Dokkodo by Miyamoto Musashi

http://www.stepanp.com/?p=372

by stopachka • 14 years ago

38 14 14 years ago

kiba2• 14 years ago

What Miyamoto Musashi seems to be the fluffy inspirational type, rather than a serious reflection on how to achieve things.

npatrick04• 14 years ago

Given musashi's unparalleled swordsmanship, fluffy seems like a poor description. His life was a very direct reflection of his philosophy.

kiba2• 14 years ago

I meant what he wrote seems fluffy.

weego• 14 years ago

I've never been sure whether I'm someone who genuinely takes something from these things or whether I just like the idea that I might be able to. The only passage I have really ever had stick with me is from the Hagakure and I've felt applies nicely to how I see efficient dev:

Among the maxims on Lord Naoshige's wall there was this one: ''Matters of' great concern should be treated lightly.'' Master lttei commented, "Matters of small concern should be treated seriously." Among one's affairs there should not be more than two or three matters of what one could call great concern. If these are deliberated upon during ordinary times, they can be understood. Thinking about things previously and then handling them lightly when the time comes is what this is all about. To face an event anew solve it lightly is difficult if you are not resolved beforehand, and there will always be uncertainty in hitting your mark. However, if the foundation is laid previously, you can think of the saying, "Matters of great concern should be treated lightly," as your own basis for action.

tl;dr You should be prepared for issues that are of great significance so that the actual decision process becomes easy. It is the small issues that arise day to day that you should put great attention to.

w1ntermute• 14 years ago

> For anyone that’s striking out, or wants to make change, I think his life holds a lot of lessons. Eji Yoshikawa’s “Musashi” might be the best start for you, if you want to read one Japan’s classical novels, and get a bunch of resolve.

Alternatively, anyone looking for something easier to digest should check out Vagabond, an award-winning manga by Inoue Takehito that chronicles Musashi's life.

hiena03• 14 years ago

The problem with Vagabond is that it's not finished. I read Musashi after reading Vagabond because I didn't want to wait for the chapters anymore. Both are great and you should know there are mayor differences specially in Sasaki Kojirō character.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vagabond_(manga)#Differences_wi...

peteretep3• 14 years ago

When I worked as a dating coach, one of the most common mental tics we had to work to get out of students was an obsession about being "in the right".

This manifested in all sorts of ways that would totally kill social interactions: correcting a girl on some factual detail in some story she was telling; saying hateful things to girls to "reject them first" at the first sense that she might not be totally interested; not being willing to take chances in social interactions; a complete unwillingness to touch girls, ever, for any reason; and most importantly, an inability to HAVE FUN.

The above is fact; my conjecture about /why/ (which possibly isn't) was that often these guys had been battered about mentally and socially by people, and their mental refuge for their self image was the "correctness high-ground".

Anyway:

- If you want to live a life full of "being right" and not having much fun, these rules look excellent.

- If you are unable to discern between eating great food from time to time and total all-out gluttony, if you follow these rules you will avoid gluttony. The same applies to most of the others (avoid pleasure for pleasure's sake?! Get a grip)

- If you get a geek boner at the idea of being a samurai, print these out and put these above your bed

There are many, many great spiritual books encapsulating the small amount of good advice in this list, but really the above is a recipe for navel-gazing piety.

Going to excesses of gluttony or austerity are for the mentally weak, rather than winning life philosophies.

stopachka2• 14 years ago

Take don't seek pleasure for pleasure's sake.

Which guy do you think does better with women:

The one that goes up to a girl looking for sex?

Or the one who is confident in himself, and goes up to the girl for the experience of it, to make friends, and depending on if the girl is cool or not, pursue something deeper?

-------------

I'm not sure how any of these principles prevent you from being an awesome confident guy that gets women.

Maybe these rules that you're talking about are just made by guys to prevent themselves from doing what they're scared of.

But, don't these principles suggest to do exactly what you're scared of?

peteretep3• 14 years ago

Please understand that I am answering this from experience - four years working as a full-time dating coach - rather than as what "should happen":

The answer is the first, and also, the second guy is kidding himself.

If you want to be an awesome confident guy that gets women, be an awesome confident guy that gets women. If you're seeking to define yourself by Living Like A Samurai, you have a weak model of self, and need to learn that life happens in shades of grey, rather than in absolutes.

muraiki2• 14 years ago

An interesting story about Musashi, and what may have influenced some of what he wrote prior to his death, was his encounter with the monk Takuan. Musashi saw a snake approaching the monk in mediation, and witnessed the snake simply crawl over Takuan without any fear. But as the snake approached Musashi, it recoiled to strike, then ran away. Musashi was grieved because he felt that what he had cultivated was lacking -- he had developed his fighting skill so much that nothing would approach him. In contrast, Takuan demonstrated a deep peacefulness and naturalness that led to all, even a snake, accepting him.

As to how much of this is legendary or not, I'm not certain, but it's something to contemplate.

muraiki2• 14 years ago

Oops, that should be meditation, not mediation!

gwern• 14 years ago

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dokk%C5%8Dd%C5%8D

Dokkodo by Miyamoto Musashi

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