The Spiritual Warrior
In the modern West, it might be difficult to make a positive connection between the warrior and what we usually consider as spirituality. But in the East, the warrior and the yogi have historically been much more compatible. In this context, the spiritual warrior is seen to be engaged in a battle with himself more than with an external enemy.
The word yogi is derived from the Sanskrit word union (yoke). A yogi is one who engages in spiritual practice for the purpose of experiencing union with the divine. Let’s look at four characteristics common to both the warrior and the yogi.
Discipline: In this context, discipline is not seen as a punishment but rather as a support for learning and personal growth. Initially, the warrior’s discipline comes from an external source, but the true warrior eventually internalizes this, and it becomes self-discipline.
Likewise, the spiritual practitioner (yogi) initially experiences the necessary discipline from a teacher or mentor who conveys the practice to the yogi in ways that encourage her to internalize the practice and thus become less dependent on the teacher.
Courage: Courage is not the absence of fear but rather the ability to meet fear skillfully. It takes courage to face oneself, and it takes courage to continue the practice in the face of difficulties and challenges.
The word courage is derived from a French word meaning heart. The world’s warrior conquers with weaponry and physical strength, but the spiritual warrior conquers with love--with an open heart. Perhaps another definition of courage could be “The ability to keep one’s heart open in every circumstance.”
Intentionality: The true warrior maintains a clear intention. An intention is not the same as a goal. A goal focuses on the future, an intention always relates to the present moment—to the “here and now.” Intention is like a compass needle that you can use to guide your journey.
Joseph Campbell tells the story of a samurai warrior…
A samurai warrior, a Japanese warrior, had the duty to avenge the murder of his overlord. And after some time, he found and cornered the man who had murdered his overlord. He was about to deal with him with his samurai sword, when this man in the corner, in the passion of terror, spat in his face. And the samurai sheathed the sword and walked away!
Why? Because he was made angry, and if he had killed that man then, it would have been a personal act, another kind of act, that’s not what he had come to do.
If the samurai had killed the murderer, the act would have been motivated by anger — it would have been a personal intention rather than an action of honor and duty to his emperor.
The spiritual warrior constantly reminds themselves of the intention behind every decision and every action.
Loyalty: Most every warrior takes an oath of loyalty. The spiritual warrior’s fundamental loyalty is not to nation or tribe but to her own True Nature. In Buddhist spiritual practice this often takes the form of taking the Three Refuges, which is a statement of loyalty, loyalty to Reality, to Truth, to Being.
The commitment to conquer oneself is not to be taken lightly: you are choosing to face a most formidable enemy: the ego. It’s not easy to subdue: but it’s quite possible. We conquer this enemy with awareness and with love.
In the Dhammapada are these words of the Buddha:
Though one may conquer a thousand times a thousand men in battle—
he is the noblest of victors who conquers himself.