Maruyama Sensei Recommends “Soul of the Samurai”

Recently Will Reed Sensei recommended the following on his facebook page

Recommended by Maruyama Sensei to understand the core of Aikido Yuishinkai as Budo.

“Soul of the Samurai”
Modern Translations of Three Classic Works of Zen and Bushido written by Yagyu Munenori and Zen Master Takuan.

Translated by Thomas Cleary

http://www.amazon.com/Soul-Samurai-Tuttle-Martial-Arts/dp/0804836906

Kindle Edition also available.

I also found it on FishPond, which is as cheap as Amazon for us Aussies, and without the postage bill (have ordered a copy for the dojo too).

I asked Reed Sensei a little more about the post, this is what he said

“Maruyama Sensei did say that everything is contained in the first paragraph of Takuan’s TAI-A KI: notes on the Peerless Sword.

It says that the art of war is not a matter of relative strength, but of penetrating the place where there is no division of yin and yang.

His lecture was pretty profound, on how Aikido is the the sound of one hand clapping. No action or reaction, just perfect synchronicity.

Or you can spend a hundred years holding hard and missing the point.”

Whilst also noting the of course Maruyama sensei works with the original Japanese text