The Heart of Courage

It takes courage to follow one's own path, to face adversity with grace, to persevere when that last ounce of strength seems to be exhausted (a great quote I found on the subject: “A hero is no braver than an ordinary man, but he is braver five minutes longer.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803 - 1882)); and courage manifests itself in countless ways, big and small, on a daily basis. If courage always came easily, however, it would have little worth, (virtue does not seem to come easily, has its cost, and in that sense is very valuable) and courage seems to be somewhat lacking in society’s general response to the fears and perils of the day.

Having courage is a matter of the heart, as is shown by its etymological source cor, which is Latin for “heart,” and indeed courage seems to be at the root of nearly every admirable action we do. Courage seems like good starting point to combat the fear and discord which appear to be two driving forces of modern discourse and life.

Fear, rather than being an adversary of courage, inspires it. Perhaps the bravest acts are those the most fearfully done, and having courage can be as simple as doing that which scares you.


I found an interesting way of looking at courage when reading the virtues of the Bushido Code (the virtues of the samurai as written by Nitobe Inazō) which posited “perceiving what is right and doing it not reveals a lack of courage.”
Thus, having courage is always standing up for what is right-- whether that be standing up to yourself when your impulses contradict your moral code, or standing up to/for others; particularly when the right thing to do is dangerous, trying, humbling, or contrary to the majority opinion.

Sometimes courage is just getting up and facing the day (haven’t we all had days like these) or having the endurance to continue our everyday tasks in the face of calamity. We’ve all seen the people who face suffering or illness with such grace and courage (we’ve seen it right here on ATS) that everyone who knows him/her is affected/encouraged/altered.


I'll end with a wish for my country on the eve of her birthday, for her citizens to have courage to change the tide, mend disputes, and collaborate for the betterment of all regardless of party, affiliation, or indentity. There is so much beauty in America and the best accomplishments done in her name have been inspired by tremendous courage. By acknowledging the virtue of and manifesting the courage within, we can transform the fear being projected onto us into individual and joint power which can be used to leave this world a better to live in than when we arrived.

a reply to: zosimov

Beautifully written!

Also, having the courage to use your own understanding is a form of self-enlightment.

I thought this was very well written. Courage indeed comes from the heart. Empathy and a passion for life can overwhelm our fears and make us far stronger than we ever could be without those things

Thank you for this insightful reminder!

I'll end with a wish for my country on the eve of her birthday, for her citizens to have courage to change the tide, mend disputes, and collaborate for the betterment of all regardless of party, affiliation, or indentity. There is so much beauty in America and the best accomplishments done in her name have been inspired by tremendous courage. By acknowledging the virtue of and manifesting the courage within, we can transform the fear being projected onto us into individual and joint power which can be used to leave this world a better to live in than when we arrived.

Well said, in hopes many acknowledge this.

Delightfully written and so true! Courage has become my number one goal! Conviction to do the right thing when all others may be against you! I applaud you!

a reply to: Night Star

I hope people read your signature Night, so relevent to the topic.

(Might I add that I have always greatly admired your courage).

a reply to: musicismagic

This is a great point! Trusting our own intuition/knowledge is definitely one important aspect of courage which I would think leads to success more often than not.

Thanks for checking out the OP.

originally posted by: LoneCloudHopper2
Empathy and a passion for life can overwhelm our fears and make us far stronger than we ever could be without those things

Absolutely agree

a reply to: dreamingawake

Thank you, dreamingawake
when I read this:

“perceiving what is right and doing it not reveals a lack of courage.”

I thought it was really insightful also! Enough to try to write something up on the topic. I'm glad others found the topic worthy as well.

originally posted by: Justso
Courage has become my number one goal! Conviction to do the right thing when all others may be against you! I applaud you!

A worthy goal and I applaud you! All the best to you Justso

originally posted by: zosimov
a reply to: Night Star

I hope people read your signature Night, so relevent to the topic.

(Might I add that I have always greatly admired your courage).

Thank you for the kind words! I am honored.

You should have writers status. Why do you not have writers status? Someone quick, bestow our Zos with a title please.