caspian38

Hope you enjoy it... As much as I'm enjoying the Bodhidharma ( Red Pines translation ) that you suggested. If that was the link you used .... It looks like it didn't have The Book of Family Traditions. Althought amazon is substituting the inside view of the 1997 with the 2008 printing. Amazon is treating it like its the same book, not cool when your looking for a specific book. Guess I was luckier than I thought to stumble across Munenori. Thanks for the tip on Thomas Cleary ill check out his other translations/works. This is the book I have (1997 printing). Sorry for not posting a link earlier. http://www.amazon.com/Book-Five-Rings-Miyamoto-Musashi/dp/0760704449/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1400133325&sr=8-1&keywords=0760704449

My wife woke me up at 4am this morning saying I should thank you (Agney5) for her ,she enjoyed reading your post and insight. As did I. ...lots of good posts so far in the thread. She hasn't shared her thoughts with me on the thread..If I have learned anything from being married it is the more I push ,the more resistant she becomes. I'm letting her mull.

"Even when you are going in and out a door ,do not neglect attention to the going out and going in,always keeping aware." Munenori Even when I think I'm being aware ,I'm not that aware. I won't be snatching the pebble from anyone's hand anytime soon.

Looks like its the same book ... Although the translations differ greatly ! This is most of the first page from my copy! so you can compare the translations on amazon. Thomas Cleary translated my copy if that means anything(I have never read any of his other translations). The Killing Sword There is an old saying, " weapons are instruments of I'll omen, despised by the Way of Heaven. To use them only when unavoidable is the Way of Heaven". The reason weapons are instruments of I'll omen is that the Way of Heaven is the Way that gives life to beings , so something used for killing is truly an instrument of I'll omen . Thus the saying has it that what contradicts the way of heaven is despised. Nevertheless, it also says that to use arms when unavoidable is also the Way of Heaven. What does this mean? Although flowers blossom and greenery increases in the spring breez , when the autum frost comes ,leaves always drop and trees wither. This is the judgment of nature. This is becuse ther is logic in striking down something when it is completed. People may take advantage of events to do evil,but when that evil is complete,it is attacked. That is why it is said that using weapons is also the way of heaven. It may happen that myriad people suffer becuse of the evil of man. In such a case ,myriad people are saved by killing one man. Would this not be a true example of "the sword that kills is the sword that gives life"?

I cant find it on amazon. Is it in the rare / collectable category? The current copy I have is paired With the book of five rings , ISBN 0-7607-0444-9 It's not the best translation of The Book of Five Rings. I was just replacing the Book of Five Rings and had no idea The Book of Family Traditions on the Art of War was in the back ! Amazon has it for about $4.00 used right now.

The Platform Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch (Tun-Huang manuscripts) "Although enlightenment [bodhi] is originally pure, Creating the mind that seeks it is then delusion." (sec. 36 ) The Master Hui-neng http://www.fodian.net/world/Platform_Sutra_Yampolsky.pdf It doesn't have to be "The Book " just a good book ,sutra...ect. I see all these great quotes on the forum ,and I have never read most of them. This thread was an attempt at finding some guidance. When I said one book , one quote ... You either know you can post as many books as are appropriate ( I was thinking one per post would be easy to read) ,or you don't ,and you have one book to suggest. The whole "The same man can't read/ suggest the same book twice" applies... Pardon my paraphrasing. Thanks benos! Found it for free just added (.pdf). Adding the translator is a good point ! The Zen Teaching of Bhodidharma, translarted by Red Pine http://selfdefinition.org/zen/Zen%20Teaching%20of%20Bodhidharma%20-%20trans.%20Red%20Pine%20-%20Clearscan.pdf

It's all good ,until its not. I rush , go faster , try , care ,you name it. You can feel the edge ,and sometimes you just think you can. I have had moments where I was are flying through a stage and for some reason ( I do it after I drop a shot or I relize I'm just too slow) my mind says rush and all of a sudden I'm in warp drive. I still see everything I still call my shots ,but it's perfect( relatively speaking) Its controlled chaos. Other times it's just chaos. It resembles luck but you feel, see and know the difference. How you find it doesn't matter. If you can control it ,control it. I have to let it happen ,as soon as try to control it it slips through my grasp ( or explodes in my hand ). I have no doubt great shooters can control it at will. This is a great thread it's like listening to Leonardo and Michelangelo discuss art ( not the TMT ). I almost feel like I should just keep my mouth shut and listen. BE and TGO podcast ? If it's already happened some one send me a link please!

The Book of Family Traditions on the Art of War, Munenori, Yagyu (1600s) "The heart of those on the Way is like a mirror ,empty and clear,being mindless and yet not failing to accomplish anything."

One book... One quote. What book changed your way of thinking! If you where trapped on a ..... Which book would you take if you had only one choice. ( no porn or survival books ) What should the rest of us read that we might have missed! Here is the catch, you get one pick and a reasonably (small) quote. The idea is to share what book the rest of us need to read, but not make it overwhelming down the road. Starting with the title might help. If it's hard to find ,and you know where to find it ,point us in the direction. This is not about quantity it's about quality!

