Njal the Wise

Njal is one of the wisest people I have read about. He is very intelligent and he always knows what to do. He has helped many people by giving them very good advice. "He was modest and noble-spirited, able to see far into the future and remember far into the past, and he solved the problems of whoever turned into him." (pg. 35) For example his friend Gunnar who was in a lot of trouble. Njal was able to save and help him various times. He gave him a lot of advice which helped him become better and gain a lot of honor. Whenever Gunnar was in trouble, he turned to Njal who always knew what to do. "“Just as your first trip brought you great honour, you will gain even more honour this time. Then you will return home with great respect, and live to be an old man, and no one here will be your equal.”(pg. 122) Gunnar was a very lucky man, he was a great friend of Njal which meant that as long as he followes his advice, everything was going to favor him.
Something that amazed me about Njal was the he actually knew everything that was going to happen to every one, even to himself. " Gunnar said 'Do you know what will be the cause of your death?'
'I do' said Njal.
'What?' said Gunnar.
'Something that the people would least expect,' said Njal." (pg. 94)
Njal was definetly very wise. He even knew how he was going to die. When I found about all of his knowledge I was amazed. He always knew what was going to happen and he also knew how to prevent it. But he tried to use his knowledge always for good which is what makes Njal a great man.

Death

While reading the Njal Saga I began to realize that death is something that occurs a lot. Many people died throughout the story. And it is all because of vengeance. Because someone kills one person, then that person gets killed and it goes on like that until there are many people dead. In the Njal, killing is something to feel proud of. If you kill someone, you will gain honor. Even if the person you killed really didn't do anything bad. " 'I would consider you a true son-in-law,' she said 'if you killed Thord Freedman's son. ' " (pg. 69) Hallgred, Gunnars wife, was full of revenge and all she wanted was people to die and she thought that killing was something good. She thought there was nothing wrong with taking anyone's life. To her, it was just part of her day. Even if it affected Njal's (Gunnars friend) family drastically. But of course she didn't care, for her it was just one more life.
In the story, Gunnar faced many problems. And the only way he could fix them was by killing. In the Njal, killing is like the solution to everything. If someone has a problem with some else all they have to do is kill that person. It is like if taking someone's life was a very common not tragic thing. But Njal, been very wise and good-intentioned knew that all of that killing was going to cause a big problem. So he gave his advice to Gunnar. "Never kill more than once within the same blood line, and never break any settlement which good men make between you and others, least of all if you have broken my first warning. " (pg. 94) If Gunnar followed Njal's advice, he was going to live a long life, but is he didn't, he was going to be killed.
I believe that it is very bad that in the Njal killing is a very common not horrible thing. It is like if they didn't value human life as they should.

True Friends

"In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends." - Martin Luther King Jr.

Something that amazed while I read the Njal Saga was the very strong friendship between Njal and Gunnar. They both went through many obstacles, many things that in many cases will have caused a friendship to end. But theirs didn't, theirs lasted. Gunnar's wife Hallgred had quite a temperment. She was kind of malicious and did many bad things. She ordered her servant to kill one of Njal's servants which was the beginning of a very big problem. Njal's wife, Begthora didn't let this just happen, she had to get back at Hallgred so she ordered to kill the servant who had killed her servant. And that kept on going until it became a kind of "war" between the two women. Njal and Gunnar both were put into a very difficult position. Well, both of their wives were fighting, and each of them were responsible of paying the other with money for the servants lives. But they didn't let that become between their friendship. They defended each other always no matter what. "You are foolish and unable to follow good advice if you are willing to slander...Njal himself...this will lead you to your death...and if any man here repeats these words he'll be sent away, and bear my anger besides. " (pg.74). They were great friends.

Later thorughout the book, I thought that something was going to happen between them. Well, usually in stories best friends after been great together, fight. But I realized that here Gunnar's and Njal's friendship lasted even in very difficult times. Gunnar was going through a very hard time because every person he came across with wanted to kill him, so he of course defended himself and killed them first. So this caused him to get in to trouble. But Njal still defended him. He stood up for him and gave him great advice and support. "You will ride to the Thing and follow my advice and earn great honour from this matter. This will be the beginning of your career of killings." (pg. 94). No matter what, Gunnar knew that Njal will always be there for him.

