This is about competition, winning, war, death, and how to be successful in any art form. It’s also one of the best tools to understanding sensitivity, rhythm, the flow of life, and how to be skilled at whatever you choose to pick up. Some of the passages you’ll find here can be meditated on for hours, and are so deep that subsequent books could be written like the concept of rhythm. a key idea in this book, as it is an apt metaphor for life. Transformative, and will probably change your life.
In order for a book to be timeless the words should transcend space and time and always be applicable to our species in almost any context. Until we evolve into some cybernetic god that can create its own multiverses at will, this book will stand that test of time. This is about a samurai who never lost a dual, ever. Killed more people than you can count, didn’t shower, would go into combat with a paddle against men using swords, and also was adept at poetry, drawing, and other odd skills that he thought all were interchangeable. Also, Joe Rogan (one of the few men i respect) recommended this book and now I understand why:
“Even if you strive diligently on your chosen path day after day, if your heart is not in accord with it, then even if you think you’re on a good path, from the point of view of the straight & true, this is not a genuine path”
“Thus, a little bit of crookedness in the mind will later turn into a major warp.”
“It is imperative to distinguish carefully between the rhythms of flourishing or the rhythm of decline in everything.”
This is just from the first scroll out of four, each with their own message that combines together into a cohesive pattern of thinking that you can carry with you day to day. Some of the lines i read in this book are so profound that they actually applied to high level competition and… they work.
One scroll is about the mastery of rhythm, how things slot together, how to find the sweet spot in whatever it is you’re doing, and how to be at your maximum potential constantly. Understanding everything is constantly in flux, and you should be the type of person who is able to thrive in this constantly shifting state.
The big and the small are interchangeable, but you must be true in heart, spirit, and focus in order to achieve and master anything.
Your soul feeds on the why.
The water scroll is about proper body posture, how to move in day to day life, which is so effective it actually made me better at my job… Seriously. Always move your body in one fluid and rhthymic motion. There should be a connection from your heels, all the way through your spine.
“Think of everything as an opportunity to kill (within combat)”
“When you are experienced in various fields & are incapable of being fooled by the people of the world, then your mind will become imbued with the knowledge and the wisdom of the art of war.”
“Mind shall be the same whether in war, battle, or being still”.
“let there be no change at all– with the mind open & direct. Neither tense nor lax, centering the mind so that there is no imbalance, calmly relax youe mind and savor this moment of ease thoroughly so that the relaxation does not stop its relaxation for even an instant”
The water scroll may be the most un-applicable part of the book but some of the gems in here are still deep: Always be positioning yourself so you have the upper hand, out thinking, out maneuvering, etc.. Fearlessness, being aggressive, intertwining real aggression with fake aggression and feints. Flanking, and understanding the flow of your movement and body and doing exactly what is necessary to win.
It is not enough to simply beat a man, you have to strip away his will to fight or else he will come back harder. Take away a mans will to ever fight again, and you’ve truly won.
The fire scroll (The 2nd of the four) is about the art of understanding different rhythms, and is arguably where most of this books magic is, so I wont give it away. Honestly its brilliant in any application to business, war, combat, competition. On some level I understand high level competition and the lessons in this scroll changed the way i train, compete, etc.. You will win, at everything, if you can adeptly apply these concepts. Be careful, you will learn how to easily manipulate situations so you ALWAYS WIN. A lot of power is in Musashi’s words.
there are two more scrolls that are more philosophical in context, that have loose application in micro situations, but are generally good ideas to always have floating around you. This is a great book. I don’t mean great like two thumbs up or something that simple. This is a truly great work that should sit at the base of anyone trying to achieve excellence. If you’re trying to understand the nature of competition, the rhythms of life, how to perform under pressure, keeping composure, and how to be a skilled artist on multiple levels then pick this up. If you get bullied, picked on, or don’t understand balance (such as me), then this will be of great service to you.
“The focus of the eyes is to see the hearts and the minds of the people involved”
“When people speed rashly, it is is essential for you to be the reverse, calm and quiet, not being drawn in by them.’
The essence of what is good, just, and proper can be found in here, which to many of us is a higher bar than what most religions touch.
Hek7iC 