"To be a warrior is not a simple matter of wishing to be one. It is rather an endless struggle that will go on to the very last moment of our lives. Nobody is born a warrior, in exactly the same way that nobody is born an average man. We make ourselves into one or the other."

~ Carlos Castaneda, 20th century mystic and Toltec warrior from Tales of Power

Socrates calls it the “great combat” and Rumi calls it the “inner jihad.”

Whatever you call it, get out and live it.

Let’s make ourselves into our ideal.

…

Rumi: “The lion who breaks the enemy’s ranks is a minor hero compared to the lion who overcomes himself.”

Socrates (from The Gorgias): "I desire only to know the truth, and to live as well as I can...And, to the utmost of my power, I exhort all other men to do the same...I exhort you also to take part in the great combat, which is the combat of life, and greater than every other earthly conflict."