Courage

1.      Who is a man of courage?

Is he the one who feels no fear? Is he courageous because he feels courage in himself rather than fear?

No, I tell you, not.

There must be no man who feels no fear. Fear is part of us.

But a courageous man is a man who feels fear but chooses to defy it. Must be for a nobler thing to do.

It can be that he chooses to defy his fear because he also has another FEAR… A fear of losing what is good, noble and upright.

2.      Courage doesn’t mean feeling no fear; it means defying one’s fear.

3.      Courage is a force that moves us to do what is virtuous, upright and just (despite of fear). Yet, it is not an emotional impulse that we may, perhaps, wish to think; it is a rational choice, a voluntary will that we make so that it would be emulated to our souls.

4.      Courage’s mortal enemy is fear. But remember that fear is a passion that can be defied by courage which is a reason.

5.      The virtue of courage does not mean a will to fight alone. We must also think, and sometimes, learn to retreat from the battle for us to think of a better strategy. Such is what gave the Mongols an advantage before. They don’t just fight and die for glory, they also know when to retreat to reinforce themselves, and advance whenever it fits already.

6.      Why do we fear? Because there is uncertainty. It is innate to us, and it is really who we are (let’s not frown for it). But a simple choice of defiance can move you to do whatever you ought to do, take risk, and discover something new. Fear is not completely bad, but too much indulgence with it can hinder you of something.