“Fill this bucket with water,” he said as he placed the bucket on the ground near a pond. Find me when it’s done, he said walking away.”

“This will be easy,” thought the student as he picked up the bucket.

Upon looking more closely he realized what the challenge was. There was no bottom to the bucket. It had been cut out.

The student thought for some time and then, with sudden inspiration gathered mud and started a fire. He created a kind of mortar which he used to create a base for the bucket. He spent all day working at it until he had completed it.

He then filled the bucket with water from the pond and brought it to his sensei.

The sensei looked at the bucket and smiled. “Very impressive,” he said with a twinkle in his eye.

Then, too quick for the eye to perceive, the sensei struck the bucket with his staff. The mortar fell from the base of the bucket and the water chased after it, spilling on the ground.

“Come find me when it is done,” the sensei said once again as he walked away.

The student, rather angry now, walked back to where he started. After some time he had a new idea. He gathered sticks and some leftover mud he had from his mortar and created a new wooden bottom for the bucket. He then filled it with water and took it to the Sensei.

The Sensei looked at it and smiled once again. The student was clearly very proud for he wore a boastful smile on his face. The sensei said, “Very impressive, come back tomorrow for your challenge.” The student left with his chest up high.
The next day the student was stunned to find the bucket empty.

“What did you do with the water!” he shouted.

“I did nothing, replied the sensei. Look at the ground.”

The student looked at the ground and noticed it was all wet and then he inspected the bottom of the bucket. It had leaked. Little by little, drop by drop, it had leaked out.

“Come find me when it is done,” the sensei said walking away.

The student could feel his anger boiling up inside him. He had had it with this pointless challenge. He took the bucket and threw it into the pond and left.

The next day he did not return.

The sensei was meditating outside when another teacher who had been watching the whole thing asked where his student was.

The sensei said, “He had to leave for he was unable to deal with his own failure. He let his emotions get to him and left, not knowing that he had actually completed the challenge.”

He had completed the challenge? How?” asked the other teacher.

“The bucket is full of water.” replied the sensei

“But where is the bucket?” asked the other teacher.

“Where he threw it.” said the sensei. at the bottom of the pond.”

The Moral of the Story

A thought-provoking, intriguing story but what does it really mean?

In all honesty, I have no idea.

If you have any ideas as to what the meaning of this story is please tell me immediately.

The post The Sensei and the Student appeared first on Dokkodo Journal.

Musashi grew up in a war-torn Japan and fought in his first battle before he was twenty. He killed his first man before the rest of us had graduated middle school. Needless to say, he had a hard life.

Musashi could have taken a woe-is-me attitude to all his hardships. If anyone would have had a right to it’d be him. But we don’t have any writings from Musashi complaining about his circumstances or life. We see the opposite. We hear him talk about his training and following the Way. All things inside of his control.

He couldn’t control when or where he was born. But he could control how he spent his time and what he did with his life. So he dedicated himself to his sword and became the most famous swordsman in history.

The same thing goes for us. We have to learn to focus on the things we can control and block out the rest.

Focus On What We Can Control

Does Musashi mean that we should literally accept everything? Yes and no. Accept everything outside of our control yes. But not the things in our control. Life is going to be full of horrific evils and unbelievable goodness. We have to be able to traverse through these events because these events are life.

We are not so ignorant to think that we will dodge evil all through our lives, are we? The future will bring pain but with that endurance, loss but with that courage, failures but with that discipline, and injustice but even with that, we will find justice. But only if we choose.

Some will go through life and be consumed by their pain. They will never rise above their faults and losses. They will give in and become the very things that torment them. They will complain and gripe, talk down, and discourage. Is this the path of a human being? Surely not!

“We must learn to put up with what we cannot avoid. Our life, like the harmony of the world, is composed of contrary things – of diverse tones, sweet and harsh, sharp and flat, sprightly and solemn. The musician who only loved some of them – what could he be able to do? He has to know how to make use of them all, and be able to mix them together. We must do the same with good and the bad, which are of the same substance as our lives.

Montaigne

We won’t avoid evil and hardships. We have to learn to put up with them. Notice that he says “learn.” It’s a skill, one that takes time under tension to grow. It won’t happen overnight but we can choose to start learning. We can choose to start seeing the world not as an enemy but as indifferent. What is not indifferent, however, is what we do.

The world will be full of good, love, joy, and meaning. It will also be full of evil, anger, pain, and grief. We must learn to use both the good and the bad in our lives. Why? Because we know they will both be there so we better be prepared.

What This Looks Like In Practice

It’s easy to say “Focus on what you can control and accept everything just the way it is” but what about the real world? The world where horrible things happen for no reason. The world where things happen that I can’t do anything about. What about that world?

What about if a friend or family member gets a terminal illness? What’s in your control in that scenario? Your reaction and your actions as always. Will you break down and be of no use or will you use the endurance God has given you and be there for your loved one?

No, you can’t change what has happened but you can choose how you respond and react. And you can react in love and wisdom, not emotion and anger.

What about if you get fired for something you didn’t do? What’s in your control in that scenario? Your reaction and your actions as always. Will you storm out cussing and vow to get your revenge or will you exit calmly holding your head high in innocence and move on as if no wrong had been done?

The list could go on forever but the point is that not everything is in our control but some things are. And those things deserve our utmost attention and focus.

I can hear your issues as I write. “I scream out with anger because I don’t understand why. Why is this thing happening, what is the purpose of those things?”

I have a question to ask back at you my friend. Why have you made such little progress? Why do those things still bother you and why is that thing still happening after all this time? Are you lost? Have you forgotten the mission? You are a human being and yet you act as if you have nothing to do. Get busy, I say, and do your job as a human!

The Duty Of A Warrior Human Being

As Montaigne said, we must learn to put up with what we cannot avoid and use both the good and the bad in our lives. It won’t be easy and it won’t be as simple in practice. But it is nevertheless, essential that we be the keenest students and learn to follow in Musashi’s footsteps here. Think about the things inside and outside your control throughout the rest of the day or week.

There will be nothing easy about it but that’s why it’s worth it. Talk is cheap, action is priceless.

Even a path of a thousand ri (almost two and a half miles) is walked one step at a time. Do not hurry, but carry out this practice steadily, remembering that it is the duty of a warrior human being.

