The Wisdom Warrior

Rose Colored Glasses

The sky is not less blue because
the blind man does not see it.
Danish Proverb

Everyone is the same… People are people… I have tons of friends… That kind of thing only happens to other people… These are all comments which I hear from people who “wear rose colored glasses.”  They see the world as they believe it to be or as they want it to be, not as it actually is. These people live in their own little fantasy world where everything is colored according to their viewpoint.

Is not the truth the truth?
Shakespeare

While it is true that we all see things from a certain point of view which is colored by our own biases or prejudices, we should make an effort to see things as they actually are. You may argue, what does it hurt if someone sees the world in a certain way, as long as they aren’t bothering anyone else? Well, in actuality it may not hurt them at all. They may live their whole life without their distorted beliefs affecting them. Then again, they may not.

Someone may see rattlesnakes as a loving, misunderstood creature. They may truly believe that rattlesnakes are not dangerous or poisonous. This belief, although it is untrue, may make them feel all warm, loving and one with the earth. It may make this person feel safe when he goes out hiking in the hills…and this belief may never have any adverse affect on this person at all, that is as long as he never find himself face to face with a rattlesnake or steps over a bush and is bitten by a rattlesnake. His thoughts do not change reality…

A light is still a light, even though
the blind man cannot see it.
Austrian Proverb

Likewise, this person may love to wear his rose colored glasses outside in his backyard and his white shed may look rosy to him. He may enjoy his perception of the nice rosy color of his shed. It may make him feel peaceful and relaxed or meditative and reflective…but none of this changes the fact that his shed is white. If he wants to think of it as rose colored, that is his choice, but he is making a decision to deceive himself.

Truth is exact correspondence with reality.
Paramahansa Yogananda

The same principle goes for other believes such as the ones which I listed at the beginning of this blog post. “Everyone is the same.” No, they are not. “People are people.” Wrong again. Different people have different moral values and many people do not value life as you or I do. “I have lots of friends.” No you don’t. “Those kinds of things always happen to other people.” Not hardly…

These kinds of thoughts may make people feel all warm and fuzzy inside. They may be socially acceptable or politically correct, but that does not make them true. And the same principle applies to these thoughts as it does to the guy’s thoughts about the rattlesnake…you may go all of your life without these “rose colored thoughts” affecting you, unless you run into someone who proves to you that your thoughts are bogus.

Truth doesn’t change because it is, or is not,
believed by a majority of the people.
Giordano Bruno

If however, this person runs into the stark reality of a gruff, scarred hand that reaches up an grabs those rose colored glasses from his face, he will be shocked to face the actual reality of the way things truly are. He will find out the hard way that his thoughts are flawed. This can be a rude awakening…

Facts do not cease to exist
because they are ignored.
Aldous Huxley

There really is no benefit in deceiving yourself. Isn’t is better to see things as they truly are? The truth doesn’t change simply because we refuse to see it or want it to be different. The truth simply is the truth. Things are as they are. You have the choice to see things as you will, but I highly recommend taking off those rose colored glasses, at least sometimes…

Truth will always be truth, regardless of
lack of understanding, disbelief or ignorance.
W. Clement Stone

Bohdi
Warrior Wisdom

Warrior Wisdom Book: Ageless Wisdom for the Modern Warrior

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What Women Want

The wise focus their
attention inside.
Lao Tzu

I get a lot of emails, and many of them come from women who read my blogs or have read my book. One of the common topics that I hear repeated, not only in the emails that I received, but also in listening to conversations throughout my everyday travels, concerns what women actually want from a man. A lot of the emails that I receive are from female readers who say, “YES! The warrior is the kind of man that every woman wants! Where are men like this today?”

Let them know a real man,
who lives as he was meant to live.
Marcus Aurelius

It seems that no matter how hard ….Hollywood…., celebrities, feminists, etc. try to push the image of the metro-sexual male or the feminist man who has to depend on the wife to take care of things because he is a spineless, witless, buffoon, deep inside most women still love the stereotypical warrior which I write about in my book and blogs. They want a man who has character, integrity and honor. They want a man who has courage and who is willing to take care of them, provide for them, and protect them.

Now, I’m not saying that women want someone who simply wants to keep them pregnant and barefoot. That is not how the warrior looks at his wife or his girlfriend at all. If you have read much of my writing, you already know that. The warrior has the utmost respect for his wife and family. He spends time with them. They are the most important thing in the world to him, which is why he is willing to provide for them and protect them, even unto the death. No matter what other duties the warrior has, his wife and family always come first, if he is truly walking the path of the warrior. And this is something that every woman wants.

