Having a Warrior Mindset in Modern Society

[ljgrohn]

From the 10th to the 19th the Samurai were the epitome of the warrior. They ate, slept, and breathed combat. To them it was better to die with honor than live without. With that said, the amount of time and effort they spent on training win in battle was ridicules, comparable only to a few other warrior classes in history.

There main weapon was the katana, each made for individually for one Samurai who would use this same sword for years to come, learning its in and outs. With this they would often carry the wakizashi. A short sword that would accompany them everywhere, even in the most secure of places. With these weapons they trained constantly for war.

Yet even with the amount of time spent training for open conflict on the battlefield, each Samurai felt it his personal burden in life to become proficient in as many areas of combat as possible.

Along with what we call Kendo (sword fencing) they would also practice the art of Iaido, which focused on drawing the sword, not only from standing but weak-handed and kneeling. They studied Aikido, the art of unarmed defense against multiple armed attackers. They studied Jiujutsu, or the art of grappling and joint manipulation. Along with all of this they were also the most educated warrior society the world may have ever seen.

All this is to ask, how do we measure up. Are we committed enough to our families and our own safety, to be willing to diversify our training? Now 99.5% of the people out there do not have time to devote themselves completely to the study and training of the Martial Arts (including firearms). However, are we willing to stay in shape, stay mentally prepared and sharp, learn to fight with and without weapons, and to say to the world I am a warrior, not a victim?

The question then is this: how do we achieve a Warrior mindset? These are just my thoughts, and I would love to hear you guys’ thoughts. Do you cross train? How? What is your motivation to do so? How can we help each other develop this mindset?

Looking forward to your responses to my way too long post ,
LJ

[YVK]

From the 10th to the 19th the Samurai were the epitome of the warrior. They ate, slept, and breathed combat.

With these weapons they trained constantly for war.


All this is to ask, how do we measure up. Are we committed enough to our families and our own safety, to be willing to diversify our training?

I put in bold what I consider a key here. I do not consider myself an epitome of a warrior, nor do I eat combat. I do not train for war constantly.

I do not measure up to samurai in what they did to live, survive and provide for their families, and samurai can't hold a candle to me at what I do. I'd hazard a guess that my family and I are more secure and safe than any samurai and his offspring.

I am very committed to security and safety of my family. Being proficient with firearms/MMA/sharp objects is a small part of being truly secure in our times; at least it is my take. It is important enough that I spend time on it, and I am always looking to expand my skills, but I don't have a fixation on it. Staying fit and sharp is an entirely independent goal.
I refuse to be a victim and I won't let my family to be victimized, but to me it doesn't mean I'll have to become a man-eater - hence, I do not care to cultivate samurai mindset. Perhaps if my job involved killing people for living, I'd be of different opinion.

[LittleLebowski]

I physically cannot refer to myself as a "warrior," no matter my military background, present level of training, and mindset. To me it smacks of preening and chest thumping. All of the very tough men I truly respect do not apply such labels to themselves and practice being humble in the extreme.

I believe what drives me is security of my family and to be quite honest, financial security is probably more important nowadays than physical, at least as far as which one you should devote more time to.

I shoot and PT because I enjoy it. I do my drills because I do see a need for them but proficiency in self defense doesn't raise me above others in my eyes nor does make me feel like I have to apply a label to myself to differentiate myself from the rest of humanity.

[Jay Cunningham]

I physically cannot refer to myself as a "warrior," no matter my military background, present level of training, and mindset. To me it smacks of preening and chest thumping. All of the very tough men I truly respect do not apply such labels to themselves and practice being humble in the extreme.

I believe what drives me is security of my family and to be quite honest, financial security is probably mor important nowadays than physical, at least as far as which one you should devote more time to.

I shoot and PT because I enjoy it. I do my drills because I do see a need for them but proficiency in self defense doesn't raise me above others in my eyes nor does make me feel like I have to apply a label to myself to differentiate myself from the rest of humanity.

Great answer IMO.

[Beamish]

I physically cannot refer to myself as a "warrior," no matter my military background, present level of training, and mindset. To me it smacks of preening and chest thumping.

Warrior Says...



If you want to talk about being aware, being focused and most of all being personally responsible, I can do that. But I just chuckle and see images like the above when I run across such overtly militaristic rhetoric on the intertubes.

[David Armstrong]

The question then is this: how do we achieve a Warrior mindset? These are just my thoughts, and I would love to hear you guys’ thoughts. Do you cross train? How? What is your motivation to do so? How can we help each other develop this mindset?

I would suggest the better question is "Is such a mindset needed, or even beneficial in today's society?" I would say "no" for all but the smallest percentage of people.

[LittleLebowski]

"Personal responsibility" nails it down for me.

[ljgrohn]

Alright so I think I misrepresented my thoughts a little. I was not saying that everybody need to train 40 hours a week and always be ready. I wasn't saying that everyone should be 2% body fat (def. not me ) and a professional MMA to boot.

What I was saying was that the Samurai, though doing most of their fighting with sword in hand spent just as much time in other disciplines not because it was fun but because it was virtuous in their case to do so. The warrior mindset is not just about killing people for a living, it is about training to the point that you need to be trained.

Example, IMO somebody in LE should be more proficient than the accountant in unarmed combat, and much more proficient in firearms. It is part of their job and people's lives depend on it. The accountant who wishes to carry, IMO, should devote just as much time to being able to overcome a potentially dangerous situation without drawing his firearm. If he is to do this he needs martial arts training of some type. In deciding to learn self-defense he is cultivating a warrior mindset, and he is ready for what comes.

The question is I guess better phrased this way: how much training should the average person go through to become able to protect themselves and those around them? How is it different, in your guys' opinions, between military, LE, and civilians?

Last thought. I grew up in a family where everybody was in the military. I was taught that being a warrior does not mean being the biggest, maddest dude out there. It means doing the right thing for the sake of the right thing. It means protecting others at the cost of yourself, wether that means you wake up everyday and spend yourself training in the morning before work, or that means you lay your life down for your country. It is not about being strong, but being meek. Meekness means power under control. Humility is huge, but never false humility. We can say here that we don't want a them or us mentality, and that's fine. But then don't turn around and call people "sheeple" as many on these types of forums do. I think we can basically all agree to disagree but I wanted you all to know that this was about chest thumping or being prideful.

I hope your are well,
Lucas

[ljgrohn]

"Personal responsibility" nails it down for me.

I think I agree with this . But what does this entail for you?

[David]

it is about training to the point that you need to be trained.

The samurai knew who their enemy was, it was the other samurai. The armed citizen usually has no clue who the enemy is going to be until the enemy acts first.

The samurai knew the weapon and tactics their enemy was going to most likely use since they were also a samurai. I am not a killer, rapist or thug so I have no clue what the mindset is of those who are.

How is it different, in your guys' opinions, between military, LE, and civilians?

Oaths & Uniforms.

It is not about being strong, but being meek. Meekness means power under control. Humility is huge, but never false humility. We can say here that we don't want a them or us mentality, and that's fine.

I think there is a confusion between being armed and proficient with your weapon of choice and being a warrior. Two different things, not all warriors had any training at all, and not all highly skilled marksmen are warriors. Look at Audie Murphy, he hardly looked like a warrior and I doubt he received any more training than the typical service man but he seemed to do ok. I would assume he got his warrior mindset in the middle of the combat, he realized it was "him or them" and voila a warrior was born instantly on the battlefield.