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'The most important quality on the spiritual path is courage,' said Gandhi.
The world seems threatening and dangerous to cowards. They seek the false security of a life with no major challenges and arm themselves to the teeth in order to defend what they think they possess. Cowards end up making the bars of their own prison.
The warrior of light projects his thoughts beyond the horizon. He knows that if he does not do anything for the world, no one else will.
So he fights the Good Fight and he helps others, even though he does not quite understand why.

Translated by Margaret Jull Costa

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'It's just a storm in a tea cup,' someone says to the warrior of light.
But he never exaggerates his difficulties and always tries to remain calm.
    And he never judges someone else's suffering.
A small detail - which does not affect him in the least - could serve to ignite the storm brewing in his brother's soul. The warrior respects the suffering of others and does not try to compare it with his own.
The cup of suffering is not the same size for everyone.

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Before making any important decision - declaring a war, moving with his companions to another plain, choosing a field in which to sow seed - the warrior asks himself: 'How will this affect the fifth generation of my descendants?'
A warrior knows that everything a person does has enduring consequences and he needs to understand what kind of world he is leaving behind for that fifth generation.

Translated by Margaret Jull Costa

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All warriors of light have heard their mothers say: 'My son wasn't thinking straight when he did that; deep down, he's a very good person.'
Although he respects his mother, he knows that this is not true. He does not waste his time blaming himself for his rash actions nor does his spend his life forgiving himself for all the wrong he has done - doing that would never set him back on the right path.
He uses common sense to judge not the intentions of an action but its consequences. He takes responsibility for everything he does, even if he has to pay a high price for his mistake.
As the old Arabic proverb says: 'God judges a tree by its fruits and not by its roots.'

Translated by Margaret Jull Costa

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The warrior knows an old saying: 'If regrets could kill…'
And he knows that regrets can kill; they slowly eat away at the soul of someone who has done something wrong and they lead eventually to self-destruction.
The warrior does not want to die like that. When he acts perversely or maliciously - because he is a man of many faults - he is never too ashamed to ask forgiveness.
If possible, he does his best to repair the wrong he has done. If the injured party is dead, then he does some good turn to a stranger and offers up that task to the soul that he wounded.
A warrior of light has no regrets, because regrets can kill. He humbles himself and undoes the wrong he has done.

Translated by Margaret Jull Costa

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(Late Sunday I watch Neda’s video. I suspect that I recognize Arash Hejazi, but I prefer not to believe in what I am seeing. I send him and email)

Sunday 21 23:011 Dear Arash I need to know where you stand, if things that I am seeing/reading are true. Then I can myself take a position - depending on your advice, of course. love Paulo

Date: Mon, 22 Jun 2009 02:05:05 -04:00
Subject: your country Dearest Paulo, I am now in Tehran. The video of Neda's murder was taken by my friend, and you can recognize me in the video. I was the doctor who tried to save her and failed. She died in my arms. I am writing with tears in my eyes. Please don't mention my name. I'll contact you with more details soon. Love Arash (At this point, I decide to put the video in my blog) (For the rest of the day, I try to contact him. At one point, someone answers his phone as a “CNN journalist”. I start to become worried)

Monday 22 17:46 Dear Arash so far, no news from you. After I published the video in my blog, it seems that it spread worldwide, including posts in NY Times, Guardian, National Review, etc. Therefore, my main concern now is about you. You NEED to answer this email, saying that you are all right and the name of the person where we spend the New Year's Eve in 2001 together, just to be sure that it is you really who is answering this email. I don't buy this CNN person answering your mobile. If you don't do that, I may leak your name to the press, in order to protect you - visibility is the only protection at this point. I know this because I am a former prisoner of conscience. If you do that, unless instructed otherwise by you, I will stop the pressure for the moment. My main concern now is you and your family. love Paulo P.S. - there are several trusted friends in blind copy here.

Tuesday, June 23, 2009 1:35 AM
Dearest Paulo I am alright for now. I am not staying at home. I don't know about CNN. The friend's name was Frederick. Love Arash

Sent: Tuesday, June 23, 2009 1:37 AM
Dearest Paulo, Trying to leave the country tomorrow morning. If I don't arrive in London at 2 pm., something has happened to me. Till then, wait. My wife and my son are in (edited). Their phone (edited) Her email (edited) Please wait till tomorrow. If something happens to me, please take care of (name of wife) and (name of son), they are there, alone, and have no one else in the world. Much love, it was an honor having you as a friend. Arash (At this point, a Brazilian journalist, Luis Antonio Ryff, who traveled to Iran to cover my visit, recognizes Arash in the video, and writes me to double-check. I confirm, but I ask him to keep his name secret until today. Ryff agrees – even knowing that this would be a major scoop for him. I would like to thank him here, for his dignity)

Wednesday 24 1:55 PM Arash landed in London

A warrior sits around the fire with his friends.
They spend hours criticising each other, but they end the night sleeping in the same tent, having forgotten all the insults that were bandied about. Occasionally, a new member joins the group. Because he does not yet share a common history, he shows only his good qualities, and some see in him a master.
But the warrior of light never compares him with his old companions in battle. He makes the stranger welcome, but he will not trust him until he knows his defects too.
A warrior of light does not go into battle without knowing the limitations of his ally.

Translated by Margaret Jull Costa

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The myspace blog will be updated on Monday, Wednesday and Friday