If you would be wise, provide for your house,
and love your wife in your arms. Fill her stomach,
clothe her back; oil is the remedy for her limbs.
Gladden her heart during your lifetime,
for she is an estate profitable to his lord.
Do not be harsh, for gentleness
masters her more than strength.
Give to her that for which she sighs
and that toward which her eye looks.
Ptah-Hotep

I realize that many of my readers will disagree with me on this point. They will want to argue that their duty to their country or their fellow soldiers comes first, or that their duty as a cop or a fireman comes first. To this I say hogwash! As a warrior, your first and foremost duty is to your wife and family, not your job or your profession. It is one thing to put other things first when you do not have a wife or family, but once you make that commitment, your priorities have to change. And this is what most women that have either written me or talked with me, seem to want – a man who is willing to put her first, a man that she can always count on to be there for her.

I can hear the feathers ruffling as I type, “What do you mean Bohdi?? Are you saying that I should neglect my duty??” Not at all, that is not what I am saying. What I am saying is that your wife and family have to come first. We all still have to work and do our job, and many times we had rather be at home with our family instead of working, but that’s life. This doesn’t mean that you don’t put your family first. Working is providing for your family, and is a necessity in life, but you had better have the pecking order straight in your mind. If you don’t put your family first, who will?

What I am saying is that the warrior walks by his own set of rules and values, his own code if you will. He has the courage to live by his own law. He isn’t a sheep. No one else controls him or tells him what does or does not come first in his life. He sets the rules and sometimes they may not jive with the norm of society. So what? He is not concerned with society’s political correctness or the way things have always been done. He is concerned with his personal duty, and he decides the hierarchy of his duties.

Highly evolved people have
their own conscience as pure law.
Lao Tzu

What I must do is all that concerns me,
not what the people think.
Emerson

The women that I have talked to want a man who is strong enough to decide what he believes in and who will stand for those beliefs. They want a man with backbone and character. They want someone who they can trust with their life, who they can depend on without question. Women want a man who they know is honest, sincere, and who will put their family first. A man who will honor and respect them is at the top of their list. No matter how much our “advanced” society pushes the image of the lovable buffoon as the image of the nice, desirable husband, this is not the feedback that women are giving me.

Do the character traits above sound familiar? Well, they do if you have spent much time reading my blog or have read Warrior Wisdom, they describe the warrior. The warrior is a man of honor, character, and integrity. He has a strong sense of filial duty and duty to his family. He is honest, trustworthy and sincere. He is a man of courage and has both the will and ability to back up his ideals. The warrior understands respect and honor, and they are a synergistic part of his life. The true warrior is truly the man that women describe to me as their perfect man.

The master warrior is
a man of character,
a man of wisdom and insight.
Forrest E. Morgan

Many women seem to go for the bad boy. Maybe this is because they really want someone who is a warrior, but their image of what the warrior really is, is skewed by movies and television. They consider a man who is rugged and tough to be the image of the warrior, but soon they find that this bad boy, is not a true warrior, but rather a thug. He lacks the character and principles of the true warrior, which is truly what women are looking for in a man. Soon they trade the bad boy for the nice guy, which although he may not be a warrior, he is at least not a thug and will provide a home for her.

Look for benefits that last.
Ten Bears

It is not enough to make something look good.
The underlying principle must be good.
Joyce Sequichie Hifler

What women are truly looking for is the perfect combination of the bad boy and the provider. The man who has principles, character, and is rugged and tough enough to protect her if the occasion arises. This is the picture that has been painted for me from the many emails that I have received, and it is the image of the true warrior – the man of excellence. Balance is important in everything, and I think that it is also important when it comes to what women what from men.

Stop talking about what the
good man is like, and just be one.
Marcus Aurelius

The superior man demands it of himself;
the inferior man demands it of others.
Confucius

Bohdi
Warrior Wisdom

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Is Chivalry Dead?

To protect the weak and defenseless
The Chivalric Code of Charlemagne

To those who have been given much, much is required. Warriors have been given specific training in martial arts and in the knowledge of self-defense. Hopefully they have also been instructed in ways to, not only be able to defend themselves, but also to use their martial arts skills to defend others. Warriors have a duty to defend others when it is in their power to do so.

There are a lot of people who do not have the same training or skills that the warrior has developed over his years of training. They are not able to protect themselves, much less those around them. These people live their life depending on the goodwill of others. For various reasons, they have never developed the ability to fend off an attacker. Most have grown up in a fairly sheltered environment and really do not understand the psychology of the predator. The warrior is their only defense, other than depending on a police officer who may or may not be around when they are in need, or depending on the mercy of someone else.

Think, feel, and act like a warrior.
Set yourself apart from the rest of society
by your personal excellence.
Forrest E. Morgan

The warrior, on the other hand, has studied the art of self-defense. He knows the mind of the predator and what the criminal looks for in a victim. The skills that he has trained so hard to perfect are designed to keep him and his friends and family safe from those who would prey on the innocent. He has been given much knowledge; therefore he has an ethical a duty to use this knowledge to help the weak and the defenseless when he can. Wherever you are, those around you should be a little safer because you are there.

