What does it really mean to go from a beginner to a master?
What is it in this journey that one should actually strive towards?
If you expected some kind of shortcut to mastery from Zen Buddhism, you are out of luck. Like in every other school of thought, in Zen Buddhism too, "the secret" to reaching mastery is in constant practice.
However, what Takuan Soho offers in one of his letters to a master swordsman could be a new perspective on what mastery actually ends up being.
Before I get to the point, I will give a brief introduction to who Takuan Soho is.
Takuan Sōhō was a 17th century Japanese monk of the Rinzai school of Zen Buddhism. He is considered to be one of the most important figures in the Zen Buddhist tradition.
His treatise on Buddhist philosophy and martial arts, "The Unfettered Mind," influenced all Japanese texts on Buddhist philosophy and martial arts after it, and one of the books where the influence is evident is Miyamoto Musashi’s "The Book of Five Rings."
Takuan Sōhō was a friend and advisor to people from all parts of society.
One of them was Yagyū Munenori, one of the greatest swordsmen of his time and a rival to the legendary Musashi.
The first essay of the book, which I will be referencing this time, is actually a letter from Sōhō to Munenori.
Now, let’s get to the path of mastery.
When one practices a discipline and moves from the beginner’s territory to mastery, one "makes a return and falls back to the level of beginning."
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