A reader sends me a questionnaire in which he presents the profile of three world leaders who lived in the same period of history, and asks if it is possible to choose the best one using the following data:
Candidate A was associated with witchdoctors and often consulted astrologists. He had two mistresses. His wife was a Lesbian. He smoked a lot. He drank eight to ten martinis a day.
Candidate B never managed to hold down a job because of his arrogance. He slept the whole morning. He used opium at school, and was always considered a bad student. He drank a glass of brandy every morning.
Candidate C was decorated a hero. A vegetarian, he did not smoke. His discipline was exemplary. He occasionally drank a beer. He stayed with the same woman during his moments of glory and defeat.
And what was the answer?
A] Franklin Delano Roosevelt. B] Winston Churchill. C] Adolf Hitler.
So what then is leadership? The encyclopedia defines it as an individual’s capacity to motivate others to seek the same objective. The bookstores are full of texts on this theme, and the leaders are normally portrayed in brilliant colors, with enviable qualities and supreme ideals. The leader is to society as the “master” is to spirituality. This, however, is not absolutely true (in either case).
Our big problem, especially in a world that is growing more and more fundamentalist, is not allowing people in prominent positions to commit human mistakes. We are always in search of the perfect ruler. We are always looking for a pastor to guide and help us find our way. The truth is that the great revolutions and the progress made by humanity were brought about by people just like us – the only difference being that they had the courage to make a key decision at a crucial moment.
A long time ago, in my unconscious, I changed the word “leader” for the expression “warrior of light”. What is a warrior of light?
Warriors of light keep the spark in their eyes.
They are in the world, are part of other people’s lives, and began their journey without a rucksack and sandals. They are often cowards. They don’t always act right.
Warriors of light suffer over useless things, have some petty attitudes, and at times feel they are incapable of growing. They frequently believe they are unworthy of any blessing or miracle.
Warriors of light are not always sure what they are doing here. Often they stay up all night thinking that their lives have no meaning.
Every warrior of light has felt the fear of joining in battle. Every warrior of light has once lost faith in the future.
Every warrior of light has once trodden a path that was not his. Every warrior of light has once felt that he was not a warrior of light. Every warrior of light has once failed in his spiritual obligations.
That is what makes him a warrior of light; because he has been through all this and has not lost the hope of becoming better than he was.
That is why they are warriors of light. Because they make mistakes. Because they wonder. Because they look for a reason – and they will certainly find one.
The three of them were involved in the military.
World war and economic crisis.
Military = uniforms
I often wondered what it is about uniforms that people like so much about it.
It has an air of authority perhaps, the “I am in charge” ’s connotation.
It also involves discipline and when there is too much of it it melts into undis cipline.
It is a bit like the Zen V Ram.We have to bring it back to the middle and it is a tie.
Once again you cannot have it too much of one side because the bubble has to burst soon or later.
We
Surely, the next elected officials will not solve all the problems presented by humanity. Nevertheless, we are consoled with the idea that we know if we picked the imperfect but right people for the jobs, they are warriors of light.
The way a Warrior of Light is described by Mr. Coelho, reminds me of the hindu epic: the Mahabharata. This revered epic recounts the battle of Kurushektra between two factions of the same descendants, namely the Pandavas and the Kauravas. Many interpretations have been written on same and especially on the sixth chapter which is popularly known as the Bhagavad Gita.
The best interpretation i’ve come across is that of Paramahansa Yogananda. To him, allegorically each character in the book represents a human quality and the first faction mentioned above stands for our positive qualities and the second one represents the negatives ones. So when we are trying to overcome a bad habit, our positive qualities are clashing against the negative ones.
To quote Paramahansa Yogananda: ‘Each person has to fight his own battle of Kurukshetra. It is a war not only worth winning, but in the divine order of the universe and of the eternal relationship between the soul and God, a war that sooner or later must be won.’
So indeed, a Warrior of Light is bound to win..sooner or later.
