Quotessence
Home / Books / The Book of Five Rings: A Text on Kenjutsu and the Martial Arts in General, Written by the Swordsman Miyamoto Musashi

The Book of Five Rings: A Text on Kenjutsu and the Martial Arts in General, Written by the Swordsman Miyamoto Musashi

Book by Miyamoto Musashi · 14 quotes · War, Ifs, Spirit

Filter quotes by topic

The Book of Five Rings: A Text on Kenjutsu and the Martial Arts in General, Written by the Swordsman Miyamoto Musashi Quotes

“In the construction of houses, choice of woods is made. Straight un-knotted timber of good appearance is used for the revealed pillars, straight timber with small defects is used for the inner pillars. Timbers of the finest appearance, even if a little weak, is used for the thresholds, lintels, doors, and sliding doors, and so on. Good strong timber, though it be gnarled and knotted, can always be used discreetly in construction.”

“Crossing at a ford occurs often in a man's lifetime. It means setting sail even though your friends stay in harbour, knowing the route, knowing the soundness of your ship and the favour of the day.”

“Do not let your spirit be influenced by your body, or your body be influenced by your spirit. Be neither insufficiently spirited or over spirited. An elevated spirit is weak and a low spirit is weak. Do not let the enemy see your spirit.”

“If you want to learn the craft of war, ponder over this book. The teacher is as a needle, the disciple is as thread. You must practice constantly.”