Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche, in recent talk at Dechen Choling:

“The first moment of bravery is working with the mind. That’s what we do in meditation—build trust in our mind. Being brave means we do not back off when there are challenges. We do not back off when there are obstacles. True bravery includes gentleness. We live in a speedy and aggressive culture. Here we are trying to present different methods and principles by which to live. At some point, soft methods don’t work. We need to understand that compassion, bravery, and gentleness are very strong principles. It takes a strong person to really use them.”