5 Powerful Life Lessons Aang and the Gaang Taught Us

For many of us, Avatar: The Last Airbender was more than just an animated show about kids who could wield the four elements. Avatar was a show that, despite the humor, actually packed a lot of dense subject matter into its 40-something-minute runtime (counting the commercials). In fact, the series is a treasure trove of wisdom and great life lessons, some of which include dealing with grief (as was the case with Uncle Iroh and his son), as well as the meaning of change and transformation, as was the case with Prince Zuko.

So, while the show might be originally intended for children, it has pearls of wisdom that people of all ages can learn from. Let’s dive into these moments and break them down to an audience of those who are already familiar with Avatar and those who are just discovering its magic for the first time. Please note that we will be only discussing Avatar: The Last Airbender, but we might give Korra an honorable mention. So, without further ado…

The Importance of Balance

Aang’s role as the Avatar is to maintain the balance of power between the four nations, and throughout the series, he struggles to maintain that same balance within himself. Fortunately for us and Aang, we have over three seasons of Aang learning and sometimes re-learning to find and master his own inner peace. The entire show teaches us, over and over again, the importance of balance as a key to a fulfilling life.

The Peace of Letting Go

The entirety of the series revolves around Team Avatar trying to stop a 100-year war campaign started by the Fire Nation’s ruler, Lord Sozin — Fire Lord Ozai’s father. In the chronological first volley in this centennial war, the Air Nomads, Aang’s monastic order, was completely wiped out. This was an attempt to instill fear, seize control, and prevent the rise of the Avatar — which was supposed to be reborn into the Air Nation following the death of Avatar Roku.

When Aang learned that his entire order had been wiped out by Sozin, whose successor now ruled the Fire Nation, he was understandably shaken. However, going through his Avatar state, he also recognized the importance of letting go of the past so that he could focus on fully embracing the present and preparing for the future — which for Aang and the gang involved stopping the Fire Nation’s rise to supremacy. This is one of the most inspirational moments in the series.

Don’t Judge a Book by Its Cover

Sokka is a young Southern Water Tribe warrior and one of the only non-benders on Team Avatar — the others being Appa and Momo. He’s initially treated as the comedic sidekick throughout a large chunk of the series considering that he doesn’t actually have bending powers and that he struggles with feeling “less than” in several episodes throughout the show.

However, as the series progresses, Sokka proves to be an excellent military strategist, a relentless warrior, and a well-respected and loved member of Team Avatar while still holding the title of funniest character in the entire show, save for the Cabbage cart dealer — those poor cabbages never stood a chance. Sokka teaches us that everyone has hidden talents and that it’s entirely okay to be different.

People Can Change for the Better

People don’t really like change, as it’s often hard and unpleasant to do. Yet, there’s plenty of change in Avatar. One of the biggest changes that is the most near and dear to many fans’ hearts isn’t that of Prince Zuko but that of his Uncle Iroh. We meet Uncle Iroh in the very first episode as a calm and wise old man, but the truth is that he was once a ruthless military leader for the Fire Nation’s throne — he’s actually Fire Lord Ozai’s older brother and an extremely powerful firebender who is practically a living legend among other fire soldiers.

However, Iroh does harbor a very deep pain and regret, and this would be in the death of his son, Lu Ten. Lu Ten was mortally wounded during the Siege of Ba Sing Se, the capital of the Earth Kingdom. This happened at the same time and because Iroh finally succeeded in breaching the Earth Kingdom city’s night-impenetrable Outer Wall. This moment, which otherwise would have been the crowning jewel in Iroh’s military career, turned into a moment of unprecedented sadness for the Dragon of the West — one of the titles given to Iroh due to his ability to breathe fire.

Upon hearing of his son’s death, Iroh abandoned his militaristic ways and had a breaking and then eventual softening of his heart. Iroh’s transformation into a caring older man who appreciates the little things and tries to spread serenity wherever he goes is one of the driving factors that led to Prince Zuko’s transformation into a more benevolent character.

You Decide Who You Are

Toph is one of the best characters in the entire animated series. She is not gifted in height; she was born blind and came from the Beifong family, a very powerful and influential family in the Earth Kingdom who were considered nobles in Republic City and abroad. Just like Sokka, she was often used as the comedic relief, and oftentimes, her sense of humor was more on the blunt, brash, and unapologetic side. However, Toph’s rebellious nature belied a genius mastery of Earthbending, to the point that there is a real debate to be had that her ability could mirror that of Aang’s out of the Avatar state.

Given her disability, it’s easy for many to write Toph off as helpless or a pushover, but she continuously proved that she’s anything but. She didn’t allow other people’s perceptions of her to define who she was and the path she wanted to carve for herself in the world. Toph’s day-to-day, granite-like determination in the series teaches that we define ourselves — and we choose to accept or reject who we are and want to be every day.

Honorable Mention: Even the Strongest Need Help

This last honorable mention goes to The Legend of Korra, and this life lesson is about strength. Despite being a formidable bender with mastery over all four elements, Korra’s vulnerability, particularly during her battles with Zaheer, points towards a universal truth: even the strongest and most brilliant among us can’t face every challenge alone, and that vulnerability isn’t a weakness, but a courageous acknowledgment of our own limitations.

In fact, this lesson is prominent in both The Legend of Korra and Avatar: The Last Airbender, as we see that both immensely powerful protagonists didn’t accomplish their goals solo. Whether this goal was to stop a souped-up fire tyrant or bring balance to the spirit and material worlds, all of this was made possible through the help of good friends they could rely on.

Final Thoughts

Nearly two decades have passed since the first airing of Avatar: The Last Airbender, in which we saw Aang and the Gaang navigate adolescence against a backdrop of a century-long and devastating war. The Avatar had plenty to learn about himself and the world before he could save anyone, and some of the life lessons he and the rest of the Team Avatar learned are so universal that they’ll remain relevant and true for a very, very long time.