Zen And The Art Of Blogging

The Sword Maker & The Swordsman from Matthew Allard on Vimeo.

I’m currently reading the book Training The Samurai Mind, a collection of writing translated by Thomas Cleary from Japanese warriors, scholars, and religious thinkers of the past thousand years. I’ve learned that the basic thrust (pun slightly intended) of Bushido is to embrace death and let go of your attachment to life, so that when you enter an encounter you will not be burdened by fear or doubt.

The book offers such gems as, “When the mind stays in one place, there’s no function anywhere else. When the mind isn’t put anywhere, it fills everywhere.”

It also offers practical instruction: “When brothers avenge their parents, the elder brother should make the first strike, then the younger brother should deliver the fatal thrust.” Truer words were never written.

In any case, enjoy the video on sword making above. And if you are in China and you don’t have a VPN, here’s a picture to get you in the mood for some swordplay:

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