Why We Need Aragorn’s Example of Masculinity

the hands of the king are the hands of a Healer and so shall the rightful King be known this single sentence sums up so much of what makes Aragorn an incredible leader King and man masculinity is one of the most misunderstood Concepts in current thought whether in news media fiction or influencer culture the rejection of many traditional masculine values and the suggestion that seeking them is toxic commonly perpetrated by large news outlets or just some random Blog has generated a knee-jerk reaction that does nearly the same amount of harm there is no shortage of voices telling young men that they should seek personal success and wealth at all costs that being a superstar is what men should pursue these calls are attempting to drown out the opposing cries for men to reject their desire for greatness to be meek weak and gentle as is all too common in today's political climate both sides viewpoints are overreactions to what they dislike about the opposing perspective and neither out look has it all right or all wrong true virtuous masculinity lies somewhere in the middle between the commonly espoused Extremes in the golden mean between vices this is the brand of authentic masculinity demonstrated by Aragorn son of arathorne King of Gondor and his example is one we don't deserve but absolutely need right now Aragorn is first and foremost a protector that is what both a king and a Healer are someone who cares for and defends the lives entrusted to him one might be tempted to think that being a king is desirable for the power wielded by the Monarch for the status and comfort that come with royal office that is a flawed selfish Outlook that Aragorn does not Embrace we know this due to the manner in which he ascends to the throne of Gondor due to his Royal lineage being the only living heir of elendil Aragorn could have walked into ministereth and claimed the throne at any point but he did not rather than seeking power Aragon sought his duty Duty which was to protect those who could not protect themselves his long years in the north of Middle Earth were spent safeguarding the lands there such as the Shire from the many evil forces that still dwelt nearby when he encounters the hobbits in Bri Aragorn takes it upon himself to protect them from all enemies and continues that commitment throughout their Journey until assured by Gandalf that the hobbits are in safe hands upon reaching eteros Aragorn readily joins with the forces of Rohan in their fight against Isengard and finally Aragorn and his company provide the decisive blow in the battle of the planor fields relieving the siege of ministereth upon reaching the White City having won a glorious saving Victory just outside its walls what does Aragorn do does he ride through the streets displaying the banner of Lendale proclaiming himself king of Gondor no he senses that such an entrance would cause unrest argument and strife in a city so long without a king I will not enter in nor make any claim until it be seen when either we or Mordor shall prevail Aragorn has no interest in seizing Power Authority and Status acknowledging that there is still much to do still battles to be fought in defense of the land entrusted to his care he declines to distract both himself and the current leaders of Gondor by causing political confusion he still has a job to do he has a country to protect that is his kingly duty which he will carry out whether or not he wears a crown however Aragorn does at Gandalf's insistence enter a ministereth not so he can claim the throne but rather because he is needed in the houses of healing where pharah mere aeon and Mary all lie stricken with wounds beyond the skill of normal healers they are encounters with the nozzle keeping their minds from healing even as their bodies begin to mend to this point in the story Aragorn's role has largely been one of a warrior he defends those entrusted to him yes but mostly through violence even though he was able to care for Frodo after The Hobbit was stabbed on weathertop Aragorn's lesser skill and the intensity of the wound precluded him from being able to fully heal Frodo not so now it isn't entirely clear whether Aragorn is now able to heal the three stricken Warriors due to him coming into his own the relatively lesser wounds they suffered or a combination of both those factors what is clear is that Aragorn's mission of protection extends Beyond War the ability to be aggressive and violent when needed is necessary and good for those who would defend their friends and Country but the capacity for gentle care must also be present if one is to express full authentic masculinity Aragorn became known to the people of ministereth as their King not only because he arrived to turn the tide of battle in gondor's favor unfurling the banner of alendil and thus striking panic and despair into the hearts of his foes but also and more importantly because he could heal the wounds of war the worst of injuries that no other man or woman could Bend and soon the word had gone out from the house that the King was indeed come among them and after War he brought healing and so tenderly caring for those who needed him most Aragorn demonstrates perhaps the most crucial point