If V is for Victim, then W is for Warrior and warriors are not victims. When I first heard the word warrior I had this image of somebody doing battle, at war against an enemy and it was not an image I wanted to embrace. Warrior, as defined by Toltec Wisdom, is a Toltec who is “fighting for freedom from her own domestication and social conditioning. She is free from needing to link her self-worth to the beliefs, thoughts, and wishes of her fellow human, free to be happy no matter what happens in life.”[1] Being a warrior, from this perspective is about embodying the five agreements, detaching from those things, ideas, beliefs, and people who constrain our happiness, obscure our clarity, and live as parasites in our mind, body, and soul.
As a warrior, one still arms themselves with weapons. However, this time they are about clearing out those things which obscure our clarity or lead us to violate our integrity. Two tools, which are important in the life of a warrior, are dedication and discipline. Rosenthal discusses how a warrior must be dedicated to their personal freedom and make this warrior's journey a priority. However, the decision to make and sustain this dedication is an act of discipline. It takes discipline as well as dedication to make every moment in life an opportunity for personal and spiritual growth and emancipation. It takes dedication and discipline to use the activities associated with life, such as work, family, etc., as vehicles for growth and development. Perhaps you have heard the comment, “it is not a problem, but an opportunity for growth and development.” A warrior does not see life as a problem, but an opportunity for growth and development.
Warriors are respectful and reflective. One of the other weapons warriors employ in their journeys is respect. It is the decision to be respectful for self and others in everything you think, say and do. Warriors respect themselves enough not to allow others to abuse them or treat them in a disrespectful manner. In making decisions about what to say or do, the warrior must reflect on whether she can enter a situation safely and still maintain her integrity. At times, though, the one who has abused us the most is ourselves. Warriors must master self-love and respect and discipline themselves not to engage in behavior that is mentally, emotionally, spiritually, physically, or financially harmful. It is not sufficient to say that a warrior should be respectful of one’s self and others. One must also take the time to reflect on what is the path which is respectful of as many people as possible while maintaining personal integrity.
The last tool I believe a warrior should have in their weaponry is love. Love, as described in 1 Corinthians 13:4, is patient and kind. The journey a warrior embarks on is neither instantaneous nor easy. The journey to release the social conditioning and domestication, which has been mastered and engrained in our minds, is a process. That which needs to be released from our belief system has a life and energy of its own. It will evolve when it is time and when it does; we will call our “inner jaguar” into action so it may stalk and remove it from our belief system, roots, and all. During this process, it is important to be patient and kind with ourselves. The warrior remembers that we have no control over the pace of the journey. The journey is just that – the journey. What we do with each moment of our lives as warriors is about our own evolution.
In all things, the warrior is loving with one’s self. Warriors hold themselves accountable for their decisions and the consequences of those decisions. We trust the process and know that the journey will be what the journey is supposed to be. Warriors remember that no two people’s journey is the same. What my journey reveals for me is for me and what your journey reveals for you is for you. For those of us who have chosen the path of warrior in our lives, may we remember to stay determined, disciplined, respectful, reflective, and loving in all we say and do.
[1] S. A. Rosenthal (2005). Complete Idiot’s Guide to Toltec Wisdom. Alpha Books: New York, p. 326.