It's one of those books you might have never read just becuse of the weird title. Has anyone started a what books to read thread? I'm always seeing awesome quotes and ideas on the forum that I have never seen or read. After getting on the Maku Mozo mailer I can see I have missed a lot of great reading along the way.

"It is essential to practice an attitude of not dwelling on anything , be it the actions of an opponent , your own skills , or slashing and stabbing. " "No matter what kind of secret transmission you obtain and what move you employ, if your mind lingers on that move , you will have lost in martial arts." "If you have attained the mastery of swordlessness, you will never be without a sword. The opponent's sword is your sword. " The Book of Family Traditions That last one might not be relevant ,but I like the thought process.

"To embody the free-minded mind means that as long as you use the mind that release the mind to rope the mind and keep dragging it back, you are not free and independent. The mind that does not stop and linger anywhere even when it is set free is called the free-minded mind." "A well- governed mind does not use expedients to pacify it " The Book of Family Traditions

"Suppose you are shooting with a bow and you think you are shooting while you are shooting ;then the aim of your bow will be inconsistent and unsteady." The Book of Family Traditions I read it again for the first time.

Just a page I thought worth reading. Sorry for any mistakes I was to lazy to go to my computer and spent more energy typing it on my iPad. The Great Learning In all things, uncertainty exist becuse of not knowing. Things stick in your mind becuse of being in doubt. When the principle is clarified , nothing sticks in your mind . This is called consummating knowledge and perfecting things. Since there is no longer anything sticking in your mind all your tasks become easy to do. For this reason ,the practice of all the arts is for the purpouse of clearing away what is on your mind. In the beginning, you do not know anything ,so paradoxically you do not have any questions on your mind. Then when you get into studies ,ther is something in your mood. And you are obstructed by that. This makes everything dificult to do. When what you have studied leaves your mind entirely , and practice also disappears ,then ,when your preform whatever art you are engaged in ,you accomplish the techniques easily without being inhibited by concern over what you have learned and yet without deviating from what you have learned. This is spontaneously conforming to learning without being consciously aware of doing so. The science of the art of war can be understood through this. To learn all the sword strokes ,the physical postures ,and the focus of the eyes ,to thoroughly learn all there is to learn and practice it ,is the spirit of consummating knowledge. Then,when you have succeeded in learning ,when everything you have learned disappears from your conscious mind and you become innocent,this is the spirit of perfecting things. When you have built up achievement in cultivation of learning and practice ,even as your hands ,feet and body act ,this does not hang on your mind. You are detached from learning yet do not deviate from your from your learning. Whatever you do ,your action is free. At this time, you do not even know where your own mind is; neither the celestial devil nor outsiders can spy into your heart . The learning is for the purpouse of reaching this state. Once you have learned this successfully , learning disappears. This is the ultimate sense and the progressive transcendentalism of all the Zen arts. Forgetting learning ,relinquish mind, harmonizing without any self -conscious knowledge thereof, is the ultimate consummation of the Way. This stage is a matter of entering from learning into no learning. The Book of Family Traditions On the Art of War , Yagyu Munenori

Make a plan, and practice until you no longer need it. "When what you have studied leaves your mind entirely ,and practice also disappears , then ,when you perform whatever art you are engaged in ,you accomplish the techniques easily without being inhibited by concern over what you have learned. This is spontaneously conforming to learning without being conscious of doing so. The science of the art of the art of war can be understood through this." The book of Family Traditions Just replace the words "art of war" with art of USPSA shooting.

12.5 yards , then test at other distances. I use 12.5 becuse of MOA ,and it seems to be an easy shot for most to start with. I have found that the bullet doesn't drop out of the dot at most uspsa distances. I shoot a 16 MOA so it's behind the dot at 50 yards (so is most of the a zone). MOA dot : 16 = 4 inches @ 25 yards, 2@12.5 8 = 2 inches @ 25 , 1@12.5 1 MOA / 1.047 @100 yards

After alternating my focus back, and forth I have noticed a few interesting things...it's all in my head. Speed is not more important than accuraccy to little of either won't win a match. Like almost everything its balance. Rushing in my mind is trying to beat a .5 par time when practicing draws. Try five and then back it off to a 1 second par time. I have all the time in the world to beat the 1 second par time. I have a smoother draw better sight picture it's on target ,and I'm waiting for the buzzer to sound the second tone. Is one draw faster than the other? One is better that's for sure. There is no time diffrence between shooting an alpha, and shooting a delta. The diffrence is in what I'm willing to accept. As a C shooter I needed more speed .as a B shooter I needed more control. If your running stages at match winning speeds ,but with too many mistakes this might be the perfect time for this advice. When you look at match results the best shooters all have pretty close times and points. A few points or seconds is all it takes to win, and the most consistent shooter usually wins. At local matches it's not to hard to shave 5 seconds off a stage ,but if your shooting against good shooters you shouldn't be able to find big chunks of time. If I find five seconds I don't want to give it back becuse of mikes or low points. Balance. ... And like TGO said " lunch " I highly recomend Dickey's BBQ pit it's not the best ,but it's always good. Nothing like gnawing on a rib bone after winning a match (very primal).