If this is not real friendship then I don't know what it is. A real friend is always with you even in the hardest times. Even if there is a fight between two people you both love. And especially when you are in trouble, it can be the best thing that can happen to you.

The Ever Lasting Game

One of the strongest themes I began to think about while I read the Njal Saga was vengeance. Vengeance leads us to committing terrible acts we many times wish we hadn't done. It makes us suffer more and it makes things from worse to worse because each time the vengeance becomes more powerful. In the Njal, this happens to become a habit. It all started when Gunnar's wife, Hallgred ordered one of her servants, Kol, to kill Svart, one of Bergthora's servants. When Kol killed Svart, Berthgora was full of anger which lead her to taking revenge on Kol. She hired a new servant called Atli and ordered him to: "Go and look for Kol until you find him, for you must kill him today- if you want to do my will." Atli went and killed Kol so Hallgred got even more mad. So she ordered someone to go and kill Atli. And it went like that and so on. Many people died because of Hallgred's and Bergthora's revenge.

It only takes one vengeance to cause a lot of suffering. Because of two people's thisrt of revenge, more than five people died. And even worse, many people who were innocent, who were good people became killers, murderers because of it. "More men than I expected have known become killers." (pg.67). Vengeance just leads to more veangeance which leads to more suffering. Apparently, it is not enough to take revenge once. It is necessary for the vengeance to keep on going. And each time there is more pain and there are more people, who had nothing to do with the problem, get involved. Revenge doesn't seem to end. It is said to be the ever lasting game.

Family Generations

When I began to read the Njal's Saga, I noticed something which caught my eye. What got my attention was the way most (almost all) of the characters were introduced. They were introduced by who their ancesotors were. For example: "There was man named Njal; he was the son of Thorgeir Gollnir, the son of Thorolf. Njal's mother was Asgred, the daughter of the Norwegian hersir Askel the Silent; she had come out to Iceland and settled to the east of the Markarfljot river, between Oldustein and Seljalandsmuli." (pg. 35). In the Njal everyone is introduced by saying this person was the son of, who was the son of, who did this...etc. It is like if everyone is who they are because of who their family was.

I began to think about this. You are who you are because of who your family is. This in many cases is true. Many times, this is a good thing because maybe your dad or grandfather was a very good person who did many great things, so been their relative can make the person feel proud. But sometimes, your ancestor can be someone bad, someone who caused great sufferment to the world. For example once I met this girl who was a relative of Hitler. She was a very far relative but she has Hitler as her last name. So when she meets someone and tells them her last name, people look at her badly and go away. They judge her without knowing her just because of her last name. Just because her great grandparents had something to do with Hitler. Being who you are because of who your family was can be very bad.

People should not be judged or be who they are because of their ancestors. People should be who they are because of what they have done. No one should be judge for the mistakes of their family but for their own. This is why it is important to keep in mind, that not everyone will make the same mistakes their family made.

The TAO of Heroes

“It is more important to see the simplicity, to realize one’s true nature.”

(TAO TE CHING Nineteen)

Many times in life, people are not happy with who they are. They wish they were different, they wish they were special, important. These people have the desire to make an impact in the world, to change people’s lives. But they think the only way to achieve this is by being someone else. This desire blinds them from seeing the truth. That it is better to make an impact in the world by being who you really are. Not by trying to be someone different. Accepting yourself is the step you should always take no matter what. If you are confident in yourself and you believe in what you do, you will accomplish great things.

People are their own private prisons. Each person wants what they can’t have. Each person suffers because they have a very difficult time being who they are. People care too much on what others think about them and this is why acceptance becomes harder.

PETER: “It happened two more times. Sometimes I'm falling. Sometimes I'm flying. Sometimes you're in 'em.”

NATHAN: “I don't have time for this now.”

PETER: “They're not just dreams, Nathan. I thought they'd go away, but they're not. This morning, when I got out of bed, my foot hovered before it hit the ground. Hovered for a split second. Like I was -- like I was floating. I'm telling you, buddy, I think I can fly.”

NATHAN: “Tell you what, you think you can fly, why don't you jump off the Brooklyn Bridge? See what happens.”

PETER: “Maybe I ought to start with something a little lower first. It's like learning to walk.”

