What Makes A Hero?
Thanks for your great comments. It’s been fascinating to read everyone’s comments on which hero they most admire.
I’ve heard names that I’ve never heard before, such as Louise Weiss, Audey Murphy and Anne Lamott. And the diversity of examples has inspired me to add a new category to this blog and later a new section to the website, that will enable us to look at these examples in more detail.
Here’s a new possible hero I came across today and thought I’d share with you.
[youtube]http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=Ek1iIOTsiRo[/youtube]
What I always look for is the common thread, the underlying dynamic. So I’ve been looking for what determines who we look on as a Hero, but so far there seems to be such a wide range that I haven’t got it nailed down yet. Besides which, I feel like I’m always doing the talking and today I need to listen. 
So today, I want to hear your thoughts and insights and hopefully after reading what you think, I’ll see something that will help me understand this at a deeper level. Even if it what you are thinking doesn’t seem significant, even small contributions can add up to a bigger, clearer picture.
What I’m wondering is, what do you think makes a hero?
How do you decide if someone is a hero or not, in your eyes ?
What act or quality do they have to do or be or have, for you to think of them as a Hero?
Does the Hero exemplify something you want to be, do or have?
When you use the word "hero", having seen so may bollywood movies, i have to draw an analogy or a parallel.
In most of the movies, there has to be a hero, villan and victim.. the villan victmises others and creates more victims.. the victims simply cry for help or feel victimised.
the hero refuses to get victimised and fights the villan to rescue other victims..
This analogy its well to life in general..
In my view, a hero is someone who refuses to get victimised by life's circumstances..He may have temporary setbacks, but he picks himself up and persevers with his mission..
In my view, the hero also has to go beyond himself and make heroes out of the victims and villans..
The decision criteria to crown somene as a hero would be:
1. Does he/she have a sense of mission/purpose?
2. Can he/she refuse to be victimised under any circumstances?
3. Can he/she act /persevere inspite of fear/uncertinty?
One of my heros is "Sr Sri Ravishankar", who we call as Guruji..
He is always happy, serene, interested.. He has a great sense of purpose, but is always playful.
He wroks very hard (travels maybe 250 days in a year to remote locations), but he is always in a celebratory mood..he has a great sense of wisdom and shares it with others effectively..
to put it in a nutshel : he has a message, he is a live embodiment of his message every moment, and effectively communicates it to others.
I will look for the above in deciding whether someoe is a hero..
I would certainly like to have the above traits and the hero exemplifies what I want to be.
I don't think there are such things as heros – only heroic actions. We so often are let down by our hero's because they fail to live up consistently to a past heroic act – we find that they are too human and fallible and we feel let down.
I don't think that your video shows a hero, as I go no impression of self doubt from Jason just a sense of passion and purpose. I fthere was an heroic action here it was coach Johnson who potentially risked Jason's disaapointment if he had failed in the game and riducle and condemnation from others if it had gone wrong. That is not to say that the story of Jason is not inspirational – it is – because it shows what can be achieved when there is an absence of self doubt.
Siva's definitions above ring pretty true for me and o some degree are summed up in Kipling's poem 'If' (if you can forgicve the early 20th century language!)
Perhaps we stop looking for heros and challenge ourselves to become a little more heroic?
Shiva, Great points. I'm with you on a Hero being one that goes beyond himself/herself and refuses to be victimised. The film industry is built on on the Hero concept and can be a great source of inspiration.
I like the round up of what makes "Sr Sri Ravishankar" a Hero.
I'm not so sure about the Hero needing to make Heroes out of others though. Perhaps you could expand on that idea so we could get a clearer idea?
Roland, I'm glad you made that distinction between Heroes and Heroic actions. We all veer between a range of qualities and emotions and I hadn't made that clear.
That is something that holds a lot of people back from heroic acts because they believe a Hero is always Heroic. Definitely we should all strive to be more Heroic. Our Hero's should inspire us to emulate and then exceed them.
I like the poem IF I have it on another site and also my favourite would be The Invitation.
You are correct that language (and communication as such) is limiting. That is one of the burdens of humankind . __But, back to our hero. In the concept hero, the time-aspect is for me disturbing. I do not like the concept of a hero, who is our a hero or – when doing 'wrong things' – is a 'fallen hero'. Again, in our language you are a hero or you are not. But a hero indicates a person and not his actions. A hero is always – every minute, every day – a hero or he is not at all a hero.__I strongly believe that we altogether have to push/help/protect/stimulate each other to go further then we think is possible. But in the same time we have to accept that we are humans with weaknesses and also respect this. __So sometimes you are a hero and sometimes not. As human we have to look to other people, respect their 'heroic actions' and understand the efforts they are making for this. And understand that these efforts are so hard that on other moments, other situations there is no strenght anymore to keep the heroic attitude. __So a hero – in my feeling of language – is not existing. Maybe we should then better talk about heroic actions by humankind iso heroes.
I am always impressed by those who teach rather than preach. It is they who truely shine a light on the path others wish to travel. However I am the most impressed who those who live with so much integrity, that their mere presence in the world is inspirational.
Surely Siva's example of Guruji fits this description as well as Jesus himself, but I think that there are others who contentedly extend themselves to the world with no expectation of anything in return, who fit the term as well.
Ego shouts – Greatness whispers.
Hi Rob,
WHen I said, "Making Heros out of the villans and Victims", the idea is to go beyond oneself and one's sense of self..It is about inspiring the victims and villans to become heros., like the way you are doing to in me in this blog.
Thanks for the many disctictions on the notion of hero. I like the concept of “we are all heroes in waiting” meaning that live at one point in time will present an opportunity to provide support to mankind in a heroic fashion. in order to be ready for that moment we need to prepare and be ready,-)
To me, a hero is anyone who inspires people to be the best they can or try something different. They make people feel like they can accomplish anything. Its pure ENERGY that they give you when you see them. I've recently seen a few will smith interviews on youtube and his views on positivity and success are very interesting. He is very enthusiastic about life and you can't help but catch it yourself.
[...] case you missed it, there’s been a stimulating conversation going on with regard to what makes a Hero. Sometimes I know there’s something that will tie things together, but I just can’t [...]