideng told Yang Guo that he and Ci'en were the same level; if he did win, it'd be by half a move.

It seems to be often accepted that QQR was very, very slightly below the Greats,. But what about Ci'en?

Ci'en fought with Jinlun Guoshi for... I can't remember the exact time... a full day? As we all know, Jinlun Guoshi won.

Yideng fought JLGS for minutes and he was already sweating and Huang Rong had to intervene.

It sounds to me as though Yideng would have lost far sooner than Ci'en did.

Was the old Duan Zhixing pride talking? Could Yideng beat Ci'en?

[Ren Wo Xing]

Yideng never said those words to Yang Guo; it was the narrator who said this:

"他的铁掌功夫和一灯大师的一阳指各擅胜场，当年本在武林齐名。一灯的佛学修为做他师父而有余，说到武功， 要是出一阳指全力周旋，或可胜得一招半式，掌上功夫却有所不及。。。"

My translation: His 'Iron Palms' and Reverend Yideng's 'Solitary Yang Finger' each had their own unique strengths. In past years, they shared an equal amount of fame in the martial world. Reverend Yideng possessed more than enough cultivation in Buddhism to be his master, but when it comes to martial arts, he could at best achieve victory by half a move, if he used all of his 'Solitary Yang Finger' to fight. His palm skills were somewhat lacking...

In fact, just a paragraph or so later, Yideng's words reinforce how enlightened he truly is. Victory and defeat really held no more meaning with him:

慈恩一怔，喝道：“你还不还手么？”一灯柔声道：“我何必还手？我打胜你有什么用？你打胜我有什么用？须得 胜过自己、克制自己！”

My translation: Ci'en was stunned. He shouted, "Aren't you going to fight back?" Yideng said in a gentle voice, "Why should I fight back? So what if I overcome you? So what if you overcome me? What's important is overcoming one's self and controlling one's self!

[PJ]

慈恩一怔，喝道：“你还不还手么？”一灯柔声道：“我何必还手？我打胜你有什么用？你打胜我有 什么用？须得 胜过自己、克制自己！”

My translation: Ci'en was stunned. He shouted, "Aren't you going to fight back?" Yideng said in a gentle voice, "Why should I fight back? So what if I overcome you? So what if you overcome me? What's important is overcoming one's self and controlling one's self!

That is a great paragraph.

[Dennis Chen]

Oh-mi-tuo-fo.

[kyss of the sword]

Yideng could be considered the best of the greats just on that alone,
through i don't think it was pride that stopped him from savING ying gu's baby, it was hurt and pain.

[tape]

Heh what's so great about having no pride? Sure being humble is preferable than being arrogant, but having just enough pride I think is the most optimal way. It lets you be confident and continuously striving to be the best and accomplishing the most. Those without pride are left complacent and don't achieve as much, though they themselves might be happier.

The best athletes and the smartest men are generally the most prideful, even if they act humble on television. Yet they accomplish the most and the scientists and engineers amongst them help humanity much more than someone who doesn't care about anything and accepts everything "for what it is".

Though my point isn't that pride is awesome and being humble and aloof sucks, I just want to say that those characters are not absolutely the best ones, and those traits are not necessarily the ones to strive for the most even if they sound good on paper.

[kyss of the sword]

it's about having pride in yourself with out being arrogant, accepting victory without demeaning your opponents, and being humble enough to remember those who scarified for you.

[Dennis Chen]

It is interesting (and perhaps my bias) to note that the individual that is most often accepted to have the top martial arts, got to where he was based upon his Buddhist enlightenment.

Wait. Wasn't WCY a Daoist? Darnit.