Courage, the greatest of all virtues

"Courage is reckoned the greatest of all virtues; because, unless a man has that virtue, he has no security for preserving any other." —Samuel Johnson 

Joan of Arc

"To have courage for whatever comes in life — everything lies in that."  — Saint Teresa of Avila



Spirit Triumphant! Flame through the weakness of faltering, fainthearted souls! Burn up egoism, kindle compassion, so that selflessness, the lifestream of humanity, may flow as the wellspring of spiritual rebirth!  — Rudolf Steiner

Frederick Douglass
"It is not light that is needed, but fire."

Rudolf Steiner: "There will have to be a festival in honor of human courage, of the human manifestation of the courage of Michael. For what is it that holds man back today from spirit-knowledge? — Lack of soul courage, not to say soul cowardice. Man wants to receive everything passively, wants to set himself down in front of the world as if it were a movie, and wants to let the microscope and the telescope tell him everything. He does not want to temper the instrument of his own spirit, of his own soul, by activity. He does not care to be a follower of Michael. This requires inner courage. This inner courage must have its festival in Michaelmas. Then from the Festival of Courage, from the festival of the inwardly courageous human soul, there will ray out what will give the other festivals of the year also the right content." 

I bear within me peace;

Within myself I bear forces to make me strong.

With the warmth of these forces I shall be imbued.

With the power of my will I shall be filled.

And then I shall feel

How peacefulness pours through all my being

As I strengthen myself

To find peace as strength within myself

Through steadfast inner striving.

— Rudolf Steiner, Verse for the Esoteric School