Balrog
Master of Arts
This is a topic near and dear to my heart. My partner wrote her instructor's thesis on this very topic, and I have posted a variation of this on every martial arts board I've ever belonged to. I hope you enjoy it!
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For those who have not read the works of Joseph Campbell, get thee to a bookstore and get The Power of Myth and The Hero with a Thousand Faces. I believe those books should be on every martial artists bookshelf, next to The Art of War and The Book of Five Rings.
Campbell says that one of the basic archetypical stories of mankind is the Heros Journey. That is why stories such as The Lord of the Rings, The Matrix or Star Wars are so popular they are pure heros journeys and the heros journey, in essence, is the story of life itself. Throughout this discussion, I will be making references to these three popular stories to illustrate the steps.
The Heros Journey begins with the hero receiving the call. Usually, this is delivered by The Herald, but sometimes the hero simply stumbles into the scenario by himself. In LOTR, Frodo is told by Gandalf about the ring and charged by him to take it to Rivendell. In SW, Luke finds the droids and accidently discovers the message to Obi-Wan. In the Matrix, Neo gets a phone call from Morpheus. If the hero does not immediately accept the call, usually bad things happen until he does. In the Matrix, Neo does not follow Morpheus directions to escape and is captured and tortured. In SW, Luke is balked by his uncle from going off, and his family is killed as a result.
Once the hero accepts the call, he joins with various people in various roles. Some people play multiple roles in the journey. One of the primary roles is the Mentor, who educates the hero and sometimes provides him with special tools to complete the journey. Others are the Protectors, who guard the hero on the journey. In LOTR, Gandalf first serves as the Herald, then becomes the Mentor and a Protector. Merry, Pippin, Aragorn, Gimli and Legolas are also Protectors. In SW, Obi-Wan becomes the first Mentor and Protector and gives Luke his lightsaber, with Yoda assuming the Mentor role later and Han, Leia and Chewbacca the roles of Protector.
The hero then encounters a series of challenges of increasing difficulty. These challenges are represented by Gatekeepers which he must overcome. The very first one encountered is referred to as The Crossing of the Threshold, where the hero leaves his normal world behind and enters into a world of unfamiliarity and inexperience. In Star Wars, Luke must avoid the Storm Troopers in Mos Eisley. In LOTR, Frodo makes it to Rivendell by avoiding the Black Riders. He actually completes his original journey, then is charged further in Rivendell with carrying the Ring to the Mount of Doom
As the hero overcomes each successive challenge, he gains in knowledge, wisdom and power, until at last he reaches the Ultimate Conflict, the goal of the journey. In LOTR, Frodo arrives at Mount Doom and must destroy the ring. In SW, Luke destroys the Death Star. Upon completion of the Ultimate Conflict, the hero dies (either symbolically or in reality) and gains new powers or influence. If he is still alive, he then uses those powers to benefit others. In The Matrix, Neo dies so that through his death, humanity can survive. In SW, Luke becomes a Jedi Knight and assumes the role of Protector for others. In LOTR, Frodo returns to the Shire and becomes a wise leader. The story can end there, but sometimes the hero begins a new journey.
What has all this got to do with martial arts? Have we not just described the making of a Black Belt?
The hero (our student) receives the call in some manner. He encounters someone who tells him about martial arts training, or he sees a martial arts movie and decides he wants to learn. He accepts the call by visiting a school and deciding to train there, and crosses the threshold when he attends his first class. His instructors then assume various roles to him: Mentor, Protector and Gatekeeper, as we judge his progress at belt tests. As the tests get harder, the student becomes more knowledgeable until the day arrives that he tests for his Black Belt. Do you remember that day? Didnt it seem like your instructor was trying to kill you? Thats what we do its the Ultimate Challenge. When the challenge is overcome, the student dies as a colored belt and is reborn to a higher level as a Black Belt. He then assumes some of the roles, such as Mentor and Protector, to the lower belts, while at the same time beginning a new series of journey to instructor and eventually Master.
And have we not described life in general? All through our lives, we are faced with challenges which we have to overcome. As we do, we gain in knowledge, wisdom and power. Eventually, we die and hopefully at the time of our death, we have made the world a better place for others.
