Yagyū Munenori: Down

Yagyū Munenori was samurai and daimyo of the early Edo period. Explore interesting quotes on down.

Yagyū Munenori: 20 quotes2 likes

“Once a fight has started, if you get involved in thinking about what to do, you will be cut down by your opponent with the very next blow.”

Yagyū Munenori

A Hereditary Book on the Art of War (1632)

“Throwing down your own sword is also an art of war. If you have attained mastery of swordlessness, you will never lack for a sword. The opponent's sword is your sword. This is acting at the vanguard of the moment.”

Yagyū Munenori

As quoted in Soul of the Samurai (2005) by Thomas Cleary, p. 28
Variant translation: If you have attained mastery of swordlessness, you will never be without a sword.

“It is easy to kill someone with a slash of a sword. It is hard to be impossible for others to cut down.”

Yagyū Munenori

As quoted in Behold the Second Horseman (2005), by Joseph Lumpkin, p. 53.