Miyamoto Musashi is recognised as one of the greatest warriors who ever lived. A Samurai who was famous for using two swords at once. He went his entire life undefeated as a Samurai winning over 60 duels in the process. Miyamoto Musashi was known far and wide for his achievements. His 20 rules for life that were followed religiously for generations. Not being as well known in western culture we have compiled his famous list below, hopefully you can apply some of his teachings to your own life.
1. Accept life, as it is.
To be mentally strong you must accept life’s difficulties, we all have doubts, fears and challenges. How you approach them will determine your outcome.
2. Do not actively seek pleasure
Live in the moment, do not chase pleasure but appreciate when it comes naturally.
3. Acting on an impulsive emotion is wrong
Miyamoto Musashi believed following one’s heart was wrong, for decisions that appear from thin air are rarely well thought out. We should know what we want and not act on emotion.
4. Don’t self-obssess
If we focus on ourselves too much, we can easily miss out on the real meanings of life.
5. Jealousy should not affect your life
Jealousy is a powerful form of hatred. Miyamoto Musashi says that if we get stuck in a world of jealousy we can easily destroy ourselves, he notes be grateful for what you have, for true abundance.
6. Lower your desire
Desire is striving for things we do not have. Miyamoto Musashi suggests we should not want more than what we have, but rather wait for things to come to us.
7. No regrets
We need to learn that the past is something that will not change, and need to learn to accept that. Musashi’s belief was that everything in life happens for a particular reason. We often learn after much suffering that was happened in our past prepared us for our future. We must be patient to learn why.
8. Remove sad separations from your mind
Having sorrow over someones death or departure prevents us from moving forward with our lives. Miyamoto Musashi believes if we cannot bring those people with us there is no point in being sad.
9. No complaints
We can all fall into the habit of complaining,