The philosophy of the warrior

Posted by admin on Oct 31, 2005 in Issues & Ideas | 0 comments

Tell me and I’ll forget. Show me and I may not remember. Involve me and I’ll understand.­­­
— Native American Proverb

The First Nations of Canada have endured great suffering and turmoil. This history left the majority of the minority in an existential identity crisis. Lost ­­­in a mix between their traditional cultural heritage and the reigning multiculturalism of present day Canada, First Nations have become alienated on their very soil. But, there is hope.

In North America’s natural state, warriors populated the land. What is a warrior? Simply, one who is engaged aggressively or energetically in an activity or cause. The warrior engaged his context, the natural environment, energetically. This engagement was fundamentally in harmony with creation, so the relation between the warrior and the organic was symbiotic. This symbiotic relationship changed upon the foreigner’s arrival to the land. The ensuing confrontation caused the warrior to become a spectator, simply a minor character in a play dictated by the foreigner. Robbed of the stage, cast down into the bleachers, and shooed with a broom into hidden nooks of the land, the warrior who was once so passionately engaged now merely observed.

This brief history of First Nations, here, is metaphorical, but if it has any accuracy, the question arises: do the warriors still exist? If so, are they still energetically engaged in their natural environment?

The answer is twofold. It is true that the warrior remains energetically engaged in his original context despite the alteration of his environment. Nonetheless, a new context arose on the land. A context that acts as a stage for the warrior to display his abilities perfected in his aboriginal habitat. This context allows the warrior to flourish by aggressively engaging in physical activity with others. This is a situation that allows the warrior not only to energetically participate in community, but also contribute to it. In this setting, the warrior can develop his cognitive abilities–-the very abilities utilized by the foreigner to transform the warrior into a spectator.

The context I speak of is the university we attend. Ultimately, the university reawakens the philosophy of the warrior–-to passionately engage the world and the nature around us. There is hope to regain the warrior spirit if the university does not remain foreign to future warriors.