Those who have chosen a life of discomfort will convert even potential comfort into discomfort – not physical discomfort but evolutionary discomfort. That is the heroic nature. That is what Swami Vivekananda spoke about in so many of his talks.
Those who have a heroic nature alone can perform heroic tasks. Those who are greedy, or trapped in the desire for wealth and power cannot be heroic.
An individual with a heroic attitude is constantly pushing his/ her own limits – increasing the size of the container which is oneself. Thus, to be heroic means continuous self-expansion.
The path of the hero is not gaining in knowledge. It is not meditation. It is not the desire to excel. It is something deeper than that. It is the way of expansion.
To develop the heroic attitude, one needs to throw away all narrowness. All that is personal and me-mine in our thinking. It demands that we transcend the mud puddle of narrow self-interest, and choose instead the clear, calm, waters of the Ocean Vast.
To be heroic is to put one’s own identity as a human being on the line, to put oneself at stake, to take risks with oneself.
To love is to take a risk. And to love universally – everyone in front of you, is a huge risk with oneself. To trust is to take a risk. To be transparent is to take risk. To make mistakes is to take risks. In short, the willingness to live constantly in evolutionary discomfort – that is the true meaning of being heroic.