![]() The same strategy also applies to the warrior when in combat: To outwit your competitor and strengthen your own position, you must first thoroughly know your competitor. He explains the weaknesses he notes in their strategies to show how he avoids such weaknesses in his own approach to the true Way. In describing and picking apart the strategies taught by rival martial arts schools, Musashi isn’t being petty. While these discipline-specific critiques don’t hold much meaning for the more general modern reader, we’ve identified two enduring samurai principles that Musashi offers: Understand your competitor’s strategies and use skill over strength to ensure your own success. He critiques other sword-fighting methods and discusses technical details such as how to move your feet during combat, use speed, and use different sword-lengths. Having shared his views on what the fundamental principles, mental and physical training elements, and battle strategies are for the Way of the successful warrior, Musashi now shifts his focus in the Wind Book toward the approaches of some of the other rival schools of his day. Here’s how the samurai principles apply to the modern-day. ![]() In his book The Book of Five Rings (The Wind Book), Miyamoto Musashi highlights two such principles: know your competitor and use skill over strength. While the Samurai have ceased to exist as an active force, samurai principles still apply to some modern martial arts contexts. The Samurai were the warriors of premodern Japan whose role was to defend territories and fight enemies of the authorities. Who were the Samurai and what was their job? Do the Japanese Samurai still exist? Like this article? Sign up for a free trial here. Shortform has the world's best summaries and analyses of books you should be reading. This article is an excerpt from the Shortform book guide to "The Book of Five Rings" by Miyamoto Musashi.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |