Way of the Peaceful Warrior by Dan Millman

[Emil Ramos]

           For my second book of the 3 books I must read I read Way of the Peaceful Warrior. In this story there are two main characters: Dan, a young man who is going to collage at Cal Berkeley who is a very good gymnast and an older man, Socrates, who works at a Texaco gas station. The older man is a martial artist who teaches the gymnast tons of wisdom and knowledge. He teaches about why we avoid facing the source of our suffering and instead try to escape from our anxieties by doing things like playing video games or having a chocolate bar. Socrates says that before you can learn you must empty your cup. This is a metaphor saying that when you have learned so much your mind is full like a full teacup or full gas tank. You must empty your mind, cup or tank before you can learn something new. I think this is very interesting because Sensei gave us the same lesson in class, the mind of the beginner. The "way of the beginner" is that when you first start to learn something you pick up on every detail because it is new to you. 

           Socrates teaches Dan many great lessons that anyone could use in their life. Socrates teaches Dan to always be happy.  Dan eventually finds enlightenment. I recommend this book to everyone.  It taught me a lot of great things and I am very glad I read it because it has helped me understand things better about the martial arts and life. 

[Mike Oliver]

I was first introduced to this book around your same age. When I read it again, I still pick up new insights. The fact that our students are still taking some good things away from Dan's work brings me joy.