of why his example of masculinity is so needed today his strengths and abilities are not for himself but for others Aragorn spent many years he's 87 during the war of the Ring training in Warfare becoming an expert swordsman an unparalleled Warrior the kind of dedication needed to attain such Heights of skill is arguably the most necessary trait for those seeking to become proficient in any discipline indeed if you listen to just about any currently popular speaker on masculinity they will repeatedly drive home the idea that discipline Trump's motivation every time and they are correct for example you cannot attain the strength you desire if you only go to the gym when you feel like going you set a schedule and you maintain the discipline to stick to it what the influencers who espouse this idea often fail to recognize or at least do not State outright is that without a purpose such training is only building up your own vanity Desiring and working towards strength is a good thing but are we doing it so we can physically care for and protect our loved ones to stay fit and healthy and thus not be a burden on others or because we want women to be impressed by our packs nothing wrong with wanting to be attractive of course but that is not by itself a healthy reason to seek strength that is because your strength is not for yourself it is for others physical power is important for masculinity yes but that is because it allows us to better protect Those whom we love and carrying out that duty is one of if not the central aspect of a man's job as long as there have been Wars it has been largely the role of the man sadly often the young man to defend his Nation his people if something goes bump in the night what kind of man stays in bed while his wife goes to investigate when the Christ child was in danger it was Saint Joseph who was entrusted with the mission to bring the Holy Family to safety by nature men are granted a larger frame denser bones and more muscle mass than our women and with those physical advantages comes a duty that cannot be denied without denying the very essence of what it means to be a man in relationship with others indeed embracing full authentic virtuous masculinity requires one to be in relationship not in a relationship mind you I'm not saying you can't be manly if you don't have a wife or girlfriend but human beings do not exist alone we were not made for ourselves but rather for each other as already stated Aragorn clearly knows this he seeks the company of those who need him and bonds with them as they Journey throughout Middle Earth we witness his Fierce protective love for the hobbits as he chooses to pursue a whole company of urakai to rescue Mary and Pippin from their cruel captors in those same scenes we see his capacity for leadership as he takes it upon himself to lead the hunt but also relies on his companions when they are more capable than he at Helm's Deep Aragorn gently encourages a boy thrust into combat far ahead of his time facing nearly certain death then I shall die is one of them not with them but rather as one of them the men of Rohan around Aragorn are not just any men they are as he says at the black gate my brothers does he know them personally no but he is in relationship with them he has formed a bond through their common struggle and enemy their mission is not divorced from his he does not hold his own life more dearly than that of any of those standing on the wall with him that kind of Brotherhood the type that can only be forged in the fires of combat and staring death in the face is what makes it possible for men to do great Deeds on the battlefield they may fight for King country and cause yes but more importantly they fight for each other Aragorn reminds us of this fact just moments before the final desperate battle against the innumerable Orcs of Mordor a day may come when we forsake our friends and break all Michael the downfall of man will not come solely because of the strength of their enemies but because men forget why they stand their ground against impossible odds because they lose sight of how vital the bonds of Brotherhood are in saying this Aragorn reminds us of the necessity of magnanimity that is the desire for greatness but not for one's own sake men should strive to do great things even if we lead simple ordinary lives we should Endeavor to be great husbands and fathers to excel at our line of work to become the best versions of ourselves that we can be however whatever greatness we achieve should not be for our own sake our own vanity but for the sake of our loved ones the longest study on happiness conducted by Harvard found that close relationships more than money or fame are what keep people happy throughout their lives what is the use of a high-paying job that allows us to buy whatever we want if we have forsaken meaningful personal relationships to achieve that level of success certainly the two aren't mutually exclusive but we only have so much time and energy to pour into the various Pursuits of life if we see greatness that benefits only us we fail no matter how much material wealth and success we obtain Aragorn's pursuit of greatness was never for his own vanity if it was he would have been on the throne of Gondor