Mind Scalpel

Proving once again the appropriateness of my long-standing affinity for Japanese culture and tradition, I give you this Word For The Day (this is a rare non-English WFTD, merited by its elegance and compactness):

Tsujigiri: “The testing of a new sword on a chance passerby.”

If you ever wondered why the Japanese evolved that highly intricate and ritualized politeness, the fact that there’s a single word in their language for this concept shows you the reasons for it.

Metaphorically, I practice tsujigiri all the time.

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