This is a quote from Musashi that I’ve altered slightly. In the original he uses the word “Warrior” but as you see I’ve changed it to “human being” to make it more relatable.

Musashi understood the importance of action and of starting.

Take notice of his advice not to hurry. Don’t be in a hurry but be steadfast. If you begin a long journey at a sprint it won’t be long before you have to stop. But if you’re steady in your steps you won’t need to take breaks. You will walk steadily toward your goal until you reach it.

This is more than a good idea or wise words. It is our duty.

We all have a duty as human beings to be better. “Better than who?” you ask. Better than who you are right now! I respond.

The post Dokkodo Rule #1 – Accept everything just the way it is appeared first on Dokkodo Journal.

Musashi fought in over sixty bladed duels many of which were to the death and won every single one of them. He trained relentlessly and became the best swordsman in Japan at the time.

At one point, later in his life, he won a duel without striking a single blow. He told his opponent that he would be unable to come closer than about six feet to where he stood. Musashi was right. His opponent said that there was a force field around him that made him unable to come closer.

This force field was no magical field but perfected skill. Musashi left absolutely no opening or opportunity and was ready for anything that his opponent could even think to try. His opponent knew this and gave up and pledged to become his student.

Musashi’s life is riddled with incredible stories like this one but those aren’t the most compelling part of Musashi’s life.

What makes Musashi’s story so compelling is how he changes over the course of his life. You can see the change in how he fights in duels and how he trains. You can see the change in his hobbies and his mindset. Musashi isn’t some bloodthirsty brute trying to prove something. Well, he may have started that way but that certainly isn’t who he ended his life as.

He trained diligently and used his craft, the Way of the sword, and strategy, to better himself and find peace.

Musashi’s Origin

There is a story about Musashi’s childhood that perfectly foreshadows his incredible future. The story goes as follows:

“When he was a child, the master often criticized his father’s art. One day, when he was nine years old, leaning against a post, he watched his father cutting some toothpicks. As usual, he criticized his father’s art. His father lost his temper and threw a knife at him. The master dodged it with a slight movement of his head, and the knife stuck in the post.”

The master spoken of in the story was Miyamoto Musashi.

This story is undoubtedly overexaggerated since it was a story that was passed down through Musashi’s school. Embellishment clearly abounds. But even if this story was heavily embellished it nonetheless paints the picture that Musashi was very skillful, very young. Younger than most people show any skill at all.

Musashi was a natural with the sword. He was destined to become a swordsman. But it’s not his natural talents that made him so good, it was his intense dedication.

Who is this Musashi? A story like this, regardless of how much of it is true, sounds like something out of a comic book. Musashi was born in 1584 in a small village in Japan. The exact village is unknown. There are many legends that say that Musashi was self-trained but this is highly unlikely.

Musashi would have probably received training from his father and then went on to pursue additional training after he had learned everything he could from his father.

But this interaction with his father was only the beginning. A few short years in the future and Musashi would fight in his first duel to the death.

Musashi’s First Duel

Fast forward into the future and Musashi has his first duel against a grown man. Musashi is 13 years old although he would have actually been 12 by today’s standards since back then they didn’t start counting until the age of one.

Musashi fought his first duel against a man named Arima Kihei. Kihei had put up signs asking if anyone wanted to fight him in a duel and Musashi put his name down. Kihei was unaware of Musashi’s age at the time and when he said he wouldn’t fight him Musashi yelled “Let’s fight” and began approaching Kihei. Musashi fought and killed him brutally by striking him between the eyes with a wooden sword.

According to the recorded accounts, Musashi carved a wooden sword from a piece of firewood and showed up to fight Kihei. After exchanging blows, Musashi was able to get Kihei to the ground where he struck him between the eyes with his wooden sword. Stunned and unable to get up quickly, Musashi struck him several more times until he expired.

Musashi is clearly quite emotional and raw in this duel. He’s out for blood and seeking recognition. There seems to be little honor in this duel although he was praised for his accomplishment.

While this is clearly a younger, less wise Musashi, it is still overwhelmingly impressive. Even if this story has a fair amount of embellishment in it, he still killed a man with a wooden sword.

But this was only the beginning of his duels. This singular duel was just number one in a long undefeated streak of duels that were soon to come.

Musashi in Battle

Over the course of Musashi’s life, he fought in six different large-scale battles. The first, and probably most famous, was the battle of Sekigahara which he fought in when he was around nineteen years old in 1600.

Musashi would write about large-scale combat in the Book of Five Rings and he believed that mastery of small-scale combat, like the duels he fought in, translated perfectly to large-scale combat.

“If you discern the underlying principles of swordsmanship clearly, when you are able to freely defeat a single opponent, you can beat anyone in the world. The mindset that overcomes one enemy, or a thousand, or ten thousand, is the same. The strategy of the commander translates the small into the large, just like taking a model of one shaku and from it building a giant statue of the Buddha.”

Musashi believed that all of life was for learning. Every experience, good or bad, was an opportunity to learn something. He didn’t waste life wandering aimlessly. While he was a Ronin which literally means a samurai with no master, he had a destination.

But his destination wasn’t a physical place. It was a state of mind.

Musashi writes significantly about large and small-scale combat and how they are similar in the Book of Five Rings. We will return to the Book of Five Rings and its significance.

Musashi’s New Path

For many years Musashi wandered the country looking for opponents to challenge himself against to test his skill. His earlier duels are filled with much more violence and brutality than his later duels. Over time he becomes more skillful and doesn’t seek out the violence he did in his youth.

He seeks deeper meaning.

But let Musashi say it himself:

“When, sometime after I turned thirty, I thought back over my past, I realized that I had not won all those bouts because I had achieved great levels of strategic skill. It could have been because I had some innate gift for this path, and thus did not get away from its natural principles, or because those other styles of swordsmanship were lacking in some respect. After seeing this, in order to attain the deeper principles I set myself to training day in and day out. In due course I realized the Way of Strategy. This was when I was about fifty years old”

Musashi realizes something so many other people have realized after they get what they thought they wanted. It’s not enough. He accomplished so much and had literally proven he was better than anyone else and still looked at himself and said “I’m not there yet, there has to be more.”