long before turning 87. instead he sought to become an expert swordsman tracker Navigator and healer in order to best serve those who would need him when the time came one might characterize Aragorn's decision in that matter to be humility and one would be correct but perhaps not for the reason you might think as I've mentioned before in previous videos humility is not self-degradation but rather an accurate recognition of your own strengths and weaknesses and the ability to act accordingly the man with true humility isn't worried about self-image because he knows who he is he knows his duty and his place in the world to put it another way humility is not thinking less of your yourself it is thinking of yourself less truly knowing your abilities and your duty allows you to think about others more than you think of yourself as you might expect Aragorn exemplifies humility throughout the story but perhaps his most impactful display of this virtue comes after the battle of polenor fields has been won and the men of the West must decide their course of action not yet knowing the fate of Frodo and the ring Aragorn understands that as Amir States we cannot achieve Victory through strength of arms and yet leads the men of Gondor and rohunt the black gate nonetheless aware that his forces are much depleted after the battle at ministereth Aragorn knows that he cannot defeat sauron's armies head on and yet that is exactly what he seemingly sets out to do the Lord of Mordor sees the approach of the men led by the standard of elendil and believes that the arrogance of the new King has led him to foolishly believe that what remains of gondor's might can conquer the hordes of Orcs still within Mordor but Sauron miscalculated Aragorn acknowledges his own relative weakness and inability to win the day but he refuses to cower in the face of overwhelming odds rather he recognizes that he is not the hero of this story but that he still has a role to play in these events that are determining the fate of the world in doing so he demonstrates a key principle of humility our circle of control and influence is small there are many factors that affect us that are beyond our Authority and ability to affect change the idea that you are 100 in control of your life that everything is your fault is an absurd knee-jerk reaction to What some might call victimhood culture a perpetuation of the harmful myth that many people are simply powerless victims of circumstance in the system as usual the truth lies somewhere in the middle we can assert control but only to a certain extent we have to react to things beyond our control and peacefully accept those which we cannot change it is possible to commit no mistakes and still lose the that is not a weakness that is life to this point in the story Aragorn has made no significant mistakes he has accomplished great things with the aid of the fellowship the rohiram and the gray company the decision to advance on the black gate was one made after careful consideration and wise counsel Aragorn knows that it is possible his actions will have no effect on the outcome of the war that he will fall in battle with all his men that Frodo and the ring will be found and that all of Middle Earth will be plunged into a second darkness and it wouldn't be Aragorn's fault he did all he could he never accepted defeat but rather faced it head-on sword in hand and Friends by his side can anything more be asked of any man Aragorn's defining moment comes not as he wins the decisive battle for the good of the world but rather as he prepares to lose one so that maybe just maybe the world he leaves behind will remain beautiful and free why is all of this so important today now more than ever men are bombarded with two drastically differing viewpoints on how men should speak and act with very little if any Common Ground between the two sides Aragorn's example of masculinity shreds these false ideals these absurd extremes and shows us that yes we should grow strong we should succeed We should strive for greatness but not for ourselves Aragorn is as J.R.R Tolkien put it in a letter from the trenches of World War One a great instrument in God's hands a mover a doer even an achiever of great things a beginner at the very least of large things tolkien's idea of greatness as displayed by Aragorn could never be defined by obtaining material wealth or social status but rather by doing one's duty loving one's friends and perhaps even laying down one's life for them we may never know in this life the consequences of our actions but if we strive to do great things with magnanimity humility and self-sacrificial love we cannot fail ladies and gentlemen we are made for each other I cannot emphasize that point enough we are made to be in relationship with one another meant to do great things for the sake of those we love to see this ideal embodied look no further than Aragorn son of aerothorn Lord and king of Gondor I hope you enjoyed this video please let me know your thoughts in the comments and I will see you in the next one thank you so much for watching

Channel: Master Samwise

Views: 644,824

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Id: GruFzUsKddI

Length: 15min 43sec (943 seconds)

Published: Sat Jul 01 2023