In the life of a samurai swordsman, every day could be your last.
You face death constantly. Over and over and over again.
The slightest error, the smallest lapse in judgement results in lost limbs and lost lives.
There is no one who embodied and mastered this Way as well as Miyamoto Musashi. Musashi was a legendary swordsman, philosopher, military strategist, and ronin (wandering samurai). He was one of the few individuals to ever receive the designation of Kensei, the 'sword saint of Japan.'
He is famously known for his publication of the Go Rin No Sho -- 'The Book of the Five Rings' -- a guide on how to train and fight in sword combat and military strategy.
He espouses the virtues of relentless practice, merciless pragmatism, and a fiercely ascetic relationship with the external world.
For Musashi, mastery of the world was mastery of the Self.
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