Another wonderful excerpt from Dilip Mukerjea's new book, Unbeatable Minds, Invincible Spirits: Profiles of Soul-Smart Leadership:

MIYAMOTO MUSASHI also known as Shinmen Takezō, Miyamoto Bennosuke or, by his Buddhist name, Niten Dōraku, was a Japanese swordsman, philosopher, writer and rōnin. 1584-1645

“Truth is not what you want it to be: it is what it is, and you must bend to its power or live a lie.”

“You must understand that there is more than one path to the top of the mountain.”

“There is nothing outside of yourself that can enable you to get better, stronger, richer, quicker, or smarter. Everything is within. Everything exists. Seek nothing outside of yourself.”

He is attributed as being one of the first to use psychological combat against his opponents as a deliberate attack, using individual personality traits of his opponents against them. One story has it that he was late to a duel, knowing full well that his opponent was a stickler for propriety. He won, and most likely because his opponent was stymied. 

The follow-on challenge came from the loser’s brother, and he was also a stickler… so Musashi was once again late. He, again, prevailed. The third challenge came from another member of that family, and Musashi responded. The family planned an ambush to take Musashi down; believing that he would once again be late to the match, the ambushers were caught by surprise when Musashi arrived early and routed them all…

HIS SOLITARY DEFEAT: The jo (Japanese short staff) has been recognised as the ultimate fighting weapon in martial arts. It was invented and used by Muso Gonnosuke, the only man to defeat Musashi Miyamoto, Japan’s greatest swordsman, in combat. In the first duel between these two antagonists, Muso fought with a rokushaku bo (Japanese long staff, literally a ‘six foot stick’). The battle that took place resulted in his first and only defeat, at the hands of Musashi, the master swords-man in the early 1600s.

Retreating to the mountains to meditate upon his defeat, Muso considered how Musashi had successfully fought him with a long and a short sword. These weapons had blocked Muso’s bo in such a way that he was unable to withdraw his weapon safely.

Muso scrutinised his bo and observed that it was most prominently scored at the two ends by Musashi’s sword cuts. These marks were roughly in the last one foot at each end of the bo. In other words, the central four feet of this six foot weapon remained largely unmarked.

HIS SOLITARY DEFEAT: The jo (Japanese short staff) has been recognised as the ultimate fighting weapon in martial arts. It was invented and used by Muso Gonnosuke, the only man to defeat Musashi Miyamoto, Japan’s greatest swordsman, in combat. In the first duel between these two antagonists, Muso fought with a rokushaku bo (Japanese long staff, literally a ‘six foot stick’). The battle that took place resulted in his first and only defeat, at the hands of Musashi, the master swords-man in the early 1600s.

Retreating to the mountains to meditate upon his defeat, Muso considered how Musashi had successfully fought him with a long and a short sword. These weapons had blocked Muso’s bo in such a way that he was unable to withdraw his weapon safely.

Muso scrutinised his bo and observed that it was most prominently scored at the two ends by Musashi’s sword cuts. These marks were roughly in the last one foot at each end of the bo. In other words, the central four feet of this six foot weapon remained largely unmarked.

Enlightened by a ‘divine insight’ Muso decided to chop off the two marked ends and thus created the jo ~ a four-foot staff. His logic was that if he could learn to fight with the shorter weapon, Musashi’s sword strokes, assuming they followed the previous pattern, would predominantly miss the jo. This would enable Muso to enter and attack Musashi with greater success.

Muso developed a new style of fighting, calling it shindo muso ryu jojutsu. In a second duel between these two combatants, Muso inflicted Musashi’s only defeat.

He too spared his opponent’s life, and entered the history books by becoming the only man to ever defeat the master swordsman. ~ I am indebted to Sensei Julio Toribio for this slice of history.

Musashi spent many years studying Buddhism and swordsmanship. He was an accomplished artist, sculptor, and calligrapher. Records show that he had architectural skills. He seems to have had a rather straightforward approach to combat, with no additional frills or aesthetic considerations. This was probably due to his real-life combat experience; although in his later life, Musashi followed the more artistic. 

He made various Zen brush paintings, calligraphy, and sculpted wood and metal. Even in The Book of Five Rings he emphasises that samurai should understand other professions as well. It should be understood that Musashi’s writings were somewhat ambiguous, and translating them into English makes them even more so; that is why so many different translations of The Book of Five Rings can be found. To gain further insight into Musashi’s principles and personality, one could read his other works, such as Dokkōdō and Hyoho Shiji ni Kajo.

Musashi died in Reigandō cave around June 13, 1645 (Shōhō 3, 30th day of the 4th month). The Hyoho Senshi Denki described his passing:

At the moment of his death, he had himself raised up. He had his belt tightened and his wakizashi put in it. He seated himself with one knee vertically raised, holding the sword with his left hand and a cane in his right hand. He died in this posture, at the age of sixty-two. The principal vassals of Lord Hosokawa and the other officers gathered, and they painstakingly carried out the ceremony. Then they set up a tomb on Mount Iwato on the order of the lord.

Miyamoto Musashi was not killed in combat, he died of what is believed to be thoracic cancer. He died peacefully after finishing the text Dokkōdō (“The Way of Walking Alone”, or “The Way of Self-Reliance”), 21 precepts on self-discipline to guide future generations. 

NOTE: 

“Today’s business people will find Thomas Cleary’s new translation of The Book of Five Rings—Miyamoto Musashi’s 350-year-old martial arts classic—compelling and tantalisingly relevant. Perseverance, insight, self-understanding, inward calm even in the midst of chaos, the importance of swift but unhurried action: Musashi’s teachings read like lessons from the latest business management gurus. Who couldn’t succeed in business by applying Musashi’s insights on conflict and strategy!”

—Jeffrey Seglin, Editor, Inc. magazine

A key principle of strategy: know the terrain you’ll be doing battle upon. 

No swordsman in Japanese history is so revered and celebrated as Miyamoto Musashi.

SOURCES: 

The Book of Five Rings: A Classic Text on the Japanese Way of the Sword © 2005 by Miyamoto Musashi and Thomas Cleary

The Book of Five Rings © 2012 by Miyamoto Musashi Go Rin No Sho: The Book of Five Rings © 2015 by Miyamoto Musashi

The Book of Five Rings by Musashi Miyamoto Unabridged 1644 Original Version Paperback – © 2017

The Samurai Way, Bushido: The Soul of Japan and the Book of Five Rings © 2008 by Inazo Nitob and Musashi Miyamoto

An Essay on a Book of Five Rings by Miyamoto Musashi © 2015 by John Robert Mortimer

Musashi: An Epic Novel of the Samurai Era © 2012 by Eiji Yoshikawa and Charles Terry

Homage for Miyamoto Musashi: One Hundred Twenty-Two Haiku © 2014 by Stephen F. Kaufman