When Lord Naoshige was passing by a place called Chiriku, someone said to him, “In this place there lives a man who is over ninety years old. Since this man is so fortunate, why don’t you stop and see him?” Naoshige heard this and said, “How could anyone be more pitiful than this man? How many of his children and grandchildren do you suppose he has seen fall before his very eyes? Where is the good fortune in that?”<\/p>\n
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* Compassion is like a mother who nurtures one’s fate. Examples of the ruin of merciless warriors who were brave alone are conspicuous in both past and present.<\/p>\n
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* It is said that every time Oki Hyobu’s group gathered and after all their affairs were finished he would say, “Young men should discipline themselves rigorously in intention and courage. This will be accomplished if only courage is fixed in one’s heart. If one’s sword is broken, he will strike with his hands. If his hands are cut off, he will press the enemy down with his shoulders. If his shoulders are cut away, he will bite through ten or fifteen enemy necks with his teeth. Courage is such a thing.”<\/p>\n
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* Okubo Doko is said to have remarked: Everyone says that no masters of the arts will appear as the world comes to an end. This is something that I cannot claim to understand. Plants such as peonies, azaleas and camellias will be able to produce beautiful flowers, end of the world or not. If men would give some thought to this fact, they would understand. And if people took notice of the masters of even these times, they would be able to say that there are masters in the various arts. But people become imbued with the idea that the world has come to an end and no longer put forth any effort. This is a shame. There is no fault in the times.<\/p>\n
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* In Yui Shosetsu’s military instructions, “The Way of the Three Ultimates,” there is a passage on the character of karma. He received an oral teaching of about eighteen chapters concerning the Greater Bravery and the Lesser Bravery. He neither wrote them down nor committed them to memory but rather forgot them completely. Then, in facing real situations, he acted on impulse and the things that he had learned became wisdom of his own. This is the character of karma.<\/p>\n
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* The basic meaning of etiquette is to be quick at both the beginning and end and tranquil in the middle.<\/p>\n
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* The Buddhist priest Ryozan wrote down some generalities concerning Takanobu’s battles. A certain priest saw this and criticized him, saying, “It is inappropriate for a priest to write about a military commander. No matter how successful his writing style may be, since he is not acquainted with military things, he is liable to be mistaken in understanding a famous general’s mind. It is irreverent to pass on misconceptions concerning a famous general to later generations.”<\/p>\n
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* A certain person said, “In the Saint’s mausoleum there is a poem that goes:
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 If in one’s heart
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 He follows the path of sincerity,
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Though he does not pray
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Will not the gods protect him?
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 What is this path of sincerity?”
\nA man answered him by saying, ”You seem to like poetry. I will answer you with a poem.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 As everything in this world is but a shame,
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Death is the only sincerity.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 It is said that becoming as a dead man in one’s daily living is the following of the path of sincerity.”<\/p>\n
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* This is among the sayings of the priest Banker. “Not to borrow the strength of another, nor to rely on one’s own strength; to cut off past and future thoughts, and not to live within the everyday mind… then the Great Way is right before one’s eyes.”<\/p>\n
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* When Yamamoto Gorozaemon went to the priest Tetsugyu in Edo wanting to hear something about Buddhism, Tetsugyo said, “Buddhism gets rid of the discriminating mind. It is nothing more than this. I can give you an illustration in terms of the warrior. The Chinese character for “cowardice” is made by adding the character for “meaning” to the character radical for “mind”. Now “meaning” is “discrimination, ” and when a man attaches discrimination to his true mind, he becomes a coward. In the Way of the Samurai can a man be courageous when discrimination arises? I suppose you can get the idea from this.”<\/p>\n
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* In the Kiyogunkan one person said, “When facing the enemy, I feel as if I have just entered darkness. Because of this I get heavily wounded. Although you have fought with many famous men, you have never been wounded. Why is that?” The other man answered, “When I have faced the enemy, of course it is like being in the dark. But if at that time I tranquilize my mind, it becomes like a night lit by a pale moon. If I begin my attack from that point, I feel as though I will not be wounded. ” This is the situation at the moment of truth.<\/p>\n
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* When there is something to be said, it is better if it is said right away. If it is said later, it will sound like an excuse. Moreover, it is occasionally good to really overwhelm your opponent. Also, in addition to having spoken sufficiently it is the highest sort of victory to teach your opponent something that will be to his benefit. This is in accordance with the Way.<\/p>\n
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* The essentials of speaking are in not speaking at all. If you think that you can finish something without speaking, finish it without saying a single word. If there is something that cannot be accomplished without speaking, one should speak with few words, in a way that will accord well with reason.<\/p>\n
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* One needs neither vitality nor talent. In a word, it is a matter of having the will to shoulder the clan by oneself.<\/p>\n
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