When you are even with an opponent, it is essential to keep thinking of stabbing him in the face with the tip of your sword.
When you have the intention of stabbing your opponent in the face, he will try to get both his face and body out of the way.
As soon as an opponent tries to get out of the way, you have already won.
Miyamoto Musashi, The Book of Five Rings Emotion is a feeling we get when something happens to us.
Joy, sadness, anger, fear.
When something stimulates us, it causes a sensation from deep inside to bubble up to the surface.
Emotion is involuntary, automatic, and out of our control.
Therefore, people tend to deal with emotions in one of two ways.
They latch onto emotions and let them drive their actions, or they do everything they can to bury them and ignore them.
Basically, they either react or suppress.
A legendary samurai, Miyamoto Musashi, was aware of this false paradox in which only one of two options exists.
We find ourselves in an instinctual dilemma of fight or flight against our own emotions.
Reaction and suppression are not responses.
They are both unconscious impulses that can lead us off the path of our destiny.
But what if there was a third option that welcomes rather than fears emotions?
This video explores Miyamoto Musashi and how to master your emotions.
Miyamoto Musashi was born in Mimasaka, Japan in 1584.
He began his career as a fighter early in life when, at age 13, he killed a man in single combat.
From there he would go undefeated, winning over 60 duels with other swordsmen.
In a world of trained assassins.
Musashi walked alone as the greatest warrior to ever wield a katana.
But Musashi was far more than a brute killer.
He was a legendary strategist, artist and writer, most notably recognized for the Book of Five Rings and Dokudo, which are widely considered the most accurate depictions of samurai philosophy.
Although his legacy is often exaggerated, his work stands as a guiding light towards self-improvement and mastery.
Musashi wrote the Book of Five Rings for the martial artist.
In summary, its structure is broken down into five parts.
Basics, flexibility, aggression, observation, and instincts.
However, at its core, it has themes of adaptability, intuition and self-resilience, principles that proved effective on the ancient battlefield and still remain relevant to this day.
Musashi's message is simple, acceptance.
Remove oneself from desire and embrace emotional fortitude.
He emphasizes the significance of the Dou, a concept that focuses on the journey rather than the destination.
Musashi cares not about what is right or wrong, but rather what is and is not, thus highlighting the value of adaptability and the do, also called the path or the way.
So what is the do?
The do is simply said to be the progress in the practice of an art.
It is at the core of many of the ancient Japanese arts.
Judo, the gentle path bushido, the path of the samurai.
Aikido, the path of harmony, and dokudo, the path of aloneness.
Musashi, the elite warrior he was, shaped his life around Fudo, the path of immovability.
Considered less of a physical state, but rather mental.
Fudo expresses mental stability, which must be pursued above everything.
This is conceptualized in the Earth Scroll of the Book of Five Rings.
Think never to veer from the way.
Train unremittingly in the way.
Acquaint yourself with all arts.
Know the ways of all vocations.
Discern the truth in all things.
See the intrinsic worth in all things.
Perceive and know what cannot be seen with the eyes.
Pay attention even to trifles.
Do not engage in superfluous activities.
In Musashi's world, mental stability was the difference between life and death, literally.
Mental stability is the driving force for all human triumphs.
If emotion is like the wind, then Fudo is like an eagle that can fly through any weather.
Musashi cared not about fortunes of success.
His fortune was within his mental resilience to steer forward against all odds, against all adversity.
He embodied a life of supreme discipline and unshakable focus.
His mindset was an impenetrable force that remained immovable even in the face of intense danger.
None of us today encounter even a small fraction of the stress Musashi endured.
And yet people in the modern world are absolutely terrified outraged, neurotic and reactionary.
So what was Musashi's strategy?
The first step is to remove expectations that cloud our thoughts and judgment.
A running theme in Musashi's Dokudo principles is to have no preferences and be indifferent.
The greater the distance between our expectations and reality, the greater our emotional turmoil will be.
In other words, peace of mind equals reality minus expectations.
Secondly, we must understand that mental stability is not something to be achieved, but rather something to be pursued.
Think of mental stability as a path to follow.
Do not deviate.
Stay on course.
We must consider no other travels worthy of our energy, for we cannot act unless our mind is stable.
If the mind is off balance, our actions will lead us astray.
So what does mental stability look like and how can it be pursued?
How can we integrate mental stability into our daily lives?
The answer?
無心 no shin.
The Japanese concept 無心 no shin, or mind without mind, is to be distanced from one's thoughts, emotions, and ego.
It is a separation of the higher self from the lower self.
Mushin is a state where your mind is empty of all thoughts, desires, ideas, and assumptions.
When your mind is clear, you are free from your ego and you are able to act consciously and fluently, without emotion or hesitation.
Mushin Hoshin allows us the space to sit with our emotions and observe them as they float by.
We can say, ah, there's that feeling again.
Hello, darkness, my old friend.
I know why you're here again.
We no longer have to react or suppress.