Also, notice at this point in his life he doesn’t say that he was too good for anyone else and his skills were god level. He said the exact opposite. He acknowledges that he may have some innate skill, which he clearly did, but he says it’s more likely that his opponents were simply lacking in some respect.

He’s saying that the reason he won all those matches was probably because his opponents weren’t that good. Not that he was so good but that he fought people too far below his skill level. Is it really impressive to defeat someone who isn’t anywhere near your skill level?

But this time of reflection marks the beginning of Musashi’s real journey. This is where he realizes he’s meant for more than just bladed duels to the death.

This moment of introspection also doesn’t derail Musashi. He doesn’t give up or throw in the towel. In fact, he doubles down. He said that he started training day in and day out perfecting his craft. Why would he do this if he looked back at his duels and felt discontent?

Because he started training for a higher purpose. He wasn’t training to defeat and best other people. He was training to perfect his craft and in turn, perfect himself.

He was training to find the Way.

The Way – A Story

Musashi talks about the Way in the Book of Five Rings often and is very humble about it. He doesn’t boast about the way he’s chosen and in fact, he compares his Way to the ways of other people.

He doesn’t seem to hold the opinion that his Way is any superior to the Way of the carpenter or of the philosopher, farmer, or poet provided they each work tirelessly to perfect their craft. That’s what following the way is. It’s continued self-improvement.

“She moved away from the fire and placed the vessels for tea before them. There could be no doubt that she was perfectly at home with the tea ceremony. Her movements were elegant yet natural, her delicate hands graceful. Even at seventy, she seemed to be the epitome of feminine grace and beauty.

Musashi, uncomfortably out of his depth, sat politely on his haunches, in what he hoped was the same fashion as Koetsu. The tea cake was a plain bun known as Yoda Manju, but it rested prettily on a green leaf of a variety not found in the surrounding field. Musashi knew there were set rules of etiquette for serving the tea, just as there were for using the sword, and as he watched Myoshu, he admired her mastery of them.

Judging her in terms of swordsmanship, he thought to himself, “She’s perfect! She doesn’t leave herself open anywhere.” As she whisked the tea, he sensed in her the same unearthly proficiency that one might observe in a master swordsman poised to strike. “It’s the Way,” he thought, “the essence of art. One has to have it to be perfect at anything.”

This was an excerpt from Eija Yoshikawa’s fictional novel Musashi. While this is a historical fiction novel, it still gives the most accurate rendering of Musashi that any fiction has ever done.

This was my favorite part of the novel and I believe it perfectly encapsulates Musashi and his teachings.

Musashi recognizes the Way in everything. He recognizes when people have perfected their craft and are applying that to the rest of their lives.

Musashi’s Hobbies

Musashi trained diligently to master the sword but that wasn’t the only skill he practiced. The sword and strategy were what he spent the majority of time studying and training in. He then took that same energy and effort and applied it to other arts.

“Since then I have never again needed to search for the Way in anything. By applying the principles of strategy to the practice of various arts, I have never needed a teacher in any of those things.”

Musashi isn’t boasting or making fun of students here. He’s telling you the secret to mastering anything: Work hard continually. Not just continually, but relentlessly.

How did Musashi train in the sword? He trained day in and day out and did his best to find opponents better than him to practice against. He then took this mindset and applied it to the rest of his life.

Painting

Musashi was very fond of painting and painted many paintings himself. Sadly, they were not all preserved for us to enjoy today but many still were.

Painting may seem to be an odd hobby for an intense samurai such as Musashi to have. But back then they believed that many arts flowed together and assisted each other. Like two rivers converging into an even larger and stronger one.

Through painting, Musashi learned patience and time under pressure. He learned how to better observe his surroundings and become more detail-oriented. Finally, Musashi learned how to convey meaning and emotion in a new way.

When you look at his paintings you can’t help but feel the intensity. These weren’t made by some casual painter. They were made by a true warrior. You can feel the strength of his spirit through each of the paintings.

Calligraphy

On top of painting, Musashi was well known for his calligraphy. This may once again seem like an odd choice for a Ronin but there are many things about calligraphy that he would have benefited from.

Most importantly, calligraphy would have helped him write and convey his invaluable knowledge better. It would help him socially since back then they put more value on how you wrote. Beyond this, he would have learned techniques for holding and creating letters. The process would have helped him be a better overall painter as well.

The above image is of Musashi’s famed Dokkodo. The Dokkodo is Musashi’s 21 rules for life and translates to mean “The path of aloneness.”

Writing

This is the most obvious of Musashi’s hobbies since he wrote the Book of Five Rings as well as some other pieces of writing as well. Writing is a skill that everyone should put time and effort into practicing and refining.

The Book of Five Rings is a collection of five scrolls and each scroll discusses a different aspect of martial arts and the Way. Ground, Fire, Water, Wind, and Emptiness.

The Book of Five Rings is a beautiful and motivating book to read and one I highly recommend. Just as with his sword and paintings, you can feel the strength and intensity emanating off the pages as you read his writing.

Before he wrote the Book of Five Rings, however, he wrote Thirty-five Articles on Strategy which he later expanded in the Book of Five Rings. These are techniques and practices that he wrote down most likely for teaching.

Construction/Carpentry

This is the least known skill/hobby of Musashi’s but one worth mentioning. Musashi more than likely dabbled in many different professions in his lifetime and had even more hobbies than the ones we’ve discussed.

In the Book of Five Rings Musashi compares the Way of Strategy to the way of the carpenter. His knowledge in his writings would indicate that he was well-versed in carpentry and understood it. This suspicion is confirmed in a historical record of a piece of land that was intrusted to Musashi which he then turned into a large garden.

This garden had trees, flowers, fountains, and a tea house. Musashi clearly knew how to create a plan and enact it down to the last detail.

Musashi’s Personal Development

Over the years we have the pleasure through historical accounts to watch Musashi mature and grow as he follows the Way.

If we rewind to his first duel, we see a raw, emotional, highly aggressive Musashi looking for anyone to take on. Fast forward after he’s won over 60 duels and realizes there must be more to life, we see a stark change. No longer does Musashi seek after duels or entice aggression.

