The Way of the Warrior Is the Way of Zazen

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The samurai who hesitates is already dead. The swordsman who calculates—"if I strike here, my opponent will move there"—loses the contest before it begins. True bushido is the same as true zen: act without ego, decide without calculation, give yourself entirely to the present moment. The sword cuts because the body cuts; the body cuts because the mind is mushotoku, without aim. Zazen is the deepest training of the warrior, and the warrior's discipline is the most concrete expression of zazen.

Attribution

• Attributed To
  Taisen Deshimaru

Lineage: Sōtō

By Taisen Deshimaru

• Just Sitproverb
• The Cosmos in the Postureproverb
• Automatic Thinkingproverb
• Observe Your Own Mindproverb
• Mushotoku: Without Seeking Gainsaying

From Teachings of Taisen Deshimaru

• Just Sit
• The Cosmos in the Posture
• Automatic Thinking
• Observe Your Own Mind
• Mushotoku: Without Seeking Gain
• Hishiryo: Beyond Thinking
• The Posture Is the Teaching
• True Zen Is Useless
• Here, Now, Nothing Else
• Shikantaza: Only Sit

Sources

• contentThe Zen Way to the Martial Arts

  Taisen Deshimaru

  Kusen on bushido and zazen, The Zen Way to the Martial Arts

  Teachings of Taisen Deshimaru: The Way of the Warrior Is the Way of Zazen