The Secret Of Steel
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Before enlightenment'; chopping wood and carrying water
After enlightenment; chopping wood and carrying water
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Life

A crust of bread and a corner to sleep in,
A minute to smile and an hour to weep in,
A pint of joy to a peck of trouble,
and never a laugh but the moans come double; And that is life!

A crust and corner that love makes precious,
With a smile to warm and the tears to refresh us'
And joy seems sweeter when cares come after,
And a moan is the finest of foils for laughter'
And that is life!
--Paul Laurence Dunbar--
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" AS THE ALARM SOUNDED, THE MONKS RUSHED TO THE TEMPLES DEFENSE, EMPTY HANDS FLOATED LIKE BUTTERFLIES OF DEATH, STRIKING THROUGH THE SLASHING SWORD AND THRUSTING SPEAR. TEI HAN SEEMED TO RELISH THESE MOMENTS, AS HE WADED THROUGH THE BANDITS, SMASHING BONE AND MUSCLE WITH HIS IRON HANDS '.

--The Shaolin Chronicles--
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"Long have I wandered, long.
Bound by the chain of life.
Through many births, seeking thus long in vain.
Whence comes this life in man,
his conscienceness, his pain.
And hard to bear is death
When pain and death but lead to birth again
Found, it is found,
Oh' cause of individuality
No longer will you have to build a house for me. Thy ridge-pole shattered
Into nirvana my mind has past
The end of cravings has been reached at last ".
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Indeed the idols I have loved so long
have done my credit in Men's Eye much Wrong;
Have drowned my honour in a shallow cup,
And sold my reputation for a song
-Omar Khayyam-

"THIS CHANNEL IS UNDER CONSTRUCTION" THE UNFINISHED STONE. THE PAGE YET TO BE TURNED,THE SAGA YET TO UNFOLD

"In Mans quest for superiority in the universe, he is often blinded, not by the bright lights of distant stars, but by the luminosity of his egoism, greed, and the misdirection of his ideals"
-Me-
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I am the Mushroom that speaks, it says,
I am he that talk to those who live in the sky, it says,
All things that should be together, I bring together,
And all things that should be apart I separate.
Before me there is no beginning, and after me there is no end.
-Black Elk -
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Our bodies are given life in the midst of nothingness.Existing where there is nothing is the meaning of the phrase, "Form is emptimess". That all things are provided for by nothingness is the meaning of the phrase "Emptiness is form". One should not think that these are two separate things.
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according to what one of the elders said, taking an enemy on the battlefield is like a hawk taking a bird. Even though it enters into the midst of a thousand of them, it gives no attention to any bird other than the one it has first marked.
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Even if a samurai's head were to be suddenly cut off, he should still be able to perform one more action with certainty. If one becomes like a vengeful ghost and shows great determination, though his head is cut off, he should not die.
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In the words of the ancients, one should make his decisions within the space of seven breath's. It is a matter of having the spirit to break right through to the other side.
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There is surely nothing other than the single purpose of the present moment. A mans life is a succession of moment after moment. If one fully understands the present moment, there will be nothing else to pursue.
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There is something to be learned from a rainstorm. When meeting with a sudden shower, you try not get wet and run quickly along the road. By doing such things as passing under the eaves of houses, you still get wet. When you are resolved from the beginning, you will not be perplexed, though you will still get the same soaking. This understanding extends to all things.
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It is bad when one thing becomes two. one should not look for anything else that is called a way. If one understands things in this manner, he should be able to hear about all ways and be more and more in accord with his own
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If one were to say in a word what is the condition of being a samurai is, its basis lies first in seriously devoting ones body and soul to his master.
Not to forget one's master is the most fundamental thing for a retainer.
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It is a good viewpoint to see the world as a dream. When you have a nightmare, you will wake up and tell yourself that it was only a dream. It is said that the world we live in is not a bit different from this.
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The way of the samurai is found in death. Meditation on envitble death should be preformed daily. Everyday when one's mind and body are at peace, we should meditate upon being ripped apart by arrows, rifles, spears, and swords, being carried away by surging waves, being thrown into the midst of a great fire, being struck by lightning, being shaken to death by a great earthquake, falling from thousand foot cliffs, dying of disease, or commiting seppaku at the death of one's master. Every day without fail, one should consider himself as dead.
This is the substance of the way of the samurai.
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.Among the maxims on Lord Naoshioge's wall, there is this one: "Matters of great concern should be taken lightly." "Master Uttei commented, " matters of small concern should be treated seriously ".

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