The only duels Musashi took on according to the records were the ones where he was either challenged or was asked to fight on behalf of a Lord. But he did not seek out the duels himself.

No doubt his many hobbies had helped him tame his more aggressive side and find a sense of inner peace.

Musashi’s Later Duels

The best example of how Musashi changed over his life is through his duels. These are the most well-recorded parts of his life and the best way to see how he’s evolved.

“All four of you can attack me at once, if you like.” Gunbei got angry and took his place facing Musashi alone, holding his wooden sword. Intending to win with a single blow, Gunbei raised his weapon over his head, whereas Musashi backed up all the to the entrance and adopted the crossed-sword guard position.

After a moment of tension, Musashi advanced toward Gunbei with this crossed-sword guard. Gunbei struck, aiming at the top of Musashi’s head. Musashi parried, separating his two swords; then he crossed them again, pressing down on bunbei’s sword. Freeing his sword, Gunbei attacked again, and Musashi parried as he had before, then he backed one step away and recrossed his swords. Musashi now had his back to the wall. Gunbei, thinking that he had found a good opportunity, lowered his sword to the level of his chest and leaped forward to run his opponent through.

Musashi shouted: “That’s not what you should do!” and parrying Gunbei’s attack with the small sword in his left hand, touched the point of his other sword to his adversary’s cheek. Gunbei was wounded because of his own momentum and was bleeding at the cheek.

Musashi gave him some medicine and a towel, calmly told him to wipe away the blood, and waited.

This is a historically recorded story of a duel between Musashi and Miyake Gunbei. Reading this makes it sounds as though Musashi is fighting a child. But he was fighting a very skilled swordsman who was so confident in himself that he initiated the confrontation.

Notice how different this fight is compared to his first fight. Notice how little emotion there is on Musashi’s side and how calm he is. Musashi has refined and perfected his sword so much that he doesn’t even strike with his sword. He simply waits until his opponent makes a mistake and his mistake is what injured him.

In his first fight, he struck Kihei several times while he was dazed on the ground. You can practically feel the raw emotion emanating from Musashi. Contrasting that with this duel and we see none of that.

We see a calm and calculated Musashi who is judging not only his own swordsmanship but also his opponents and realizes instantly when his opponent has chosen a wrong move.

Musashi has truly mastered his sword and the evidence is clear that he was changed. He has not only found but followed the Way.

Musashi’s Death

While not for a lack of trying, Musashi was not killed in battle or duel. While he toyed with death his whole life, in the end, it was time that finally did him in.

The cause of his death is unknown other than the fact that he died of “old age.”

Musashi didn’t believe in wasting time even though he was deathly ill and on his deathbed. He followed the Way until his death. While on his deathbed he was unable to train or practice any of his hobbies. So, he took ink and brush and left us the Dokkodo. His final parting gift. His life’s work is summed up in 21 sentences.

But the warrior finally met his end in 1645 at the age of 62.

“At the moment of his death, he had himself raised up. He had his belt tightened and his wakizashi put in it. He seated himself with one knee vertically raised, holding the sword with his left hand and a cane in his right hand. He died in this posture, at the age of sixty-two. The principal vassals of Lord Hosokawa and the other officers gathered, and they painstakingly carried out the ceremony. Then they set up a tomb on Mount Iwato on the order of the Lord.”

Musashi asked to be buried in his battle armor and in a place where he could protect the Hosokawa family and bow to his lord as he went off on his travels. These wishes were carried out per his request. His hair was buried separately on Mount Iwato which was customary and a sign of great respect.

Musashi lived as a warrior and died as one. He carried his beliefs and followed the Way not only into death but beyond.

What We Can Learn From Musashi Now

Out of all the different people I’ve read about in history, no one has a more comic book story than Musashi. Everything from the things he did to his writing style and words of wisdom sound like they’re taken straight from a comic book. If I can be completely frank, he’s so freaking cool.

But we’re here for more than that. We’re here to learn and to grow just like Musashi did.

Musashi life is a life of mostly self-imposed hardship. He sought out hardship and difficulty because he wanted to be molded into something greater.

Eiji Yoshikawa once again provides us with beautiful words describing what Musashi must have been thinking:

“He stopped along the way to look at several well-known temples, and at each of them he bowed and said two prayers. One was: “Please protect my sister from harm.” The other was: “Please test the lowly Musashi with hardship. Let him become the greatest swordsman in the land, or let him die.

Later on, Musashi’s thoughts continue:

“I want to lead an important life. I want to do it because I was born a human being”

What a beautiful line. We’re all human beings but sadly we will not all lead important lives. But what even is an important life? An important life isn’t a life full of adventure and bloodshed like Musashi’s. It’s following the Way as Musashi did. It’s working, eating, breathing, and training for something greater than yourself.

Musashi is a testament to what it means to follow the Way. But he doesn’t provide the blueprint for the Way. That’s because there isn’t one. Everyone’s path will be different.

But, all the paths, in the end, lead to the same place.

What is your profession? To be a good man

Musashi used swordsmanship to train his body and mind to be “good.” Maybe for you, it’s welding construction, accounting, or waitressing. It doesn’t matter what it is. It isn’t what you have or what you do that matters. It’s how you do it.

Are you using your situation to get better?

You are a human being. Train like one.

The post Who Was Miyamoto Musashi? appeared first on Dokkodo Journal.

Many people have heard of Miyamoto Musashi but few people have actually read his writings or know more than just his name.

The Dokkodo was written by Musashi at the end of his life as his parting wisdom. Musashi lived a long and fascinating life. He used his mastery of the sword as a way of understanding the deeper meanings of life.

Musashi, just like the rest of us, sought to become a better person. He used his mastery of the sword to better himself physically, mentally, and spiritually. The sword was Musashi’s Path. It was a path that he had to take alone. A path we all have to undertake alone. Only you can better yourself. No one else can do it for you and that’s what makes it the Path of Aloneness.

Who Was Miyamoto Musashi?

Miyamoto Musashi was a samurai born in the late 1500s who studied swordsmanship and went on to create his own style called “Two Heavens as One” or “Two Swords as One.” He is famous for creating a style in which he used two swords simultaneously.

