Those who study lesser teachers go unto them.
My devotees, Arjuna, come unto me.
—Krishna in the Bhagavad-Gita
Why study the Warrior Archetype? Why seek to acquire warrior virtues? Is it because we want to march off to a literal war? To fight? To kill? To blow up the planet?
I’ll give you MY answer.
For me, it’s about the INNER WAR. The struggle inside my own head. This is the war of trying to understand who I am, why I’m here, how should I live … and the challenge of rising to that occasion, not only in an external world but also in an internal sphere whose dark side threatens at every moment to overwhelm its light.
In other words, the war against the enemies inside my own skull.
What are those enemies? The same enemies a warrior faces on a field of physical combat. Fear. Self-doubt. Isolation. The overwhelming temptation to yield to the instincts of self-preservation. Fear of failure. Fear of success. The belief that life is without meaning, as my own existence is without meaning. The temptation to settle for a lesser version of life and of myself. Anger. Rage. Mistrust of my fellow man. Inability to love, to accept love from another, to give love to another, or more than one other. I could go on, but you get the idea. Laziness. Complacency. Arrogance, Vainglory. Perfectionism. Lack of self-belief. Lack of belief in a transcendent being or energy.
But let me flash across continents and cultures to another book that has been seminal to me in my own struggles—the Hindu scripture, the Bhagavad-Gita.
Bhagavad-Gita means “Song of the Lord.” It’s been called “the Hindu Bible.” Gandhi, they say, freed India using its principles.
The Gita is short. You can read it in an hour. And like all great scriptures, its structure is brilliantly simple.
On an ancient field of battle, two great armies are lined up across from one another. Chariots, horses, swords, armor. The invincible warrior Arjuna stands in formation on one side. He’s our hero.
Arjuna peers across at the enemy (he’s close enough to see their faces). He recognizes friends, kinsmen, teachers. In great distress, he orders his charioteer to drive out to a space between the two armies and stop. His charioteer obeys. There, Arjuna lays down his arms and refuses to fight.
“I see friends, kinsmen, teachers across in the enemy line. Nothing good can come from contending against them or slaying them.” He lays down his immortal bow, Gandiva, and slumps against his chariot in despair.
But here’s the brilliant zinger of the “Song of the Lord.” Arjuna’s charioteer is Krishna, i.e. God in human form.
Krishna stands before Arjuna and reads him the Riot Act. “You are a warrior! Stand up and fight!”
But wait. There’s a further zinger on top of the first zinger. The names of the individual warriors among the enemy (and the Gita recites them all in a lengthy list) can be translated in Sanskrit to read not just as personal names, but as qualities of human vices–mortal failings common to us all.
The names of these foes read like this:
“Fear.”
“Arrogance.”
“Complacency.”
“Self-doubt.”
“Laziness.”
“Disrespect for others.”
“Impatience.“
In other words, the Gita is now talking about the Inner War.
When Krishna commands Arjuna to slay these enemies, he means defeat these vices inside Arjuna’s own heart.
And Krishna goes further. He declares that the reason these vices are evil is that they separate the mortal soul from union with the Almighty. In other words, they dissever Arjuna himself from Krishna.
The outer war in the Gita becomes a metaphor for the war within.
The remainder of the Gita is Krishna instructing Arjuna in the spiritual conception of life, of the human condition, of the proper relation of God to man and man to God.
The inner war, we are taught, is the struggle to ascend from our lower, brutish nature to our higher, enlightened Self.
The Gita addresses such subjects as duality and non-duality, attachment and non-attachment, karma, previous lives. It even prefigures quantum mechanics in a section called “The Field and the Knower.” But the Gita’s primary emphasis is on the Sanskrit term yoga, from which derives our English word “yoke,” and which means, in Krishna’s definition, the union of the mortal soul – you and me – with the divine.
Who walks his path beside me
feels my hand upon him always.
No effort he makes is wasted,
nor unseen, unguided by me.
