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The saying 'the arts aid the body' is for samurai of other regions. For samurai of the Nabeshima clan the arts bring ruin to the body.

Yamamoto Tsunetomo

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Yamamoto Tsunetomo
Age: 60 †
Born: 1659
Born: June 11
Died: 1719
Died: November 30
Bushi
Philosopher
Writer
Hizen Domain
War
Samurai
Art
Ruin
Body
Regions
Ruins
Arts
Aids
Saying
Clan
Bring
Clans

More quotes by Yamamoto Tsunetomo

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There is surely nothing other than the single purpose of the present moment. A man's whole life is a succession of moment after moment. There will be nothing else to do, and nothing else to pursue. Live being true to the single purpose of the moment.
Yamamoto Tsunetomo
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It is a principle of the art of war that one should simply lay down his life and strike. If one's opponent also does the same, it is a even match. Defeating one's opponent is then a matter of faith and destiny.
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There is nothing we should be quite so grateful for as the last line of the poem that goes, 'When your own heart asks.
Yamamoto Tsunetomo
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Purity is something that cannot be attained except by piling effort upon effort.
Yamamoto Tsunetomo
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A person who is discreet in speaking will be useful during the good times and will avoid punishment during the bad.
Yamamoto Tsunetomo
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The end is important in all things.
Yamamoto Tsunetomo
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Continue to spur a running horse.
Yamamoto Tsunetomo
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As everything in this world is but a sham, Death is the only sincerity.
Yamamoto Tsunetomo
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One should make his decisions within the space of seven breaths.
Yamamoto Tsunetomo
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Matters of small concern should be treated seriously.
Yamamoto Tsunetomo
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If a retainer will just think about what he is to do for the day at hand, he will be able to do anything. If it is a single day's work, one should be able to put up with it. Tomorrow, too is but a single day.
Yamamoto Tsunetomo
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Be true to the thought of the moment and avoid distraction. Other than continuing to exert yourself, enter into nothing else, but go to the extent of living single thought by single thought.
Yamamoto Tsunetomo
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The basic meaning of etiquette is to be quick at both the beginning and end and tranquil in the middle.
Yamamoto Tsunetomo
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All of man’s work is a bloody business. That fact, today, is considered foolish, affairs are finished cleverly with words alone, and jobs that require effort are avoided. I would like young men to have some understanding of this.
Yamamoto Tsunetomo
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It is a good viewpoint to see the world as a dream. When you have something like a nightmare, you will wake up and tell yourself that it was only a dream. It is said that the world we live in is not a bit different from this.
Yamamoto Tsunetomo
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It is better to have some unhappiness while one is still young, for if a person does not experience some bitterness, his disposition will not settle down.
Yamamoto Tsunetomo
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I have found that the Way of the samurai is death. This means that when you are compelled to choose between life and death, you must quickly choose death.
Yamamoto Tsunetomo
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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 your eyes.
Yamamoto Tsunetomo
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By bringing shame to a person, how could one expect to make him a better man?
Yamamoto Tsunetomo
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This is the substance of the Way of the Samurai: if by setting one's heart right every morning and evening, one is able to live as though his body were already dead, he gains freedom in the Way. his whole life will be without blame, and he will succeed in his calling.
Yamamoto Tsunetomo