Musashi was more than just a swordsman. He was also a painter, a calligrapher, carpenter, and fought in battle 6 different times. But he is certainly most famous for his swordsmanship.

Musashi fought his first duel at the age of 12 where he killed his opponent. From then he continued to fight in over 60 duels, many of which were to the death and never lost. From there Musashi went on to find deeper meaning than simply besting various opponents.

He sought enlightenment.

Musashi used his abilities as a swordsman to help achieve the enlightenment he desired. He believed that whatever you choose to do with your life, whether that’s becoming a swordsman, a carpenter, a poet, or an accountant, that is your “way.” He chose the way of the sword but maybe you and I will choose a different way. Whatever our way is, we must carry it out to the absolute best of our abilities.

He writes all about his style of the sword and finding the Way in his book Go Rin No Sho or The Book of Five Rings. In this book, Musashi breaks down his writing into five scrolls that each discuss a different topic regarding strategy, swordsmanship, and enlightenment.

What is the Dokkodo?

The Dokkodo is a list of 21 rules that Musashi said are essential for living and for following the Way. These are his final words to us and his parting wisdom. All those duels and all those hours of training and meditation led Musashi to these rules for life.

This is the end of his path but merely the beginning of ours.

1. Accept everything just the way it is.

We need to focus more on ourselves and our own paths and not concern ourselves with what’s happening throughout the world. The Stoics would teach us to focus on the things we can control.

Musashi isn’t saying to go along with the world, he’s saying to accept things as they are. This doesn’t mean that we can’t make positive changes in our community just that we should do what we believe is right regardless of the outcome. For example, this may mean voting in your community election but remaining indifferent to the candidate that wins.

There will always be bad governments and people we don’t like. We can’t let that stop us from doing what we were created to do.

2. Do not seek pleasure for its own sake.

This is simple in concept but far more challenging in practice. Pleasure for its own sake would be a pleasure that serves no greater purpose. Musashi isn’t saying not to partake in pleasurable experiences. He’s reminding us to stay focused. To stay vigilant.

A pleasure that doesn’t further the Way or progress you toward your ultimate goal ought to be either discarded or done with extreme caution.

Pleasure’s goal is some kind of reward. Earn your reward. We think of pleasure as a break from our hard work. We watch TV to “unwind” or “relax,” and eat ice cream because we deserve a break and then we sleep in because we had a long day. None of these things are bad in and of themselves but when they aren’t earned they turn into everyday occurrences. Before long our days are structured with one pleasure after the other without any true fulfilment.

We sleep in because it feels good and then we don’t have time to workout or even cook breakfast so we grab a donut on the way to work. Once off work we get home tired and decide to relax by watching TV. Before going to bed we scroll through TikTok staying up later than we should making it harder not to hit snooze again. The cycle has started.

At any moment I can look up inappropriate content, stream mindless TV, order junk food to my door, or scroll endlessly through social media. These are all rewards that serve no greater purpose and don’t improve me. They’re pleasures for their own sake and exactly what Musashi is warning us against.

3. Do not, in any circumstance, depend upon a partial feeling.

Be sure of yourself and of what you’re doing. How can you do this? Know right from wrong. Know the truth and follow it to your death.

Far too often we go through life with a lot of “pretty sure.” We need to find the truth and get to know it so well that in any situation we find ourselves in we know what to do.

This is, of course, easier to say than to enact. Finding the truth may take many different forms in your life. It may mean meditating, reading, journaling, praying, or any other discovery form. It may also take time. Knowing whether you should go help someone in trouble vs who you should marry is a very different question. The latter may take much more time to discover.

Befriend virtue, acquaint yourself with morality, marry wisdom, and know God.

4. Think lightly of yourself and deeply of the world.

Have a servant’s heart. Despise your own selfishness. Serve, love, and care for people above yourself. Find more value in other people’s lives than your own. The root of all sin is selfishness and that is a constant lifelong struggle to overcome.

Don’t be self-consumed. The world is vast and the people in it are amazing. Use your time and your abilities for others. Galatians 5:13 says, “For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.”

Don’t use the freedom you have to enjoy pleasures for pleasure’s sake. Love others and serve them. Seek out opportunities to help and lift others up above yourself.

5. Be detached from desire your whole life long.

This goes back to rule number 2: Do Not Seek Pleasure for its Own Sake. Is Musashi saying never desire anything? No, of course not. He’s saying don’t overindulge and overinflate pleasures. Seneca once said, “So called pleasures, when they go beyond a certain limit, are but punishments.”

Being detached doesn’t mean not desiring or even no indulging. It means remaining indifferent to the pleasure so you feel no pain when they’re gone. Are there pleasures in your life that you aren’t sufficiently detached from? Maybe its your phone, clothes, food, or even a loved one. Whatever it is free yourself from it. Life isn’t on a mission to make you happy and unless you choose to be; you won’t.

Enjoy pleasure but only to a point. Remain indifferent to things not going your way. Always remember that it’s not events that make us happy, sad, or angry but how we interpret them.

6. Do not regret what you have done.

Did Musashi never make a mistake and so he wrote this one to show off his accomplishment? Definitely not. What he means here is don’t waste time looking back with regret and self-pity. You messed up. Maybe you messed up big-time like I have. Acknowledge it, accept it, and change it. Nothing else matters.

There will be far more mistakes in your future and if you can’t get past the ones you’ve already made then its going to be a long and hard life.

Always improve and grow but find forgiveness for your younger self. Don’t waste more time on things outside of your control.

7. Never be jealous of others.

Now we’re taking a trip back to Sunday school with Mrs. Hallem quizzing us on the Ten Commandments. This is another one that’s simple in concept but quite challenging in practice. Be inspired and impressed by your friends and colleagues. Not envious.

People often boil jealousy down to wanting what others have but it’s more than that. It’s a lack of contentment with what you have. It’s a two-fold problem. The Bible talks about envy an awful lot. James 3:16, Proverbs 23:17, Proverbs 14:30, and Ecclesiastes 4:4 to name a few. Solomon said that envy rots the bones. It eats at you from the inside out. Learn to despise it and seek contentment.

