"Way of the Peaceful Warrior"

Dan tells the story of his own life and his enlightenment, his awakening to himself and the reality of the world. The first step in discovering what is real in oneself and in the world is to discover what is not real:

Raised by loving parents in a secure environment, I was later to win the World Trampoline Championship in London, travel through Europe, and receive many honors. Life brought rewards, but no lasting peace or satisfaction. Now I realize that I had, in a sense, been sleeping all those years and just dreaming I was awake (11).

Dan meets an old man in a gas station, whom he names Socrates because of his mysterious wisdom. Socrates---along with a woman named Joy, whom he eventually marries---will be the means whereby Dan achieves his awakening to the deeper truth of himself and life.

Socrates and Joy teach Dan "how to live---that there were specific disciplines and ways of seeing the world I had to master before I could awaken to a simple, happy, uncomplicated life" (11). Such a life is referred to as the Way of the Peaceful Warrior.

Of course, the lesson that Dan finally learns, the wisdom, the compassion and humor, the connection between body and

. . .
dent. Socrates says he can't really put into words the nature of the "map," and suddenly Dan is propelled into another realm, not one of illusion but one of consciousness. He discovers that everything is consciousness. He discovers that the apparent division between the mind and the body, between oneself and others, is an illusion. He discovers that "awareness is how the human being experiences the light of consciousness" (86). In other words, when a human being begins to lose some of his consciousness, that means that he is no longer paying complete attention to consciousness itself. At that moment that consciousness begins to decrease, he has let his ego become the center of his attention, rather than continuing to focus on the big picture: I learned the meaning of attention---it is the intentional channeling of my awareness. I felt my body again, as a hollow vessel. I looked at my legs; they filled with warm, radiant light, disappearing into brightness. I looked at my arms, with the same result. . . . I became wholly light. . . Finally, I realized the process of real meditation---to expand awareness, to direct attention, to ultimately surrender to the Light of Consciousness (86). Of course, as Socrates points out, this merely
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Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 1640
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page)