A Book of Five Rings
by Miyamoto Musashi
Translated by Victor Harris
What I probably like most of this book wasn't what Musashi wrote but the Translator's Introduction. It talked about the historical background of the time Musashi lived and pictures of various artifacts of his life. I found this helpful in understanding the content of the book. Especially the picture of the cave where he wrote the book, and afterword, fought his last and final battle.
The Book of the Five Rings or Go Rin No Sho, contains five "books". There is a brief introduction, then the rest of the book is the five books: Ground, Water, Fire, Tradition, and Void. Strategy is explained in the Ground Book. The Water book shows tips and tricks of the Ichi school. Fire book is about fighting. The wind books is about other schools. Void is about nature about how to strike naturally.
Something else I really like about this books is the use of comments, to explain things. It has helped me to appreciate what I study more.
Comment