Epicurus said that “Contented poverty is an honorable estate.” Learn how to be content with what you’ve been gifted. There will always be someone with a nicer car, better clothes, bigger muscles, and more money. But so few have enough. Listen to Seneca when it comes to wealth: “Do you ask what is the proper limit to wealth? It is, first, to have what is necessary, and, second, to have what is enough.”

The one thing you can have that so few others have is enough. Be content and happy with little. The man who is happy with the least will have the most.

8. Never let yourself be saddened by a separation.

This goes back to our interpretations. Epictetus said that “We cannot choose our external circumstances, but we can always choose how we respond to them. Musashi isn’t saying that if you go through a breakup or a loved one dies or you get fired you shouldn’t grieve those losses. But the grief you go through shouldn’t be contrary to the Way.

You should still be progressing even in times of mourning. Separation is part of life. You can’t change that or affect it.

Oftentimes people think that the stoic response to this would be to be indifferent to the loss and move on. “No factor.” But this isn’t true. Stoicism isn’t trying to get you to care less but accept more. If you’ve suffered a horrible loss don’t try to ignore it or conquer it, accept it. Feel it.

Now, am I urging you to be hard-hearted, do I ask that you betray no emotion at the funeral, do I refuse to let your spirit even be touched? Not at all. It would be barbarous, not courageous, to watch the burial rites of one’s own-with the same eyes that watched them while living-and not be moved as one’s family is first torn apart. Suppose I did forbid it: some things have rights of their own. Tears fall even from those trying to hold them back; being shed, they lift the spirit. What, then, shall we do? Let us allow them to fall, but not order them to do so; let there be as much weeping as emotion may produce, not as much as imitation may demand. Let us add nothing to grief, nor enlarge it to match the example of someone else.

Seneca

Let your tears fall, let the pain hurt, and let your screams out. It’s inhuman not to feel those things. The goal isn’t to escape those feelings and emotions but plunge straight into them. Accept your pain unconditionally and progress past it.

9. Resentment and complaint are appropriate neither for yourself nor for others.

Musashi would have gotten along well with the Stoics. Once again we go back to our interpretations. Don’t complain about things outside of your control. The things inside of your control you should take action on and change.

Resentment is more than anger. It’s bitterness at being treated poorly. Musashi says that resentment has no place in the Way. Listen to what Epictetus says about being insulted: “Remember that you are insulted not by the person who strikes or abuses you but by your opinion that these things are insulting. So whenever another provokes you, be assured that it is your own opinion that has provoked you.” This takes us back to our interpretations again. Be quick to hear, slow to speak, and slow to anger.

Don’t over-concern yourself with what others have to say or do to you. The primary focus should not be on what others think about you but on what’s actually true about you. Listen to Marcus Aurelius: “Some will disdain me? That is his concern. My concern is that I not be found doing or saying anything worthy of disdain.” Do you see the attitude switch here? We’re not pointing the finger at other people saying look at them and complaining. We’re pointing it at ourselves and if we are found with no fault then we simply move on.

Let’s also remember how truly broken and evil we are. Only the most evil men would have to spend so much time reading and learning about virtue and morality to be a better person. Evil is inherent, being good is learned. Take time and meditate on just how much you need to be forgiven for and use that to help you forgive others. Mark 11:25 is an invaluable verse for this.

Complaining is not for the warrior. Be thankful for your hardships because they’re gifts in disguise as curses. The only time these gifts turn into curses is when you start complaining about them and manifesting the curse. Be thankful that God has trusted you with these hardships and given them to you. Face them head-on and overcome them. Don’t pray that they’ll be over but pray for more.

10. Do not let yourself be guided by the feeling of lust or love.

Stay in control of your body and mind. He isn’t saying that you should never love but that you should remain conscious and make wise decisions. Lust is one of the strongest and most powerful evils and one that should never be taken lightly. Fight it to the death.

Lust can take control of your mind and have you making decisions you know will be regrettable. Most guys I’ve talked to about lust think it’s fairly harmless and as long as it doesn’t hurt anyone it isn’t a problem. This is a grave mistake.

There are no shortages of writings to pull from on the dangers of lust. Romans 8:6 says “For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace.” To put this another way, let’s hear how Seneca put it “No servitude is more disgraceful than that which is self-imposed.”

Lust can easily become a self-imposed trap that will entrap those who partake in it.

One should be in complete control of their mind. Lust will infiltrate your thoughts like a virus. It will make you erode your mind and have you think of people as nothing more than objects of pleasure. We are to love people, not flesh.

11. In all things, do not have any preferences.

Once again, Musashi isn’t saying to go through life and never care for anything or anyone. Be fluid, not rigid. Be open, not uptight. Accept things as they are, don’t resent them for how they are.

Success is not found in the outcome of a situation but in the process that leads up to the outcome. If we give something every ounce of effort then whatever happens, we will have already succeeded. We will have no need for preferences.

Preferences are when a lack of effort meets a weak mindset.

Seneca once said that “Fate leads the willing, and drags the reluctant.” Whatever happens, will happen. Nothing you do will change that. Find your meaning and purpose not in outcomes but in processes. Find your meaning not in being or doing what you wish you were doing but in what you’re doing. Epictetus said it best:

“Remember that you are an actor in a play determined by the author: if short, then short; if long, then long. If he wants you to act as a begger, then act even that with excellence, just as a cripple, a ruler, or a citizen. Because that’s your objective: to act the role that is given to you well. To select the role is up to someone else.”

Epictetus

Stop wasting time with preferences. Contentment will be more valuable than anything that could ever be bought.

12. Do not have any particular desire regarding your private domicile.

Musashi was a Ronin and he lived most of his life traveling throughout Japan. I’m sure this is where this rule originated from. We can interrupt this to mean don’t overvalue where you live. Seneca said, “It matters little whether the house be built of turf, or of variously colored imported marble; understand that a man is sheltered just as well by a thatch as by a roof of gold.”

People find safety and attachment to their homes. There is absolutely nothing wrong with loving your home or getting homesick. The problem lies in overvaluing your home until it becomes more important to you than following the Way.

Are you prepared to burn down your home in the presence of war? Are you prepared to pick your family up and relocate them if that’s what the right thing to do is? Find value not in where you live but who you live with.