Saw a kid at a match a few weeks ago have issues with ammo in his factory pistol. frabochi 40s&w ( don't know if that's how it's spelled ). They had zero crimp and you could see where the case lip was dinged as it caught on the roof of the chamber. I would buy another box of competitor ammo and give it a try before I did anything. Worst case you'll have an extra box of ammo.

I shot on the same squad as a GM this last match ,and I noticed he was always the first to start the walk through ,and the last to stop. He must have walked each stage 10-15 times. I walk through 3-5 times ,kind follow the crowd and I make mistakes. He treated the match like a match. He didn't chat a lot ,and if he wasn't helping reset he was running through his plan again and again. It's a lesson I won't forget. Make a plan , refine it , practice , practice , practice .....x10 ,and if that's not enough run it 10 more times. Take the time ,effort and focus you need to run each stage. Until you have shot the stage stay focused ! You can chat with the guys after your run.

I agree with always calling your shots. However ,for myself I find that alternating my emphasis between shooting alphas and speed helps. I shoot one match focusing on getting alphas and no penaltys then the next week I kick it up and shoot for center of brown at top speed ( lots of rushing ! ). Then the next week/ match I slow it back down and shoot for alphas again. Sometimes I feel like a chicken running around with no head when I'm moving as fast as is safe. When I slow down again it's not much slower ,and it feels calm, quiet and easy. I did get beat by a GM shooting production minor this last week ( I was shooting open major ). So .... He was definetly shooting all alphas with no rushing. I almost deleted this post ... I think I just talked my self into shooting all alphas with no rushing. How did it go ? Calm , deliberate and confident.

What MOA dot are you using ...? I shoot a 16 MOA so I sight in at 12.5 yards and my gun shoots in the dot to 50 ( it's 8 inches at 50 though). At 12.5 yards my dot still covers like 2 inches. Any further and it's hard to find the center of the group compared to center of the dot. I always sight in free hand ,but if your not shooting a ragged single hole try the bench. If its an 8 MOA ( pretty standard) it covers 1 inch at 12.5 yards which is about the size of group you want. If its 4 MOA ( get a bigger dot)... C-more sells replaceable diodes in,4 ,8,12, or 16 ( maybe more ).

Well looking at the calculator there is never time alowed ... All it really does is give you an idea of damage control. I still think It could be used for planning( looking forward to trying at this weeks match). . Looking at the times two alphas on longer shots that take even a little pause may not be worth it in most cases. I'm a firm believer in taking the time needed to make and call every shot. Problem is mathematically it looks like there is defenitly a time for just flinging a couple shots in a targets direction or even running right by at warp speed. I tweaked it a bit, if I take something out that I shouldn't let me know ... Beta version 2.0 I'll add time to the C And D hit factors also. Although when you get down to it HF IS ALL THAT MATTERS. I tried to make a working chart but so far failed. The relationship of hit factor , speed , points should be easy/ possible to show in a chart. If like me your range doesn't have cell signal. If you open it on your devices web browser it works fine as long as you don't close the page out.

Goes well with my general feeling that the secret to happiness is low expectations. Didn't get hit by a drunk driver on the way home from the range? So much win!" Hey honey the key to happiness is having low expectations". Wow ! I'm not joking ! I bet men have been trying to convince their wives of this since the cave man days. Be happy with "now " in the moment ...ect. "This is as good as it gets". When I was 13 I had an epiphany. I was going through the normal teenage years and hating every moment. It got to the point I was depressed and didn't even want to get out of bed. While laying there I let my mind wander, and it came to me that I coud be happy or sad. Everything is meaningless ,so I have been happy ever sense . I do get mad, frustrated, whatever, but in the end I remember I can see anything as happy or sad , good or bad , it's all perception and I have a choice as to how I experience life. Now sharing that simple truth has alway eluded me. It seems like you either see it or you don't. I choose happy. " This is as good as it gets ", "This is all there is to life ", " low expectations " , "at home on a single branch" every one a pearl of wisdom ,or curse. "no expectations"

Read Ecclesiastes. All of it. 10 times. Just finished reading it. I might never truly understand it , 10 times might be an optimistic. Reading it as a non- Christian with no religious belief per say was interesting. I dismiss the bible as being a religious text ,and that was obviously ignorant of me. It's weird, I know I have read Ecclesiastes before when I was younger ,but it was just another book in the bible. Thanks for the direction, another +1 on reading it. I think my wife feels more like the lioness trapped at the zoo. ( I'm giving her a link to this thread tonight so I picked a noble animal). Being able to let go and be at home on ones branch is easier said than done, for most of us I think. I didn't know what a tailorbird was and looked it up. After seeing their nests the quote seems even more insightful. They really are at home on a single branch. http://search.yahoo.com/search?fr=ipad&p=tailorbird&pcarrier=&pmcc=000&pmnc=00d