The Peaceful Warrior series

Image: pregnant warrior double sword 2 courtesy of dizznbon
Welcome to the Crazy Colombian’s series about how to live your life like a Peaceful Warrior. This series of articles were inspired on a weekend experience held on the 5-6 of April 2008 in Sydney with Dan Millman. In addition to an up-to-date list of articles in this series, you will also find a little information about Dan Millman, and what it means to be a Peaceful Warrior.
Like most good things in life, my appreciation for Dan’s teachings get better with time. It is for this reason that you can expect future installments of this series. If you want to stay on top of new additions, you’ll want to sign-up to our on-line magazine (it’s free!). Enjoy!
The Peaceful Warrior series
This is the list of articles written so far in response to my experience with Dan:
- The Peaceful Warrior Experience: An evening with Dan Millman
- A poem inspired by a Peaceful Warrior master
- PW Series, Part 1: A Peaceful Warrior weekend seminar
- PW Series, Part 2 : The Law of Balance
- PW Series, Part 3 : Energise your body
- PW Series, Part 4: Trust your intuition
- PW Series, Part 5: The Law of Expectation
- PW Series, Part 6: The Law of Cycles
About Dan Millman
Born in February 22, 1946, Dan has lived a unique and eclectic life. Starting his career as a gymnast, he shattered his leg after a motorcycle accident. The doctor’s prognosis: he would not not be able to walk ever again. After such devastating news, Dan went on to prove them all wrong by tirelessly training and fully recovering from his injuries. In 1964, at the tender age of 18, he won the World Trampoline Championship in London.
After achieving this incredible milestone, Dan spent the following years as a coach to students at Stanford University and Oberlin college. After several years of coaching experience, Dan decided to help others in a broader sense. He went on to become a prolific self-help, best-selling author of over 13 books. His most famous one, Way of the Peaceful Warrior was written in 1980, and was made into a movie in the summer of 2006 by Lions Gate Films.
Nowadays, Dan spends most of his time writing and speaking. His keynotes, seminars, and workshops are all designed to share the wisdom he has accumulated as a practitioner of The Way of the Peaceful Warrior.
What is a Peaceful Warrior?
We are all Peaceful Warriors in training. But what exactly defines a Peaceful Warrior? I could not find a definition anywhere – neither in Dan’s books or anywhere else on the internet. So, this is my attempt at sharing one definition of a Peaceful Warrior. Feel free to add / suggest changes to this definition in the comments section at the end of this article, and I may amend this page with some of your comments.
A Peaceful Warrior is an individual who:
- Has accepted the duality of life (Male & Female ; Peace & War; Ying & Yang) and has learned to balance & integrate these apparent opposites through action in life.
- Dedicates his life to Serving himself and others, following his passion and dreams even in the face of insurmountable obstacles.
- Has the courage to do what needs to be done, even when it doesn’t come easily
- Has compassion for all those around him, guiding his actions with love – particularly for those who need it most (usually those who are hardest to love).
- Uses the passion of his heart, the compassion of his soul, and the experiences of his life to Be Present, and accept that there are No ordinary moments, ever.
- Understands that the experiences he has along the journey are more important than the destination itself






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Great to stumble upon your site. A huge Millman fan and recording artist/producer, I decided to melt these two worlds together with my musical comrade, resulting in a rich tapestry featuring Dan’s words and our music! We are looking for places to host/write articles and your seems to fit perfectly. Have a look at the site, and if you’re interested in crafting an article for your site we’ll send you the rest of the links for free. All that we ask is that you send us the article before publishing it. Hopefully you’ll find “Song of the Sage” a worthy subject of your attention and webspace.
Sincerely,Schroeder Nordholt
http://www.songofthesage.com
DIEGO’s RESPONSE::
Dear Shcroeder,
WOW. What a beautiful piece of work have you guys done with Dan! It is ABSOLUTELY BEAUTIFUL. I will definitely contact you by email to see how we can collaborate.
Well done. I truly love your work.
Diego
The Crazy Colombian
Wow! I think you nailed the description of the Peaceful Warrior on the head. Deep. A few other thoughts: the journey is more important than the goal; the quality of your life is on the line every moments; you need courage to do the right thing, even when it’s not easy (the warrior part) and courage to trust your inner voice. There’s a lot in the Tao that is relevant here as well. Live in harmony with the way of the world.
DIEGO’s RESPONSE:
Thanks for your encouragement Bob; your additions to my description of a peaceful warrior certainly are spot-on. May you continue a wonderful journey through life.
Thank you very much Diego for sharing your thoughts with us.
Here are my 2 cents:
A Peaceful Warrior is an individual who… conquers himself.
As seen in the trailer, Socrates tells us the description of the Peaceful Warrior : “I call myself a Peaceful Warrior… because the battles we fight are on the inside.”
I myself like two quotes to describe the PW:
“For a man to conquer himself is the first and noblest of all victories.” Plato
“One may conquer in battle a thousand times a thousand men, yet he is best who conquers himself.” the Dhammapadda
Your friend,
Andre
DIEGO’s RESPONSE:
Hello Andre, and thanks for dropping by to contribute to this important dialogue. I loved your addition to this page, as it reminds us that the reason we need to be compassionate warriors is not only because we must treat others as we would like them to treat us; but rather because the first and most critical battle is fought within ourselves.
I really appreciated that you added this dimension to our definition, as it is certainly one that we missed from our previous conversation in describing what a Peaceful Warrior makes.
We would like to invite you to read some of the articles in the series and leave more thoughtful and insightful comments, as we are convinced that they will enrich the experience for your fellow readers.
Thank you once again for your contribution to this conversation.