13. Do not pursue the taste of good food.

This brings us to the least talked about sin in all of Christianity. Gluttony. Musashi isn’t saying that if you taste something delicious you should spit it out and go eat raw bitter herbs. He’s saying to once again be careful of what you put value in. Don’t overvalue the taste of good food.

The way we eat should reflect how we live. This goes for all that you do whether it’s eating, sleeping, working out, or anything else. Moderation and purpose are rules that we should live by in every facet of our lives.

We should eat in moderation, not over-indulging just as we should do with all our pleasures. Musashi makes this abundantly clear with rule number 2, 5, and 10 all touching on this.

We should also eat with purpose, eating to fuel our bodies with sufficient protein and micronutrients. Everything we do should be done to further the Way and our purpose. Nothing should be done that doesn’t take us closer to our destination.

14. Do not possess ancient objects intended to be preserved for the future.

Exercise extreme caution toward the feeling of sentiment. There’s nothing wrong with finding value in something but too much value creates a scale that’s tipped in the wrong direction. The Bible calls these things an idol and the stoics call them an external.

An external is something that is outside of our control. The stoics would say that the only thing that’s truly in our control is our virtue and interpretations.

The reason I think sentiment can be very dangerous is because it can be a form of emotional control. Maybe you have an old glass plate that your grandma gave you on your wedding day and one day your toddler drops it and it shatters. A flood of memories and emotions come over you and you begin to cry and, hot with emotion, scold the child too harshly.

Is there something wrong with valuing a special gift from a special person on a special date? Of course not! In fact, be thankful that you even have a sentimental item and memories like that because many people don’t have the opportunity to have those.

But think about what really happened. You say “My grandma’s plate was destroyed that she gave me on my wedding day.” But this is not what happened. “A plate was destroyed and luckily my child was not hurt. The plate is gone but the memory of my grandma is not. What have I lost? My child is safe and my mind is intact, what more should I desire?”

Don’t destroy all your sentimental items. Cherish them. But don’t allow them to control you. Remember that all things have their season. Some things will be destroyed while others blossom.

15. Do not act following customary beliefs.

Don’t follow the crowd, follow the truth. The Bible teaches that we should be set apart from the world as children of God. Seneca said “Let men find that we are unlike the common herd, if they look closely. If they visit us at home, they should admire us, rather than our household appointments.”

We should be more than whatever is “normal.” We should be forever changing in terms of growth but unchanging based on our surroundings and company. Is it normal to gossip about others? Is it normal to eat foods that we know are harmful for us? Is it normal to complain about work?

Maybe. But are we called to be normal? or are we called to be above that which is considered normal?

16. Do not seek especially either to collect or to practice arms beyond what is useful.

Do what is useful and whatever is of no use do in absolute moderation. Time is our personal currency. The more time we spend on something the more worth we give it. If you spend more time on social media or watching TV than you do reading or exercising then you have put more worth on those things. Exercise caution in this.

This rule is two-fold. It says not to collect or practice arms beyond what is useful. Collecting arms beyond what is useful is similar to rule number 18, 14, and 5. All these rules deal with the problem of overvaluing things and forming dangerous emotional attachments to them.

Practicing arms beyond what is different is different and I believe has more to do with how we spend our time. Musashi was an impressive caligrapher, painter and more than likely wood worker as well. He practiced more than simply the sword but they all served a purpose. He wasn’t wasting time.

There is a grave distinction between learning calligraphy or painting and scrolling through social media or watching more TV. Consider how you spend your time and whether you’re practicing arms beyond what is useful.

17. Along the way, do not fear death.

The fear of death is a topic that the samurai discussed extensively. The samurai said that no good decision can be made when the fear of death is present.

As Paul said, “For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” The Samurai put a lot of focus on not fearing death. Musashi said that “To win any battle, you must fight as if you’re already dead.” Seneca and Marcus Aurelius do a great job of giving this some more context.

Think of yourself as dead. You have lived your life. Now, take what’s left and live it properly.

Marcus Aurelius

We must make it our goal to have already lived long enough

Seneca

What did the samurai mean by “no good decision can be made when the fear of death is present?” It means we must be prepared for death to vanquish our selfishness. We must value our virtue and morality more than our life. As Seneca said we should make it our goal to have already lived long enough.

Be ready for death. How can we be prepared for death? By living nobly, not seeking to live long but seeking to live well.

18. Do not seek to possess either goods or fiefs for your old age.

I’m a finance major who is a big believer in investing for your retirement so this one hits close to home. But once again I don’t think Musashi is saying that money is evil and you shouldn’t have any. He’s saying the same thing he’s been saying this whole time which is don’t overvalue money in your old age.

This seems to be another theme in the Dokkodo. Numbers 14 and 16 both go along with this idea of not overvaluing things you shouldn’t.

The future is the forever unknown and expecting anything in your old age is a mistake. We once again arrive at this idea of contentment. You should not only be content with where you are now but also with what the future holds. It’s dangerous to make your happiness depend on an external thing. This doesn’t mean the external is bad just that we shouldn’t depend upon it.

Think about what things you’re depending on in your old age that you’re seeking to possess. For me, it’s definitely having a lot of money in my portfolio for retirement.

19. Respect Buddha and the gods without counting on their help.

Being a Christian, I believe in God although I can still respect where he is coming from. We should depend on God although there are times when we need to simply do what needs to be done.

Do we need God? Of course, we do. Has God also given you both the will and the ability to become better and to help others? Yes.

We can’t fail to be afraid, we can’t fail to be distressed. then we say, “Lord God, let me not be distressed.” Moron, don’t you have hands? Didn’t God make them for you? So are you going to sit down and pray that your nose will stop running? Better to wipe your nose and stop praying. What, then-has He given you nothing to help with your situation? Hasn’t He given you endurance, hasn’t He given you greatness of spirit, hasn’t he given you courage?

Epictetus

We shouldn’t turn our backs on God or think that he’s done the same. When you complain about God not helping you or fixing your situation think about the many ways He already has.

20. You can abandon your own body, but you must hold on to your honor.

This goes back to rule number 17, not fearing death. You can abandon your own body means you can die but you must not lose your honor. All must die. It’s better to die with your honor and morals intact than to live long. What’s a long life grant you if it wasn’t lived well?