Where are you on your Heros Journey?
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For those who have not read the works of Joseph Campbell, get thee to a bookstore and get The Power of Myth and The Hero with a Thousand Faces. I believe those books should be on every martial artists bookshelf, next to The Art of War and The Book of Five Rings.
Campbell says that one of the basic archetypical stories of mankind is the Heros Journey. That is why stories such as The Lord of the Rings, The Matrix or Star Wars are so popular they are pure heros journeys and the heros journey, in essence, is the story of life itself. Throughout this discussion, I will be making references to these three popular stories to illustrate the steps.
The Heros Journey begins with the hero receiving the call. Usually, this is delivered by The Herald, but sometimes the hero simply stumbles into the scenario by himself. In LOTR, Frodo is told by Gandalf about the ring and charged by him to take it to Rivendell. In SW, Luke finds the droids and accidently discovers the message to Obi-Wan. In the Matrix, Neo gets a phone call from Morpheus. If the hero does not immediately accept the call, usually bad things happen until he does. In the Matrix, Neo does not follow Morpheus directions to escape and is captured and tortured. In SW, Luke is balked by his uncle from going off, and his family is killed as a result.
Once the hero accepts the call, he joins with various people in various roles. Some people play multiple roles in the journey. One of the primary roles is the Mentor, who educates the hero and sometimes provides him with special tools to complete the journey. Others are the Protectors, who guard the hero on the journey. In LOTR, Gandalf first serves as the Herald, then becomes the Mentor and a Protector. Merry, Pippin, Aragorn, Gimli and Legolas are also Protectors. In SW, Obi-Wan becomes the first Mentor and Protector and gives Luke his lightsaber, with Yoda assuming the Mentor role later and Han, Leia and Chewbacca the roles of Protector.
The hero then encounters a series of challenges of increasing difficulty. These challenges are represented by Gatekeepers which he must overcome. The very first one encountered is referred to as The Crossing of the Threshold, where the hero leaves his normal world behind and enters into a world of unfamiliarity and inexperience. In Star Wars, Luke must avoid the Storm Troopers in Mos Eisley. In LOTR, Frodo makes it to Rivendell by avoiding the Black Riders. He actually completes his original journey, then is charged further in Rivendell with carrying the Ring to the Mount of Doom
As the hero overcomes each successive challenge, he gains in knowledge, wisdom and power, until at last he reaches the Ultimate Conflict, the goal of the journey. In LOTR, Frodo arrives at Mount Doom and must destroy the ring. In SW, Luke destroys the Death Star. Upon completion of the Ultimate Conflict, the hero dies (either symbolically or in reality) and gains new powers or influence. If he is still alive, he then uses those powers to benefit others. In The Matrix, Neo dies so that through his death, humanity can survive. In SW, Luke becomes a Jedi Knight and assumes the role of Protector for others. In LOTR, Frodo returns to the Shire and becomes a wise leader. The story can end there, but sometimes the hero begins a new journey.
What has all this got to do with martial arts? Have we not just described the making of a Black Belt?
The hero (our student) receives the call in some manner. He encounters someone who tells him about martial arts training, or he sees a martial arts movie and decides he wants to learn. He accepts the call by visiting a school and deciding to train there, and crosses the threshold when he attends his first class. His instructors then assume various roles to him: Mentor, Protector and Gatekeeper, as we judge his progress at belt tests. As the tests get harder, the student becomes more knowledgeable until the day arrives that he tests for his Black Belt. Do you remember that day? Didnt it seem like your instructor was trying to kill you? Thats what we do its the Ultimate Challenge. When the challenge is overcome, the student dies as a colored belt and is reborn to a higher level as a Black Belt. He then assumes some of the roles, such as Mentor and Protector, to the lower belts, while at the same time beginning a new series of journey to instructor and eventually Master.
And have we not described life in general? All through our lives, we are faced with challenges which we have to overcome. As we do, we gain in knowledge, wisdom and power. Eventually, we die and hopefully at the time of our death, we have made the world a better place for others.
Where are you on your Heros Journey?
