compare the warriors of those with what you know about the armies of modern times.what differences do you see between them ?
Answers
There are many ways in which one may serve as a soldier. But there is only one way for a soldier to become a warrior - and that is to close with the enemy and to kill him. Now, that does not mean that every killer is a warrior. Killers who sit behind a console with computers and a set of remote controls dropping bombs or launching missiles from drones or aircraft - they are not warriors - they are just remote control killers. A long-range sniper is not necessarily a warrior. There is no glory derived from engaging an enemy when one is not at mutual risk from an antagonist who does not know of your presence and who cannot hit back. That is not being a warrior - but being an assassin. I’m not saying I disapprove - but I distinguish between the soldier who lays his life on the line within range of enemy weapons versus another soldier who is simply a good shooter and who can take down an opponent at 500+ yards while remaining invisible. To be a warrior is to risk death or dismemberment in close combat against the enemy - it doesn’t have to involve daggers or brass knuckles; it can be with rifles, machine guns, tanks, and howitzers - but there is high risk of mortality.
One way to better understand the dichotomy between ‘soldier’ and ‘warrior’ is to consider how the American Indians viewed the difference between ‘braves’ and ‘warriors’.
Braves were young males who had shown personal bravery through something called ‘counting coup’.[1] This was accomplished in battle or during a raid by touching as many enemy as possible with a coup stick - which often had ceremonial ornamentation added to it. Counting coup in front of one’s peers distinguished the brave from the run-of-the-mill young Indian male. On the other hand, genuine Indian warriors did not bother to count coup. They simply collected scalps off of the enemy that they killed and tied them to a lance or to their belt.
Soldiers may recount marvelous achievements that are honorable and brave. Warriors display wounds suffered in combat leading up to the taking of scalps.
Armies of the earlier days that dealt with warfare used some layers of skins and hides to function like a protective gear. They also accompanied some wooden shields. Modern armies use Kevlar which is made up fibres containing the ability to absorb and revers a bullet impact. Ancient armies used catapults as weapons. Modern armies use weapons which have the ability to unleash some tremendous firepower, they are manoeuvrable and mobile. PGC