Before I became old I tried to live well; now that I am old, I shall try to die well; but dying well means dying gladly.

Seneca

Live rightly. Live justly. Live virtuously. If these things are done then death has no sting.

21. Never stray from the Way.

You’ve found your path and know what you must do. Now do it, and never stray. This is my favorite of all the rules because of its simplicity and profoundness.

These are some of Musashi’s final thoughts and his last writing before he died. This is the culmination of decades of training and practice. Dokkodo means Path of Aloneness and Musashi is showing us what his path was. These 21 rules were his path; his journey. “Do these things” he says, and you will find your way.

“Never stray from the way” could be read as “Never stray from virtue” or “Never stray from God.” However you would like to word it is up to you.

Musashi has showed us his Way. But what about yours? What about mine? What does our “Way” look like? Whatever it looks like it must be done alone. Life is the Path of Aloneness.

What Does Musashi Mean by the “Way”?

Musashi uses this word frequently in his writing as does a lot of Eastern writing and philosophy from that time. It has a mystical “this could mean anything” kind of vibe to it so let’s define it.

The “Way” means nothing other than to be aware of one’s own faults. To be aware of one’s faults from moment to moment and to work at this for one’s whole life is what is called the “Way.”

Yamamoto Tsunetomo

The Way is simply another word for saying your “calling” or “mission.” The main difference is that I believe Musashi has done a much better job at explaining and defining the Way than other people have done explaining and defining a calling or mission.

In the first scroll, Musashi compares the way of strategy to the way of the carpenter. He talks about how a carpenter builds a house and how they use different wood for different parts of the house. How they use different tools for different jobs and allocate different workers to different jobs based on skill.

That is the way of the carpenter. While he uses the carpenter as his prime example, this could be any profession.

Musashi says “In general, four ways exist for traversing human life: those of the warrior, the farmer, the artisan, and the merchant.”

What he is saying is that he hasn’t found the only path to enlightenment or to betterment. He’s saying that anyone can achieve that through their choice of work.

He chose the sword, the way of the warrior. Another may choose a plow, the way of the farmer. What you choose to do is not what’s important but rather how you do it. Working at our faults from moment to moment our whole life long is the Way.

Why Does it Matter?

Now we get to the meat of it. Why is this so important? Why have I named and molded this entire blog around this word?

When I first read the meaning of the word Dokkodo it really resonated with me. Especially after I had read the Book of Five Rings and understood Musashi’s writing and what he meant by the “Way.”

As you now know, Dokkodo translates into the Path of Aloneness. I love this concept of the path or the way that must be followed alone.

To me, this means that you have to take absolute accountability for the position you’re in and for your actions. The Path of Aloneness means that you have to do the things that no one else can do for you.

You can hire someone to fix your plumbing, you can hire someone to cook your food, but you can’t hire someone to be virtuous for you. You can’t hire someone to exercise your body and you can’t hire someone to follow the way for you.

These things can only be done by you. No one else can do them. You have to take total responsibility for them.

I’ve been wanting to write consistently for a long time but I always put it off or made excuses as to why I didn’t do it. But no one else can do this for me. I have to take accountability for my writing.

Beyond that, you have to choose what your path is. The Path of Aloneness is different for everyone. Musashi’s path was the way of the sword. It was the 21 rules you just read. But yours doesn’t have to be the same as his. It could be the way of the farmer or the way of the Gospel or the way of weightlifting. You aren’t meant to be dragged through life. Take responsibility, find out what your Way is, and follow it.

Follow it to your death.

My Way

The purpose of this blog is to help me zero in on my path. My Way. I think it would be awesome if by doing so it also helped others too but this can’t be my goal. This project can’t be about SEO optimization or readability analyses, or clickbait titles. It has to be about staying on the path.

When asked why he took so much trouble over a piece of craftsmanship that would never reach more than a very few people: “A few is enough for me; so is one; so is none.”

Seneca

My goal is to use this blog as a platform to progress and track my progression through writing. I have many areas where I wish to improve and grow and I hope that this will help me accomplish that. If you continue to read more content you will find articles tackling topics that pertain to where I’m growing in.

1. Faith

My faith is very important to me and its something I’ve neglected far too much. Religion is an area that over the last several years has become harder and harder to talk about so let me break it down.

I believe in God and the Gospel. But maybe you don’t. The goal of this blog isn’t to convert people to my religious beliefs. Religion is part of my “Way” but it doesn’t have to be a part of yours. Yes, of course, I want you to believe in Jesus but that’s not the goal of my writing.

My goal is to do the things I believe are right and the things I have to do to become better. If religion is something that you really don’t like then simply don’t read my Christian articles. I’m not doing this for anyone other than myself. As Seneca said, a few is enough for me; so is one; so is none.

2. Fitness

This is probably my best area but still somewhere I feel insufficient. I don’t have my fitness dialed in yet. When I say “fitness” what I mean is my exercise routine and my diet.

My exercise routine is what I have the most dialed in but not enough for where I should be. My diet is absolutely terrible. Both of these areas need to be fixed. I should be making way more gains in terms of strength and body composition.

To do this I need to dial in my training and be consistent. This means using periodization and staying consistent with it.

I also have to get my diet right and leverage it to help me accomplish my goals. This may mean eating two to three times more calories than I am right now to gain weight or reduce calories to cut. Whatever the intermediary goal is, I have to leverage my diet.

3. Finance

Finance is an area of my life where I have a lot of knowledge but not enough action. I know I should be following a budget and investing the difference every month but I’m not. I should have a lot of different accounts in place and ready to go but I don’t.

Making my financial life part of my weekly routine is vitally important. Checking accounts, tracking spending, and investing more often than I do. Finance is vitally important and I need this dialed in.

4. Writing

Writing is an area of my life that I’ve put the least amount of work and effort into. I enjoy writing and I want to grow my skills as a writer. There is no other way of doing this than by simply writing every day.

I want to make it a habit to write every day even if it’s as little as 300 words per day. Guess what 200 words per day is over the course of a year? It’s over 100,000 words. That’s a book-length right there. Just by writing 300 words a day.

Writing is the method of communication I plan on using for my Path.

No one else can do this for me. The Way is a Path of Aloneness.

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