What’s your definition of courage?
Courage means different things to each one of us. We all obviously have our own definitions of courage and cowardice. To some, it is valour, to some it is fierceness, to some, it is emanating confidence.
Beyond all these generic definitions of courage, watching the Lord of the Rings movie series recently got me thinking about what real courage is all about. And here’s my string of thoughts, uncensored.
In the Two Towers movie, when Rohan clearly knew that they would lose a battle with the army of Mordor, even King Theoden himself wanted to give up, Aragorn stood up and volleyed for the battle without second thoughts. Did he not know the odds of winning? Did he not know the pain of a battle? No, he knew them really well. Still, his courage lay in really doing the right thing, fighting for the people even if he was gonna lose it all. His aim was to mitigate the damage of the Uruk-Hai, not avoiding it preventing it. Inspite of an imminent failure, he volunteered to give his all and fight without worrying too much about the consequences — and that’s it. That is courage — to want to fight for what you believe in, no matter whether the consequence would be desirable or undesirable. It is the ability to give your everything to what you believe in the present, without losing your mind worrying about the future. It is the courage to act in the present!
Lemme tell you another scenario. Throughout the three movies, though Frodo had to bear the burden of the ring, there was a reason he had to bear it. The ring was entrusted to him and of course, he volunteered to do it later on. But think of Samwise Gamgee, why did he have to do it? Why on earth? Just because he heard a part of Gandalf’s conversation with Frodo, he had to accompany him throughout. I admired Sam’s loyalty throughout. He always had the option to leave Frodo and live in the comfort of the Shire, at any point in the journey. But he persisted. He was there always, without any compulsion. That is courage — being there for your loved ones and those who you respect, unconditionally. He did not even leave Frodo when he had shamed Sam’s loyalty in the Return of the King movie. The ring did have a part to do in it, still, what need did he have to stay back after such a humiliation? He simply could have cursed Frodo and left the place. But he was there, sacrificing his own food and water for the greater good and even carrying Frodo in Mordor when he himself could not walk. He gave in himself for the greater good, for his friend, for Gandalf’s trust. And mind you, I would say Sam was more courageous than Frodo. He was Frodo’s anchor-cooking, managing their resources, watching out for Frodo’s mood swings, saving Frodo a couple of times, fighting enemies and being there for Frodo emotionally everytime, motivating him to not give up no matter what, giving him hope! That’s Samwise for you, the real COURAGEOUS hero. He did not do something because others wanted him to, nor was he selfish. He fought hard and never lost hope even in the dullest of moments. He gave his all for the single cause inspite of realising that there would be no return journey nor a life with Rosie Cotton. He did at all!
Another instance of courage comes back to the King himself again — Aragorn. He had stayed away from his throne all his life, opting for the life of a simple Ranger. But when the need had risen, when he had to fight for the people of Gondor, he readily came forward and took up command, accepting the Sword of Isildur and summoning the mountain people. Though he did not exactly want the throne, he did not shy away from it when the country needed him — the courage to do the right thing even if that is not what you wanted in life. The courage to devote yourself for the people and not shy away from taking up responsibilities even if it is something really out of your comfort zone. The comfort of accepting the changes in life and adapting to them over time:)
I have still not read the books, so do forgive me if there are factual errors in my statements. Do comment your thoughts and help me get this blog better:)
