The root meaning of the Pali word viriya, or energy, is “hero” … and in the Buddhist tradition, when we start walking on the path of meditation, we are considered warriors. This is because what we’re doing as we practice is acting as ‘warriors’ against the great forces of greed, hatred, and fear in ourselves. We’re also courageously facing and confronting our natural tendencies … which are to run away from ourselves and our problems, or to fight them, or to completely ignore them, drown them out, or pretend they aren’t there. In this talk, Shell explores this 3rd Factor of Awakening - viriya - and how it can inspire us to become more bravely dedicated to our path towards freedom.