Book Report 4: Musashi's Dokkodo
The concept of the book I do like, and the Precepts that Musashi wrote are sound and I can apply them, but the way the book was written is not one I particularly found too useful. The book had 5 different professionals, a Monk, a Warrior, a Teacher, an Insurance Executive, and a businessman all give their personal opinions and perspectives on Musashi's Precepts. To me, I felt they didn't have enough background or insight to be able to justify trying to interpret Musashi's Precepts.
The Precepts themselves, however, I felt were relatable, especially for this time period of my life.
Precept 1 "Accept everything just the way it is" is, to say the least, a proper way to live a more satisfied and peaceful life. This allows one to not get upset or try to fight situations that are out of one's control. However, this has to be in moderation. As the authors noted, if we always accepted everything for the way it is, there would be no advancement (no airplanes, no computers, etc). Thus, I feel that this is more relatable on factors that are completely out of one's control, where you'll be hurting yourself trying to change the unchangeable.
Precept 4: "Think lightly of yourself and deeply of the world." This is fantastic advice. Who are we individually but just a dot on the planet, which in of itself is a spec in the universe? Humans will live and die, and many will never be remembered. Our egos may make us believe we are the center of the universe, but in reality, we are only in the center of OUR universe, and everyone else is in the center of THEIR universe. In a world of social media sefies and tweets, it's hard to suppress one's ego, but doing so is imperative to a more peaceful and calm life.
Precept 6: "Do not regret what you have done." I believe some regret is proper, because that feeling of regret and guilt will prevent you from doing wrong again. However, you should not allow regret to control you, your life, and your future actions. Accept that you may have conducted an act that you should not have done, feel the regret and remorse needed, and learn to move on, and do not let the regret hold you back. Instead, learn from it, never do it again, and improve yourself and your actions going forward.
Precept 7 "Never be jealous." Envy is in the eye of the beholder. The grass is greener on the other side. etc etc. Envy, jealously, these are sins in pretty much every religion. This is because having jealousy can bear other, more dangerous negative emotions, such as anger, hate, etc. that may lead to violence. People in human history have started wars because of jealousy and done other countless unspeakable acts. Be happy for thy neighbor, for his prosperity can lead fruit for the community. It is better to be grateful those around you as prospering, and learning from them, versus getting upset, jealous, and trying to bring them down.
Out of the 21 precepts Musashi wrote, these were the ones that resonated most with me.
Do I recommended reading the entire book? I do not. Do i recommend reading the Precepts, skimming what the authors said, and applying the Precepts to your life? Yes I do.