Miyamoto Musashi

Japanese swordsman, philosopher, strategist, writer, artist, and rōnin (1584-1645) · Japan · Academics · Died at 61

Miyamoto Musashi is read about 5,239 times a day, in 73 languages.

A typical day, 30 days to 23 October 2026

The middle day of the days counted, so one week of news cannot move it. The line under it is the last 398 days, one point a day.

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A swordsman who fought 62 duels and never lost, then laid down his blades to write the manual. Musashi's Book of Five Rings distilled a life of combat into strategy that outlasted the age of the sword.

Writers Writer / Author Literature Painting Philosophy Japan Asia Early Modern Era

A life in dates

1645Died5 June 1645“The Way is shown in five books concerning different aspects. These are Ground, Water, Fire, Wind, and Void.”In their wordsTranslated as The Book of Five Rings or A Book of Five RingsRead the whole statement

“Second is the Water book. With water as the basis, the spirit becomes like water. Water adopts the shape of its receptacle, it is sometimes a trickle and sometimes a wild sea.”In their wordsTranslated as The Book of Five Rings or A Book of Five RingsRead the whole statement

“Third is the Fire book. This book is about fighting. The spirit of fire is fierce, whether the fire be small or big; and so it is with battles.”In their wordsTranslated as The Book of Five Rings or A Book of Five RingsRead the whole statement

“Fourthly the Wind book. This book is not concerned with my Ichi school but with other schools of strategy.”In their wordsTranslated as The Book of Five Rings or A Book of Five RingsRead the whole statement

“Fifthly, the book of the Void. By Void I mean that which has no beginning and no end. Attaining this principle means not attaining the principle.”In their wordsTranslated as The Book of Five Rings or A Book of Five RingsRead the whole statement

1584Born

Also in Deutsch

Photos 8

Miyamoto Musashi-Portrait-Edo-period

40 ans de la Fédération de kendo

Armure de l’École Heiho Niten Ichi Ryu

Banderas del Sagrado Corazón

Blason officiel de l’École (Heihō Kadensho) Niten Ichi Ryu

Blouson de kendo

Budokan Miyamoto Musashi - mois de mai 2015

Cachet du Fondeur Adobati au pied de la Statue de Miyamoto Musashi

In their own words 10

Miyamoto Musashi

10 statements, newest first

The Way is shown in five books concerning different aspects. These are Ground, Water, Fire, Wind, and Void.
1645, Translated as The Book of Five Rings or A Book of Five Rings, Own words
Second is the Water book. With water as the basis, the spirit becomes like water. Water adopts the shape of its receptacle, it is sometimes a trickle and sometimes a wild sea.
1645, Translated as The Book of Five Rings or A Book of Five Rings, Own words
Third is the Fire book. This book is about fighting. The spirit of fire is fierce, whether the fire be small or big; and so it is with battles.
1645, Translated as The Book of Five Rings or A Book of Five Rings, Own words

Wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0

Family

Father Shinmen Munisai

Miyamoto Musashi

Children

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About this person

Born around 1583, Miyamoto Musashi built his reputation through an undefeated record across 62 duels, wielding two blades in a style no one else had mastered. He founded the Niten Ichi-ryū school of swordsmanship and fought alongside Tokugawa forces at Sekigahara, Osaka, and the Shimabara Rebellion. In his final years he turned from steel to ink, writing The Book of Five Rings - a treatise on his martial philosophy - and Dokkōdō, a spare set of precepts on solitude and discipline. He gave both texts to his student Terao Magonojō seven days before his death on 13 June 1645. Japan now calls him kensei: sword saint.

Country

Japan

Academics from Japan 6

Heizō Takenaka69.2

Osamu Kitayama64.2 Yōichi Takahashi70.7

Kitamura Sae59.5

Chizuko Ueno70.5

Daichi Suzuki60.8

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