It is not only what we do,
but what we do not do,
for which we are accountable.
Moliere

Of course this depends on the warrior’s sense of chivalry. Chivalry is mostly thought of in connection with the qualities of the medieval knights and how they were expected to behave towards women, but the ideals of chivalry also include qualities such as courage, honor, consideration for others, and loyalty to your code of conduct. I consider chivalry part of the warrior lifestyle, not just some outdated, romantic notion.

The master warrior is a man of character,
a man of wisdom and insight.
Forrest E. Morgan

Just as there was no actual "pirate’s code," there was also no definite set of ideals that made up the qualities of the ideal knight, but there are traits which are generally accepted as chivalrous. Were there knights who did not live up to the "code of chivalry?" Absolutely! There will always be those who will not be willing to live a life of excellence, but instead will lower themselves to an inferior standard. This fact doesn’t negate the fact the chivalrous ideals are good qualities to aim for and to make a part of the warrior lifestyle.

The term "code of chivalry" could be interchangeable with the term "code of honor." It simply means a code that one lives by. Your code of honor, if you are a warrior, will have ideals that you try to live up to, whether you are dealing with the local mechanic or with the elderly lady trying to get across the street. In meditating on your own code of honor, it may be good to consider some of the old codes of chivalry and the ideals which they fostered. Is chivalry dead? Not to those with the warrior spirit…

The 13 Principles of Chivalry

1. A True Knight must be a gentleman yet fails not in duty.

2. A True Knight must uphold the Dignity of Man and Woman, remembering that all are born free and equal in Dignity and Rights.

3. A True Knight’s manner of living is an example to the young.

4. A True Knight shall at no time act outrageously nor do murder or be cruel in any way to man or beast.

5. A True Knight respects and defends the rights of all men and women to hold and practice religious beliefs other than his own.

6. A True Knight takes no part in wrongful quarrel but at all times supports the Lawful rights of all men and women.

7. A True Knight’s word is his bond.

8. A True Knight must be honorable in all things and know good from evil.

9. A True Knight must be of modest demeanor and not seek worship unto himself.

10. A True Knight must seek out such Quests as lead to the protection of the oppressed and never fail in Charity, Fidelity and the Truth.

11. A True Knight speaks evil of no man. A slanderous tongue brings shame and disgrace to an Honorable Knight.

12. A True Knight never betrays a trust or confidence given to him by a brother Knight.

13. A True Knight must so order his life that by his contributions the people of the world may hope to live together in greater peace and tolerance.

The Order of the Grail

Bohdi
Warrior Wisdom

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Modern Code of Chivalry
based on the “Old Code”

Prowess: To seek excellence in all endeavors expected of a knight, martial and otherwise, seeking strength to be used in the service of justice, rather than in personal aggrandizement.

Bohdi Sanders
The Wisdom Warrior

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The Code of Chivalry
Rifts: England Supplement

Live to serve King and Country.
Live to defend Crown and Country and all it holds dear.
Live one’s life so that it is worthy of respect and honor.
Live for freedom, justice and all that is good.
Never attack an unarmed foe.
Never use a weapon on an opponent not equal to the attack.
Never attack from behind.
Avoid lying to your fellow man.
Avoid cheating.
Avoid torture.
Obey the law of king, country, and chivalry.
Administer justice.
Protect the innocent.
Exhibit self control.
Show respect to authority.
Respect women.
Exhibit Courage in word and deed.
Defend the weak and innocent.
Destroy evil in all of its monstrous forms.
Crush the monsters that steal our land and rob our people.
Fight with honor.
Avenge the wronged.
Never abandon a friend, ally, or noble cause.
Fight for the ideals of king, country, and chivalry.
Die with valor.
Always keep one’s word of honor.
Always maintain one’s principles.
Never betray a confidence or comrade.
Avoid deception.
Respect life and freedom.
Die with honor.
Exhibit manners.
Be polite and attentive.
Be respectful of host, women, and honor.
Loyalty to country, King, honor, freedom, and the code of chivalry.
Loyalty to one’s friends and those who lay their trust in thee.

Bohdi Sanders
The Wisdom Warrior

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The Ten Commandments of the Code of Chivalry
by Leon Gautier

Thou shalt believe all that the Church teaches, and shalt observe all its directions.
Thou shalt defend the Church.
Thou shalt respect all weaknesses, and shalt constitute thyself the defender of them.
Thou shalt love the country in the which thou wast born.
Thou shalt not recoil before thine enemy.
Thou shalt make war against the Infidel without cessation, and without mercy.
Thou shalt perform scrupulously thy feudal duties, if they be not contrary to the laws of God.
Thou shalt never lie, and shall remain faithful to thy pledged word.
Thou shalt be generous, and give largess to everyone.
Thou shalt be everywhere and always the champion of the Right and the Good against Injustice and Evil.

Bohdi Sanders
The Wisdom Warrior

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