Each man chooses how to live and define his life… I don’t think there is one correct way to be a man. However, in my observation, the best men are aware of their efforts to balance out these multiple areas of their lives.
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When I imagine my concept of masculinity, I envision myself in a hexagonal temple, built of ancient marble (you can choose wood, steel, recycled steampunk parts, or whatever you want for your temple). I imagine I am sitting in this temple, enjoying the life I have built around myself.
I envision the strong Doric columns around me, perfectly recreating the ideal human body… with each column being meticulously and skillfully fashioned to make me feel at home.
The Vitruvian Man, by Leonardo Da Vinci
Did you know, According to the Roman architect Marcus Vitruvius, Greek temples were based on the beauty and dimension of the ideal human body. Does Vitruvius sound familiar?
At their respective bases, the pillars read: Purpose, Balance, Sophistication, Adventure, Community, and Leisure. I smile because I know that these six pillars of masculinity have been delivered to us through the ages of ancient man, connecting me to Aristotle, Leonardo da Vinci, and Thomas Jefferson.
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I hope you will decide for yourself how best to build your own masculine ideal…
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Each man chooses how to live and define his life… I don’t think there is one correct way to be a man. However, in my observation, the best men are aware of their efforts to balance out these multiple areas of their lives. A deficiency in one area will be noticeable by certain foundational crumbling. I hope you will decide for yourself how best to build your own masculine ideal… since you’re the one who gets to sit in your temple.
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The 6 Pillars of Masculinity
Purpose: Seek, find and pursue your multi-layered purpose for living, knowing that mankind’s purpose for existence is at best a mystery.
Balance: Choose a balance that supports health and fulfillment. Too much focus distracts from perspective. Too little focus leads to latency. Potency is in the ability to balance the mind and body, the intellect and emotions, internal and external, self and community, career and family… in all things.
Sophistication: Feed your curiosity about the world, fostering sophistication as deeply as your well will allow. A man who knows and loves the finer things is living a full life. Sensual and intellectual capacity are nurtured by developing both breadth and depth of knowledge on subjects such as technology, culture, science, philosophy, theology, food, drink, rhetoric, or any other pursuit which men find worthy.
Adventure: Stillness and action are both necessary to maintain power in a man’s life. Purposefully finding adventure creates new range for perspective in the mind and emotional constitution. Most of us see the world better with our feet on real earth.
Community: As a man becomes fundamentally sound, he will desire to be part of the foundation of his community. As a pillar of his community, the strength of a man’s love and perspective can support a family, a village, a country, or the entire human race.
Leisure: During our lives as human beings there is so much work to do; and yet there is no work as important as the art of being human. Leisure time and activity consistently provides opportunity for laughter, enjoyment, and a sense of living a good life. The ancient Greeks saw Leisure as the utmost judgment of a good man… think art, sports, music, travel, etc.
When a man has fully built himself on these pillars, each is as important as the other. Without leisure, balance is impossible. Without a purpose, a man will be impotent in the community. Without adventure, a man’s exposure to new ideas will blunt his sophistication. As a man builds his life, he will continue to rise to new levels if he continues to pay close attention to this blueprint, keeping each area of his masculinity in perspective.
Wrapped up in each pillar are steps and levels to successfully carving powerful structure.
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Also by Dale Thomas Vaughn
 How I Learned to Be Happy When I Am Alone |
 How Guys Go From Tough and Alone to Evolved and Accountable |
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 20 Lessons From My Men’s Group That Have Improved My Life |
I’ve bee getting into a discussion about whether Masculine/Feminine or for that matter Dominant/Submissive dispositions or behaviors are just socially constructed labels to control people’s behavior. I’ve been exploring spectrums of say owning ones own Masculine or Feminine qualities from an empowered perspective and do believe these qualities as you’ve laid out quite nicely in this writing exemplify desired qualities for Mastering at least in my life. But I’m still wondering what these said qualities provide in a relationship. I’ve read some stuff on the polarity between The opposites as a way to say maximize sexual interest in a partner… Read more »
I think you missed the target on a few of these, perhaps by being too vague. Being direct is a good quality of a man too. I understand your choice of the word “Purpose” as trying impart spirituality but also be inclusive of our atheist brothers. It should be a little more clear that good men seek a higher purpose and order beyond what it presented before our eyes as reality … whether that is a God or not. “Intellect” is better than the nebulous “sophistication”, which conjures images of brandy snifters and suave affairs. You don’t have to be… Read more »