Miyamoto Musashi's Book of Five Rings

Miyamoto Musashi (1584-1645) was a legendary warrior from Japan known for his unique double-bladed swordsmanship and undefeated record across 61 duels all before the age of 29. He wrote The 5 Rings at the end of his life. The book details everything he knew about martial arts strategy, but is truly a philosophical text with deep insights into the primary principles and mindset necessary for being successful within any discipline. Although he was a master of the sword, he emphasized the importance of learning from other trades and a lot of his martial arts strategy is primarily focused on the mental and spiritual side of fighting. This book is divided into five sections corresponding with the five elements of Japanese Buddhist thought: earth (chi), water (sui), fire (ka), wind (fu), and void or nothingness (ku).

I was inspired to pick up this book because I gravitate towards philosophical and strategic insights into how to live a better life, build a stronger mind, and have always been curious about the martial arts. Musashi however, emphasizes the importance of learning from experience instead of from books or a teacher; not everything that one must know can be conveyed through teaching or even in words. Fortunately, this book is concise, and one can quickly read it within a day or two and then directly apply it to their training, meditation, and real-life battles.

Nevertheless, this is not a book that can be read only once. Everything is spiritual, metaphorical, and even dualistic at times so it can and should be carried around and reread wherever one travels and in whatever challenges one encounters.

Musashi sets the book off by emphasizing the importance of studying numerous disciplines. He learned about the arts, poetry, craftsmanship, farming, medicine, law, and so on to become truly well rounded as a warrior. “Endeavor to know all things.” Even though it is impossible to know everything, the constant search for knowledge will make one more aware of the world around them. Sometimes, people get so enamored in the craft they are pursuing, they fail to see the bigger picture or recognize their weak points. By constantly studying various disciplines that may seem irrelevant to what one is learning, a warrior can make some of their biggest intellectual and strategic breakthroughs.

Each aspect of the craft must be examined over and over again without regard for time or energy spent on training either physically or mentally. “The spirit of the thing is what will guide a man to his own greatness”

Musashi’s 9 primary principles for every warrior to meditate on:

1. Think honestly within yourself in your dealings with all men

2. Constant training is the only Way to learn strategy

3. Become familiar with every art you come across

4. Understand the Way of other disciplines

5. Know the difference between right and wrong in the matters of men

6. Strive for inner judgement and an understanding of everything

7. See that which cannot be seen

8. Overlook nothing, regardless of its insignificance

9. Do not waste time idling or thinking after you have set your goals

At the core of Musashi’s teachings, he transcends martial art’s techniques and methods and focuses on aspects of fighting that are more meta and psychological. He details the importance of body language and the significance of one’s perception of their physical body and spirit. The way a warrior carries himself is crucial both mentally and physically to the outcome of any battle. “One must make themselves bigger than they actually are and visualize their spirit above and beyond the enemy’s body and spirit. You first beat the enemy with your spirit and then you beat the enemy with your hands or your sword.”

One must also be humble and mindful of their thoughts and what they say. “Do not bear false attitudes. False attitudes work best where there are no enemies. In real situations they can get you killed very quickly. The true warrior does not go around telling everyone that he is a great warrior. He permits his actions to govern others’ responses.” Meditation can formulate a greater sense of self-awareness and prevent any false attitudes which will inevitably turn into wrongful actions.

The last section of his book, the Book of No-Thing (Ku), is the shortest chapter in the entire book but the most profound and potentially the hardest for one to understand. These messages I find myself reading and rereading and can truly only be understood through constant training, meditation, and battle. Truly a remarkable book for every man who wants to become a warrior of heart, mind, and spirit.

“My way of strategy is recorded in the Book of No-Thing. The spirit of the universe is an emptiness which is no-thing. Man can have no understanding of this place. It exists and is, but yet it is not. If you know something, you know something. If you do not know something, it does not exist in your world. In the universe, no-thing-ness is not a thing that is true and not a thing that is not true.”

“No matter how hard you study, if you do not become one with the art you pursue you can never truly be one with the universe and the ‘spirit of the thing itself’ will always elude you. Things will never appear to be what they truly are. But if you look at thing with no attachment to them you will come to understand your place. The work is more important than the worker. When you come to see thing in a broader perspective, taking no-thing-ness to be the truth, you will see truth as no-thing.”