We continue to explore our true selves through the window of archetypes, using as my guide the book: Illuminating the Way: Embracing the Wisdom of Monks and Mystics by Christine Valters Paintner. You can join us in reading the book or just follow along with the blog.
Archetypes are “instinctual and universal patterns of thought developed in human beings over thousands of years.” (pg. xi) Today we will look at the archetype of The Warrior.
“The Warrior is that part of ourselves which is ready to protect and defend whatever is necessary.” pg. 71
There are lots of examples of the Warrior in literature. The knight who is loyal to the Sovereign and who is willing to fight to the death for a just cause; but I am most intrigued by the idea of the Warrior who helps us fight our internal battles, especially when it comes to maintaining our personal boundaries.
As the adult child of an alcoholic (ACOA), the idea of boundaries took much too long for me to understand. They say that children raised in an alcoholic system don’t understand moderation. The first time I heard that it made so much sense to me. I had always been an “all in” kind of gal. I was the first to jump off the cliff, eat too much, or drink too much. I started to learn about moderation when I and began to read about the features of ACOAs. It was like lights began turning on, but growth with boundaries came slowly for me because they can be so blurred for children of alcoholics.
Thankfully, my husband would help me. He taught me that when my mom called, and I could hear the ice tinkling in the glass, I didn’t have to stay on the call. Or when the family dynamic tried to pull me into the middle in my role as mediator, which I’d been firmly placed in since the age of six, I could resist the pull to rescue. These boundary making behaviors were things I had to learn and I needed the help of my inner Warrior for them to begin to come from me instead of from my husband. It took a lot of courage from this peacemaker to uninvite some family members to holidays or to start saying Richard Rohr’s sacred “no” that Paintner describes in this chapter. Unfortunately, decades of family gatherings were ruined until I learned to put my own little family first, but I finally did and it was a huge relief to all concerned. Well, to my little family anyway.
Amma Syncletcia, the desert mother who is the author’s Icon for the Warrior, was a brave woman who took to the desert with her blind sister where she could throw off cultural constraints of women in the 400’s and be focused on God, offering wisdom to those who sought it. Many women joined her there, seeking healing for their inner wounds. We need the courage to deal with our inner wounds and the Warrior can help us, and we can help each other as Amma Syncletica did.
The shadow side of the warrior is our Inner Critic, which we are encouraged to listen to and then dismiss. As a writer, I’m very familiar with this little fella. I love Elizabeth Gilbert’s take on this in her book, Big Magic. She says (and I’m paraphrasing here) fear (the inner critic) is allowed along on the trip, but never allowed to drive! Another shadow of the Warrior is the tyrant we can become if we let our Warrior run amok.
I love the prayer at the end of this chapter and offer it to you now,
“May you find the fierceness within to honor and protect that which is most precious. May you find the courage to say no to all that drains and disempowers so your yes may be all the more radiant.” (pg.89)
What has been your experience of the Warrior? Mine is limited by my family system but I’m interested in how it has helped others.
Photo credit: Warrior