Vanessen
>its very sublime!…
Mr. Paulo coehlo,
you told me what i needed to hear. the masters will bless you for motivating me to take the journey further and to endure the obstacles of the path.
thank you and god bless you.
Thank you as always.. You made me realize that Iam a warrior of light.
Wonderful.. this is great…
great! like it. warrior of light, indeed.
Keep working, great job, I love it!
Very well put Fatima. Perspective is as unique as a fingerprint. Perspective reveals our reality to each of us. Awareness allows use to express our feelings and redirect our actions. The life of Abraham Lincoln is an example of the process: http://www.snopes.com/glurge/lincoln.asp
The Warrior of Light concept will help many, thank you Coelho.
That is really motivating Coelho! Its really amazing that one has been a warrior of light since long but one never realizes it.We are always ready to portray ourselves as weak and think that fate has always betrayed us.What we do not realize is however that fate never betrays us.We are destined to face the realities of our life.Those realities which are specifically designed for us , inorder to make our character strong.And if we contemplate over them , we can always unveil something hidden-something only intended for us…
To Paulo,
How true..
To:Savita Vega
I listed down a total of 35 qualities of what my ideal partner,or my ideal man that I going to meet should have,and today I am going to add one more quality;that is he is a man,the man who has made mistakes, and overcome them. The man who has taken risks – and win or lose – gained something from them. The man who dared to dream, even when the dream was deemed impossible. The man who took the time to know himself, and who concluded, in the end, that he liked himself, faults and all. The man who can find God outside the walls of a church house, just as readily as within.n still love me for being who i am.
Love your work… it’s art!
Silje 17 years from Norway
Correct me Paulo if I am wrong but I think that the Warrior of Light spends most of his / her life in the dark, struggling to get from one point to another, hoping endlessly that at some point the light would come. There would be many moments of disappointment when one feels the warmth of light and thinks it is coming along and then realises that that was a false alarm. Other moments of dispaire when one feels the never ending coldness of the dark. But then comes this myterious feeling out of no where. A feeling , a call from deep inside that says get up , move you will get there . You struggle again in the dark and then you feel a pull like a magnet and you know you just know that you are on the right track. And then it just starts with a speck of light and then a beam and then the true warmth. At that moment the warrior would have two feeling the happiness that s/he was right and is finally there and the saddness that this part of the journey is over. At this point there is a new awareness, a mixture of fear and pleasure because a new journey starts again in the dark but this time you know that the new darkness will lead to more light.
Candidate D was associated with witchdoctors and often consulted astrologists. He had two mistresses. He smoked a lot. He never managed to hold down a job because of his arrogance. He slept the whole morning. He used opium at school, and was always considered a bad student. He drank a glass of brandy every morning.He was decorated a hero. He stayed with the same woman during his moments of glory and defeat.
And what was the answer?
D] Paulo Coelho :-P :-DDD
Nobody is perfect and thank God for that ;-)
But we can always can do our best to our knowledge, thrue our mistake we grow stronger and more humble.
So we should forgive ourself and others for things that gone wrong in one or another.
We are just humans trying to life our life to the fullest :-)
Even then topleaders of our world is humans as you and me.
But I think that their intention (the vision) and focus on going on their path is the key to where they are.
But they struggle as much as you and I with everday things.
So the only thing we need to think about is what do I want to do in this life, nobody else has the answer, it is inside of you :-)
Ad astra per aspera :-)
Love Jessica
Paulo,
thank you. I have long been a reader of your books.
I have just discovered that I too am a warrior of light. On the 26th January 09 I had a powerful spiritual experience while visiting the Stonehenge and this served to completely changed the course of my life.
I rely on your words to continue to find the courage to live my destiny. To shrug away doubts and to follow the light. My mission in this life was revealed to me at Stonehenge and I must now embark on it. Although at times I don’t feel worthy, I question my faith and I have feelings of giving up, I know that I won’t because I know that this is my future.