We acknowledge and integrate.
Mind without mind creates awareness to quiet the ego and melt expectations.
In unison with mental stability , mind without mind allows us to respond rather than react.
Reacting is getting angry when it rains, responding is grabbing an umbrella.
Musashi was able to remain calm and rational in situations of extreme stress.
This was put on display in his notorious duel with samurai Sasaki Kojiro.
As legend has it, Musashi and Kojiro were the two greatest swordsmen in Japan.
From province to province, rumors swirled about who would win in a fight.
A showdown was inevitable and, like two great heavyweight boxers, the samurais agreed to meet on a small island beach to settle the debate.
Kojiro was lightning fast, his technique flawless, and many considered him the favorite.
Musashi knew it would take more than strength and skill to beat Kojiro, so he deployed his psychological warfare.
On the day of the fight, Musashi showed up three hours late and deliberately took his time approaching.
This angered Kojiro.
To add further insult, Musashi showed up with a wooden oar instead of his usual sword, infuriating Kojiro even more.
This was all part of the plan.
With the sun at his back, Musashi calmly approached the shore and said, You have already lost.
Enraged and insulted, Kojiro attacked.
He ran into the water, forgoing his speed advantage.
He swung at Musashi, but the sun was blinding and he missed.
With a single counter blow, Musashi struck Kojiro and slay him.
Kojiro's ego betrayed him and he let himself have an emotional reaction, which Musashi exploited.
As the great stoic philosopher Epictetus said, any person capable of angering you becomes your master.
Musashi viewed a calm mind as a winning mind.
He wanted us to think lightly of ourselves and deeply of the world.
Being a witness to one's thoughts and feelings creates space for intention.
How often has something triggered an unpleasant reaction from us and our response is well, that wasn't my intention.
In such moments, we foolishly convince ourselves that accountability is only conceivable when intent is present.
Yet when we let go of the idea of expectation, we can regain the power of intent and therefore operate in a space of mindfulness where we respond, not react.
A space where we slow down and check our emotions before they go unfiltered.
The late great basketball star Kobe Bryant was a fond admirer of Musashi.
Kobe understood the power of mental fortitude.
He was known for his relentless work ethic and ability to shine under intense pressure.
Kobe viewed mental fortitude as being able to detach oneself from our rampant imaginations.
He says instead, allow the work put in through our practice to manifest itself in the game.
And whether we win or lose, we still show up the following day and get to practice again.
Yet in sports, at work and at school, it is inevitable for us to come across people with the sole intention of getting us off our game or getting us to second-guess ourselves.
We're reminded of competitors like Conor McGregor, who was notorious for breaking down his enemies psychologically and exploiting their emotions.
However, during his matchup with the silent warrior Khabib, Conor met his match.
Khabib's mindset was immovable and his composure impenetrable.
None of Conor's trash talking had any effect.
The result was total and utter domination by Khabib.
He not only broke Conor physically, but mentally and spiritually too.
Conor's aura has never been the same since that fight.
Another way we can access mind without mind is through ownership of our emotions.
Dr. Ramani Durvasula, a psychologist and professor, explains this in seven steps.
Acknowledge your emotions and don't ignore them.
Recognize your emotions as yours and only yours.
Express your emotions appropriately, time and place.
Read the room.
The world doesn't stop for anything or anyone.
Find techniques to manage.
Breathe.
Consider perspective.
When we tick, others talk.
Suppression is regression.
Caging emotions only fuels them.
As Sigmund Freud wrote, unexpressed emotions will never die.
They are buried alive and will come forth later in uglier ways.
Musashi spent the second half of his life reflecting, dedicating himself to the study of philosophy, meditation and artistic development.
Musashi recalls in the Book of Five Rings that in his 50s he finally experienced full comprehension of the strategy.
The level of understanding of the way was so deep that he was able to see the way in everything and in every detail of his life.
He reached perfection in the art of the sword, and thereafter he was able to reach the same level of perfection in many other arts.
Around age 60, Musashi suffered from intense, relentless stomach pain.
He knew the end was near, so he retired to a cave and spent his final two years in solitude writing down his wisdom.
He wanted his disciples to understand that mastering emotions was to be achieved by letting go of the need to be the master.
When we let go of control, we gain control.
When we let go of expectations, we bend rather than break.
This creates space in our mind and spirit to observe emotions, appreciate them and experience them to our ultimate advantage.
Mushinoshin is how we embrace emotions without having to react impulsively or suppress.
Fudo, then, is the path forward.
We do not act if we are not mentally stable.
An action taken from a place of fear will only lead to more fear.
Any action taken from a place of clarity will work in your favor.
Remember that the external world is neutral.
It is neither good or bad.
It is our inner state that paints our vision.
Perception creates reality.
As musashi writes, there is nothing outside of yourself that can ever enable you to get better stronger richer, quicker or smarter.
Everything is within, everything exists.
Seek nothing outside of yourself.
