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MANAGEMENT LIBRARY
The Book of the Five Rings
by Miyamoto Musashi

Why Read It?

Emerging victorious from combat is not a matter of fighting skill, but rather of attitude. Miyamoto Musashi, a 17th-century master samurai swordfighter, says that the fighters attitude should be characterized by open-mindedness, uprightness, equanimity, and relaxation. The principles he enunciates also apply to managers in modern businesses. From them the perceptive manager can derive useful strategy concepts and rules of conduct for modern business life.

Getting Started
Musashis work offers the Western reader access to, and an understanding of, the thought, attitudes, and traditions of Japan; and it attempts to show how to achieve and preserve individuality in todays mass society. It is divided into five books, each assigned to one the five elements in Japanese tradition and each showing, on the basis of simple principles, how a samurai can defeat an opponent.

Contribution
1. The Book of the Earth Those who wish to learn the art of swordfighting, says Musashi, must follow these rules:

never have malicious thoughts practice constantly to follow the Way make yourself familiar with all the arts and techniques required study the ways of all occupations and professions learn to distinguish between profit and loss in all things develop your ability to see through things at first glance endeavor also to perceive the nature of things that remain invisible never let your attention slip, even when dealing with the smallest things do not waste time on useless activities

Only those, Musashi says, who, strictly following these rules, consider each situation in its totality. Constant practice will enable them to control their bodies so that they defeat their opponent physically, and if they have steeled their minds, they will be
Bloomsbury Publishing Plc 2005

BUSINESS: The Ultimate Resource

April 2005 Upgrade 31

able to overcome their opponent psychologically as well. If there is a way that leads to invincible self-confidence, that helps the individual to overcome all manner of difficulties, and brings fame and honor, that way is the Way of the Warrior. 2. The Book of Water Musashi stresses that in combat your inner attitude should be the same as it usually is. Take good care, he advises, that you are always the same in fight as you are in everyday life. If your body is at rest, do not let your mind remain inactive, but if your body is in violent motion, let your mind remain calm. In order to defeat an opponent in the correct way, you must first learn the five fighting positions and the corresponding tactics for attack. In this way, he argues, you will develop your judgment and your understanding of rhythm. 3. The Book of Fire Musashi lists three methods of seizing the initiative:

Attacking before your opponent does. This is called Ken-no-sen (leading by making the first move). Seizing the initiative at precisely the moment when the opponent launches an attack. This is Tai-no-sen (leading by waiting). Still seizing the initiative though both attack at the same time. This is Tai-taino-sen (leading in a tie).

If you have seized the initiative, says Musashi, victory is as good as assured. Turning to the broader military picture, Musashi teaches that it is important to recognize the situation and judge whether your opponent is in full command of his forces or already beginning to falter. That involves assessing the fighting spirit of his troops and the positions they have taken up and thus establishing a clear picture of the state he is in, so that you can deploy your own troops accordingly. If you use this strategy, victory is in your hands, because you fight with foresight. 4. The Book of the Wind He who relies solely on the power of his sword to beat down an opponent, according to Musashi, will strike with unreasonable force and not be in a position to finish the opponent off. No matter what opponent you are in life-and-death combat with, do not consider whether your blows are strong or weak; your mind must be set solely on killing him. The Book of the Wind says you should think about nothing else but his death. All other tricks to bring down an opponent, by winding the body, leaping away, or twisting the hand, do not belong in the true art of swordsmanship, according to Musashi.

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BUSINESS: The Ultimate Resource

April 2005 Upgrade 31

5. The Book of the Void The void is that in which nothing exists; it is that which it is impossible for humans to know. If, says Musashi, you know that which exists, you will also be capable of knowing that which does not exist. If, as a samurai, you understand precisely the way of swordsmanship, if daily and hourly you are diligent in training yourself, if you sharpen your wisdom and the power of your mind and learn judgment and vigilance, this will bring you to a state of true emptiness, understood by Musashi in the Buddhist sense as the state of ultimate fulfillment.

Context
Miyamoto Musashi (15841645) was a famous samurai. His Gorin-no-sho, or Book of Five Rings is a manual of swordsmanship, and, in contrast to other samurai texts like the Hagakure, it contains little information on the ethical and philosophical principals of the Way of the Warrior. Musashi was a masterless, or independent, samurai. For him, there was no superior authority apart from the Way. He remained undefeated throughout his life and shortly before his death withdrew to a cave as a hermit in order to write down his experiences. Reviews describe Musashi as a cult figure, as a guru, whose disciples now fight in world markets on the same principles that once guided the samurai. Musashis guide to strategy is treated with great respect in internal seminars held by large Western companies. Japanese business people use it as a handbook for planning sales campaigns.

The Best Sources of Help

Miyamoto Musashi. The Book of Five Rings. (trans. Wilson). London: Kodansha Europe, 2002.

Bloomsbury Publishing Plc 2005