Miyamoto Musashi and the Book of Five Rings
Most samurai were members of tight-knit bands who fiercely served their daimyo. But sometimes individual samurai lost their masters through illness, fatal injury, or by other means. Such masterless samurai, known as ronin, have often been figures of inspiration for lore and legend, none more so than Miyamoto Musashi (1584–1645).
Musashi was an accomplished painter (see examples in the exhibition) and the most famous swordsman of his time, a period of frequent warfare. He founded the Niten Ichi school of swordsmanship, in which a long and a short sword are used together.
Musashi lost his master in battle in 1600 and became a wandering ronin. He is said to have fought many duels without a single defeat. Near the end of his life he took a position as sword instructor to Hosokawa Tadatoshi, lord of the Higo domain. There Musashi developed his skill as a painter and wrote The Book of Five Rings, a five-part treatise summing up his teachings on swordsmanship.
The Book of Five Rings, regarded as a classic of military strategy and philosophy, is sometimes compared to the ancient Chinese text The Art of War by Sunzi because concepts of military strategy in both books may also be applied to situations other than those arising from warfare. In his book Musashi rejects an emphasis on mere technique and advocates constant practice—see the set of his wooden training swords included in the exhibition—along with a focus on efficient and effective means of achieving goals. He further contends that individual combat and clashes of large armies are governed by the same strategic principles.
The final (and shortest) book of the series shows the influence of Zen Buddhist philosophy on the warrior culture. The samurai felt an affinity for Zen, which more than some other schools of Japanese Buddhism emphasized self-reliance; the influence of Zen can be seen in several paintings in this exhibition (cat. nos. 91, 92, and 95–100). In his final volume Musashi advocates clearing the mind of preconceived notions, saying that a warrior’s spirit should achieve a condition of nothingness. “In the void,” he writes, “is virtue, and no evil.”
After a life of almost constant battle Musashi died of natural causes. On his deathbed he gave The Book of Five Rings to a trusted disciple. The original is lost, but a copy (included in the exhibition) has survived in the Hosokawa family.
