Moral Compass In The Corpse Walker, By Liao Yiwu

Physically, compass is an instrument that shows the direction of magnetic north. Psychologically, morality is a system of cultural values and codes of conduct held by a specific person. My understanding of moral compass is an inner standard which indicates what is right and wrong, and directs a person to do the right things. Moral compass sets up a path for a person to understand where (s)he is from, what is going on in the surrounding environment, and what he should do next. This path allows a person to critically judge things, which lays a foundation for personal integrity and social conscience. Several wisdom traditions from ancient Chinese philosophy and western books deeply influence my moral decisions and behaviors.
Confucius once said,
A view from outside let me see the differences between what I thought and what is true. This actually shook my value system a little bit, and let me doubt some of my past moral values. In spite that most moral codes are universal, I definitely improved my social conscience, critical thinking ability and a more well-rounded thought process in a multi-cultural environment. In a dramatically changing world, thinking critically help me better judge the right and the bad. This also ties to the concept of adaptive leadership, in which we have to deal with complex, cross-cultural, and disruptive
Since I have the knowledge of taxes and relatively free time, I made considerable commitments in helping these people. Sometimes, if people got large tax returns, many of them would be very happy and very grateful for your help. But one day, I helped a guy who finally needed to pay taxes. He was very mad at me and even shouted at me asking why he had to pay taxes but did not have to pay taxes in the previous years. At that moment, I was very disappointed, and even wanted to shout back to him because I spent my energy and time providing free service to him without any benefit, and he did not deserve my help. But immediately I thought of my wisdom tradition, although I did not have any responsibility to help him individually, I did have the responsibility to make my local community a better place. If I did not help the poor guy, he might need to pay more than $100 for an accountant, and he might become even poorer. As a leader, I also have responsibilities for my organization. If I did shout back to the person, this might harm my organization’s reputation and lose trust from the