A famous quote by Miyamoto Musashi, the master swordsman who remains popular today through his appearances in various creative works.
Miyamoto Musashi was a real swordsman in the early Edo period and a strategist who is still frequently featured in creative works today—plays, novels, manga, and films.
He is likely a great historical figure whose name almost everyone, young and old, has heard at least once.
He also had the face of an artist; his ink paintings and crafted works such as wooden swords can still be found in museums across various regions.
This time, we’ve shone a spotlight on the famous sayings Musashi left behind.
The words of this multitalented great figure are sure to illuminate your life.
- Passion for Creation and Life Philosophy Interpreted from Osamu Tezuka’s Famous Quotes
- Heartfelt! Inspiring Quotes Left by Great Figures of Japan
- A collection of quotes from people of the past: messages from famous military commanders and great figures of the world.
- A collection of famous quotes by manga characters that color our works and illuminate our lives!
- Short, piercing quotes from manga! A collection of one-liners that can change your life
- It stirs the heart before you know it! A collection of famous quotes from the timeless masterpiece Fist of the North Star
- The memorable quotes from Demon Slayer pierce the heart. These profound words cannot be read without tears.
- Quotes you'll want to say out loud! A collection of cool lines from anime and words that strike the heart
- If you know them, they might become beacons that light your life’s path: a collection of memorable quotes.
- A collection of Muichiro Tokito’s famous quotes: profound words from the Mist Hashira that leave a lasting mark on the heart.
- Quotations from literary masters: messages from authors who weave captivating works.
- One-line Quotes from Great Figures That Strike the Heart | A Collection of Words That Leave a Deep Impression
- The famous quote by Kyojuro Rengoku, who enjoys immense popularity in Demon Slayer.
Famous quotes (1–10) by the popular swordsman Miyamoto Musashi, who still appears in various works today
Grasp one principle, and you understand all things.Miyamoto Musashi
Ukosaben is pronounced “uko-saben.” It means wavering as you look to the right and to the left, unable to decide.
While one might think that taking the long way around leads to many encounters, Musashi teaches with this phrase that if you want broad knowledge, you should master one thing.
Whether it’s training to build your ideal physique or learning a foreign language to master linguistics—anything is fine.
If you truly master that one thing, you’ll find many more open paths waiting beyond it!
Train for a thousand days to forge yourself; train for ten thousand days to refine yourself.Miyamoto Musashi
Have you ever been on a diet? You start out thinking, “I’m going to lose weight!” but the reality is, it’s hard to keep it up, isn’t it? Not just dieting—studying, strength training, journaling—why is it so hard to continue? It’s almost baffling.
When I came across this quote by Miyamoto Musashi, I felt the weight of the word ‘discipline,’ and I’m sure I’m not the only one.
For Musashi, continuing something—discipline—is not mere practice; it’s already in the realm of rigorous training.
You set an ideal you can never fully attain, and you discipline yourself to get closer to it.
These are words that will resonate especially with those who are single-mindedly doing their best.
In one’s whole life, never harbor greedy desires.Miyamoto Musashi
People are often ruled by desire, aren’t they? There are surely those who live their whole lives steeped in it.
In the midst of that, Miyamoto Musashi declared that he would have no desire.
Perhaps he understood well that harboring desire would ruin him.
He was a very stoic person.
And this quote also seems to express a resolve: if you think “a little is fine” and let desire in, it will pull you along and ruin the path you were striving to master—so don’t have it at all.
When you feel you’re about to be ruled by desire, remember these words.
Famous quotes (11–20) by Musashi Miyamoto, the master swordsman still popular today through his appearances in various modern works
On every path, do not grieve partings.Miyamoto Musashi
For those who started living on their own this year, those who moved to Tokyo for further studies, and those who left their hometowns for a job—there must have been many farewells along the way.
Leaving a familiar place is lonely, it brings a measure of anxiety, and of course being separated from parents and friends is no different.
In the days of Miyamoto Musashi, when transportation was nowhere near as developed as it is now, the word “farewell” may even have carried a resonance akin to bereavement.
And yet, Musashi lived without letting even such partings trouble his heart—so it seems to me.
Take the sky as a road, and see the road as the sky.Miyamoto Musashi
An unexpectedly popular character from the manga Fist of the North Star is Juuza of the Clouds.
His free-spirited personality must have made him a beloved figure.
When you’re going to school or work every day, there are days when everything just feels unbearable.
You might even want to quit living a life that runs on rails someone else laid down.
At times like that, please remember these words from Musashi.
They’ll make your heart take wing and give you the feeling you can walk your path freely.
“It’s up to you to decide how you live.” It almost feels as if he’s gently teaching us even that.
Think little of yourself and think deeply of the world.Miyamoto Musashi
I think this phrase can be interpreted in several ways, but many translations take it to mean that you shouldn’t place too much importance on yourself and should think more deeply about the world.
Alternatively, it might mean to stop thinking in a self-centered way and look at the world more broadly and objectively.
It’s wrong to treat yourself poorly, but the way you cherish a mistaken version of yourself is also misguided, isn’t it? When you feel like you’re losing sight of who you are, please reflect on where you stand—and consider whether you’re focusing too much on yourself.
In the Way, one thinks without shunning death.Miyamoto Musashi
Miyamoto Musashi can be called a master who perfected the way of the sword, and among his famous sayings is this: one must not fear death in the pursuit of one’s own path.
I imagine that many of you reading this have, even if not on such a grand scale, tried to stick to some path or conviction of your own.
Musashi tells us that in such times, it is vital to throw yourself into it with everything you have, to see it through and master it.
Doing so helps a person grow and elevates that path into something more noble.