But let’s get back to our own Western culture and continue our examination of the Warrior Archetype in ancient Sparta, specifically the 300 Spartans and the battle of Thermopylae.
Good episode to put things into context, and to clarify that this isn’t about the glorification of killing. The truth and lessons are found in the metaphor. Maybe not a perfect example, but I reflect on how the Genesis story is not literally about “the world being created in seven days,” but metaphorically lines up nicely against the big bang, formation of worlds, and emergence of life.
You bring a lot of insight into this space, and we appreciate you.
I agree with you, the author tried his best. Thanks for the great article!
It’s easy to get distracted and overwhelmed by the stresses of daily life. Thanks Steve, for posting this as a reminder of how to approach life with a long term view that doesn’t forget our basics
On an interesting Time of my Life, all your books and specially this series keep hitting the right spot. I have learned from The War of Art and The Artist Journey a great amount of How. On this series, the courage of the archetypes. But in the last few months and specially today, I am struggling with the What. What to do ? What goals to pursue ? What I am going to do today ? I am a Camera Operator, with no much work, and spread widely on Design, I make wood things, a bit of Writing, I like investigative journalism. Lot’s of little projects staring at me. And there are days where I do . . . nothing. Today I am shouting for help.
If you write a new book to help people decide What to do, I am your Arjuna.
Thank You, Thank You and Thank You
You are amazing, Steve, to be so generous to make these videos, as well as Writing Wednesdays. Thank you so much! Truly inspiring.
Steve,
Looks like I’ll need to revisit Bhagavad Gita again. Embarrassingly, but not without precedent, I totally missed the names of the friends when I first listened to this a few years ago.
Knowing that these enemies (friends as well–maybe the friends that led me to smoking weed and being a vandal in high school…) are ever present is also very helpful.
Another thank you for doing this video series during this particular time in history. I doubt I’m alone in this, but current events are like a monster-sized negative magnet that pulls my thoughts and feelings toward fear, doubt, anger, resentment, judgment, and eventually a narcissistic nihilism. Those of us on the West Coast are experiencing a lock-in from COVID, and now a lock in from smoke. Kinda feels a bit like your last book. Cannot even walk the dogs. Oh. Yuck. I shouldn’t project my own madness on the entire planet–so 2020 also coincides with me doing a significant pivot for my own business, which is terrific kindling for the fire of Resistance anyway. The world is just a rather large bellows on the flames.
Getting a dose of Pressfield Wisdom more than once a week has made a significant difference these past few weeks.
Hmmmm. I wonder how resistance will fare in this battle.
Margret,
Anytime I underestimate my own version of Resistance…I lose.
bsn
Brian, what I want to know: we’ve got high school teams with names like Pirates, Raiders, Buccaneers, Vikings, Rebels, and Outlaws.
But no teams called “The Vandals.” You can be our case study that “Vandals are people, too.”
I have actually considered University of Idaho for a PhD program on their mascot name alone! I love the nickname of Vandal…although according to Ancestry, I should favor the Vikings…
bsn
Steve,
Which is your favorite/preferred translation of the Bhagavad Gita?
Love ya, Steve. Keep on keeping on.
Virlana
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This may be my favorite episode yet!
I like this story and got many inspirational speech from this video.Thanks for sharing this wonderful and educative story for the next young generation.
I completely agree, it’s an inner war the one all of us have to fight, and it has to be fight everyday, lonely
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I think we’re all here to fight. but identify ourself with a fighter inside of us is for sure an important step to solve a lot of existential problems, moral problem to manage our energy, our powers.
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Episode Nine: Why Study the Warrior Archetype?
This episode explores the warrior archetype, highlighting its relevance in developing resilience and leadership, especially in healthcare. Understanding this archetype can help nursing students and professionals manage the pressures of their field more effectively. Services like https://www.nursingpaper.com/ provide support for nursing students, offering resources to enhance their academic and practical skills through an in-depth understanding of such powerful concepts. This aids in preparing them for the rigorous demands of healthcare environments.
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