True nonviolence must be based, first of all, on a secure sense of one’s own value as a human being. Violence toward others, far from being an expression of self-worth, is based on a repression of one’s sense of vulnerability which then translates into hostility toward others. The most violent men are those with the deepest fears of their own impotence. Training in nonviolence must be based on spiritual or personal development and empowerment of the self. An empowered self will not accept its own degradation, or that of others. -- Rosemary Ruether, in Feminism and Peace
Likewise, the most violent people are those with the deepest fears of their own impotence and powerlessness.
Thus non-violence is based on self-empowerment and self-worth through honest expression of one's sense of vulnerability.
To emphasize this point, let me paraphrase the Buddhist quote regarding the true warrior:
Though a thousand people
may submit to him,
only he who submits to himself
is the true warrior.
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