Are you the person you want to be, or have you created protection to meet other people's expectations and needs? This armor could be the fear preventing you from living your dreams.

To free yourself from the fears and enjoy the best of life, you need to go on a journey of self-knowledge that requires courage that will give you extraordinary knowledge of self-awareness.

All the answers are inside you. The learnings from the book “The Knight in Rusty Armor” by Robert Fisher will help you walk the path of truth, finding the wholeness and confidence to be happy!

The book “The Knight in Rusty Armor”

The book “The Knight in Rusty Armor” is a fable of 80 pages, published for the first time in 1989 by Wilshire Book Company.

During the reading, we follow a knight's journey through the path of truth. Throughout its seven chapters, the author takes us to understand who we truly are and see the walls we have created that prevent us from living with courage.

Who was Robert Fisher?

Robert Fisher was a playwright and screenwriter who created shows for Broadway and popular comedies for cinema, also was responsible for north-American TV shows like Alice, Good Times, All in the Family, and The Jeffersons.

Besides “The Knight in Rusty Armor”, Fisher wrote children’s books in partnership with Beth Kelly, not published in Brazil. The author died in 2008.

Why read “The Knight in Rusty Armor”?

To live our dreams, we must let go of others’ expectations and what prevents us from being what we truly are. This book is for you who are feeling lost and are looking for self-knowledge and a direction for your life.

Find the courage to walk a path in search of yourself and your truth with this reading.

What are the main points of “The Knight in Rusty Armor”?

Everyone is born gentle, kind, and loving;
Save yourself first;
You don’t need to prove to anyone else who you are;
A self-knowledge journey can be harder than a crusade;
It’s necessary to be silent. When much is said, the truth is not seen;
Be good to yourself.

How can I find my truth?

The first chapter of the book “The Knight in Rusty Armor” introduced us to the main character, and gives us an overview of his life, he has everything he needs and what someone could ask for, a castle, food on the table, a wife, and a son.

However, Christopher, the knight's son, no longer knows what his father's face looks like because he doesn’t take off the armor for a long time. After Juliet, his wife gave him an ultimatum he decided to remove the protection, which does not come off as easily as imagined.

Using metaphors, Robert Fisher takes us to understand which is our armor and teaches us what we need to do to be free from this tie.

What is the dilemma of the knight in rusty armor?

During the character presentation, we noticed that there was a great need and effort in him to always be the best, the number 1 in everything and that the armor helped to get the approval of the others.

To prove to everyone that he was good, kind, and loving, he needed to use this armor, and this drove him away from his own family.

To remove the armor and regain the love of his family, the knight sets out on a journey into the forest in search of the wizard Merlin, who guides him on this path.

In the woods with Merlin

When the knight finds the wizard Merlin, he starts to receive valuable learnings. The author then shows that human beings have the habit of trying to understand things with the mind, but it is limited.

“A person cannot run away and learn at the same time, he has to stay in the same place for some time”.

The wizard causes this reflection since the knight pretended to give up on his journey and go after his family. Here is possible to understand that, to take care of whom you love, it’s necessary, before everything, to save yourself.

How can I learn to love myself?

Follow the path of truth

The next step of the journey of “The Knight in Rusty Armor”, it’s The Path of Truth, a trail towards a beautiful mountain, where we learn that it is common not to be aware of the way you are following.

After accepting this challenge, the knight learns that the real struggle is learning to love yourself, that when you have true feelings and allow yourself to feel them, they free you from the armor. At this moment, he frees himself from the first part of his armor.

Here, the author Robert Fisher explains to us that, some challenges can be taken with friends, but others we can only face alone.

Learn to listen to the other

Upon entering the Castle of Silence, the knight who was used to always talking and telling others about his achievements must learn to listen. The book brings a point for reflection:

“Being silent means more than not speaking”

One of the conclusions presented about armor is that we put up walls to protect who we are from who we think others want us to be, so armor hurts those who wear it much more.

At the end of this first stage, the knight feels the pains of his son and his wife, and Merlin explains to him that everyone is part of each other.

To know the other you must know yourself, and another part of his armor is left behind.

What is the difference between truth and illusion?

In “The Knight in Rusty Armor”, after the journey in the silence, the author goes to the castle of knowledge that, according to him, is the light through which you can find your way, and provoke some reflections:

Haven't you confused need with love?;
Do you know when it’s time to ask for help?;
Only the ambition that comes from the heart can bring happiness;
It’s better to accept and enjoy rather than want to run after everything.

The Castle of Will and Daring

To face the dragon of fear and doubt, the knight goes deeper into self-knowledge. When you have the conviction of who you are, it’s not necessary to be afraid or doubt because they are just illusions.

When the knight understands the teachings of these steps of the journey, one more part of the armor goes away, deepening the sense of freedom.

“God gave man courage. Courage gives God to man.”

Live truthfully

After winning the biggest part of the challenges of this journey, and, in each one of them, letting go of a part of his powerful armor, the knight goes to the last step, climbing the mountain.

“I cannot know the unknown if I cling to the known”.

In this step of the journey of the knight in rusty armor, the secret is not to climb the mountain and get to the top, but to let go and allow yourself to dive into the abyss.

For this challenge, it’s necessary more than strength, it’s necessary to fall into the abyss of the unknown and believe in life. Robert Fisher says in the book that to live truthfully, you need to free yourself from judgments that you make against others and yourself.

More books about courage and self-knowledge

In the book “Big Magic”, Elizabeth Gilbert teaches, using stories from his own life, how curiosity influences a creative life and why giving yourself to what you love is the key to having wholeness and courage.

With the reading of the book “Ikigai”, by Ken Mogi, you will learn 5 steps to find your purpose in life, acquire vitality and achieve long and happy life, inspired by a Japanese philosophy of life.

In “The Courage to Be Disliked”, by Ichiro Kishimi and Fumitake Koga, we learn, in a five nights dialog between a frustrated young man and an Adlerian philosopher, about how to change your life and find happiness.

And in practice, how to be truly me?

Reflect on what armor you have been wearing during your life;
Don’t judge yourself based on what you believe others think about you;
Be grateful for your path and watch what can be better;
Have silent moments, pay attention to the sounds of wind and rain;
Believe and remember your truth;
Listen carefully to what the other person says, without judging.

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The Knight in Rusty Armor — Robert Fisher

Do you feel that you don’t know your truth? Do you want to free yourself from the fears that keep you from achieving dreams and living an extraordinary reality? Read this book summary and find out how.