It doesn’t matter how big, strong, or tech-savvy your opponent is—if you lift his feet off the ground, he’s yours. This truth isn’t just for the mind to grasp; it’s better felt in the bones.
For example, take grappling. The other guy has the upper hand. He’s heavier, stronger. He’s got you pinned to the mat and choking you out.
And then—by pure accident, in a rush of desperation—you push your legs against his body and lift him just a little.
What’s that? A miracle, no less! One tiny inch changes everything.
You almost feel sorry for him. He doesn’t yet know the hunter and the prey have traded places. All his power is gone. You’re free to toss him to any corner of the wind’s rose.
This echoes the myth of Antaeus, son of Poseidon, god of the sea, and Gaia, the Earth. He forced every passing stranger to wrestle, killed them, and built a temple to Poseidon with their skulls.
Hercules couldn’t beat him either. Each time he threw Antaeus to the ground, the giant grew stronger, recharged by his mother.
When Hercules cracked the secret, he hoisted Antaeus high, severing that bond. The giant weakened, and Hercules crushed him—or snapped his spine.
The myth feels like a fairy tale or a rite of passage. The hero faces a trial, needing not just strength and guts but intuition and wit—to solve the riddle, break the curse, outsmart the Shadow.
In my favorite movie, The Edge (1997), Charles, played by Hopkins, holds a Native American paddle. On one side, a rabbit smokes a pipe; on the other, a panther prowls. Someone asks, “Why isn’t the rabbit scared of the panther?” Hopkins replies, “Because he’s smarter.”
In the end, the mind always beats brute force, if:
It fights to the last,
stays open to paradox,
and above all, refuses to lie to itself.
Sincerely yours,
-Alexander
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