Who is your hero?
A year or so ago I was working on this talk. In that talk, I was highlighting people I admired like Gandhi, MLK Jr., and Mother Teresa. I feel like they were shining lights that pointed in the right direction. They are looked up to by most people in our global community.
One of the evaluators met with me and started saying very negative things about each of these people. She really didn’t like them. I know all of us are complex - we all have good, neutral, and bad parts of ourselves. None of us are perfect. Still, however, even with their challenges, quirks, and idiosyncrasies, I maintained that they were heroes.
She strongly disagreed. I then asked her "okay, who are your heroes?" She sat there stunned. Baffled. She thought and thought and thought. Then she looked up to me and said I don’t have any heroes. It was my turn to be stunned. I couldn’t believe it. I said you don’t admire anyone? She flatly said “no” and suggested I was naive for believing that humanity can have heroes.
Here is how Wikipedia defines a hero:
A hero (feminine: heroine) is a real person or a main fictional character who, in the face of danger, combats adversity through feats of ingenuity, courage, or strength. The original hero type of classical epics did such things for the sake of glory and honor. Post-classical and modern heroes, on the other hand, perform great deeds or selfless acts for the common good instead of the classical goal of wealth, pride, and fame. The antonym of hero is villain.[1] Other terms associated with the concept of hero may include good guy or white hat.
I’m writing this post because I think it is important for us to have heroes. They are human like us, but somehow able to walk past the muck and free themselves from the shackles that capture most of us. They see beyond the immediate and share a vision of a much better future. They inspire, motivate us, and speak to our better angels.
The following is a scale put together by an old writer called David Hawkins. He was attempting to create a scale of consciousness that helped to capture much of what has been written in the wisdom literature. People with higher levels of consciousness experience expanded awareness and inner peace, while those with lower levels may be navigating through various challenges and complexities.
There have been many criticisms of his thinking and this scale in general. I agree with many of them. To me, it isn’t important how he found these levels, but whether or not they are a directionally correct or helpful way of looking at human behavior. I think it is a helpful tool or guide for personal growth and development.
People that are in pain often feel like they are in the lower levels. I see trauma or distress or unresolved issues as weights that keep a person down. We want to float up like an air balloon and become stronger and more compassionate, but we have these sandbags on us that keep us down. When we heal, we cut those sandbags and find ourselves moving up the scale.
Pragmatically, I think it would be possible for us as a community (or even more broadly) to map public figures from throughout history and even now to this scale. I’d argue that a few of my heroes mentioned above (Gandhi, Mother Teresa, and MLK) would be near the top of the scale. And if enough of us voted, then I’d think we’d see people start to see votes cluster in certain areas.
Why am I focusing on heroes? I think heroes are an accessible way for us to understand the power compassionate people can have on the world. Hawkins would argue that the higher one goes up this scale, the more true they are or the more integrity they have, and therefore they have a bigger impact. Enlightened people like MLK didn’t have a big marketing or propaganda budget. His ideas had to stand or fall on the merits. And his ideas soared and caused a society to rally behind him.
Truth is durable, strong, inspirational, and unifying. Things that survive for a long time tend to be true. Lies have a short shelf life. They are fleeting, weak, draining, and cause division.
On this scale, it seems like the more humility one has (the less ego) the more one moves up the scale. This is an important distinction because many scales or lists emphasize people with the most money, power, or fame for example.
We understand that not everyone indeed has a clear-cut hero in their life. Maybe you haven't met someone who embodies what you admire, or maybe you haven’t identified a hero that could be a past, present, or historical figure. But that doesn't mean a hero doesn't exist for you! It just means that you might not have thought of them yet. Imagine your hero. What makes them stand out? Don't worry about finding them in the real world just yet. Just share what you can.
We need heroes now more than ever. It is a time for increased awareness and clarity. It is good and noble for us to find and champion heroes. They speak to us today and they show us a better path forward.
I’d like to better understand our community’s heroes. I think they would tell us a lot about us. Please share any thoughts, ideas or recommendations below and here are some questions to consider to help us better understand your heroes.
Who are your heroes? Can be personal (like friends or family), in the past (historical figures), present or even fictional.
Do you have a picture or video that you can share here?
Why do you admire them (1-3 sentences)?
Where would you put them on the above scale?
@GlenM my heroes, or at least one of them would have to be my former fiancé who was diagnosed with cerebral palsy at birth and then at 16 years old he got diagnosed with cancer and into this day he still fighting and although we're no longer in contact whenever I'm having a bad day I think of him
How inspiring!
He is definitely a real-life hero.
A role model of resilience and determination on the face of seemingly insurmountable challenges.
Thank you for sharing his moving and exemplary life story!
@StompingOnCP
@GlenM
I have never had hero/heroes. I don't see the point of putting someone on a pedestal. They are just people. Even the best people in human history don't inspire my worship.
@GlenM
https://www.thirteen.org/wnet/historyofus/web15/features/bio/B05.html
One person who I read about and see as a hero is Malcom X. He was a black African man who lived at a time in which there was a lot of racism in America. He joined the nation of Islam, which was a group claiming that they are Muslims but who followed a man from among them called Elijah. They said Islam was for the black people and that white people were devils. This was a defense against the racism they felt I guess.
Malcolm x one day travelled to Mecca for pilgrimage and there he saw real Muslims from all around the world. He began writing letters to people in America telling them what he saw and learned that in Mecca he saw black and white people together and they were going around the kaba (the black box), eating with each other and greeting each other and he did not see superiority in the white people he saw in Mecca. He said in America they had something in their eyes but not here in Mecca. He felt people were equal and began to see that not all white people are evil and that black and white people and others can live together. He left the nation of Islam and began to give lectures in America but was shot by the nation of Islam while giving a speech. I was very moved reading his story and have always felt he needs more credit for sharing his viewpoints and giving up his life trying to make peace and defend what is right. I guess he acted out of reason and understanding and an attempt to achieve peace.
I admire him for standing up against injustices and publicly changing his mind and opinions, when he realised they were wrong. Also his attempts to promote peace and the idea the humanity is equal and can live and be at peace together.
A drunken stranger:
I have also realised that heroes are not always famous or even people we know at times. They can be strangers passing us by and people we don't really expect. There is a memory I have from young infancy that still affects me to this day. I guess I was four years old at the time and my sister was two. We were getting on the underground train in London. I got on first then my mother. The doors closed and suddenly my mother began to scream and began frantically looking around screaming to people for help. The doors opened again. My mother then told me what happened (I did not actually see what was going on). My sister was slow to get on the train and the doors closed on my mother's arm as she held her hand trying to help her on. The train began to move and she thought my sister would be killed by being banged up against the tunnel wall. She said a drunk man came and prized the door open with his bottle. “Out of all the people who could have helped us, it was a drunk man with a vodka bottle!” she said. “He saved her life!” I guess for this reason I understood from then that we cannot judge people and some people who might appear bad and even dangerous could be a source of mercy and safety. I never saw his face or even hand yet I have never forgotten him. I guess he might have been acting out of courage.
And at times we wish for a hero and we might not find them around outside us but I have found that in situations where we don't find someone else we often can become the hero ourselves. I do wish we had more people to take on being heros in the world.