C.S. Sloan's Integral Strength

  A samurai and the love of his life had just gotten married, and were traveling by boat to their honeymoon, when a massive storm hit.*  The samurai's wife began to tremble in fear, for there was no shore in sight, and their boat was being tossed and turned in the massive waves that were sure to capsize it at any moment!  She ran to find her husband, a brave warrior who she thought would provide her comfort in their seemingly perilous situation.  But when she found him, he was peacefully looking out at the sea, as if the sun was out and the waves were calm. Lightning cracked across the sky.  Thunder rumbled from all directions.  The boat lurched forward violently. "How can you be so calm?!" the wife yelled, frantically clinging to her husband.  "We are about to die!  Do you not value your life?" When the samurai heard these words of his wife, he looked down upon her, pulled out his katana, and put it to his wife's neck.  She looked at him.  And laughed. &quo

  The Budo Secrets of Internal Energy from the Master Samurai Kaibara Ekiken This quote from Lao Tzu is one that Ekiken himself quotes in the Yojokun . Part Two Controlling Inner Desires In all things, if you are unendingly diligent, you will undoubtedly see an effect.  For example, if you plant seeds in the spring and nurture seeds in the summer, surely there will be a large harvest in the fall. Similarly, if you make an understanding of how to care for your health and continue to do so for some time, you will definitely see effects: your body will become stronger, you will become free of disease, you will not only maintain your natural lifespan but lengthen it, and you will enjoy your life.  You should not doubt this principle. ~Kaibara Ekiken* I begin this second part of the series with this quote from Ekiken, which occurs toward the beginning of his “ki power masterwork” the Yojokun .  I wanted to begin with this quote for the simple reason that it gives you a good overview of how

The Budo Secrets of Internal Energy from the Master Samurai Kaibara Ekiken Contemporaneous portrait of Kaibara Ekiken Part One The Way of Nourishing Life For quite some time now, I have wanted to write a series on one of my favorite budo writers of all time, Kaibara Ekiken (sometimes referred to as Ekken).  Ekiken was an interesting figure, to put it mildly (as you will find out if you continue to read). I had originally intended, however, to finish a series I started some time ago on The Hagakure , which I had set aside to write my (now finished) series on Musashi’s The Dokkodo .  However, as I was doing some research for several budo “pieces” that I have also been working on, it dawned on me that I was referring to Ekiken’s works increasingly, and returning to him more and more in my research.  And the more I thought about it, the more I realized that Ekiken might be the perfect writer of budo (at least among writers of antiquity) for our modern world.  I think you will find the sam