NATHAN: “You're serious?”

PETER: “Oh, I'm serious.”

NATHAN: “You need to snap out of it, Peter. See a doctor. Get some drugs. But do not pull a Roger Clinton on me, man. I'm eight points down in the polls.”

PETER: “This isn't about you, all right? Something is happening to me, and I have this feeling that you're the only person that's gonna understand this.”NATHAN: “Why the hell would I understand that you think you can fly?”

PETER: “Because you're my brother.”
PETER: “Let me ask you something, Nathan. Do you ever ... get the feeling like you were meant to do something extraordinary?”

NATHAN: “Like, becoming a senator?”

PETER: “No, I'm not talking about what you do. I'm talking about who you are. I'm talking about ... being special.”

NATHAN: “Yes Peter, we are all special.”
PETER: “Nathan, you know that’s not what I mean. You know what I’m talking about; you know we’re meant for something more than just this. Why can’t you accept that we are special? Why can’t you accept who you really are?
NATHAN: “Because…”
PETER: “Because you’re afraid.”
NATHAN: “Afraid? Of been special? Why would I be afraid of being special?
PETER: “You’re not afraid of being special Nathan, you’re afraid of what people will think of you if you’re special. You’re afraid they won’t accept you and that’s why you can’t accept who you really are.”
NATHAN: “So what if I don’t want to be special? What does that mean?”
PETER: “It means that you are not accepting who you are, it means you are losing your path.”
NATHAN: “What does not accepting who I am have to do with losing my path?
PETER: “Once you accept yourself, you’ll be able to achieve your true destiny, your true path.”
NATHAN: “My true path?”
PETER: “Yes Nathan, your true path, the right path for you to follow. Your destiny, what you’re meant to be, what you’re meant to do.”
NATHAN: “And, I will achieve that if I accept who I am?”
PETER: “Yes you will, by accepting who you are, you become a better person, you become more confident on yourself and you believe in everything that you do.”
NATHAN: “I see, but I still wonder…How can something so complicated look like something so simple?”
PETER: “What do you mean?”
NATHAN: “Been yourself, accepting who you are, is…should be something very simple in life. Everyone should be born and accept who they are. But actually is not as easy or as simple as it sounds. Accepting who you are, is…is…very difficult, more than hard.”
PETER: “Yes, exactly, you are right.”
NATHAN: “But, I don’t understand, why is this?”
PETER: “Nathan, most people are not happy with who they are. Those who are normal wish they were special and those who are special wish they were normal. Unfortunately this is the reality.”
NATHAN: “Then, there are many people who are not following the right path.”
PETER: “Yes Nathan. There are many people losing their paths, not doing the right thing for them just because they don’t accept themselves.”
NATHAN: “When you accept yourself, you will be confident in everything you do because that’s when you realize that all it takes to be good, to make an impact in the world is being yourself. The only way to not be lost and follow the right path is by accepting your true self. Because when you know who you are and you are content with it, been good becomes easy. It becomes part of your personality, of your being, of your life. Once you accept who you are, you’ll do what you want to do, what you are meant to do. But, when you don’t accept who you are, following the right path, the path of good is not possible. You should never let what others think of you stand in the way of yourself.”
PETER: “Yes Nathan, you are right again. Accepting who you are, believing in yourself is the beginning of following your true path.”

When you realize who you are and you accept yourself, you realize that that’s all it takes to become good, to fulfill your destiny, to follow the right path.

TAO and GO!

As I was playing Go, I thought about the TAO. In Go, your objective is to surround and eliminate your opponent chips which can either be black or white. It may seem easy at first but after playing it gets very difficult. You have to think very carefully every move you make, because one mistake can make you lose. Even though you have to be very thoughtful with your moves, after playing for a while, you realize that the right moves are not always the most complicated. Sometimes the best way to go is the simplest way of all. I was able to relate this with the TAO because the TAO teaches us to don't let bad surround us and eliminate us. Also to be careful and thoughtful with the moves we make because one mistake can make us go on the wrong track. One bad action can lead us to something terrible. And the TAO also tells us that sometimes we are too complicated and that we look at the most complicated solution, when really just by keeping it simple we will make the right choice. In Go we kind of played by the TAO rules, the instructions and objectives were very similar to its teachings.