Thank you, for always encouraging me and for shining the light into my life through your words.
Meghan
HOLY MOLE
that is absolutely ‘incredible’
for all the training received in younger years to become presentable adults… indeed candidate C appears well ahead of the class.
it is interesting because of cause was it not Hitler who reached his final ‘position’ in the government from working slowly up the ladder… from something like a street type job, to admin, government etc.
I am slightly confused by the definition of the warrior of light as coward,
for in another blog article you have argued for moving away from anonymity, since they are cowards.
maybe I didn’t catch the point ?!
best wishes.
I think that much of what you have set down here can also be applied to husbands and the endeavor of finding a “good one.” Please forgive me if the language I use strikes some as archaic. The society I dwell in rather conservative, and the prevailing attitudes still define men and women, as well as the institution of marriage, in very traditional terms. For example, a woman is meant to, expected to, go out and find “a good husband”, whatever that means. And what, precisely that means, is a question that fascinates me enormously.
Let me first try to give a good run-down of the qualities deemed essential to this exemplary “good husband” according to this society I live in:
* He should not smoke.
* He should drink, if at all, only on rare occasions, and then, never partaking of more than one drink at any occasion.
* He must never have done, or even experimented with, drugs of any kind
* He must attend church at least once a week, or otherwise be willing to attend (if sufficiently prodded by his “good wife)
* He must have never done anything “wrong”, really wrong, certainly not illegal, or even questionable, in his whole life – never went to the principal’s office in high school, never got a ticket, other then perhaps for occasionally speeding, never been in trouble with the law, and certainly never been arrested, have no major debts to his name that need to be paid of, have exemplary credit and a wallet full of credit cards, ready to hand over to his “good wife”
* He must take out the garbage, repair the car, mow the lawn, and build things around the house, or otherwise, make enough money and be willing to pay someone else to attend these tasks on a regular basis
* He must be willing to and have previously proved that he is capable of holding down a “regular job” – preferably at an oil refinery or paper mill, where he can make the most money, even if it kills him, even if he dies of cancer – for years on end, he must be prepared to do this, even if he hates it and would rather be anywhere else
* He must always dress respectably when taken to public or family functions: new jeans, new cowboy boots (not scuffed or worn or looking like they’ve ever seen the inside of a horse barn), new belt with a decorative silver or gold buckle on it, crisp button down shirt, new cowboy hat (felt in winter, straw for summer)
* He must not spit, or burp, in front of anyone other than his wife – like a well trained dog, he must know the proper time and place for this
* He must always vote Republican, as this is the only way to righteously defend the American flag
* He must say “Yes, Ma’am” and “No, Ma’am” and never call anyone older than himself by their first name, no matter what his age
* He must open the car door for his wife (no matter how full his hands may be), wait for her to get in, then close the door behind her
* He must own a gun, and know how to use it, because he may need this one day to defend his family and/or their property
* If he has an affair, he must be discreet and be sure that no one finds out about it who will let word of it leak back to his wife, their friends, or any member of either of their families
* He must say “I love you” on a daily basis, must send a dozen roses at Valentine’s day, buy her jewelry for their anniversary, small kitchen appliances for Christmas, and never fail to take her out to eat on her birthday
And so, when all is said and done, and you find one of these “good husbands”, what do you have? As for the examples I have see – Hitler incarnate, sitting right in your very own living room.
Give me, instead, the man who has taken made mistakes, and overcome them. The man who has taken risks – and win or lose – gained something from them. The man who dared to dream, even when the dream was deemed impossible. The man who took the time to know himself, and who concluded, in the end, that he liked himself, faults and all. The man who can find God outside the walls of a church house, just as readily as within.
(And so much more…but now I’m out of time.)
Hi,
I was needing to read this today. Thanks Paulo.
“Amen” to that! :)
That is just beautiful… Its all I can say