The legend states that a Shaolin Buddhist Nun, Ng Mui created Wing Chun, developing a system of martial arts focused on efficiency and technique. Inspired by the fight she witnessed between a crane and a snake. Ng Mui incorporated their movements into her martial arts system.
Lady Trieu wasa a female warrior in 3rd century Vietnam who managed for a time to resist the rule of the Chinese Eastern Wu Dynasty, she is quoted for saying, ” I want to ride storms, kill orcas in the open seas, drive out aggressors, reconquer the country and undo the ties of serfdom, not to bend my back to the concubine of whatever man.”
Lozen (1840-1889) was a female warrior and prophet of the Chihenne Chiricahua Apache. She spent most of her adult life fighting the Apache Wars along side her brother Victorio and the legendary Geronimo.
Oya is the Orisha of the NIger River. She is the warrior spirit of the wind, lightning, fertility. fire and magic. She is believed to create hurrianes and tornadoes and serves as guardian of the underworld.
The Dahomey Amazons were a Fon all female military regiment in Dahomey, an African Kingdom (1600-1894) located in the area of the present day Republic of Benin.
Queen Nanny (1686-1760) also known as Nanny of the Maroons was a Jamaican revolutionary and the leader of the Jamaican Maroons. She led a community of formely enslaved escapees, the majority of them West African in descent, called the Windward Maroons along with their children and families.
These are just some examples of phenomenal women in History and Mythology that most societies placed strict limitations on what they could do, especially in relation to combat and leadership. Women who became warrior often had to push against cultural, political or social expectations to take on roles traditionaly reserved for men.
What doe these women have in common. They defied gender norms and societal expectations. They showed exceptional courage and determniation. Their leadership and strrategic intelligence – these women were commanders, tactitians and political leader. They made decisions that shaped battles, revolutions and sometimes even the fate of nations, Most almost all of these women were fighting for a cause greater than themselves. They left legacies and often times they were erased from History..
How are these women Heroes to me?
They represent courage in the face of overwhelming odds, they became symbols of resistance and empowerment, they rewrote the rules of what a “Hero” could be.
Now here I am, in the 21st centruy, looking back in order to steer forward, searching for the Hero in me. Asking myself what are the things that I truly care about? what am I willing to stand for even when its hard? what kind of worls do I want to build?
I started by looking to those who came before me — in the stories I love, the myths, the legends, the tales. But also in my own lineage. Not all heroes wear capes or are known to the masses. My grandmothers existed, and because of these powerhouse women — as I imagine them to be — I am here.
Even though I have faced many obstacles in my life that gave way to silence, depression, and misunderstanding, there is a quiet warrior in me who nudges me not to give up — to keep going.
She is the one I want to bring to the forefront. While in this residency, she is the part of me I will be working on.
