In one line: One of the great stories of our time, a historical novel taking place in Feudal Japan in the 1600′s with all the juicy components–learning, history, a love story, suspense, deep character development, and an excellent plot; definitely worth diving in but be ready for a long haul.
⁃ A great enemy can be more useful than a great ally
⁃ We will experience many births and rebirths throughout life until we’ve reached nirvana
⁃ Samurai code is honor, loyalty and duty; rather die than be captured; serve their masters; men and women are samurais
⁃ Leave karma to karma
⁃ You do not have to endure the unendurable
⁃ Beam a light on yourself before you go being critical of me
⁃ To learn Japanese, you have to think Japanese
⁃ I never forget a great friend and especially not a great enemy
⁃ “Pillowing” – funny term
⁃ “Son” is used with the name for people who have higher status than you
⁃ Karma — there’s no sense in all the heartache and emotion because we could just die right now, so no need to worry or dwell on the past
⁃ Shinto — the essence of Japanese, myths and legends that they live by
⁃ Detested Christianity because did not believe in divorce or 6th commandment thou shall not kill
⁃ “Komy” – the soul or essence of our being that persists forever and comes and goes from heaven to earth
⁃ Female samurais commit seppuku by throat
⁃ Karma is the first foundation of knowledge; patience is the 2nd and mastering the 7 emotions the 3rd
⁃ “If you want peace you have to learn to drink cha from an empty cup. You drink reality into the cup.” – Mariko Son
⁃ “What are clouds but an excuse for the sky; what is life but an escape from death.” – Yabu Kasigi, death poem
⁃ “There is good in every evil man and evil in every good man. The trick is to harness the good and discard the evil without getting rid of the good.” – Toranaga
-”Isn’t man but a blossom taken by the wind, and only the mountains and the sea and the stars and this Land of the Gods real and everlasting?”
-”How beautiful life is and how sad! How fleeting, with no past and no future, only a limitless now.”
Philoso-Feed 