The Measure of a Warrior

Friday Knight News

“Have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.” Steve Jobs

It takes courage to study the martial arts, but if being a martial artist (a person with the warrior spirit), is in your heart, be the best one you can be. What are the attributes of a perfect warrior? How is the value of a warrior measured? The answer to these questions can vary from person to person. People from any particular style of fighting might try to develop any of the following attributes on their quest to martial arts mastery. Things like speed and strength naturally lead the forefront of attributes that warriors train to develop. Endurance as well as flexibility are also highly prized. Then of course the warrior needs to have a strong spirit, to be able to remain calm, and stand up to danger or he will not be able to employ his hard-fought and trained for skills.

However, without knowledge and wisdom on how to employ them, all of the previous attributes are often valueless. Very often the warrior needs experience to develop a working level of confidence in each of these attributes. This type of experience is born from combat and is often dangerous to acquire. The stakes are high in life or death situations. That is why it is important to rely on the knowledge from our seniors and predecessors from our particular method of training. In this way an individual is able to acquire knowledge passed down that would have been impossible or nearly so for individuals to acquire on their own.

It comes down to what an individual esteems as the highest skills or attributes in our personal arsenal to survive. It would be foolhardy not to try to achieve some balance in each of these categories. Of course, the warriors that pass on the theories, concepts and training principles of their predecessors generally want to make sure that these skills will not be abused. That is why martial artists have a tendency to seek out people of good character to apprentice under them.

It doesn't matter if the style that you train in utilizes a weapon as a tool for your self-defense, or if you train your body to become a weapon. Either way all of these elements come into factor into the transformation that takes place in the heart of a dedicated martial artist. In our modern society martial arts instructors very seldom know anything about the student that comes to train under them. That is initially true except for the fact that they can pay their tuition. They must rely on their interactions with the student over the course of their development to determine which of the attributes they should concentrate on developing. Of course there are no perfect instructors just as there are no perfect students.

The most that we can hope for is to develop people who are competent and balanced in nature. Even as all of the physical attributes are inter-related we still find that the development of character is probably the most crucial element for overall development. So consider where you came from, and what motivated you to become a warrior in the first place; staying true to your heart is what gives life and meaning to any purpose.

“Who we are in the present includes who we were in the past.”  Fred Rogers

As a martial artist and a writer, I feel that Socrates was on to something when he spoke about the unexamined life. Being an artist of any sort often requires us to expose ourselves to living under the blade. For me writing fiction reveals truths that are often over looked or are too painful to say in any other way. My stories are about martial arts adventures that are intertwined with paranormal or supernatural events. The following links are to the Kindle version books from the "Dream Walker” series. Our adventurers find themselves on a quest where they are confronted with both conspiracy and mystery. Their challenge is to unite their mind and body skills together utilizing what they have learned in the martial arts with the transcendental power of dream mediation. They attempt to do this while they are trying to make a life for themselves and elude those that seek to use and control them.

Conversations with a Sage (Book 1 of the Dream-Walker)

Conversations with a Sage: This explores Xander Davidson's early encounters with the mysterious fog like Dream Walking martial art sages. He ponders if they are real or if they are only remnants of his dreams. He mainly keeps this secret world to himself as he tries to copes with abuse, growing up without support or guidance and the mystery of his family's past. 

Xander and the Assassins Gift (Book 2 of the Dream-Walker)

The Assassins Gift: Xander Davidson struggles with the conspiracy of his family and the group that is actively trying to manipulate him to join them or die. The young Dream Walkers learns an early lesson to be careful about whom they let into their circle.


Warriors of Perception (Book 3 of the Dream-Walker)

Warriors of Perception: Xander Davidson and his band of friends embark on a mission to free themselves from their oppressors. They bravely face the challenge all the while vying for the right moment to turn the tables.

Jace Lee The Shift (Book 4 of the Dream-Walker)

Jace Lee The Shift: We find a new apprentice, Adam, that is fighting for his life. He is struggling to understand the amazing skills of his mentor, Jace Lee; a younger man that has trained under Xander Davidson. All the while his mentor attempts to reconcile the fact that his skills do not match up with the other Dream Walkers.


Jace Lee No Agenda (Dream Walker Book 5)

Jace Lee No Agenda: Jace Lee attempts to find himself on a self-imposed vision quest of sorts. Instead he finds himself being stalked by the same group that had previously sought after his teacher, (Xander Davidson). Instead of mastering his odd Dream Walking skills he finds love and the potential loss of his powers.

Jace Lee and the Tutelage of Ming Wu: Dream Walker 6 

Jace Lee The Tutelage of Ming Wu: Jace Lee rejoins his teacher Xander Davidson as they cope with a possible combined threat (the mysterious), Ming Wu and the Council that has continuously monitored the Dream Walkers.