The Warrior Way - Iron Game

[dmaipa]

I grew up with martial arts. Martial arts is a huge thing in Hawaii. Even tho I've moved away from hawaii for a long time i am constantly visualizing and practicing the arts. Some of the teachings that is out there I apply it to my training in the gym. I like to consider myself a modern day warrior. There's more to being a warrior than being intense and violent. I want to share something that I've been studying lately and what I've been applying to when I attack the iron.

Miyamoto Musashi: THE BOOK OF 5 RINGS

THE IMPORTANCE OF CORRECT SPIRITUAL AND PHYSICAL BEARING IN STATEGY
The manner in which a warrior carries himself is of the utmost importance both physically and mentally. You are undoubtedly familiar with men who are quiet and strong and seem to be doing nothing.
They do not appear to be tense and do not appear to be disarray. They simply appear. This is exactly the apppearance for which they strive. When it is necessary to attack, they do so with complete resolve, sure of themselves, neither overbearing in attitude nor with false humility. They attack with one purpose and one purpose only- to destroy the enemy. They do not take false postures when they prepare for the attack. They simply attack with all their heart and soul.
A small man can beat a much larger man and one man can beat many men in a fight. Allow your wisdom to develop by constantly striving to perfect yourself in your own art and by understanding the arts of others. When you understand yourself and you understand the enemy you cannot be defeated. Be aware at all times of what is right and wrong among men. Do not permit yourself to be intimidated by the size of the enemy. Do not be fooled by your own misunderstanding of what your purpose is. To do so is wrong thinking and means that you are not studying the principles of my Way properly.
Whether on or off the battleifeld, there is no difference in spirit. The warrior sees all of life as the battlefield. Do not lose heart if the enemy's appearance is overwhelming. You must commit yourself to constant study in order to develop the perfection in your soul evident in the demeanor of the spirit.

[glwanabe]

There are a lot of life lessons that can be learned.

Sun Tzu's Art of War

[BendtheBar]

Good post. I was a philosophy addict in my 20's and studied quite a bit of Eastern philosophy, which of course, is deeply tied in with martial arts. I actually wanted to study Pa Qua for quite some time, but being out in the sticks the closest teacher was about 3 hours away.

Anywho, I learned a lot about life and how to carry myself from Eastern philosophy.

I also spent quite a bit of time studying Christianity, and enjoy reading about similarities between the teachings of Buddha and Jesus. If anyone's interested, I recommend this book:

Amazon.com: Living Buddha, Living Christ 10th Anniversary Edition (9781594482397): Thich Nhat Hanh, Elaine Pagels: Books

Amazon.com: Living Buddha, Living Christ 10th Anniversary Edition (9781594482397): Thich Nhat Hanh, Elaine Pagels: Books

[dmaipa]

I'm very much into the whole eastern philosophy mindset. I really try to tie it into what i love doing. Many of the easern philosophy talk about their specific discipline and I try to apply those teachings of to my discipline which is training. Here's another quote that hits me from Miyamoto Musashi.

Grip the sword only with the intent of destroying the enemy

I sometimes think about this quote when i grab the barbell. When the bar is gripped each rep is like a strike, must be precise and purposeful. Once the precision of the lift is loss that is where injury may occur, or where you are more interested in boasting. Everything must be purposeful.

[glwanabe]

Originally Posted by dmaipa

I'm very much into the whole eastern philosophy mindset. I really try to tie it into what i love doing. Many of the easern philosophy talk about their specific discipline and I try to apply those teachings of to my discipline which is training. Here's another quote that hits me from Miyamoto Musashi.



I sometimes think about this quote when i grab the barbell. When the bar is gripped each rep is like a strike, must be precise and purposeful. Once the precision of the lift is loss that is where injury may occur, or where you are more interested in boasting. Everything must be purposeful.

I am very much liking what your saying here D.

Busy right now, but will comment more later.

[dmaipa]

Here's another. At the end of the day its all on you. what you did that day, how you lived it. There are no excuses, be honest with yourself. To be truly honest with yourself I believe is a very hard thing to do.

You can come close to understanding no-thing by realizing that there is nothing outside of yourself that can ever enable you to get better, stronger, richer, quicker, or smarter. Everything is within. Everything exists. Seek nothing outside of yourself.
-Miyamoto Musashi

[dmaipa]

If you do not have a map in unfamiliar terrain, how can you hope to get to where you want to go without difficulty? Even if you have directions, you may still have to negotiate roadblocks along the way. - Miyamoto Musashi

We are all on our own training programs, diets, and have our own goals of where we want to be. But we all must remember that nothing comes easily, always be prepared for the unseen and always keep your mind on the goal no matter what obstacle may come.

[dmaipa]

Crushing the enemy's body and spirit means you degrade and humiliate him the instant before going in for the kill. Your concentration upon destroying the enemy must be intense and single-minded. What is the sense of fighting if you do not go in for the kill immediately?
-Miyamoto Musashi

Think about this the next time you go to the gym. EVerything must have a purpose, when you do an exercise keep your mind on the exercise and do each set with full intensity.

[BendtheBar]

Originally Posted by dmaipa

Think about this the next time you go to the gym. EVerything must have a purpose, when you do an exercise keep your mind on the exercise and do each set with full intensity.

My motto has always been...never waste a set. If you do it, do it and excel.

[dmaipa]

Originally Posted by BendtheBar

My motto has always been...never waste a set. If you do it, do it and excel.

soo true